About the Atlas

The NC Bird Atlas is a statewide community science project to map birds during the breeding and wintering seasons. We support participation by a diversity of humans for the diversity of birds.

Our motto is People Count. Birds Count.

If you have any questions, please reach out to our team at coordinator@ncbirdatlas.org.

The Quackalacky Newsletter

Each month, we publish a newsletter with Atlas Updates, Block Stars, Highlights, notes From the Field, and a Block Challenge. Subscribe Here Past Issues

Field Guide to Atlasing

This compact, field-friendly trifold distills Atlasing concepts, including block completion, breeding codes, and tips. Download a digital pdf copy here.

The NC Bird Atlas focuses on priority blocks, an intentional design to spread out birding effort across the state. When a block has had enough effort, we mark it as complete to encourage Atlasers to focus on other priority blocks.

Events

Keep in the know for all Atlas and bird-related events in North Carolina! Webinar recordings can be found on our YouTube channel.

North Carolina Landowners

Help make the NC Bird Atlas a success! Access to private lands, and their diversity of habitats, will provide us with the most complete maps of bird distribution and abundance in North Carolina.

Atlas Team

We are currently hiring for summer of 2024! View job announcement here.

Resources

Atlas Resources for Volunteers - Car sign, Landowner Letter, etc.

Why an Atlas

Birds and are the most accessible form of wildlife for people to witness and observe and crucial to the health of North Carolina’s wild, natural places. Yet, we’ve lost one in four birds since 1970 nationwide, an estimated total of 2.9 billion.

Atlas Essentials: How to Get Started

On this Page: Subscribe to Our Newsletter Sign Up for eBird Where to Go? How to Atlas Welcome to the NC Bird Atlas!

Understanding Breeding Codes

When birds are breeding, we are asking Atlasers to code the behaviors they are seeing from each species in each block. Twenty-two breeding codes are divided into four categories.

Birding Ethics, Guidelines, and Safety

On this Page: Guidelines Code of Ethics Photography Safety We ask all Atlasers to be mindful of their impact on birds, habitats, and people. We expect all participants to follow the American Birding Association’s Code of Birding Ethics (available for download and summarized below) and our code of ethics.

Atlas Shop

Visit the Zazzle store to purchase a magnet to put on your car while atlasing. Car Magnet 7″ – 12″ | Car Magnet 12″ – 18″ Check out our line of shirts, mugs, and tote bags to help spread the word!

Handbook

The Volunteer Handbook in a user guide highlighting our objectives, priority blocks, Atlasing guidelines, breeding codes, and other information. Volunteer Handbook (version 3, July 2023) Quick Start Guide (version 2, May 2023) Field Guide (version 1, July 2023)

Tutorials, FAQs, and Additional Resources

Find informational videos and tutorials on getting involved with the NC Bird Atlas, get tips on checklists and breeding codes, answers to frequently asked questions and additional links to useful resources.