To begin, select either a data collection or a map overlay. The default settings (with no boxes checked) include all data collections. Click on a point or polygon within the map to display an avian data summary for that point or region.

To get a regional summary, click on an area within that region devoid of points. If multiple map overlays are selected, only the TOPMOST overlay in your selection will be summarized (e.g. if the "States" overlay is selected, you will always get summaries by state).

You may also wish to see locations where a specific species was observed. Simply choose a species from the pulldown menu. If no individuals were seen, no points will appear on the map. Select the first item, "All species" from the pulldown menu to see all of the points.

You can also add an additional periodic filter by month via the appropriate pulldown menus. The default, Jan-Dec, will give you species occurences year-round. To see winter populations, selecting something like Oct-Feb will work. Please note that Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) data is collected only during the summer months, and does not include many species that you will see in eBird and other collections.

To create a summary for a customizable region, click on the polygon tool and then click on the map to select the first corner of your polygon. Then move the mouse, clicking where you wish to lay down another corner. Double-click to stop drawing your polygon, and the summary will appear. Calculating the summary may take up to a minute; please be patient.