Biology 20: Honors Project, Spring 2008
Bird Monitoring at Heron's Head Park
Overview
In order to participate in the Bird Monitoring project at Heron's Head Park for honors credit, you must attend the MANDATORY ORIENTATION on February 2, at 9:30 in S302
In addition, you need to attend four out of five meetings listed below:
- 2/24
- 3/16
- 4/6
- 4/27
- 5/18
On those day, we will meet at Heron's Head Park at 9:30 SHARP
Other requirements for honors credit:
- Write a 2 page description on a bird seen at HHP. The description should ba a personal account on how you distinguish this bird from others, what you observed, and any interesting facts about the bird that are not commonly found in bird ID books.
- You will give a 5 minute presentation on your bird on one of the two last dates of bird monitoring.
Goals: What are we doing here??
- We are providing information on annual and long term changes in population levels for a wide range of HHP birds, across the variety of habitats.
- We are promoting greater understanding of the factors responsible for any declines which are occuring, in order to identify appropriate conservation measures.
- We are promoting the wider use of bird survey data as an indicator of the environmental health of urban parks.
- We are collecting ONGOING AND CONSISTANT DATA suitable for longer term trend analysis and the production of indices for each species of bird.
History: How did the program begin??
This project was started in February 1999 by Andrew Rush, a Biology 93 student. He went out a total of 34 times between February and Decamber 1999, totaling more than 70 hours on the site, with 77 bird species censured. (Rush 1999) The bird monitoring was continued as an honors project for Biology 20 students in the fall semester of 2002 and the spring of 2003.
Methods: How do we collect data??
There are three standard methods to conduct bird monitoring. IT IS IMPORTANT TO FOLLOW THE SAME PROTOCOL EACH TIME YOU GO OUT TO DO A SURVEY, SO THAT THE DATA FROM DIFFERENT TIMES ARE COMPARABLE. Imagine if, in 1999, the researcher surveyed an area for 20 minutes, but in 2003, the area was only surveyed for 10 minutes. Most likely the data would show that there were fewer birds in 2003. However, this “decline” would not necessarily reflect a decline in bird abundance.
The method we use is called an area search survey, and is most appropriate for beginning birders. This is because we will mostly be relying on visual identification instead of auditory or behavioral identification. In this method, the survey region is divided into several areas, and the monitors, (that's us,) spend a fixed amount of time counting in each area. Heron's Head Park has been divided Heron’s Head Park into four areas corresponding to habitat type.
- Uplands
- Low marsh
- Peninsula
- Basin/lagoon (subdivided into three separate areas)
The other methods of bird monitoring are point count survey and the transect survey. The point count survey is a survey in which the onitor stands in one spot. It is a simple method that provides a uniform way of counting birds over time or across locations. Point counts are usually used to survey backyard and small lots. However, they are sometimes used in large areas where it is difficult for a person to walk through. Identification is often based on vocalization, or the unique songs of birds.
The transect survey is a survey in motion where the monitor walks a route and counts birds on either side of the route. A transect survey in not practical it if is difficult to walk through an area or the area of interest is too small. Transect surveys are frequently used to survey birds in a neighborhood or in a large area where it is easy to walk through, like a park or golf course.
Protocol: How do I behave like a scientist??
What to bring to survey Heron's Head Park.
- Binoculars (issued at orientation)
- Field Guide (issued with binoculars)
- Clipboard, survey forms, and a pencil
- Thermometer and watch (facilitators provide these when birding with CCSF)
- OPTIONAL: Sunblock, camera, cup of tea/coffee, additional field guides on plants or other animals, a well behaved friend or family member (please no small children or pets as they scare birds), and/or a picnic lunch for afterwards :)
What to do when you arrive at Heron’s Head Park
- Make sure you are safe
- Designate a recorder for each area
- First recorder records
- Temperature (degrees Celsius)
- Wind speed (Beaufort wind scale)
- Cloud cover: scale 1 (clear) - 5 (overcast)
- Tide (record time and height of nearest high or low tide)
- # of visitors and dogs, start time, and observers’ names
- Each recorder records her/his own initials in correct column, and each bird or group of birds as observers relay the data to her/him
- Last recorder also tallies totals, double-checks data, records end time
Final Words
- The more you put into this project, the more you will get out of it.
- This is a real project. Your data will actually be used in the ornithological community!!
- Don’t forget to enjoy Heron’s Head Park and have fun out there!