This message comes to the Salty Southeast Cruisers’ Net from our strategic partners, Captains Diana and Mark Doyle, founders and principals of On-The-Water ChartGuides. Please join with Diana, and participate in this most worthwhile project!

I’d like to encourage any cruisers who are interested in birds or wildlife to participate in the “SeaBC Sea Bird Count” this November, December or January. Participation is easy: simply tally or photograph the birds you see during an hour watch on a coastal transit or offshore passage.
This citizen science project, in its second year, is organized by a group of nine cruisers from around the world, including Wendy Clarke, Diana Doyle, Brenda Free, Yvonne Katchor, Beth Leonard, Katharine Lowrie, Devi Sharp, Jeanne Socrates, and Dorothy Wadlow.
Last year’s inaugural count spanned 100º of latitude, from Maine to Antarctica. The Caribbean 1500, Baja Ha-Ha, Salty Dog Rally, and ARC are all encouraging their boats to participate.
If you are a novice seabirder, you can still make a huge contribution by taking digital photos of any seabirds you see trailing alongside your boat and then noting the lat/long. The birding-aboard community at Facebook.com/Birding.Aboard will help you identify and report the species when you make landfall.
Your sightings matter! There aren’t many scientists who have the time and resources to log the sea miles you do. All data goes to Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s eBird database (http://www.ebird.org), where it becomes a resource for
scientists and citizens worldwide.
An instruction and tally sheet (under SeaBC/Resources) and additional information is available on the community page at http://www.Facebook.com/Birding.Aboard or by emailing organizer Diana Doyle at Diana BirdingAboard com.
Please join the count in any way you can and contribute much-needed information about pelagic birds!
Diana Doyle
m/v Semi-Local
http://www.OnTheWaterChartGuides.com