Birders are encouraged to submit records of Painted Buntings directly to eBird. If you already have an eBird account, log in and click on the link to "submit observations." If you don't have an account, click the link to create a new account and then "submit observations." The best way to plot your location is with latitude and longitude. If you don't know the latitude and longitude, you can use the map to plot your sighting. Once you plot your location, provide the date, select "casual observation" (if you are providing data only on Painted Buntings), and give an elevation if known. If you kept records of other species and of how far you traveled, you may want to select another protocol (stationary count, traveling count) and enter effort information. Enter the number of individuals seen (and any other species seen, if possible). Click "yes" after viewing the button that asks "Do you want to report age/sex or add species comments?" Enter age and sex if possible, and any relevant details. If this observation is away from known locations, please provide details.

What is eBird?— Launched in 2002 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, eBird’s goal is to maximize the utility and accessibility of the vast numbers of bird observations made each year by recreational and professional bird watchers. A web-based bird checklist program, eBird is amassing one of the largest and fastest growing biodiversity data resources in existence. For example, in 2007 over 5.7 million bird observations were gathered. The observations of each participant join those of others in an international network of eBird users. eBird then shares these observations with a global community of educators, land managers, ornithologists and conservation biologists. In time these data will become the foundation for a better understanding of bird distribution across the western hemisphere and beyond.

How does it work?— eBird documents the presence or absence of species, as well as bird abundance through checklist data. A simple and intuitive web-interface engages tens of thousands of participants to submit their observations or view results via interactive queries into the eBird database. eBird encourages users to participate by providing Internet tools that maintain their personal bird records, and ways to visualize data with interactive maps, graphs, and bar charts. All these features are available in several languages (English, Spanish, and French).

A birder simply enters when, where and how they went birding, and then fills out a checklist of all the birds seen and heard during the outing. eBird provides alternative methodologies for data gathering including point counts, transects, and area searches. Automated data quality filters developed by regional bird experts review all submissions before they enter the database. Local experts review unusual records that are flagged by the filters.

Data integration— eBird collects observations from birders through portals managed and maintained by local partner conservation organizations. In this way eBird targets specific audiences with the highest level of local expertise, promotion, and project ownership.

Data accessibility—While eBird data are stored in a secure facility and archived daily, the data also are accessible to anyone via applications developed by the global biodiversity information community. For example, eBird data are part of the Avian Knowledge Network (AKN), which integrates observational data on bird populations across the western hemisphere. In turn, the AKN feeds eBird data to international biodiversity data systems, such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). In this way any contribution made to eBird increases our understanding of the distribution, richness, and uniqueness of the biodiversity of our planet.