Why we need twitchers
Keen and experienced birders are sometimes called ‘twitchers’. A small proportion of twitchers can go to extraordinary lengths to see as many different bird species as possible, and in as many different situations, regions and countries. There are a great many variations on what an individual twitcher wants to see but it usually involves personal pleasure or challenge, and not necessarily, though sometimes, a sense of competition.
Often it can be a sociable “fun thing”, such as happens with our Queensland Twitchathons. However, the Queensland Twitchathon is primarily aimed at raising funds (through sponsorships) to be used to fund avian research. In addition, most of our team contestants just love to see birds in their natural habitat AND enjoy each other’s company with a common goal.
Twitching has other important side benefits in that keen twitchers usually become experienced bird observers, skilled at identifying many bird species under all sorts of weather conditions. We try and include new birders and young birders so that there is maximum benefit from the Twitchathon. Twitchathon participants are most suitable people to assist with the conduct of bird population surveys. Their reliable observations yield the vital data required to indicate whether bird biodiversity is at risk and whether degradation of bird habitats is putting a given species under threat.
The Queensland Twitchathon
The 2022 Birds Queensland Twitchathon
Is taking place from Friday 23rd September to Tuesday 4th October.
Team Sponsorship
You can make a donation in support of your team on the donation page.
Rules and details
You can download the following documents:
- the 2022 Twitchathon Rules (PDF format)
- the team application form (MS-word format). Team Leader, please fill and submit electronically if possible. Alternatively, this PDF version can be downloaded for printing.
- team sponsorship recording page (MS-word format). One (or more) per participant. Please fill and submit electronically if possible
Checklists
The following species lists are available:
- Reduced lists for the 2022 Twitchathon have been prepared (they are the same as last year)
- Or you may wish to use the full lists:
Birds Queensland Twitchathon Results
Results for 2022
Will be provided here once they are finalised.
Results for 2021
For the 2021 Twitchathon over $6500 in sponsorship was raised for the research projects that Birds Queensland supports each year.
Congratulations to the following winners of the 2021 Queensland Twitchathon:
| Category | Place | Team Name | Team Members | No of Species Seen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open (24 hours) |
Winners: Paradise Parrot Trophy |
Restless Birdcatchers | Ofalia Ho Russell Yong Nikolas Haass |
196 |
| Champagne (12 hours) |
Winners | Golden Hustlers | Rae Clark, Andrea Schafer, Adrian Gallagher, Nicky Stafford |
153 |
| Eco (12 hours) |
Winners | The Oxley Creek Commoners | Hugh Possingham, Matt Gilfedder |
118 |
Special thanks must go to the individual and to the team who raised the highest amounts in sponsorship:
| Category | Team Name | Team Members |
|---|---|---|
| Highest Individual Fundraiser Winner: Dollarbird Trophy | Adrian Gallagher | |
| Highest Team Fundraiser | Golden Hustlers | Rae Clark, Andrea Schafer, Adrian Gallagher, Nicky Stafford |
Results for 2020
For the 2020 Twitchathon, over $4000 in sponsorship was raised for the research projects that Birds Queensland supports each year.
Congratulations to the following winners of the 2020 Queensland Twitchathon:
| Category | Place | Team Name | Team Members | No of Species Seen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open (24 hours) |
Winners: Paradise Parrot Trophy |
Restless Birdcatchers | Ofalia Ho Jesse Rowland Russell Yong |
186 |
| Champagne (12 hours) |
Winners | The Godfeathers | Vernon Kretschmann Mel Stewart |
149 |
| Eco (12 hours) |
Winners | La Giro del Sud | Paul Marty Therese Marty Chris Marty |
101 |
Special thanks must go to the individual and to the team who raised the highest amounts in sponsorship:
| Category | Team Name | Team Members |
|---|---|---|
| Highest Individual Fundraiser Winner: Dollarbird Trophy | Adrian Gallagher | |
| Highest Team Fundraiser | Golden Hustlers | Rae Clark, Andrea Schafer, Adrian Gallagher, Nicky Stafford |
This year we also awarded certificates in a number of sub-categories as listed below:
| Category | Team Name | Team Members |
|---|---|---|
| Youngest Team | Restless Birdcatchers | Ofalia Ho, Jesse Rowland, Russell Yong |
| Most Mature Team | Gang Gang Gang | Rod Cox, Linda Sulakatku, Jean Crow, Peter Crow, Dawn Muir |
| Rookie Team – no prior Twitchathons | Coastal Chats
Warbling Doves |
Ian Gibson, Jan Gibson
Andrew Grenfell, Luke Sbeghen, Kerri-Anne Dove |
| Highest Night Bird Species Tally | Cister-ticklers | Richard Noske, Detlef Davies, Brian Coates, Chris Barnes |
The Paradise Parrot Trophy
Since 1991, the winners of The Queensland Twitchathon have been presented with the Paradise Parrot Trophy which has plaques engraved with the names of the winning teams and the team members plus the number of species seen.
As the trophy is not always on display, this list will give you details of the winning teams between 1991 and 2020.
