What does one want to say with the data from a winter bird atlas or any atlas?
It is my philosophical position that such surveys need be of value in assessing the importance of the area surveyed. USAGE of the area therefore is critical. A SIDE-EFFECT of this criteria would be to fine-tune the survey further with regard to the elimination of potential migrants. However, it is not the justification for doing so. As has been pointed out, Sandhill Cranes in a field would count because of their use of the land while hundreds of high-flying migrants over other Atlas Blocks would go unrecorded. That aspect of their status is already dealt with by the criteria identifying resident vs. visitor (see above). USAGE gets most directly to the task of assigning ornithological value to an area. And it is this value that this survey is intended to reveal during a time period for which virtually no coordinated information exists for the state of Ohio.
