BirdingNZ.net

David Melville wrote:Nor do they show on the Atlas eBird site - which [worryingly?] shows less squares with records than the main eBird site.....

I understand that the Atlas team will be trying to combine the two sets of records in due course, but as Mathieu notes its a worry if the Reefton birds do not appear on either - or is the location being kept secret?

Hi David, as I explained above this is not unique to the ducks. the eBird regional reviewer may wait for record that warrants a UBR to be accepted there before they do so on eBird. You won’t see any records of the new Terek sandpiper at Te Waihora on the map for several months either, for example.

The location is not secret though as you can find it on the checklist at the top of the thread, or through the eBird rare bird alerts. For the ducks yes it is private land, but they are occasionally visible from the road as well.

Seems like a bit of a shame - many people (myself included) use eBird specifically to see birds like this. Surely if these birds were seen and ID’d back in April the Regional Reviewer should’ve put them up by now!
Definitely makes it a lot harder to see rare and vagrant birds when you don’t know they’re there for half a year!

MathieuPoot wrote:Seems like a bit of a shame - many people (myself included) use eBird specifically to see birds like this. Surely if these birds were seen and ID’d back in April the Regional Reviewer should’ve put them up by now!
Definitely makes it a lot harder to see rare and vagrant birds when you don’t know they’re there for half a year!

They do appear on the email alerts although if you've subscribed to them.

Oscar Thomas wrote:
The location is not secret though as you can find it on the checklist at the top of the thread, or through the eBird rare bird alerts. For the ducks yes it is private land, but they are occasionally visible from the road as well.

Obviously no guarantees with any trip, but if they are not visible from the road is the landowner approachable and open to helping visitors find them if on their land? And if so is there a way to contact them beforehand to ask permission and give plenty of notice etc?

4x whistling plumed ducks viewed yesterday and still regularly at this location, flying in each morning to private farmland after sleeping somewhere nearby. Dylan says a fifth one sometimes joins them. They can sometimes be viewed from the road if moving about the farmyard, or during flight. Tom, I see your post above, I'll pop you a message.

were any of them young ones?

Any Plumed Whistling ducklings ?