BirdLife Australia conducts a number of projects which collect data about the birds of Australia. Gathering data is one of the things that we pride ourselves on, and our many bird surveys generate vast amounts of valuable data. The Atlas of Australian Birds database, for example, contains over 10 million records of over 800 species, making it Australia’s largest wildlife database, while the Shorebirds 2020 database comprises the most complete shorebird count data available in Australia.
These comprehensive data allow insights into the ecology and needs of Australia’s birds. They have been used as the basis of recommending that species, such as Australasian Bittern and Great Knot, be listed as being threatened species on the IUCN’s Red List and now are afforded the additional protection that this entails. Our data is also a crucial tool in aiding land managers, assisting them with making considered and informed decisions about the direction of their future activities and developments.
However, no matter how important the data, it is no use if it remains unseen in a database. It can be a powerful tool if it is available to be used. This is why BirdLife Australia offers access to the information in its databases. We offer the service of extracting whatever data people require from our Atlas and Shorebirds 2020 databases.
BirdLife Australia charges an extraction fee for making data from our databases available to commercial or government organisations. Not-for-profit conservation organisations receive data extractions at a reduced rate or free of charge. The fees help us support volunteer counters in their survey work and contribute to meeting the considerable expenses incurred during these surveys.
Data provided in extractions
Atlas Database
Data will be provided as species records or a species list. If you need additional information please contact the Atlas database Manager to discuss your requirements on (03) 9347 0757.
For more information on the Atlas project and data extractions from the Atlas database, click here.
Shorebirds 2020 Database
Data will be provided as species counts for each Shorebird Area and its respective Count Areas with observation date in rows and species in columns. If you need additional information please contact Shorebirds 2020 to discuss your requirements on (03) 9347 0757.
Please indicate the shorebird areas for which extractions are required. For areas covered please click here.
For extraction of data for Queensland Shorebird Areas please contact the Queensland Wader Study Group directly.
For more information on the Shorebirds 2020 program and data extractions from the Shorebirds 2020 database, click here.
Application Forms
Applications for data can be downloaded below. Please email the completed form to the appropriate email address [email protected] or [email protected]
