Southern African Bird Atlas Project 2

South Africa, eSwatini, Lesotho, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique, Malawi

a member of the African Bird Atlas Project

National Atlas Committee

The National Atlas Committee undertakes the vetting of all national rarities that are submitted to the SABAP2. The committee comprises Garret Skead (chairperson), Trevor Hardaker, Jenny Norman, Richter van Tonder, Jo Balmer, Stephan Terblanche, Duncan McKenzie and Dom Rollinson, with junior mentorship members Zoe Lunau and Aadam Abdullah.

Regional Atlas Committees

Thirteen Regional Atlas Committees (RACs) have been set up for SABAP2, eight in South Africa (including Lesotho), which operate on a provincial level, and one each in Swaziland, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

They have two defined roles:

To ensure quality of data for SABAP2

Data quality is important for the project as we want to ensure that the records that finally get used in the production of the atlas are as accurate as possible. The RACs primary responsibility, therefore, involves the vetting (verification) of any out-of-range records that get flagged during the submission process.

The committees are made up of a small team (usually 4-5 people) of selected experts, with a nominated chairperson, who have an intimate knowledge of the region\'s birds and who therefore have the ability to assess and adjudicate any rare or out-of-range sightings that are recorded as part of the atlas.

To coordinate atlasing efforts in each region and to fill gaps in the coverage

Getting the best possible coverage is going to be hugely beneficial to the way in which the data will be interpreted. The better the coverage the better our analyses will be and the better the conservation outcomes of the project.

RACs, in conjunction with bird clubs, will play a pivitol role in trying, as much s possible, to promote the atlas as far and as wide as possible in each province and coordinating activities (e.g. atlas days, workshops) to assist atlasers with field protocols, data submission and identification of gap areas.

Atlas Committees contact details  

Below are the contact details of the relevant chairpersons for the Atlas Committees. Should you have any queries regarding an out-of-range record or would like to discuss an atlasing related issue in your region please contact them directly.

Regional level committees

Country level committees

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