Monday, 12 August 2024
August 10‒18 is National Science Week, Australia’s annual celebration of science and technology. This year’s theme is ‘Species Survival: More than just sustainability’.
Read on to find out how you can get involved with BirdLife Australia’s bird conservation projects around the country this National Science Week and beyond.
Science is the foundation of BirdLife Australia’s bird conservation work – and for over 120 years we’ve been leading the way in the scientific study of Australia’s birds.
Since 1901, BirdLife Australia’s staff, members and supporters have documented much of what we know about Australia’s native birds, the threats they face and how to address them. For decades, the data we’ve collected through our conservation, research and citizen science programs has helped chart and shape national and local environment policy and driven conservation decision-making at all levels.
Our scientists study birds using the least invasive means possible – banding, counting and fitting birds with transmitters to help us better understand and protect them.
We track changes in bird populations and use this data to guide and support our work helping declining populations recover, so that we aren’t just counting them into extinction.
But scientists aren’t the only people making a difference in protecting Australia’s birds – you can too!
Citizen science is key when it comes to our bird conservation programs, and our citizen scientists help us efficiently monitor birds on a scale we couldn’t achieve alone. The data collected by these volunteers is invaluable for modelling population trends, identifying Key Biodiversity Areas, determining the breeding success of threatened species and monitoring and addressing the impact of threats like habitat destruction and bushfires – and more!
Just this year, our citizen scientists have joined us in searching, counting and listening for birds, including threatened species like the Regent Honeyeater, Australasian Bittern, Swift Parrot, Orange-bellied Parrot and more. Wherever you are in Australia and no matter your age or experience, help us help birds by becoming a citizen scientist today!
Here are eight ways you can get involved in science and bird conservation with BirdLife Australia for National Science Week – and beyond.
SUITABLE FOR ALL SKILL LEVELS
We can’t protect what we don’t know – and that’s where Birdata comes in.
Surveys logged on Birdata, our national bird monitoring program and database, help us track changes in bird populations over time and provide an invaluable insight into how birds are faring. This important data helps us understand population declines, and has contributed to several birds being listed as at risk of extinction on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Since 1998, thousands of contributors have logged over 25 million bird records – which help our scientists better understand and protect Australia’s birds.
Sign up to Birdata today to start submitting bird surveys of your own, and find out how by watching our handy tutorial below.
BEGINNER-FRIENDLY
Get a spring in your step by doing a Birds in Backyards Spring survey!
Over September and October, simply spend 20 minutes in your backyard (or nearby outdoor space) and count how many birds you see of each species and the kind of habitat they’re using.
Then, log your survey on Birdata (either online or through the app) – you can do as many surveys as you like, as often as you like.
This data helps us track the health of Australia’s urban birds and monitor the impact of our gardens, outdoor spaces and behaviour, so every survey counts!
Find out more about Birds in Backyards seasonal surveys.
Learn more about the birds of Australia’s towns and cities and how you can help make our urban spaces more bird-friendly with our monthly webinar series. Brought to you by our Urban Birds team and a stellar lineup of guest speakers, these free, educational webinars will inspire you to connect with and protect your local birds.
Tune in to our Birds Meet: Webinar series
BEGINNER-FRIENDLY (SOME TRAINING REQUIRED)
If you’re a good listener and know your bitterns from your banjo frogs, this one’s for you!
In wetlands across Southern Australia, our Wetland Birds team are listening for the booming calls of the elusive and Endangered Australasian Bittern – and we need your help finding them.
We’re looking for volunteer citizen scientists to help us listen for bitterns over spring and summer, during their breeding season. You’ll be trained in listening survey techniques and deployed to a local wetland to listen out for booming bitterns at dawn or dusk, when they’re most often heard.
This data is logged in Birdata, and helps our team identify, monitor and protect habitat and priority conservation areas for the Australasian Bittern.
Find out more about our Bittern Listening Surveys and register your interest here.
INTERMEDIATE (SOME PRIOR KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED)
Our Birds on Farms team partners with landholders across the country to learn more about birds and their habitats on private rural properties, and how best to protect them.
We’re looking for experienced birdwatchers to conduct regular standardised bird surveys on private properties across rural south-eastern Australia, as well as landholders who are interested in conducting surveys on their own properties.
This data provides an invaluable insight into the health of bird populations and habitat use on private land, and helps protect and recover local woodland birds and their habitats.
Find out more about our Birds on Farms surveys and register your interest here
If you’re based in eastern Australia, register for our upcoming Great Glossy Count on 7–8 September!
This annual citizen science event collects important data on the Vulnerable South-eastern subspecies of Glossy Black-Cockatoo (Glossies) and their feeding habitat. The Count is held across their range (south-eastern Queensland, eastern NSW, the ACT and eastern Victoria).
You can help collect data by spending at least an hour during the Count weekend exploring your selected survey site and recording any Glossies and feed trees you see. This data informs bushfire recovery planning and helps us identify, protect and restore Glossy feeding habitat. Training resources are available to help you prepare, including guidance on how to identify Glossies the she-oaks they feed on, and how to safely collect data.
Learn more and register for the Great Glossy Count.
If you live near the coast, volunteering with BirdLife Australia’s Beach-nesting Birds team is a great way to get involved in community conservation efforts and help protect and better understand threatened shorebirds like the Hooded Plover and Fairy Tern.
Volunteers of all ages and experiences can volunteer in breeding site monitoring and protection, shorebird education and engagement and more, and you choose which level of commitment works for you ‒ whether it’s once a week or an annual population count. With Hooded Plover breeding season now underway and a wide array of volunteer opportunities available, it’s a great time to get involved and help make a real different for our most vulnerable beach-goers.
Find out more about our Beach-nesting Birds Program and how you can get involved.
It’s breeding season for the Critically Endangered Regent Honeyeater, and we need your help finding them!
Alongside Australian National University (ANU), BirdLife Australia conducts the National Regent Honeyeater Monitoring Program. This project covers the Regent Honeyeater’s breeding range, from north-east Victoria all the way to south-east Queensland – collecting important data on where these highly-mobile birds are and how their population is faring.
With a wild population of as few as 250 birds, this data is critical in informing our ongoing work helping the Regent Honeyeater recover. And if you’re lucky enough to see one of Australia’s rarest species, you can help – by reporting any sightings here.
Learn more about BirdLife Australia’s citizen science opportunities.
If you see a Regent Honeyeater, let us know as soon as possible.
To save birds, we need reliable data. Birdata is where we collect, keep and share this information. Compiled almost entirely by citizen scientists, Birdata is Australia's largest and longest running database for birds, with more than 22 million records (and counting).
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