A birding trip report is a document where birdwatchers write information they consider relevant about a birding trip they just had. Which they can keep for themselves or share with other birders.
There isn’t a standard model of the report, it can be as the person or people who write it wish. Nonetheless, typically these bird trip reports have a piece of short information about the location, dates and a list of birds seen.
Then, they can be complemented by a variety of things. For example, including some photos, information about the places visited, how to get to the birding locations, and where to stay.
Example of a handwriting detailed birding trip report by Dave Gosney for the deserts of Morocco.
The variety of bird trip reports is almost endless. Some are story-telling-like with detailed information on the daily routine during the trip, others are short pieces of text with concrete information. Some birders like to include details on the specific location of target species observation, whereas others focus the information on whether as easy and on the number of individuals seen.
Example of a day-by-day bird trip report by Henry Cook on a trip to Morocco.
It is also common to find detailed reports with information about the region or country, normally referring to currency, traffic, culture and costumes, common language and way of communication, best ways of transportation, suggestive places to stay, and local guides. These pieces of information are more frequently found in reports to less known countries, such as in Africa or Asia. This can be very useful as it can prevent people from inconvenient situations.
Even though people can do it for themselves only, the main goal of a bird trip report is to inform other birders about the species that can be seen in a specific location during a certain period of time or season.
For that, birdwatchers upload those reports to websites specifically used for that effect. One of the most worldwide known websites is the Cloudbirders - https://www.cloudbirders.com/tripreport.
Homepage of one of the most known websites with bird trip reports.
There you are likely to find reports from all corners of the world for every single month of the year. It is the perfect place to go and look for information while planning a birding trip. By using the different filters, you can easily access all the information needed and trip reports available. Among many other details, you can learn the best time to visit a place or which locations within a country or region are worth visiting.
Next time you plan a birding trip you know where to start. Also, after your trips, you can now consider writing a report with the main information and findings. So, make sure you don’t forget your Birdwatching Journal to register all that useful information.