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Bird News Extra: Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits of subscribing to Bird News Extra?
How much does Bird News Extra cost?
Is there a free service available?
Can I try the full Bird News Extra service without paying?
When I click the Log In button, I see the login page again – what can I do?
I have to type both my email address and my password every time – is this right?
I visit the site from more than one computer – do I need to subscribe twice?
Why do I need a password?
What if I forget my password?
Can I change my password?
I've changed my email address – what should I do?
What do the symbols on the Bird News Extra page mean?
Why aren't the sightings listed in time order on the Bird News Extra page?
Why do/don't you have Avon, Tyne and Wear, Breconshire, Cleveland, Caithness, etc. in your list of counties?
How do I contribute information or comments?
I submitted a sighting, but you didn't use it. Why not?
How do I subscribe?
If I subscribe, when will my subscription start?
I'm a subscriber, but I'm being denied access – what's going on?
I'm a subscriber, but I'm seeing the free page – what's going on?
Can I access Bird News Extra from my PDA?
How reliable is the news published by BirdGuides?
Why do you charge for your news services?

Any other questions?

What are the benefits of subscribing to Bird News Extra?

All the news that we have gathered since November 2000 has been stored in an archive that provides invaluable information for any birdwatcher, but only subscribers have access to it. If you subscribe you'll be able to look up all the latest sightings in any county or of any species, over any period of time to answer questions like:

What's been seen in Norfolk this week?
Where have Snow Buntings been reported this winter?
What's the best time to look for Pomarine Skuas?
When do the Bewick's Swans arrive at Slimbridge?
Where have Hawfinches been seen in South Yorkshire?
Where are the biggest flocks of Waxwings?
When was that Long-billed Dowitcher first reported at Seaforth?

Having the answers to questions like these will enable you to make much more informed decisions on where and when to go birdwatching to see the birds you most want to see. Uniquely, of course, all of this information is kept constantly up-to-date.

In addition, there are many other benefits that are only available to subscribers:

You'll be able to get full details of every bird. Whatever details we have about where or when a bird can be seen, we'll be able to publish them in full because we're not restricted to a certain number of characters. If you don't subscribe, you'll only see this amount of detail for one sighting at a time (the most recently published sighting).
You'll be able to view reports from previous days – non-paying visitors have access to today's sightings only.
You'll be able to study the BirdMap – a map of Britain showing all the reports on any day you choose, including today or yesterday or this time last year. Non-subscribers can only view today's BirdMap which, for most of the day, gives a less complete picture than yesterday's map.
You'll be able to use our nearby facility to search for all the recent sightings within x km of your home or any other location in Britain.
You'll be able to see a history of all the reports of that bird. This will tell you how long the bird has been there and how often it has been reported, including news of times when it disappeared. This will give you a much clearer picture of the likelihood of the bird still being present when you get to the site.
You'll have access to the Online Guide to Rarer British Birds, where you can look up all historic records of rare species (as considered by the British Birds Records Committee). You can search for all the accepted sightings in any county, or at any locality and view graphs charts and maps to show which weeks, which years and which counties have had the most sightings of any rarity.
You'll have full access to our database of over 16000 birding localities. For most localities we have a grid reference (click on this to get a printable map), details of all the reports we've had from that site and any photos we've received that have been taken there. In many cases there are also descriptions of how to access the site and what birds you might find, plus text from Lee Evans's book Finding Birds in Britain, describing how and when to find whatever rare species are seen there regularly.
You'll be able to read, and take part in, any ongoing debates about any of the reported birds. If there is any doubt about the identity or age or subspecies or 'tickability' of any bird, it will be possible for birdwatchers to add their comments and opinions to the details available about that bird. In some cases, this makes for a cracking good read!
You'll have instant access to lots more relevant information, via links to other pages. At the click of the mouse you'll be able to access:
- Details of all other recent sightings of that species
- Details of all other recent sightings at that site
- Details of all other recent sightings in that county
- Details of other birdwatching hotspots in that county
- More information about that species including photos, illustrations, text and maps
- More information about that site, including access details, best birds, map etc. (if it is one of the 250+ sites that we have details of)
- A link to the relevant county page
- Photographs of that particular bird (where we have them)
You'll be able to customise your news page so it only shows the information you're most interested in. With your 'filter on' you will only see the news you've asked for, but you can always see the rest of the news by clicking the 'filter off' link.
You'll be able to sort the information on the news page so you can either see the sightings listed by species, by county, by site or by time of occurrence.
You'll be given full access to all the information that is available via the county pages, including:
- Full details of all the recent sightings in that county
- The most recent photos taken in that county
- Details of county recorders and other useful contacts
- A list of all the 'BB rarities' seen in that county. Click on any species in the list and you'll see details of all the accepted sightings in that county.
- Details of where, when and how to see any scarce or rare species that are seen regularly in that county. This information has been extracted from the book Finding Birds in Britain by Lee Evans, presented exclusively here in a county-by-county format.
- A list of all the best birding sites in the county. Click on any of these to get further details eg a grid reference, access information etc.
You'll be able to study and print out maps showing where the bird has been seen. In most cases, these will at least give you a map of the locality, but if we know the exact grid reference then the map will have an arrow pointing to the very spot.
You'll have automatic access to all the hundreds of articles in our webzine, including our popular illustrated Review of the Week (non-subscribers have access only to a subset of articles).

