Klamath Basin Bird News is a friendly list and we do not want to discourage participation by anyone. KBBN is expected to remain unmoderated and we will allow each member to post based on their own good judgment. All participants must be prepared to exercise their Delete keys for postings that do not interest them. In addition, members must always beware of suspicious postings from valid, subscribed members. Sometimes folks can have their email service hijacked due to poor password management and as a result viruses, spam, and phishing messages can creep onto the list by way of embedded links and attachments. We will deal with such issues promptly and begin moderating members for which this occurs, but the initial message may slip by.
KBBN can be used for bird sightings and other bird-related news of a local or regional flavor. It is NOT restricted to bird sightings, although we expect that sightings will make up the vast majority of postings. We realize that our definition of KBBN's usage is open to interpretation, and that's where your judgment comes into play. We offer the following guidelines and leave the rest to you:
1. The primary purpose of this Group is to share bird sightings from the Klamath Basin and nearby areas. This Group is not a replacement for the Oregon statewide mailing list -- Oregon Birders Online, or OBOL -- and broader topics or reports of particularly noteworthy birds should also be directed to that list to gain wider distribution; you can simply copy that listserv on your message. It would be especially useful to send to OBOL any post that includes a bird that is rare everywhere in the state, such as Whooper Swan. You can see what species are monitored for statewide rarity by checking the Review List of the Oregon Bird Records Committee on the OBA [previously OFO] web site. Any bird with an "S" designation (State rarity) on the full Klamath County checklist is also worth a report to OBOL. Information about subscribing and posting to OBOL is here:
https://oregonbirding.org/obol-guidelines/
2. All postings to the Group should be signed with your full name and location (e.g., John Doe, Klamath Falls). This is a requirement.
3. Use descriptive subject lines. Consider including bird names, locations, and dates in the subject line of your postings about bird sightings. For example, "Evening Grosbeaks, Front Street, Klamath Falls, Mar 16 2009". Putting rare bird names in all CAPS is also useful; e.g., "SCOTT'S ORIOLE, Front Street, Klamath Falls, Mar 16 2050" (a climate change dream).
4. Provide reasonably specific locations for all bird sightings. For private property, such as your home, you need not divulge an address if you do not want to. However, you should provide enough of a description to get people in the "ballpark". For example, "Evening Grosbeaks were seen attending a feeder at a house along Front Street, near Pelican Marina." The same goes for providing directions to bird locations. Keep in mind that we have members from many locations in the Basin and from well outside the Basin, so the more detailed your locations and directions the better. If you report your sightings to eBird, a specific location will be attached to the observations and when you share your list from eBird folks will be able to go see the location on a map.
5. Sightings need not be of rare birds, but rare bird sightings require additional attention. Please bear in mind the welfare of the bird and its habitat, and consider the implications of posting the exact location of a bird that might be disturbed by increased attention from other birders (e.g., during breeding season). In addition, always respect the rights and privacy of private landowners. If the bird is on private land and inaccessible to the general public, indicate this in your posting. If the landowners are willing to host folks to view the bird, obtain explicit permission and provide their contact information.
6. Postings and limited discussion about other topics are fair game, including especially bird behavior, distribution, and identification. For example, we have a number of expert birders in the Group and we invite members to seek help with identifications when needed. We ask that such topics be restricted primarily to ones with a connection to the birds of the Klamath Basin. Also, see below about including photos as attachments to messages.
7. Announcements of bird-related events, such as bird walks or festivals, are always welcome. In such announcements or any other postings, please reduce text content by posting a web link with a brief description whenever possible.
8. If you ever have questions about the appropriateness of topics for KBBN, either for your postings or those of others, please contact an owner/moderator for assistance. Do not start a discussion on the list.
9. When responding to postings, consider whether the response should go to the individual that made the posting or to the entire Group. Sometimes replies are best sent only to the individual that sent the original message.
10. We reserve the right to moderate postings if it becomes necessary, such as to reduce SPAM, religiously or politically charged postings, or personal attacks. We do not anticipate needing to do this.
11. Messages sent to KBBN can include attachments, but we ask that you be considerate of folks with slow internet connections and limit the file size of attachments. A good rule-of-thumb is to keep attachments below 1 MB (about 1,000 KB) in size. Digital photos are common attachments, so we provide some suggestions for handling digital photos. In addition, we ask that you avoid attaching files of proprietary file formats, such as those from Microsoft Office products (e.g., Excel [.xls or .xlsx]; Word [.doc or .docx]). Such files may not be readable by all members of the Group and can be a route for virus infections. Please post documents and spreadsheets in PDF format; files can be converted for free at http://www.freepdfconvert.com/.
Questions or comments about these guidelines can be directed to the Group owner at: