What is wrong with this January eBird map of Northern Harrier sightings? It certainly seems to be very well correlated to human population. Nevertheless I definitely believe there are more birds out there that are not being entered into eBird. My friends in the Chautauqua-Allegheny region know we at RTPI are surveying for Northern Harriers and Short-eared Owls this winter for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, with Chautauqua County being our target area. While some neighboring areas, such as Allegheny National Forest, have no sightings as expected, I would have to believe we are missing birds in our vast fields and farmlands! That hole in the middle of this map needs to be filled for this and many other species. Please tell all of your friends to use eBird for our wintering raptors and every other bird they can find, no matter how common. Thank you!
Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
