Birding List Etiquette and Style Guidelines
OBOL and other birding lists in Oregon have operated for many years with a minimal level of moderation and formal rules, depending for the most part on a common understanding of civility and a shared focus on birding.
The following suggestions for birding list etiquette and posting style are based in part on a list compiled by Paul T. Sullivan, which was posted to OBOL on May 12, 2009. While some of these suggestions are a matter of personal taste, they tend to facilitate civil communication and are followed in most discussions on OBOL.
Mechanics of posting:
Set your email to plain text, not HTML, MIME, etc. Never include any attachment in your posting. Put photos up on a website and post the link. Not everyone has broadband internet service. Do not hit the "Reply" button if you are looking at the daily Digest. That sends the whole long digest back to OBOL, along with your message. If you send one posting to both OBOL and COBOL, it will appear twice on Siler's website, which is used by many birders to follow OBOL. Please send separate posts to these two lists.Style guidelines:
Indicate the content in the subject line. Try to indicate location and what is most notable. If you write prose text, highlight the BIRD NAMES in capital letters. Do not use the 4 letter (banding) codes for bird names; spell them out (at least the first time you use them in each posting). Click here if you are curious to learn what these codes are. They can be useful for banding and other field work, but full species names are better for communication with a general birding audience. If you misspell a bird's name, some people will be annoyed. Try to spell it right. See below for a list of common bird name misspellings. Give directions to notable birds. Check them for accuracy before you send. Sign your posting and include your location. Taglines or a quote after your signature are OK, but optional.Content guidelines:
Postings should primarily be related to occurrences of wild birds in Oregon, their identification, distribution, and natural history, and birding experiences in the field in Oregon (or nearby parts of adjoining states). Experiences from elsewhere are sometimes relevant to discussion of Oregon birds, but normally it is best to post those to forums for the regions where you saw the birds. An occasional posting about birding-related commercial offerings, such as tours, books, or binoculars for sale is OK ("occasional" is generally understood to be no more than once per month). Certain topics such as starling/house sparrow control, cats, guns, and religion have a tendency to lead to testy arguments, and therefore should be avoided Refrain from political postings. Discussions of issues directly affecting bird habitat should be kept as nonpartisan as possible.Posting etiquette (optional, but highly recommended):
Keep in mind that OBOL is a community space, not anyone's personal blog. Be nice. Avoid personal attacks. Remember that wry or sarcastic humor is easily misunderstood in e-mail forums where many participants have never met each other face to face._______________________________________________
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