Additional recording options
21 Dec 2015Several new recording options have recently been added to BirdTrack and we've moved to open-source mapping.
(1) Breeding codes
The non-breeding categories of 'U – sUmmering', 'M – Migrant' and 'F – Flying over' have been merged into one category '00 Migrant/Flying over/Summering'. This was changed so that the BirdTrack breeding codes match those used in the ongoing second European Breeding Bird Atlas (EBBA2), so as to maximise the value of BirdTrack data to that project. We had to move 'Brood size' and 'Creche size' to 'Activity' as they are not standard breeding codes. Observations of fly-overs can still be marked as such by using 'Flying' in the 'Activity' codes.
(2) Activity codes
There are several new recording options available under 'Activity' (or 'Extras' in the global tool) in the optional details. These are grouped into the categories Activity (which includes 'Flying'), Record status and Additional information. Under Record status, a particular bird can be flagged as 'Sick/injured', 'Dead', 'Escaped/released', 'ID uncertain' or 'Heard only'.
'Sick/injured', 'Dead' and 'Heard only' should be self-explanatory, though 'Escaped/released' and 'ID uncertain' may need some explanation.
Captive birds should not be recorded in BirdTrack. Records of known/assumed escapes and intentional releases are valuable though and should be flagged as 'Escaped/released', particularly if the species can also occur in a wild state in that area. Examples include Great Bustards from the Salisbury Plain reintroduction scheme and the long-staying Hooded Merganser at Radipole Lake, Dorset.
If there's any doubt about the identification, it is best to omit the record. Occasionally though, you may want to log a 'possible/probable' identification when there's a high likelihood it was a certain species but a small element of doubt remains.
(3) New maps
Google Maps have been replaced with OpenStreetMap. This is to safeguard BirdTrack against problems that would have occurred as a result of forthcoming changes to mapping licensing.
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