Download a Powerpoint presentation that provides an

Overview of the AKN.

A major contribution that the Avian Knowledge Network will make is the ability to provide data visualizations via maps, graphs, and tables. These visualizations provide a comprehensive exploration of the data resources of the AKN. Our goal is to allow users (from teachers to land managers, or researchers to politicians) to interactively access AKN data resources.
We provide 3 examples of data visualizations that we are developing for the AKN:

MIGRATION

Many species of birds migrate, and with the rise in the occurrence of Avian Influenza the significance of migration has grown in importance. Recently, researchers at Cornell University's Department of Computer Science and Theory Center used AKN data to explore the patterns of migration of birds in the northern parts of the Western Hemisphere. Their interest was to ascertain the migration patterns of birds across North America. Using data gathered from the AKN they developed an animated mapping application to provide a visualization of the patterns of migration. Below are 3 examples:

* To download the file click on the map (these are large animations and 30 seconds or more to download).

	Diving  Ducks (Pacific Loon, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Greater Scaup, Lesser Scaup, Common Eider, Harlequin Duck, Long-tailed Duck, Surf Scoter, Black Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Common Goldeneye, Barrow's Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser)*
	Alaska Breeding Shorebirds (Black-bellied Plover, American Golden-Plover, Pacific Golden-Plover, Semiplamated Plover, Black Oystercatcher, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Upland Sandpiper, Whimbrel, Bar-tailed Godwit, Hudsonian Godwit, Black Turnstone, Ruddy Turnstone, Wandering Tattler, Surfbird, Rock Sandpiper, Red Knot, Dunlin, Pectoral Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Semiplamated Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Stilt Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Short-billed Dowitcher, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Red-necked Phalarope, Red Phalarope)*
	Ruby-throated Hummingbird

The primary AKN resource used for these maps came from eBird, a Western Hemisphere-wide bird checklist program. The animated maps show the annual cycle of bird migration, beginning at the first of the year. At the bottom left of each map is an indication of the day. Each point on the map shows a location where the species of interest were reported. Color indicates the number reported, with red indicating high numbers, and white low numbers. For this visualization eBird data are aggregated across years.

Download the Migration Animation Application

For those interested in looking at the migration patterns of almost 150 species of birds you must download a Java executable file. You must have Java 1.5 or later to run it. To find out which version of Java you have, type java -version in a command window. If you do not have 1.5 or later, please visit http://java.sun.com/ and download and install the latest version of the Java Runtime Environment (JRE). Note: Versions 1.5 and 5.0 are synonymous. You must have at least 512 megabytes of memory available to run the program. For more information and the files:

Link for instructions -> http://www.ebird.org/H5N1/readme.htm

  Download the program -> http://www.ebird.org/H5N1/H5N1.zip
        Clicking on this link "automatically" downloads the program.

Species Distribution Maps

The data being gathered by the AKN is sufficiently large in both size and scale to begin to accurately provide indices of species distribution and abundance. Below are examples of the late-winter distribution and abundance of of several species of birds. These data, which come from the Great Backyard Bird Count , provide a late-winter snapshot of the distribution of birds across the United States and Canada.

Maps showing the distribution of several common species of birds.

Species Occurrence Bar Graphs

Bar graphs describe the seasonal abundance of bird populations. The thickness of the line indicates the frequency of eBird checklists reporting that species. The thicker the line the greater number of checklists reporting the species. These graphs provide an accurate and intuitive visualization of the patterns of occurrence of bird populations over the course of the year.

Bar Graphs showing the seasonal occurrence of species from 2 counties in Illinois. This visualization is generated directly from the data resources and is updated automatically from new data.