After 20 years as regional editor for Christmas Counts in Oregon and
Washington, I am moving on. I began the process of looking for a
replacement (or replacements) last December with the help of
knowledgeable birders from both Oregon and Washington. We are still
looking?

The consensus opinion is that we try to keep Oregon and Washington
together as single ecological unit, but we also think that two
individuals working together might divvy up the actual editorial work
and co-author the summary. Of course, finding just one editor has
proven to be a challenge, so one might hypothesize that finding
co-editors might be twice as hard.

There are two basic requirements to the job: 1) a reasonably complete
understanding of the phenology and distribution birds in the Pacific
Northwest and 2) an ability communicate effectively with people of all
skill levels and personality types. It might also help to have someone
able to string 750 words (plus or minus) into coherent sentences and
paragraphs for a final summary.

The actual work is straight forward. At the end of the count season the
editor sifts through the count data which is all on-line. Notes unusual
species. Compiles details submitted to support unusual species. Notes
unusual numbers. Checks with compilers to verify that things were
entered correctly when there are questions. Then the editor writes a
summary in which he/she notes unusual species and trends, summarizes
high counts and makes other remarks about the season?s outcomes. This
adds up to maybe 40 hours of work spread out over 3 or 4 months. And
there?s a stipend.

So, Oregon and Washington birders - any nominees?

--
Mike Patterson
Astoria, OR
That question...
http://www.surfbirds.com/community-blogs/northcoastdiaries/?p=3294