Do you sometimes wonder how all those people report a rare bird on eBird days before you hear about it? You can of course sign up for “Rare Bird Alerts” and “Needs Alerts” using the “Alerts” menu selection from “My eBird” page on eBird. Those will result in hourly, daily, or weekly emails to you. A quicker way to be notified on your phone is by signing up for Rare Bird Alerts using the GroupMe app established by SIB Member Craig Watson for this purpose.
To join, you will need the GroupMe app on your device. Once you have the app and sign in, search for CBC SC Rare Bird Alert and request to join. You will have to answer a question. Please include SIB somewhere in your response. If you are unsuccessful in joining this way, please contact Craig Watson, the administrator, at 843-693-0905.
The Rare Bird Alert on GroupMe has three components. The three groups are CBC SC Rare Bird Alert, CBC meaning the Carolina Bird Club; SC Bird Chat/Discussion; and Charleston Area Birding.
- The CBC Rare Bird Alert is to broadcast rare bird information, and once you’ve joined, you are able to both report your sightings and receive other reports. Information in this group should relate to only species, time, place, and any other pertinent information necessary for other birders to locate the bird(s). Private property reports are not to be included in this report unless access can be granted for entry or permission is obtained. There are close to 400 people on this chat so we need to keep information concise and pertinent to the rare bird. Other related information can be put on the SC Bird Chat/Discussion channel.
- The SC Bird Chat/Discussion channel is used for anything additional and important to the rare bird report, and is more open for discussions related to birds in SC, yet generally focuses on ongoing reporting of other birds (including rare ones), migration, irruptions, movements of rare birds, etc.
- The third one is the Charleston Area Birding channel and can be anything related to the above channels, but focused on local birding (Charleston, Berkeley, Dorchester, Colleton Counties).
There are rules pinned to the top of the CBC SC Rare Bird Alert, so if and when you join, please read and adhere to the rules. You can also Direct Message others on this app, as you would a text message, for additional information about rare birds, etc., or have discussions with others privately so that it doesn’t clog the main channel. However, any pertinent information relevant to finding a bird should be put on the main channel. Again, please read the rules about posting regarding private property and eBird Sensitive species.
Happy Birding!
Submitted by: Craig Watson
Photo: Craig Watson – Harlequin Duck, Melton Peter Demetre Park, October 22, 2025