Overview of the New Zealand Garden Bird Study - a platform for knowledge acquisition
Introducing the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey: A Citizen Science Project for All Ages
The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey is a fascinating citizen science initiative that invites individuals across the nation to contribute to collecting data on garden bird species, shedding light on changes in bird populations and habitats over time1.
For children and teachers, this project offers rich learning opportunities by:
- Encouraging direct observation and recording of local bird species, fostering awareness and appreciation of native birds and their ecological roles.
- Providing real-world data that can be used in classroom activities to teach concepts like biodiversity, habitat conservation, and environmental changes.
- Highlighting conservation challenges and the importance of protecting native species (referred to as taonga species in New Zealand), linking science education with cultural values1.
- Offering a practical way to engage with scientific methods such as data collection, analysis, and interpretation, which enhances both environmental literacy and scientific skills.
The Ministry of Education's Connected platform includes articles and teacher support material related to birds, making it easier for educators to incorporate the Garden Bird Survey into their programmes2. The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey website provides numerous resources for children and teachers, including instructional videos, downloadable full-color resources, ideas on how and where to do the survey, and children's activities3.
Schools can choose to do the survey in 10-minute rotations over an hour or do the standard survey monitoring up to 22 bird species over 60 minutes4. A ready-to-use cross-curricular teaching resource, "Birds in my backyard," introduces and incorporates the Garden Bird Survey into a programme5.
The "Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa - resources for kura" curates resources for educators working in years 3-86. The resources curated by the Hub feature collections on birds, bird adaptations, and native bird conservation7.
Participants use illustrated tally sheets in te reo Māori or English to record birds in their local area8. The survey data is used to create easy-to-read infographics for the public and to build long-term biodiversity datasets9. The website also includes bird identification tools and survey results, including key findings from annual surveys and infographics about increases and declines of native and introduced species over 5-year and 10-year periods10.
Other bird-related citizen science projects include eBird, the New Zealand Bird Atlas, iNaturalist, and Seek11. A webinar titled "Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa - The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey" shares how students can be involved in the project12. The resources for the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey can be found on the website13.
The survey has been running annually since 200714. The "Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa - The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey" is a citizen science project run by Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research15. A poster for the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey is available, featuring common bird names in te reo Māori and English16.
By participating in the survey, children gain hands-on experience in monitoring wildlife, while teachers can use the data and findings to develop curriculum content around ecology, conservation, and citizen science. The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey acts as an educational platform that connects students and educators with native birds and their habitats, promoting environmental stewardship through interactive learning1.
- The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey, a home-and-garden activity, not just for outdoor enthusiasts, offers rich learning opportunities for children and teachers, fostering awareness about the lifestyle and ecological roles of native birds.
- The New Zealand Garden Bird Survey provides resources for children and teachers, such as instructional videos and downloadable full-color resources, turning an hour of birdwatching in the garden into a meaningful home-and-garden citizen science project.
