5 minute bird counts

[Dave Houston]

I've just been made aware of a good resource on the Dept Conservation website about 5 minute bird counts.  The intro blub says;

Bird counting has been described as “a distressingly imprecise science”.  There are a myriad of techniques available but no method that can be universally applied to all species or situations.

One method, that has been used since the 1970s, is the five minute bird count (5MBC). We provide information on this method and links to a spreadsheet listing over 200 New Zealand studies using this technique.

DOC is currently evaluating the five minute bird count method and other bird monitoring methods. We are working on establishing a consistent set of standards for monitoring freshwater and terrestrial organisms. This work forms part of the National Inventory and Monitoring project (NIMS).

On the website are the standard methods, fieldsheets, spreadsheet for data entry and much more.

http://www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/native-animals/birds/five-minute-bird-counts/

[Mark Bellingham]

Five minute bird counts are on of the more imprecise monitoring methods.  For most species it is a waste of time and effort.  Counts vary with observer, time of day, season etc. so all you get for a multi-species count is a reliable bird list - the numbers mean nothing.

Graeme Elliot has looked at a couple of species and it seems to work for bellbirds and mohua.  But my experience with most of the other native passerines and tui show far more reliable counts with transect distance sampling.

If you are steering volunteers to bird counts, you'd be better off using Eric Spurr's Garden Bird Survey format.
http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/research/biocons/gardenbird/

[schmechf]

After much research I've settled on 5 min bird counts for some monitoring work I'm doing on Banks Peninsula. I'm also working with a number of local residents who are doing counts. (I enter their data into the DOC standard spreadsheet and report on the data annually.)

Eric Spurr has written up a one sheet version of the instructions, and we have developed a data sheet. Both of these, plus maps from our first year of monitoring and a copy of the first annual report, are available at this link: http://groups.google.co.nz/group/bpbirds/files