The 19th NZ Garden Bird Survey Starts On Saturday 28 June
Press Release – Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research
Once submitted and analysed, the huge amounts of data provided by citizen scientists nationwide more than 77,000 surveys since 2007 shape the story of how bird counts are changing across the country over two timeframes the past 5 and past …
Thousands of New Zealanders have their pencils sharpened and at the ready for the start of the 19th New Zealand Garden Bird Survey | Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa on Saturday 28 June.
As New Zealand/Aotearoa's longest-running citizen science project, the NZ Garden Bird Survey performs an invaluable role in tracking how our birds are faring, especially in urban and rural environments.
Once submitted and analysed, the huge amounts of data provided by citizen scientists nationwide – more than 77,000 surveys since 2007 – shape the story of how bird counts are changing across the country over two timeframes – the past 5 and past 10 years.
According to Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Senior Researcher Dr Angela Brandt, the ongoing data collection is showing how the trends for each species might be changing over time. The results from the State of NZ Garden Birds | Te āhua o ngā manu o te kāri i Aotearoa 2024 had good and bad news for four of our native species. While tūī (kōkō) and fantail (pīwakawaka) continue to show increasing trends, and the national declines in silvereye (tauhou) counts have lessened, we are seeing short-term declines for kererū at the national scale and in seven regions.
'In the latest report, we see a tapering off of national declines for silvereye and increasing trends in their counts in 10 regions, which is heartening. But short-term declines are emerging for several species, including kererū and three introduced songbirds,' Dr Brandt says.
Because these bird trends often vary by region, it's beneficial to have more people taking part in the survey to enable us to detect when a regional trend is different to the national trend. 'We received a record number of surveys in 2024, and I'd love to see if each region can come out in force for their garden birds again,' Dr Brandt says.
Now is the perfect time to create a birding memory, especially if you've never done the Survey before. The NZ Garden Bird Survey website has a whole host of bird identification pages, bird song examples, and tips on how to get the best out of your Survey experience.
Doing the survey is great for people, too. Back in 2020, we asked participants about their experience taking part. Some people responded that they liked participating in a large collective effort like the NZ Garden Bird Survey because they didn't have time to join a conservation or nature group. Most people also reported a greater sense of wellbeing after spending time counting birds in the garden. 'We had people saying it was a good opportunity to slow down,' says Manaaki Whenua Senior Researcher Dr Gradon Diprose. 'Participants talked about feeling curiosity, joy, fun, wonder and a sense of connection.'
Teachers and families can enrich the learning experience around the NZ Garden Bird Survey with a bilingual lesson plan, developed in partnership with the Science Learning Hub, which explores learning about birds through a te ao Māori lens. Kairangahau Māori Yvonne Taura says the aim was to engage kura Māori in manu education and show they have a role to play in protecting their local environment. 'We've built a curriculum that will be a scaffold for learning opportunities in kura. By showing manu in the environment and how they are impacted by urban development, we can encourage kaitiakitanga and an understanding of our manu taonga.'
It's easy to take part in the Survey:
1. Visit the NZ Garden Bird Survey website to get started: https://gardenbirdsurvey.nz/
2. Select a garden or a local park
3. Choose any ONE day between 28 June and 6 July.
4. Look and listen for birds on that day for ONE hour.
5. For each species, record the HIGHEST number seen or heard at one time.
6. Submit the results online via the NZ Garden Bird Survey website's Take Part page: https://gardenbirdsurvey.nz/take-part/
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Otago Daily Times
18 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
No Matariki cluster but beautiful sunrise
The crowd were still treated to views of other stars and planets. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED Waitaki District Council hosted its annual stargazing event with Māori astronomer David McNamara last week as part of Matariki celebrations. Between 25 and 30 people gathered at Cape Wanbrow Lookout to try to catch a glimpse of Matariki or Puanga star clusters last Thursday morning. Unfortunately, it was mostly covered by the clouds, Waitaki District Council community educator and engagement officer Lisa Jane Potaka-Ross said. "However, other parts of the sky were clear with excellent visibility and star guide Damien McNamara was able to point out stars, planets and galaxies and share knowledge of what could be seen from a te ao Māori perspective. Clouds impeded a group from seeing Matariki or Puanga from Cape Wanbrow Lookout last week. "To close the event, those gathered sang a selection of waiata, still hoping that the beloved Matariki cluster might make a show but treated instead to the first rays of a beautiful sunrise." This was the fifth time a stargazing event has been held and Ms Potaka-Ross was pleased to see a mix of first-timers and those returning. "Clearly it is becoming a whānau tradition for some. "Numbers were slightly down but there have been several Matariki celebrations in the community this year so people are choosing which events they wish to attend to mark the occasion. "The time of Matariki, the Māori new year, and the public holiday that we now observe are coming to be celebrated by all New Zealanders as authentic and unique to our people and our place on the planet."
