OFNC Position on Bird Reporting During COVID-19, Revised 2020-04-15 The OFNC is not a public health agency. We defer to the advice of such agencies, and we are concerned that any advice or guidelines we suggest could be interpreted as playing fast and loose with the advice of such agencies. Nevertheless, our members look to us for guidance on the specifics of activities like enjoying nature in general, and birding in particular. You can and should continue to observe birds (and other living things), in your yard, your neighbourhood, or in nearby greenspaces that your local public health authorities allow. Continue to report observations to the OFNC Facebook page, iNaturalist and eBird. They continue to be excellent opportunities to engage in citizen science. Let's make 2020 a Backyard Big Year! What should change? The OFNC publishes a weekly report on bird sightings. We have decided to suspend this until the measures to control COVID-19 have eased. We do this to ensure that the OFNC, even inadvertently, does not contribute to situations that public health authorities would frown upon, such as travelling to watch birds (non-essential travel), or congregating at popular sites (physical distancing). That said, most of our information for the weekly report comes from eBird data. Please continue to use tools like eBird and iNaturalist. As said on the eBird blog, “please follow local guidance and do what is right for you”. If software allows you to delay reports of rare and unusual birds or other animals, we encourage you to use these features. The American Birding Association has good advice on what to do: “ Keep your eyes on the sky and your butt close to home ”. Please continue to enjoy birding from your home or neighbourhood while keeping us all safe.