Session 1 · VOICE: Observe
Survey 1
- 10 minRecheck method, roles and safety. Record weather and time.
- 35 minRun the survey: five-minute bird counts, tracking cards collected, weed-cover quadrats, or water clarity and plant cover along the stream.
- 5 minLog conditions and any problems with the method.
Session 2 · VOICE: Observe
Identify and check
- 20 minIdentify species with NZ Birds Online, a footprint guide or a weed guide. Photograph anything unsure and ask your partner.
- 20 minCheck the data for gaps and mistakes. Turn counts into rates, such as the percentage of cards with rat prints.
- 10 minPlan survey 2 at the same time of day, on another day, in similar weather.
Getting started
Survey one quadrat or one bird point with a partner and a picture key.
Stretch
Record time, temperature and wind for every observation, and explain how each could change a count.
Checkpoint
Data from at least two surveys, recorded in exactly the same way.
Activities for this week
- Tracking tunnel index: Are rats and mice more common outside the trapped area than inside it?
- Five-minute bird count: Do native and introduced birds use the same parts of our site?
- Weed or native: who's winning?: Is a weed spreading from the edge into a native patch?
Useful this week
- The five-minute bird count method ↗ The standard NZ method for counting forest birds, so your data matches the experts'.
- NZ Birds Online ↗ Identify every bird you see or hear, with calls and photos.