Each team approaches the Birdathon! in their own distinct way, and that's one of the things that makes the Birdathon! so much fun.  But there are some things common to all Birdathon!s. 

• to join together with your Birdathon! teammates and sponsors
• to witness the spring spectacle of migration
• to raise money to help people and nature
• to have a great experience

• To get greatest number of species, keep moving!
• Work an area thoroughly, then move on -- do not get stuck in any one place too long.
• To maximize the number of birds for fundraising success, always try to seek the greatest potential in choosing where to go.
• Be at the best places at the best times for the birds.
• Stay with proven plan: habitat diversity = species diversity.
• Make sure that all possible habitat types are explored.
• Do not overlook or assume common species -- pursue them!
• Monitor current migration data via personal contacts, the Lake Erie rare birdalerts, and the internet.
• Location selection and order are contingent on current weather and migration data; many teams travel north to south, but you may need to adjust this based on current data.
• Keep a current tally throughout the day of each major group, along with individual species, in order to ensure maximum coverage (waterfowl, waders, rails, bitterns, shorebirds, gallinaceous, gulls, terns, owls, woodpeckers, swallows, thrushes, vireos, warblers, blackbirds/allies, sparrows…).
• To ensure all members meet at the rendezvous, have a phone calling plan.
• Have a good map with all potential areas located on it.

• alarm clocks (birders on 24 hour Birdathon!s may need some help waking up from a short nap!)
• optics (including scopes for waterfowl, raptors, shorebirds)
• tapes to practice and study calls
• tapes to attract birds to us
• turkey calls
• bird identification book(s)
• lots of food and water