How much does Bird News Extra cost?

It depends on how many of our services you subscribe to:

Bronze (one-year subscription to BirdGuides webzine + any one service): £40
Silver (one-year subscription to BirdGuides webzine + any two services): £50
Gold (one-year subscription to BirdGuides webzine + any three services): £60
Platinum (one-year subscription to BirdGuides webzine + all four services): £70

One-month subscriptions are also available for £5 per service per month.

Is there still a free service available?

Yes – there is still a free and up-to-the-minute bird news service on the BirdGuides website. However, non-paying visitors aren't able to access the archive of past information and the amount of detail they see is considerably reduced – click here to see how it appears.

The main features that are available to subscribers but not to non-subscribers are as follows:

Access to sightings from previous days (non-subscribers can only view today's sightings)
Access to BirdMaps from previous days (non-subscribers can only view today's BirdMap)
Full details - detailed location information, sex and ageing information, etc. - for all reports (non-subscribers see details for only the most recent report)
Access to site pages with maps, previous sightings, photos of that site, etc. ( example)
Access to fully featured county pages with useful information for birders on all counties (non-subscribers see a cut-down version).
Access to fully featured species pages with useful information for birders on all species featured (non-subscribers see a cut-down version).
Access to The Online Guide to Rarer British Birds
The ability to search our entire output from the start of the service
The ability to customise the way the Bird News Extra page is shown (e.g. sorting by county or species, or filtering out categories of reports that do not interest you)
Access to a page showing just nearby bird reports, based on a location you specify
Access to all articles in our webzine for the duration of your subscription

Can I try Bird News Extra without paying?

All first-time visitors to our site are eligible for a three-day trial of the service, with no obligation to subscribe once the free period is up. See More information on free trials.

The 3-day subscription includes the Email Alert service, but you will not start receiving emails until you select which reports you want to receive – open the "Email Alert" section in the left-hand menu and click "Your settings" (or go straight to the page).

More information on free trials

When I click the Log In button, I see the login page again – what can I do?

The login page does not work if your Internet browser is set up to refuse temporary cookies. You should be able to adjust your browser settings to avoid the problem:

To alter your settings in Internet Explorer 5 on a PC:

Select Tools, Internet Options.
Click the "Security" tab.
Set your Internet security level to Medium (or lower).

In Internet Explorer 6:

Select Tools, Internet Options...
Select the Privacy tab.
Click the Edit button.
Type www.birdguides.com in the box marked "Address of Web site" and click the Allow button.
Click OK.

In AOL 9.0:

Click the AOL Settings icon near the top of your AOL window.
In the Essentials section, click on Internet [Web] Options.
Select the Privacy tab.
Click the Advanced button.
Ensure that "Override automatic cookie handling" is checked.
Set First and Third party cookies to Accept.
Check Always allow session cookies.
Click OK.
Click Apply and then OK.
Exit AOL and restart your computer

In AOL 8.0:

Click the AOL Settings icon near the top of your AOL window.
In the dropdown that appears, select Preferences.
Click the By Category tab.
Find Internet in the listings.
Click the Privacy tab.
Click the Advanced button.
Ensure that Override automatic cookie handling is checked.
Set First and Third party cookies to Accept.
Check Always allow session cookies.
Click OK.
Click Apply and then OK.
Exit AOL and restart your computer.

In Netscape 4:

Select Edit, Preferences.
Click "Advanced" in the left-hand pane.
Select "Accept all cookies".

In Netscape 7:

Select Edit, Preferences.
In the Category list, double-click "Privacy and Security", then double-click "Cookies".
Select any option EXCEPT "Disable cookies".

In Internet Explorer 5 on a Macintosh:

Select Edit, Preferences.
Select Receiving Files, Cookies.
Set "When receiving cookies" to "Never ask" (or anything other than "Never accept").

