Birdata

Key points

• The many different types of Birdata surveys mean that everyone can contribute to bird conservation, whether they are a beginner or an expert birder.
• Our handy, easy-to-use iPhone and Android apps facilitate simple data entry on mobile devices and provide basic reporting functionality.
• Birdata’s dedicated band of over 9,000 contributors has contributed over 1.5 million surveys, comprising more than 22 million bird records – and counting!

To prevent bird extinctions in Australia and keep common birds common, we need accurate information about bird populations and their habitats so we can identify trends. Only then can we address the threats our birds face or advocate for the conservation actions our birds need before it’s too late.

Make your birding count for conservation

The Birdata program underpins so much of the work we do at BirdLife Australia. Each time a Birdata survey is submitted, it is added into our huge database, and directly contributes to BirdLife Australia’s conservation actions. It’s how we can collectively and easily gather scientific data to gain greater insight into Australia’s birds and ultimately protect them. Every Birdata survey submitted makes a difference.

Birdata is a vital tool for saving threatened birds and their habitats

Information from Birdata provides an early warning system to let us see when species are in trouble.

The information on the Birdata program is instrumental to conservation in Australia because it:

• Alerts us to declines in common birds.
• Provides concrete evidence about species’ decline or recovery.
• Forms a basis for BirdLife Australia’s Conservation strategy.
• Helps determine bird conservation status and actions.
• Informs development and land management practices and decisions.
• Informs research: it has been used in over 1,000 scientific publications.

Birdata is one of BirdLife Australia’s greatest resources

Australia’s largest and longest-running wildlife database, Birdata’s impact on conservation in our country is hard to over-estimate. Even more importantly, with thousands of citizen scientists contributing to it every year, it is a live and growing dataset. We achieve this because Birdata is not just a database, but also a simple and fun survey tool for citizen scientists, targeted at collecting the data we need to save our most threatened species and keep all of Australia alive with our beautiful common birds. In practice this means Birdata has been used to:

• Elevate the conservation status of the Plains-wanderer, Australasian Bittern, Eastern Curlew and Australian Painted Snipe (among other species) in recent years.
• Inform the comprehensive Action Plan for Australia’s Birds.
• Inform the declaration of over 300 Key Biodiversity Areas.
• Direct private and government protected area networks.
• Sound the alarm bell for declining species like the Mallee Striated Grasswren.
• Influence local fire management.
• Inform government and NGO conservation actions.

Birdata contributors have so many opportunities to help us provide effective conservation results for Australia’s birds. Make a difference and join us in this exciting program and make your birding count!