KOS Breeding Bird Blitz
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Second Annual Event

Birders around the state are invited to take part in the 2nd KOS Breeding Bird Blitz. The goal of the BBBlitz is to have birders visit every county in Kentucky. We want to increase our knowledge of breeding bird populations in the state.

Dates: June 12–15, 2026

When you register, you will choose the counties you wish to visit. (You will be able to change your choices. Save your response email to record changes.) The more counties you cover, the better your chances of winning the raffle!

You don’t have to observe breeding behaviors. Just report all the birds you identify during the 4 days of the Blitz via eBird and share your checklists with the eBird account created for the Blitz. The name of that eBird account is “KOSBlitz26.” You are encouraged to use eBird breeding codes but it is not necessary.

Guidelines

Commit to bird at least 1 hour in each county you choose
Report your findings on eBird and share your checklists
For each county you choose, you get a raffle ticket
For the 6 counties* that weren’t visited last year, you get two raffle tickets
The raffle prize – a $200 Kentucky State Parks gift certificate
Results will be reported each day, from eBird data
You can print a sign for your vehicle to let people know what you are doing
Be sure to enter your eBird data and share your lists by 7:00 P.M. on June 16th (the day after the Blitz ends)
The raffle winner will be announced on June 17
If you need help with eBird, please contact Steve Kistler at kistlers76@gmail.comor 270-774-1275.

* Counties not visited last year: Bourbon, Garrard, Greenup, Knott, Letcher, McClean

Prize Elibility

To be eligible to win the raffle prize, you must:

Register using the form below before 7:00 P.M. on June 15th (the last day of the Blitz)
Edit your registration as needed to reflect the counties you visited
Record your sightings using eBird checklists and share your checklists with the KOS eBird account named “KOSBlitz26” before 7:00 P.M. on June 16th (the day after the Blitz ends)

Note: KOS Board members may participate, but are not eligible to win the raffle prize.

Registration Form

Use the registration form below to sign up, select your county or counties, and become eligible for the raffle.

BIRDKY LISTSERV Rules

By using Birdky LISTSERV, you agree to follow the rules found in our Conditions of Use below. Please read this entire page to be sure you agree. If not, please unsubscribe and discontinue using Birdky LISTSERV.

Philosophy of Birdky LISTSERV

The Kentucky Ornithological Society (KOS) provides Birdky LISTSERV as a service to the Kentucky birding community. It is a forum for sharing information quickly and efficiently. Discussions about wild birds, birding, and related conservation efforts are invited. These exchanges should be informative, entertaining, and respectful. Members are encouraged to feel a sense of community in which they can post to the Birdky LISTSERV without fear of humiliation or personal attacks.

These guidelines will help you get started. The Conditions of Use, found below the Guidelines, are the rules by which Birdky LISTSERV will be managed. KOS prefers to guide BIRDKY with a light touch and a common-sense approach that permits free and open discussion. The rules will be enforced if the need arises.

Guidelines

To Subscribe

Send email to: birdky-request@freelists.org with "subscribe" in the subject line.

To Unsubscribe

Send email to: birdky-request@freelists.org with "unsubscribe" in the subject line.

How To Post

These are the basic steps and rules for creating a Birdky Post.

Send an email message to birdky@freelists.org
Include a descriptive subject line with your email. Do not leave the subject line blank.
In the body of the message, use plain text only. You may also include links to appropriate content, such as an ebird report or an article of interest.
Do not include photos, images, logos, attached documents or files. Do not paste content you have copied from webpages, articles or other emails into a birdky post. Do not include HTML code, or other code snippets.
At the bottom of the the message, include your actual name and location.
Be respectful in posts, discussions, and responses at all times.
If you have concerns about the content of a post or discussion, if you feel harrased, or if you have a dispute with someone over a Birdky LISTSERV post, DO NOT post to the Birdky LISTSERV about your concerns or engage in a public dispute. Instead write to the LISTSERV manager, Gary Ritchison at gary.ritchison@retiree.eku.edu to request help with the issue.

Conventions

There are some traditional and useful prefixes that may be used with the subject line. The format for this is "PRE: Text of subject," where PRE is replaced by one of the prefixes below. They are a shorthand way to catch the attention of your intended audience.

RPT: - Denotes a Report. For example, "RPT: Special Sighting"
RFI: - Request for Information.
RBA: - Rare Bird Alert.

Conditions of Use

The following rules are the KOS conditions for use of Birdky LISTSERV. By subscribing to and using the Birdky LISTSERV, you agree that you have read these rules and that you will follow these rules.

Failure to follow the rules for Birdky LISTSERV can result in loss of your right to use the service.

If you break the rules, you may receive a warning that you are out of compliance, be temporarily suspended from using the service, or banned entirely.

Required Elements for Posts

Posts to Birdky LISTSERV must contain:

A descriptive subject line. Do Not leave the subject line blank.
A message body that contains plain text.
Your real name.
Your real location. This can be a county, city or town name. The location can be where you are reporting from or where you live.

Optional Elements for Posts

Posts to Birdky LISTSERV may also contain:

Links (URLs) to websites or other online content you are referrencing in your post.
Email addresses for yourself or someone you are referrencing in your post.
A Title. In addition to the subject line, you may add a title for your post, at the top of your message body.

Acceptable Content and Behavior

All posts and replies to Birdky LISTSERV must be respectful.

Topics - News about wild birds, birding, and bird-related conservation efforts are all examples of acceptable content.
Topics - Posts should be about acceptable Kentucky-related topics. Posts about other states, the nation or the world are acceptable, if they have some connection to Kentucky.
Discussion - Responses to posts about the original topic, which expand the discussion, or add to it, are encouraged.
Referring Links - When the topic is about another website or other online content, links to that content may be included.
Email Addresses - When the topic mentions contacting someone, email addresses may be included along with other contact information.
Your Email Address - Your email address may be included in the body of the message. For example you could include your email address in the signature block.

Uncceptable Content and Behavior

Posts and replies to Birdky LISTSERV may not be disrespectful.

Inappropriate Topics - Any topic that is not covered by our Acceptable Content list above should be avoided. Examples of unacceptable topics include:
- Pet birds, caged birds and domestic birds
- Ethics of hunting or falconry
- Feral Cats
Off-topic Responses - Replies that change the topic of the original post are not allowed.
Advertising - KOS is a non-profit organization that does not promote any product or service and advertising is not allowed.
Note: discussions about products or services are not considered advertising.
Angry Discussion - Disagreements, angry responses and any aggressive content is not allowed.
Inappropriate or Offensive Content - KOS promotes a family-friendly atmosphere on Birdky LISTSERV. Any content, text, statement or image that is considered to be inappropriate or offensive by KOS is not allowed.
Attachments - Photos, images, documents and other files should not be attached to your posts.
Cut and Paste - While small blocks of text my be pasted into your post for reference, pasting articles, web pages or other online content into your post is not allowed. Doing so can result in copyright infringement issues for you and for KOS.

Enforcement of KOS Birdky LISTSERV Rules

Common sense and a light touch will always be the starting point when a breach of the rules occurs. Most breaches are accidental or unintentional and will not result in any action. If a breach becomes serious or persistent enough to warrant action, KOS and the LISTSERV manager will take steps to resolve the issue.

Possible enforcement actions include warnings, temporary suspension of access to the LISTSERV, or a permanent ban of the offender from using the service. Any enforcement will be done privately with no public notice or comment from KOS.

If a potential copyright infringement issue occurs, KOS will take steps to remove the offending content.