March 10, 2013 | Read Time: 1 minute
The National Audubon Society is adding a decidedly modern twist to the bird counts it’s held for the last 113 years.
This spring the charity’s Hummingbirds at Home project features a mobile application and a Web site designed for smartphones to let participants log sightings of the endangered birds as they occur.
“Mobile is going to make it more immediate and more relevant,” says Jessica Green, Audubon’s vice president for engagement. “They’ll be on a hike or a picnic, they’ll see a hummingbird, and they can immediately record it in the app.”
A Model for Other Groups
The organization hopes that the observations will offer clues to how global warming, changes in vegetation, and even backyard bird feeders are affecting the birds.
“We’re going to use that to shape our policy and our advocacy efforts to make sure that hummingbirds don’t disappear completely,” Ms. Green says.
The effort offers a model to other groups that are looking for opportunities to use mobile technology to collect information related to their causes.
Reaching New Supporters
The hummingbird app isn’t Audubon’s first foray into mobile applications. A series of Audubon field guides has been converted into apps through a partnership with a company called NatureShare. The guides, which nature lovers can use to identify birds, trees, wildflowers, butterflies, and animals, have been downloaded more than 500,000 times.
“They let us reach a new audience,” says Ms. Green, “an audience that might not currently be donors or members of Audubon but are still really involved and engaged with birding and conservation.”
