A new app which helps make every birder a conservationist, will be featured in a presentation by developer Henk Nel at the next meeting of Modderfontein Conservation Society.
The meeting will take place at Modderfontein Town Hall, 1 Casino Road, at 7:30pm on January 19.
The new app, known as Birdlasser, turns birders into citizen scientists by allowing them to make a valuable contribution to conservation efforts – by providing an easy way of submitting sightings to a central database (The SA Bird Atlassing Project 2).
Nel has a technical background and has worked in software development companies all round the world.
“I’ve always been a bird watcher but the ‘gogga’ bit me big time about 10 years ago, when birding became a bit of an obsession,” he says.
“It was also then when I got exposed to atlassing and I realised what an amazing movement, citizen science is.
“I decided to combine my tech knowledge with my passion three years ago. With three partners, I started BirdLasser. The idea was and still is, to be the tech enabler for citizen scientists, researchers and conservationists – and simultaneously making birding cool.
“BirdLasser is fun for birders and good for birds. For both beginners and twitchers, BirdLasser is a fun way to record sightings and share with friends, the community and contribute to conservation.”
Visitors are welcome to attend this talk. An entrance fee of R30 is charged to help cover expenses.
For more information, call Robbie Vermont on 011-608-2693 or 082-800-3704.
