In the cause of science, many experts who research the lives of the world's birds make use of a vast army of citizen scientists willing to observe, record and report on the activities of the birds that share the planet with us. Residents of the region can join those ranks for Virginia's Second Breeding Bird Atlas.
The first season of the official event launches this spring as part of a five-year study to document the breeding status and abundance of all bird species spending their breeding season within the borders of Vir-ginia. To accomplish this, a statewide network of volunteers is being sought out for the purpose of field data collection.
Steven Hopp, a professor at Emory and Henry College, is looking for volunteers to help with what is being described as a mammoth collaboration between the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, the Virginia Society of Ornithology, local bird clubs, Master Naturalist chapters, and the citizen scientist volunteers who will help collect atlas data over the next five years.
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Hopp is an enthusiastic proponent of citizen science. "There are many areas of science where active citi-zen scientists make significant contributions," he said. "In astronomy, for example, many backyard observers have discovered new comets or asteroids."
In the monitoring of the health of animal populations, Hopp added, reports from citizens are very im-portant.
"Records from fishermen and hunters have always been useful for tracking changes in populations," he said. "For birds, the huge number of avid birdwatchers have always been a valuable part of tracking the changes in bird numbers and populations. From the over 100-year history of the Christmas Bird Count, to simple backyard feeder watches, citizen reports are a strong part of our information."
This army of citizen scientists is also greatly assisted by advances in technology.
"In the modern era, access to good cameras, GPS devices and internet access, even in remote locations, allows for accurate and reliable reporting of information," Hopp said. "Getting hundreds of active bird-watchers involved in projects like this is not just part of the effort; the atlas project would not be possible without them."
Hopp has been a bird watcher since his college years.
"I started as a young professor at Emory & Henry in the early 1980s, right when the first Virginia Bird Atlas project was started," he said. "I was asked to be the regional coordinator for the project and I readily agreed. When this new project was started, they asked me to join the team again, and I readily agreed again."
Volunteers who wish to help carry out atlas surveys will be able to register on the VABBA2 website and sign up to survey one or more atlas blocks. More details about block sign-up can be found on the vabba2.org website.
"If a volunteer adopts one of the priority blocks, they are asked to spend a minimum of 20 hours in that block documenting the occurrence of birds," Hopp explained. "But any records during the breeding season are useful, and people can record them as incidental observations in any area."
Volunteers will watch for an array of breeding behaviors.
"Just the presence of birds during the breeding season tells us they’re probably breeding, but it’s best to watch for behaviors that more strongly suggest or verify breeding," Hopp said. "These might include seeing a male and female pair together, or a bird carrying nesting material, seeing fledgling birds or finding an active nest."
He added that a list of different indicators can be found on the Atlas web site.
Hopp said there are many benefits to be reaped from the project.
"Because birds are so mobile, their populations change more rapidly than most other animal popula-tions," he said. "Keeping track of which birds are present or are breeding in an area is one of the best ways to track environmental health and see how natural systems are responding to human disturbances, changes in land use or changes in climate."
The project will also track species that have become less common over the years.
"For uncommon species, such as loggerhead shrikes or saw-whet owls, the atlas allows us to keep track of where these species are nesting in Virginia," Hopp said. "Comparing the results from this current atlas to the results collected in the 1980s will give us important information about how these populations change."
For example, Hopp noted that such documenting may shed some light on the decline of whip-poor-wills in Virginia and other locations.
Hopp explained that the atlas areas are determined by using the United States Geological Survey maps. "Each map is divided into six equal areas, and the block located in the southeast corner of each topographical map are designated as the priority block," he said. "The priority blocks become the main suggested area for volunteers. If we could cover every one of the priority blocks in the state, this would give us a nice, even sample for the whole atlas."
He added that the areas are not assigned, but rather each volunteer chooses their own area, and are en-couraged but not required to choose the priority block.
"If a volunteer wants to be in charge of a particular block, they can do so, but they can also report obser-vations for any block. If people want to look over the blocks in the entire state, the Atlas Coordinators have put together a great fun map of Virginia showing all the block areas." The map can be viewed at https://vafwis.dgif.virginia.gov/BBA2/BlockExplorer/.
Hopp hopes to hear from birders throughout Virginia and other nearby locations. "One of the great things about this atlas project is that it is all organized online, and volunteers can access downloadable maps and field data sheets, and even upload observations remotely from the field," he said. "This is the first atlas project in the United States that will be using the Cornell University eBird site for entering and tracking all the atlas data."
For more information, Hopp invites interested people to explore the well-organized information on the internet at www.vabba2.org. They can also email him at shopp@ehc.edu or call 276-944-6727. Volunteers can also contact the state atlas coordinator, Ashley Peele, at ashpeele@vt.edu.
It's a great way to help the cause of science while also getting outdoors this spring and looking for some birds.