You may need to exit and reopen your browser for the new settings to take effect.

If you are unhappy to allow permanent cookies on your machine, bear in mind that the BirdGuides website will work adequately if you disable "persistent cookies" (though you will have to enter your email address and password every time you log in), but it does require "temporary" or "session" cookies to be enabled – such cookies are removed when you close your browser.

I have to type both my email address and my password every time – is this right?

Most subscribers should find that when they get to the Bird News Extra login page they see their email address already filled in, and they just need to enter their password to gain access to the site. In order to do this, the website needs to know "who you are" – the way it tries to do this is to place a small file called a "cookie" on your hard disk. Every time you visit the page we look for this cookie on the computer you're using – if we find it we put up your email address and invite you to supply the matching password. If it doesn't find the cookie we have to ask you for both.

There are several reasons why your cookie may not be found:

your browser doesn't support cookies – some older browsers, and some web TVs, do not support cookies
your browser is set up to refuse permanent cookies – check your browser settings (instructions follow for various browsers).
To check your settings in Internet Explorer 5:
1. Select Tools, Internet Options.
2. Click the "Security" tab.
3. Set your Internet security level to Medium (or lower).
In Internet Explorer 6:
1. Select Tools, Internet Options...
2. Select the Privacy tab.
3. Click the Edit button.
4. Type www.birdguides.com in the box marked "Address of Web site" and click the Allow button.
5. Click OK.
In AOL 9.0:
1. Click the AOL Settings icon near the top of your AOL window.
2. In the Essentials section, click on Internet [Web] Options.
3. Select the Privacy tab.
4. Click the Advanced button.
5. Ensure that "Override automatic cookie handling" is checked.
6. Set First and Third party cookies should be set to Accept.
7. Check Always allow session cookies.
8. Click OK.
9. Click Apply and then OK.
10. Exit AOL and restart your computer
In AOL 8.0:
1. Click the AOL Settings icon near the top of your AOL window.
2. In the dropdown that appears, select Preferences.
3. Click the By Category tab.
4. Find Internet in the listings.
5. Click the Privacy tab.
6. Click the Advanced button.
7. Ensure that Override automatic cookie handling is checked.
8. Set First and Third party cookies to Accept.
9. Check Always allow session cookies.
10. Click OK.
11. Click Apply and then OK.
12. Exit AOL and restart your computer.
In Netscape 4:
1. Select Edit, Preferences.
2. Click "Advanced" in the left-hand pane.
3. Select "Accept all cookies".
In Internet Explorer 5 on a Macintosh:
1. Select Edit, Preferences.
2. Select Receiving Files, Cookies.
3. Set "When receiving cookies" to "Never ask" (or anything other than "Never accept").
you have a program such as "Cookie Cruncher" installed that deletes cookies automatically
you are using a network or firewall system that prevents the use of cookies – consult your network manager
you are using a different computer each time you log on (remember that the cookie is stored on the hard disk of the computer you use)
you have manually deleted the cookie (often from a folder called Cookies or Temporary Internet Files)
your cookie has expired (we set the cookie to expire 1 year after your last visit to our site)

I visit the site from more than one computer – do I need to subscribe twice?

No – you only need to subscribe once. For example, if you subscribe at home but also check the site from work, you can log in using your home email address on your work computer (or vice versa) – we only use the address to identify you and it doesn't have to match the address you normally use on that particular computer. You can use your subscription from any computer, such as one in an Internet café or library, provided you log in using your registered email address with the password allocated to that address.

Why do I need a password?

We use your email address as a user ID. As the service is chargeable, we need a mechanism to prevent non-paying subscribers from obtaining access to the chargeable service, simply by logging in with a known subscriber's email address. A password is the simplest way to achieve this. If you did not choose a password when you registered you will have been allocated a random password – click the reminder link on the login page to receive your password by email. You can change your password by clicking Change Details on the login page or "My details" on the main Bird News Extra page.

What if I forget my password?

If you forget your password, there is a link on the login page that will send a reminder (to a registered email address) by email.

Can I change my password?

Yes – just go to the login page, enter your email address and current password, then click the "Change Details" button. You can also access the same page by logging in to Bird News Extra and clicking "My Details" in the left-hand margin.

I've changed my email address – what do I do?

