Today (24 March) we added a paragraph to the Birdstack Privacy Policy relating to the potential use of third-party cookies. You can review the changes under the “Cookies” heading in the Privacy Policy.
Archive for March, 2009
Change in Privacy Policy
Tuesday, March 24th, 2009Taxonomy upgrade to IOC 2.0
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009We’ve just finished updating the Birdstack database to conform with version 2.0 of the IOC’s world bird list. If your data was affected by any splits or lumps, you will have a notification. For help with the upgrade process, check the taxonomic updates help page and the taxonomic updates screencast.
Version 2.0 contains 10,331 species classified in 42 orders, 226 families and 2,199 genera. This is a major update that includes revisions of the family classification as well as species taxonomy. You may notice significant revisions in orders and families based on the results of important genetic studies. Our assumptions and hypotheses about avian systematics are undergoing major revisions as more information becomes available. Among other changes, the list now includes more than 200 recently split and newly described species, revisions of the Old World Warbler families, and a resequencing of suboscine families to align with South American Checklist Committee classification.
You can explore further at WorldBirdNames.org.
Add your voice to Birds of the Equinox!
Monday, March 16th, 2009
Birds of the Equinox is a project to document birdlife around the world during the March equinox, which is this Friday — 20 March at 11:44 a.m. UCT (that’s 7:44 a.m. in New York and 10:44 p.m. in Sydney). We want to hear from you, wherever you are that day! Here’s how.
Depending on your cultural outlook, equinox marks either the beginning or the midpoint of a season. Depending on your hemisphere, that season is either autumn or spring.
It’s an excellent time to stop and reflect on the birds around you. What’s changing? Are birds returning or passing through? Are they departing? Are they singing or molting?
At some point within 12 hours either side of the equinox, go birding — even if it’s just by looking out your window for 10 minutes. Record your observations in a trip on Birdstack. Take pictures. Blog your thoughts. Here are more ideas, an official timetable for participation, and the rules. (And for further inspiration, check out Birds of the Solstice: December 2008).
There are Birdstackers on six continents, and we’d love to have participation from Tasmania to Finland and from Capetown to Gujarat. Entries are due by 27 March, and by 5 April, we’ll post a compilation of your observations, pictures, and thoughts.
If you would like to promote Birds of the Equinox on your blog, you can copy and paste either of these code snippets:
Banner (500px by 110px):
<a href="http://birdstack.com/solar-birding/march-equinox-2009""><img src="http://birdstack.com/images/equinox-banner.jpg" alt="Birds of the Equinox" title="Birds of the Equinox, a Birdstack community project" /></a>
or
Button (165px by 165px):
<a href="http://birdstack.com/solar-birding/march-equinox-2009"><img src="http://birdstack.com/images/equinox-button.jpg" alt="Birds of the Equinox" title="Birds of the Equinox, a Birdstack community project" /></a>
You can also RSVP/promote Birds of the Equinox on Facebook.
Good birding!