Birdpost is a new social networking tool for birders. The site is completely free (and still in beta so it might have bugs, will surely change, and may not always be free) and is super easy to use. Sign up for a user name, add your first bird and your on your way to creating a visual, shareable life list. But that’s not all.
Screenshot – Right after adding our first bird, the American Crow
You can also add your own images to represent your life list
Besides adding birds to your lifelist, you can add your own images to a photo gallery AND use them to represent your sighted birds. This is a fun feature; as your lifelist grows, more photos will be shown. Other users can select your uploaded photos to use as their photo representation, adding to the social aspect of Birdpost.
There is also a “friends” feature where you can share your lifelist and sightings. You can edit your profile and view a lifelist ranking of all the birders on Birdpost. After adding the seven species we saw while driving around town, we ranked 78th!
Rankings are shown on the right of your profile
Another wonderful benefit to Birdpost is the ability to search for rare birds (and of course, report them) or to search for those birds that might not be “officially” rare, but you just want to see if their around. The integration with mapping and adding dates to your sightings will be a future aide for bird conservationists as well.
Search for that bird that keeps eluding your bins
Of course, social networking sites are only as good as the users (and the number of them). So, become a member and try it out.
- Create an image-based lifelist
- Share your lifelist with other members
- Search for rare birds, report rare birds, or see if that nemesis bird is nearby
We have just begun to dig into the other features of Birdpost and as they receive feedback, things will surely change and improve (not that it isn’t great already).
And amazingly enough, Birdpost was featured on the Techcrunch 50 Best Startups, created by Techcrunch, an extremely popular blog. According to Techcrunch, Birdpost received $300,000 in funding. Perhaps birding is becoming a bit more mainstream.
Thanks to Alan from Birds ‘n Such for bringing this to our attention! Read his review of this wonderful new birding tool.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Birdfreak – you are the best! Thanks for your awesome review. Your site is one of the best out there!
Jason Peery
Birdpost Co-Founder
How would you compare it to Birdstack?
Excellent review! Thanks for linking.
I signed up for this after watching their presentation on TechCrunch. It looks like a cool use of Google Maps and databases.
One big concern I have about Birdpost is the massive number of photographs they’re using without attribution, and apparently without permission. I haven’t found any sourcing info or credits in the TOS or FAQ, but it concerns me that they may be using both amateur and professional work without permission. One birder here in NC has already found several of his photos, some not attributed, some attributed incorrectly, but all without permission, and has asked for their removal. I’ve emailed them about it and am awaiting a reply.
Whoop, they’ve addressed my concerns today on their blog. I also just got a reply from Jason, who explained that they’ve deleted a fair amount of their images due to permissions issues. Swift and wise response definitely earns my respect and participation. Bird on!
This sounds really cool. I wish I had time for it, but I can barely keep up with blogging as it is! <:(
Jason – you are welcome!
Wren – Comparison to Birdstack is difficult due to Birdpost being newer. I like the look a bit better of Birdpost. I like Birdstack’s ability to share lists and embed widgets into your own site. This is something I’d expect from Birdpost as they grow and change.
Iris – good find with the copyright stuff. I was in contact with them as well and they are making good on fixing this. I gave them the benefit of the doubt as they are new and a lot of internet photos are sketchy on who owns them, where they came from etc. Not making any excuses for them, but also not willing to jump to conclusions like some of the commenters on the Birdpost blog.
Lana – Blogging is time consuming, but I’d give this one a shot. It is very easy to use and even if you don’t add sightings, you can search other sightings quickly and easily.
Alan – you are welcome for the linking… total hat tip to you for discovering this cool site.