Please DON'T re-register with your new address – you won't be able to access your Bird News Extra subscription using the new login address. Instead, update your existing registration as follows:

Go to page www.birdguides.com/register/userdetails.asp
If you haven't already logged in, do so using your currently registered (old) email address and password. (If you don't know your password you can ask for a reminder, but it will be sent to your old address; if that address is already inoperative, , quoting both your old and new addresses.)
Enter your new email address and click the Submit button.
You'll be sent an email to check that your new address is valid. Just go to the page given in the email to confirm it (in most email packages, all you need to do is click the link).
If you don't receive an email within a couple of hours, drop us a line by .

NB If you have an Email Alert subscription and your emails are set up to go to your old registered email address, we'll automatically update Email Alert so that messages subsequently go to your new address. However if you want to continue having your Email Alerts sent to your old address, or to another address, or you simply want to check your settings, you can do so at www.birdguides.com/emailalert/setup.

What do the symbols on the Bird News Extra page mean?

Key to symbols
		Mega – very rare species
		Negative news
		Reported as unconfirmed, or ID uncertain
		Notable
		Reported (usually applied to new reports that have yet to be corroborated)
		Presumed escape
		Announcement
		A correction to an earlier report

Move your mouse cursor over any symbol for a brief reminder of its meaning.

The Present column shows the time of the most recent observation, where available. The Added column shows when the report was added to our database of sightings.

Click the button to view a page of details about that bird at that site, including a "history" of all the reports we've put out about it. Within the details page you can add your own comments, request directions, ask or answer questions, or even upload your own photographs. To help you pick out the more interesting details pages, for birds where there is subscriber-generated information or a photograph available the Details button will look like this:

Why aren't the sightings listed in time order on the Bird News Extra page?

By default, sightings are listed in time order, newest first. However you can change the order of the sightings by clicking on one of the headings at the top of the list:

R – to sort by rarity, rarest species first
Added – to sort by time added, latest first (the default)
Species – to sort by species in approximate Voous order
Area – to sort alphabetically by county
Site – to sort alphabetically by sitename

If you change the sort order, the page will display sightings in your chosen order until you next change it. If you've changed the sort order by accident, just click "Added" at the top of the list to return the order to the default order.

Why do/don't you have Avon, Tyne and Wear, Breconshire, Cleveland, Caithness, etc. in your list of counties?

Our list of counties is a considered compromise between existing and easily defined official regions and traditional birding areas. Thus for example Cleveland is still included, although it no longer exists as an official county, as an Annual Report is still published for the area and many local birders still maintain a Cleveland list. Other areas (e.g. Caithness, Breconshire) have been amalgamated with others to form larger units (e.g. Highland and Powys, respectively) as on their own they are small and/or unproductive of bird reports.

For a list of our counties, with notes where appropriate, click here.

How do I contribute information or comments?

Via our online Submissions form:

To report a new sighting, use our online submissions form (click Submit in the left-hand menu).
To send an update (i.e. a more recent report, positive or negative) of a bird we've already reported, subscribers can save time by clicking the button against any report of that bird – then click "Report a sighting of THIS bird".
To comment on a sighting (subscribers only), click the button against any report of the bird, scroll to the bottom of the page and click "Post comment".

By email: Sightings can be reported by email to . As with the phone number, this is only for bird news and corrections to published reports, and we would prefer not to receive large attachments on this address. General comments and enquiries about the Bird News Extra and Email Alert services, or queries about your subscriptions, should be sent to . Sales enquiries should be sent to .

By text message: Text BIRDS RPT followed by your message to 07786 200505.

By phone: To report urgent news, you can phone our freephone number 0333 5772473. We will ask you for the species, site and county, a grid reference if possible, your telephone number and any further details (such as directions or access arrangements). This number is only for reporting bird news – sales enquiries about Bird News Extra, Email Alert or other BirdGuides products and services should be directed to our sales number 0800 919391.

All contributions will be vetted by our bird news staff before they appear on the site.

I submitted a sighting, but you didn't use it. Why not?

Firstly check that we definitely didn't actually use the report. We sometimes amalgamate sightings from the same or nearby sites into a single report, so it's possible you might overlook the fact that we did mention your bird on another report; also you may have filtered the reports you see or receive such that your own report is not included.

If we haven't used the report it could be for one of several reasons:

The species is too common to be of more than local interest (reports of species in our "Common" and "Local" categories will often not be published unless the date, location or numbers are unusual).
The bird in question has been recently reported by another observer.
We have been asked by local or national conservation agencies not to mention the particular site or species, or we are aware of local sensitivities.
We are still investigating the report with other local contacts, or have requested more information from you and not yet heard back.
There has been a lengthy delay since the observation.
We didn't receive the report (which could be for a number of reasons, depending on the mechanism you used).
In our opinion the bird reported has, on the balance of probabilities, been misidentified.

