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Edit an eBird checklist

Use Change Species to quickly edit observations

Sharing eBird checklists

Editing shared eBird checklists

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Editing eBird Checklists

Want to change information on a checklist you already submitted? You can revise existing eBird checklists through the eBird Mobile app and on eBird.org. 

NOTE: Editing your version of a checklist will not change shared versions of that list in other accounts. Learn more about shared checklists below. 

Editing Checklists on the eBird Mobile app

These instructions only apply to checklists initially submitted through the eBird Mobile app. 

1. Open the eBird Mobile app
2. Tap "Checklists" at the bottom of the home screen
3. Select the "Submitted" tab
4. Select any checklist on the list to view it

When viewing a checklist on the mobile app: tap the pencil icon in the top right corner to change the species, counts, and other checklist information (protocol, number of observers, distance and duration, etc.). Be sure to tap "Review" and "Submit" buttons when you are done to save your changes! Any revisions you make will be applied to both the mobile and website versions of the checklist.

OR Press the curved arrow in the upper right corner (the middle icon) to open the web version of the checklist on your mobile browser. Then follow the "Editing Checklists on the eBird Website" instructions below. 

Editing Checklists on the eBird website

The following instructions are for checklists that have already been submitted through the eBird mobile app or on eBird.org. 

1. First, ensure you are logged in to your eBird account.
2. Go to My eBird and select "My Checklists".
3. Click the checklist you want to edit.
4. Then, edit the checklist based on the options below:

From any individual checklist page:

• Click the blue "Checklist Tools" button and choose to edit the location, date, or species list from the drop-down menu.
• Click the "Edit Species" button to change the species list and counts directly

If the blue Checklist tools button does not appear, you may not be logged in. Look for the 'Sign in' button in the upper right corner of the page. 

When you are done with any changes, be sure to click the green "Save" button at the bottom of the page to save them!

Change Species quickly and easily

Have you ever uploaded a photo or audio recording to the wrong species on an eBird checklist? There is a quick and easy way to edit your checklist without losing your valuable notes, breeding codes, or media.

First Steps: go to "Manage My Checklists" on the right side of the My eBird page and click on the checklist you want to edit. Then click the "Edit Species" button in the upper right. 

Changing an entire observation to another species 

If you want to change an entire species record - including the count, all associated comments, breeding codes, audio and photos - to a different species:

1. Click "Change Species" next to a species you reported
2. Type the name of the new species you want to switch to in the "Change species identification to:" box. A drop-down list of species will be shown as you type. You can click your desired species from the list as soon as it appears.
3. Select the "Entire observation: my media, counts, breeding codes, and details" option
4. Click the green "Change" button, then click "Save" at the bottom of the checklist, and you're done!

Wait, that isn't a Laughing Gull! In the example above, you can change the entire observation of 5 Laughing gulls to 5 Franklin's Gulls, including all comments and media, using Change Species.

Move all photos and audio to another species

If you want to keep your observation and notes for one species, but move all associated photos and audio to a different species, follow the steps above to change the observation, but select "Only my media: photos and audio" option instead.

Move a single photo or recording to a different species

Perhaps you accidentally included one photo of a different species when adding multiple photos to an observation. No need to delete and re-upload that single photo! Just Change Species for that photo instead:

1. Click the gray "Change Species" button next the species with the incorrect photo or recording
2. Then click the white "Change Species" button next to a single media item you wish to change
3. Type the correct species identity of the media item in the "Change species identification to:" box. A drop-down list of species will be shown as you type. You can click your desired species from the list as soon as it appears.
4. Select the green "Change" button to move that photo or recording to the new species
5. Repeat this process as needed for any additional media items. 

Don't forget to click the green "Save" button at the bottom of your checklist when you are done making species changes!

The "Change Species" button next to individual photos and recordings lets you move a single item to a different species. 

Change Species vs. Deleting media

In most situations it will be faster and easier to use Change Species to move media within a checklist rather than deleting and re-uploading it. Changing species is not only easier for you, but this process also keeps our regional reviewers informed of checklist revisions, reducing the need to contact you with questions about the observation later on.

What if I change a species to something rare or unusual?

Changing an observation or media item may give you a "Need Details" notification if the new species is rare or unusual for that date and location. If you changed a species without photos or audio, please consider adding further documentation. If you moved photos or audio recordings to a new species, you don't need to do anything else except check the "Complete" box. However, adding a detailed written account of the observation is highly encouraged! 

Learn more about rare or unusual observations and our data review process here.

Sharing Checklists 

When you go birding with friends, you only need to keep one list for the group. That checklist can be shared with the people you birded with using their eBird usernames or email addresses. 

