HANZAB online now available

[Kim Farley via Canberrabirds <>]

Great to have HANZAB online Steve, and also very helpful to have Geoffrey's outline of what it is and what it provides. Lots of our newer Canberra Birds members as well as some Chatline users may not have come across HANZAB before. 

All the best

Kim

On Wed, Nov 29, 2023 at 2:08 PM Geoffrey Dabb <> wrote:

Thanks Steve.  Great work.  Might I add a word on What is HANZAB? The short answer is that is an encyclopedia about Australian birds issued in 7 volumes (9 parts) from  1990 to 2006. Species are covered in taxonomic order.  Given the scale of the undertaking, the information is very compressed, making much use of abbreviations and conventions.  To understand the meaning of these (the plumage stages for example) it is necessary to refer to vol 1A.  Steve tells me that the conventions and abbreviations are now more readily accessible in the online version.  One convention relates to descriptions of colours, where it is necessary to look at your (presumably deceased) bird under a Phillips 60W daylight globe and consult FB Smithe Naturalist’s Color Guide, being guided by the numbers rather than the enigmatic verbal  labels.

 

There is one aspect where both the position in the real world, and our knowledge about it, is difficult to present in a helpful way. This concerns the idea of ‘range’. HANZAB has done its best in interpreting the result of various surveys.  Recent field guide don’t do much better.  On top of the problems of seasonal or climate-driven movement, there are current or emerging trends, either expansive or retreating.   Depending on what you want to know about how usual or unusual a species is in a particular location, you’d probably be better off looking at eBird or Birdata archives, selecting particular periods or seasons.

 

 

From: Canberrabirds <> On Behalf Of Wallaces via Canberrabirds
Sent: Tuesday, November 28, 2023 2:32 PM
To: Canberra birds <>
Subject: [Canberrabirds] HANZAB online now available

 

Here is a link to HANZAB online.

 

I am happy to answer any questions about it. However, please use the comments area available on each page to record errors in the content.

 

There should be an update released before the end of the year.

 

Happy reading.

 

Steve

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