We don't intentionally ignore relevant reports without good reason. Please don't feel discouraged if we don't use your report.

How do I subscribe?

Go to our estore, purchase the appropriate product for the number of services you want, and check out. Later in the process you will be asked to choose the services you want.

If you prefer not to subscribe online, we can accept payment for subscriptions by credit card over the phone (on 0800 919391).

If I subscribe, when will my subscription start?

If you have never previously subscribed, or your previous subscription (free or otherwise) has expired, your new subscription will start the day you sign up.

If you have an existing subscription (free or otherwise) that has not yet expired, your additional subscription period will be added to the end of your current subscription – so you don't lose out by renewing early.

Subscription purchased online should be processed automatically and immediately; if for any reason you find you can't access the service you've purchased, try logging out then logging in again. If that doesn't work, quoting your registered email address.

If you want to defer the start of your subscription, please .

I'm a subscriber, but I'm being denied access – what's going on?

Please first check whether your paid subscription or free trial subscription has not simply ended, in which case you need to renew your subscription. Your subscription expiry date is shown at the top right of the Bird News Extra page.

Secondly, make sure that you have ordered a Bird News Extra subscription. Subscriptions to our other services (Email Alert, Bird Text Alert, Bird News Anywhere, the BirdGuides app, Iris Pro and the webzine) do not, by themselves, entitle you to access Bird News Extra pages. If you find you have purchased the wrong subscriptions, or phone 0800 919391 and we'll discuss ways you can upgrade or transfer to the subscription you want.

Another possibility is that you have registered more than one email address with BirdGuides, and the subscription is "attached" to a different registration to the one you're using to log in. Try logging in under the other addresses you've registered. If you suspect this is the problem the quickest solution may be to and we'll eliminate your duplicate registrations.

A final (and unlikely) possibility is that if you ordered by phone or post, the subscription hasn't been activated due to administrative error (online subscriptions are activated automatically). If you suspect this is the case, please .

I'm a subscriber, but I'm seeing the free page – what's going on?

Can I access Bird News Extra from my PDA?

If your PDA or phone can display standard web pages then you may be able to use it to view Bird News Extra pages. However, Bird News Extra is not optimised for mobile devices so you may find the experience unsatisfactory. Our Bird News Anywhere pages, on the other hand, are designed to be viewed on PDAs and we think you'll find these are much easier to view and use – to access these you'll need to subscribe to Bird News Anywhere.

Some mobile devices limit the size of web-pages that can be downloaded and viewed, and some Bird News Extra pages may exceed these limits. You may be able to increase the page-size limit (at your own risk); e.g. for BlackBerry devices, instructions are given at http://www.blackberry.com/btsc/KB17318.

How reliable is the news published by BirdGuides?

We are very keen not to be criticised for publishing 'duff' information, as has happened to at least one bird news service. To prevent this we will ensure that our news service is only run by experienced and knowledgeable birdwatchers, who will be able to communicate directly with many of the observers and quiz them directly about any reports that seem unlikely.

If a bird has been reported by only a single observer and hasn't been corroborated, it will be published but with the symbol next to it – meaning 'reported' as opposed to confirmed – or if the observer him- or herself has expressed doubt about the certainty of the identification. In some cases, the sightings will have come from other sources, so we won't be able to check them directly and we'll have to rely on the 'quality control' provided by that service. There is no doubt that some sightings will slip through inaccurately but the considerable knowledge of those who run our service should ensure that mistakes are minimal. If you do discover that we've published an inaccurate or inappropriate sighting, please let us know (by emailing ) because, unlike some other services, we can make corrections and amendments to our news.

Why do you charge for your news services?

We believe our news services provide terrific facilities for birdwatchers to use and enjoy but providing this information is a very expensive operation. We have to pay the members of our news team to gather information from early morning to late evening, every day of the year, plus the salaries of our technical and editorial staff, the costs of maintaining the servers (yes, it needs two of them!) and software, sending out messages, processing photos, updating the British Birds database, adding new facilities, etc. Although we now have many subscribers to our services, the income we get from those subscriptions STILL doesn't even cover our costs, though we're hoping this income will continue to grow so that one day the services will be self-sustaining.

Meanwhile we intend to continue providing a first-class bird news service in a variety of formats that provide better value for money than any other rival services. And for anyone who is unable to pay to access our bird news, we still provide a more basic service free of charge. For details of what is available to subscribers and non-subscribers, click here.

More information

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Other bird news services from BirdGuides

Email Alert
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Bird News Anywhere

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