IMPORTANT: to receive checklist sharing requests, your email address within eBird must be up to date. Visit your Cornell Lab account settings to update your email address and other personal information. 

Sharing checklists on the eBird website

Click "Manage My Checklists" on My eBird and select the checklist you would like to share. Then click the "Share" icon to the right of your name on the checklist page OR click the blue "Checklist Tools" button and select "Share w/ others in your party".

In the "To" field, enter the eBird usernames (preferred) or email addresses of the friends with whom you wish to share the checklist. Alternatively, you can select names from the list of your eBird Contacts and their usernames will appear in the "To" box. 

When you are done adding usernames, click "Share Checklist". This will send an email to each person with the option to accept or reject your shared checklist. If the checklist recipient does not yet have an eBird account, eBird will prompt them to create an account where they can view and accept the checklist.

Sharing while entering a checklist on eBird Mobile 

On eBird Mobile, increasing the Number of Observers on an unsubmitted checklist to more than 1 will cause a "Share checklist with..." option to appear. Tap it, type the eBird username of a person you're birding with, and then press the 'enter' key. Repeat for each eBird username you'd like to share with. Once you've entered the usernames, submit the checklist like normal, and it'll be shared automatically!

Note: Once a checklist has been submitted through eBird Mobile, increasing the Number of Observers value will no longer cause the "Share checklist with..." option to appear. To share a submitted eBird Mobile checklist, open the checklist in the app, tap the curved arrow in the upper right corner (the middle icon), and follow the "Sharing checklists on the eBird website" instructions above.

Share with usernames whenever possible 

Mobile-friendly - checklists entered through eBird mobile can be shared with usernames directly in the app during the submission process. eBird Mobile checklists can only be shared with email addresses after submission.

Fewer mistakes - eBird usernames are unique to each account, while a single email address may be linked to multiple eBird accounts. If you share with an eBird username, there won't be any mistakes in what account the Shared Checklist goes to.

Faster acceptance - When you share a checklist with an email address, the checklist must be accepted through that email link. When you share with an eBird username, an email is still sent, but the checklist can be accepted from My Shared Checklists with no email checking required!

Add Friends and Contacts -  Sharing with usernames shows the first and last name of the eBirder in your Contacts, and also lets you to mark people as a eBird "Friends” - which allows automatic checklist acceptance. These features are not available when you share with an email address.

How do I know if a checklist has been shared?

If all eBird usernames and emails were valid when you clicked "Share Checklist", you should see a message indicating the checklist was successfully shared. If any usernames you entered are invalid, you will receive notification that the username does not exist, and will not be able to share the list.

Once you see "Yay! This checklist has been shared!", there is nothing more to do on your end. The birder(s) you shared the checklist with will receive an email with instructions on how to accept the checklist. If you share checklists with an eBird username (preferred method), the recipient will also see notifications on their My eBird and My Checklists pages.

All successfully shared and Accepted checklists will be listed on the recipient's "My Checklists" page, and their names will appear below yours on the checklist itself.

Unable to Replace Shared Checklist

If the 'Replace' button does not respond—This behavior typically happens when someone re-shares a checklist after you have uploaded media. Click 'Keep' to remove the pending share from the top of your My Checklists page. After clicking 'Keep', we recommend viewing the shared checklist and manually edit your list to reflect any changes made by other members of your group.

Editing shared checklists

Edit a checklist just as you normally would. On the checklist page, hit ‘Remove’ to take a species off your list, or ‘Edit Species List’ to edit species details.

NOTE: Sharing a checklist creates independent copies in each person's account. Editing your version of a shared checklist will not change versions in other people's accounts unless you re-share the list. Deleting a shared checklist from your account will not remove it from someone else's account after they have Accepted it. 

If you want your personal list to be different from the shared group list - perhaps because you saw a species that others did not, or vice versa - please make sure at least one other eBirder has accepted the shared checklist before you edit it. Any changes made before a checklist is Accepted by at least one other person will apply to all lists. 

Checklist changes that apply to everyone should be made before sharing. Once a checklist has been shared, you can add or delete species so that your list represents just what you saw. However, these changes will NOT apply to any shared versions of the checklist. 

Errors in the date, location, or effort information can only be changed by the checklist creator, who must then re-share the list with everyone else. If you alter these details in a shared checklist instead of the original, it will be corrected in your personal account and lists, but the "master checklist" will always represent the date, location, and effort information from the checklist owner. 

Re-sharing checklists makes corrections to the earlier shared version: Sometimes the checklist keeper will correct something after they’ve shared the checklist, so they’ll re-share the checklist with the group. In My Shared Checklists, you can choose to “Replace” the original checklist with the newly shared version, or you can choose to “Keep” the original checklist and decline the new version. In most cases, you’ll want to select “Replace” to incorporate their correction.