Taxonomy Upgrades

            Periodically the sources used by My Bird Observations update their taxonomies. Starting with version 3.4 MBO intends to update the bird name database annually.

           Detailed information about the taxonomy updates can be found at: IOC list updates ,  eBird , Clements Updates & Corrections. Nice comparison tables of changes can be generated at: Avibase - Bird checklist historical comparisons.

             Because the app requires that the stored sightings and life list birds match the DB, it will be necessary for the user to reconcile differences before continuing with normal usage.

What's Going To Happen?

            When the app starts it will determine that an update has occurred. The life bird scientific names are compared to a list of DB changes. The user is directed to a list of life birds that no longer match the DB records.  The app will always return to this screen until all the descrepancies are resolved. The user must decide to change or delete the affected sightings.  Because MBO uses a combination of taxonomies this is sometimes a little confusing. (see examples)

The detail page for each life bird will show the previously stored information at the top. A scrollable table of possible replacements are listed at the bottom. These are species on the updated DB that match either the scientific name or common name(s) of the stored bird. A replacement bird can be added to the suggestion list from the DB via the 'search db' button. Click the scientific name to select a species from the suggestion list. Replacements are processed one-to-one. If you have sightings that result in additional life birds because of a split, replace them with the most common sighting and fix up your lists later.

Delete: Life bird and all sightings are erased. Life list and trip list totals are decremented.

Simple Change: If the new info IS NOT already on the life list, the life bird and all sightings are replaced with the new information. Totals are unaffected.

Not So Simple Change:  If the new info IS ALSO in the life list, the life bird is deleted and the total decremented.  If both old and new are in a trip list, the old sighting will be erased and the total decremented. If the the new info is not in a list, the sighting will be replaced with the new information and the total is unchanged.

Some Examples

	Simple across-the-board scientific name change.
	Across-the-board split.
ebird Black Scoter:Melanitta nigra split into two species - Common Scoter:Melanitta nigra, Black Scoter:Melanitta americana.  The same as IOC.
	Scientific name spelling correction.
	IOC deleted species, eBird did not.
	eBird  split.