Digital Birding Tool
Since 2004, we have been working on putting together a product that can be used to collect bird information in the field. With the changes in technology that have occurred since we started development, we have moved away from developing our own software and hardware to using off-the-shelf products, with customisation of particular mobile software packages.
The Digital Birding Tool (DBT) consists of several main components; a handheld portable computer, the software on this platform to collect bird data, and the underlying database to store this data in.
The convergence of a range of technologies mean that this sort of tool is becoming much more realistic. Previously, you'd have to carry separate recoding equipment, notebooks, and a video camera to get the same functionality that the DBT has in it now.
The current version of the Digital Birding Tool can:
- save details of birds seen, heard or identified from other sources (eg. feathers, tracks)
- use a current taxonomically correct checklist of birds for Western Australia
- record bird calls - such as this one for the Welcome Swallow
- take low-resolution images and videos of the sites being surveyed
- produce simple reports from the underlying database
The data captured in the field using the DBT is available to be viewed in the Digital Birding Database. This web-enabled database is a key component in our process for managing this data, and is proof that you can digitally manage field records from field collection to reporting.
Current Status
Currently, the system consists of off-the-shelf products. With the addition of the use of ruggedised PDAs in our lineup, we now have several different hardware platforms that we are running the testing software on. For more information on the product please feel free to contact us.