Animal Demography Unit Department of Biological Sciences University of Cape Town Rondebosch 7701 South Africa www.adu.org.za Tel. +27 (0)21 650 3227 [email protected] DIGITAL BIODIVERSITY•CITIZEN SCIENCE•BIODIVERSITY INFORMATICS 30 September 2015 TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN The Second Southern African Bird Atlas (SABAP2) was launched in Namibia in May 2012. The project is an update and extension of the first Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP1) which ran from 1987–1991, and included six countries of southern Africa, including Namibia. It culminated in the publication of the Atlas of Southern African Birds in 1997. The bird atlas project in Namibia is partnership between the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the Namibia Bird Club and the Animal Demography Unit, University of Cape Town (ADU). The project plans to run indefinitely. The broad aim of the project is to determine the distribution and abundance of bird species in Namibia, and to investigate how environmental change and development have impacted bird distributions over the past quarter of a century. It also aims to promote public awareness of birds through large-scale mobilization of ‘citizen scientists’. The project entails volunteer bird- watchers recording bird species in five-minute grid cells (approx. 8 km × 9 km) called pentads. This information is then sent to the Animal Demography Unit at the University of Cape Town where the data is captured into a central database. It is important for observers to try and cover as much of the grid cells as possible in order for an accurate and comprehensive bird list to be compiled for the area. At this stage the project has gathered nearly seven million records of bird distribution. The project website is at http://sabap2.adu.org.za. All data collected for Namibia is repatriated to Namibia, and the ADU holds the records in trust. As a landowner or manager you can provide vital support to the participating citizen scientists by granting them access to private or restricted areas so that they can cover as much of the survey area as possible. They ought to have an atlaser observer identification card confirming them as registered participants with the project. As a registered observer they also need to adhere to a Code of Ethics which includes concepts such as obtaining permission to access private land and how to conduct oneself when entering private property. Should you have any queries or questions about SABAP2 or about a SABAP2 observer please see our website (http://sabap2.adu.org.za), or alternatively, you can contact Les Underhill at the ADU (Tel: 00 27 72 062 1140, [email protected]) or Michael Brooks at the ADU (Tel: 00 27 72 133 2005, [email protected]) . Thank you for your assistance. Yours sincerely Professor LG Underhill Director: Animal Demography Unit.