The Citizen Science Landscape: From Volunteers to Citizen Sensors and Beyond
Table 5
Comparison of avian monitoring projects focused on measuring occurrence and abundance (adapted from [10]).
Results from these programs have been used in over 1000 publications
Project
Method
Placement
Efforta
Extent
Interval
Participants
Audubon Christmas Bird Count
Count circle (24 km diameter)
Opportunistic
V (party hours)
International
Annual
59,918 (2008-09)
North American Breeding Bird Survey
Roadside survey (39.4 km; 50 stops)
Stratified random
S (3 min count)
International
Annual
2,749 (2009)
Project FeederWatch
Feeder counts
Opportunistic
V (2 days, hours, days)
International
Annual
9,750 (2009)
eBird
Online checklists
Opportunistic
V (hours, distance, and area)
International
Continuous
18,053
Bird Atlas
Systematic grid (100 km2 blocks; 4 km2 tetrads) and roving reports
Regular grid and opportunistic
S/V (roving, timed visits)
Britain and Ireland
Two visits (Winter: Nov./Dec. & Jan./Feb.; Breeding: April/May & June/July)
10,000–20,000
Common Birds Census (now replaced by Breeding Bird Survey)
Census plots (Farmland: 70 ha; Woodland: 20 ha)
Stratified random
S (territory mapping)
Britain
Annual (8–10) visits; late March–early July)
250–300
a
Effort is considered standardised (S) or variable (V). When standardised, the protocol specifications are presented; when variable, the effort variables that were reported during sampling are presented.