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Annual New Zealand Garden Bird Survey begins
A Kererū pair in the kōwhai. Photo: Manaaki Whenua/Meg Lipscombe Hundreds of citizen scientists are set for a stint of bird spotting as the annual New Zealand Garden Bird Survey gets underway on Saturday. It's the 19th time that Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa has been held. From now until 6 July people were encouraged to get out in their garden or go to a local park and look at and listen for birds for one hour, on one day, and record the highest number of each species they notice. The survey's co-ordinator, Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research senior researcher Dr Angela Brandt, said the ongoing data collection showed how the trends for each species might be changing over time. The survey reported on 14 different bird species that were most commonly seen in the garden to identify trends within those species. Pīwakawaka (fantail) about to take off in the backyard. Photo: Manaaki Whenua/Graham Murphy Last year's survey found that tūī and pīwakawaka continued to increase, while national declines in silvereye or tauhou lessened. But there were short-term declines for kererū both at the national scale and in seven regions, she said. "What we've noticed, especially in our last two reports, was that three species were starting to show these short-term, five-year declines. "That's the kererū, the goldfinch, and the house sparrow. It's not a cause for alarm necessarily, but it's something that we should pay attention to and we want to see whether those trends start to pick up again or if they continue on that kind of declining end of the spectrum." Brandt said the survey not only provided information about birds and the environment generally, but it boosted participants' wellbeing by getting them outdoor and observing and thinking about nature. "We had people saying it was a good opportunity to slow down. Participants talked about feeling curiosity, joy, fun, wonder and a sense of connection." A Tūī (kōkō) interrupted from its feed. Photo: Manaaki Whenua/Colin Keast It also complemented the monitoring undertaken in conservation areas, she added. "We're asking people to count all the birds they see, so we get a lot of information on the common species [as well as rare and threatened species] and can then see if they're potentially starting to decline. "But also we're also getting information from urban and rural areas where people are, so that covers some different parts of New Zealand to the monitoring efforts going on by our science organisations and experts." For some species there was a lot of variation among regions, she added. "The fantail is a great example of a species that's quite consistent [everywhere] as we're generally seeing increases over the last several years." In contrast the korimako (bellbird) was "quite variable," she said. "Canterbury and Nelson for example, we've had pretty consistent increasing trends for bell birds over the last several years. "But then we actually have some strong decreases in the counts that we've seen in some of our North Island regions such as Gisborne, Hawke's Bay and Manawatu." It underscored why survey participation was invaluable, Brandt said. "What's really helpful for us to actually pick up those differences is to get enough people participating in each region, [to] give us that full picture." How to take part in the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey: 1. Visit the NZ Garden Bird Survey website to get started. 2. Select a garden or a local park. 3. Choose any ONE day between 28 June and 6 July. 4. Look and listen for birds on that day for ONE hour. 5. For each species, record the HIGHEST number seen or heard at one time. 6. Submit the results online via the NZ Garden Bird Survey website's Take Part page. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
3 days ago
- Scoop
The 19th NZ Garden Bird Survey Starts On Saturday 28 June
Press Release – Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research Once submitted and analysed, the huge amounts of data provided by citizen scientists nationwide more than 77,000 surveys since 2007 shape the story of how bird counts are changing across the country over two timeframes the past 5 and past … Thousands of New Zealanders have their pencils sharpened and at the ready for the start of the 19th New Zealand Garden Bird Survey | Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa on Saturday 28 June. As New Zealand/Aotearoa's longest-running citizen science project, the NZ Garden Bird Survey performs an invaluable role in tracking how our birds are faring, especially in urban and rural environments. Once submitted and analysed, the huge amounts of data provided by citizen scientists nationwide – more than 77,000 surveys since 2007 – shape the story of how bird counts are changing across the country over two timeframes – the past 5 and past 10 years. According to Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Senior Researcher Dr Angela Brandt, the ongoing data collection is showing how the trends for each species might be changing over time. The results from the State of NZ Garden Birds | Te āhua o ngā manu o te kāri i Aotearoa 2024 had good and bad news for four of our native species. While tūī (kōkō) and fantail (pīwakawaka) continue to show increasing trends, and the national declines in silvereye (tauhou) counts have lessened, we are seeing short-term declines for kererū at the national scale and in seven regions. 'In the latest report, we see a tapering off of national declines for silvereye and increasing trends in their counts in 10 regions, which is heartening. But short-term declines are emerging for several species, including kererū and three introduced songbirds,' Dr Brandt says. Because these bird trends often vary by region, it's beneficial to have more people taking part in the survey to enable us to detect when a regional trend is different to the national trend. 'We received a record number of surveys in 2024, and I'd love to see if each region can come out in force for their garden birds again,' Dr Brandt says. Now is the perfect time to create a birding memory, especially if you've never done the Survey before. The NZ Garden Bird Survey website has a whole host of bird identification pages, bird song examples, and tips on how to get the best out of your Survey experience. Doing the survey is great for people, too. Back in 2020, we asked participants about their experience taking part. Some people responded that they liked participating in a large collective effort like the NZ Garden Bird Survey because they didn't have time to join a conservation or nature group. Most people also reported a greater sense of wellbeing after spending time counting birds in the garden. 'We had people saying it was a good opportunity to slow down,' says Manaaki Whenua Senior Researcher Dr Gradon Diprose. 'Participants talked about feeling curiosity, joy, fun, wonder and a sense of connection.' Teachers and families can enrich the learning experience around the NZ Garden Bird Survey with a bilingual lesson plan, developed in partnership with the Science Learning Hub, which explores learning about birds through a te ao Māori lens. Kairangahau Māori Yvonne Taura says the aim was to engage kura Māori in manu education and show they have a role to play in protecting their local environment. 'We've built a curriculum that will be a scaffold for learning opportunities in kura. By showing manu in the environment and how they are impacted by urban development, we can encourage kaitiakitanga and an understanding of our manu taonga.' It's easy to take part in the Survey: 1. Visit the NZ Garden Bird Survey website to get started: 2. Select a garden or a local park 3. Choose any ONE day between 28 June and 6 July. 4. Look and listen for birds on that day for ONE hour. 5. For each species, record the HIGHEST number seen or heard at one time. 6. Submit the results online via the NZ Garden Bird Survey website's Take Part page:
