How to Report a Bird Sighting to the Illinois Ornithological Records Committee

To report a sighting, first confirm the species is on the Review List of Illinois Birds, then submit your documentation through the "Submit a Record for Review" option on illinoisbirdrecords.org. The Illinois Ornithological Records Committee (IORC) is a volunteer group of regional experts, founded in 1985, that documents and maintains details on rare bird occurrences in Illinois dating back to 1857. Your report enters a review process, and accepted records become part of the archive — which currently holds over 2,500 accepted records out of roughly 4,000 total records reviewed.

Step 1: Confirm the Species Is on the Review List

Not every bird you see needs to be reported. The site directs contributors to the Review List of Illinois Birds — the set of species for which the committee requests documentation. If your species is not on that list, it falls outside the committee's review scope.

This step matters because it determines whether your effort produces a usable record. Check the list before you invest time in writing up field notes.

Step 2: Gather Your Documentation

The archive shows what accepted records typically look like. Two examples from the site:

Photographs appear repeatedly in accepted records, but the site does not state that a photo is mandatory. If you have no photo, a written description of what you observed is the alternative to prepare — the committee reviews documentation, and the site's framing ("Submit your documentation") leaves the form of that documentation open.

Step 3: Submit Through the Site

On illinoisbirdrecords.org, use the "Submit a Record for Review" link (the homepage also shows it as "Submit a Record for Review >"). This routes your sighting to the IORC for review.

The site does not publish the internal submission form fields, so prepare the essentials your record will need: species, date, location (county level appears in archived records), observer name, and your supporting documentation.

Step 4: Understand the Review Process

After submission, your record goes to the committee. The site describes the IORC as focused on "documenting and maintaining details on rare bird occurrences in Illinois," and the database lets you "view reports, media, and voting decisions issued by the committee over the years." That tells you the outcome of a review is a decision, and accepted records are published with an ID number in the format seen above (year-sequence, e.g., 1980-010).

You can check the database to see how comparable records were documented and decided — useful both before submitting and while waiting.

What You Get If Your Record Is Accepted

• Your sighting joins an archive with over 2,500 accepted records and roughly 4,000 total records reviewed.
• It becomes part of a dataset stretching back to 1857, the earliest year with a record.
• It sits alongside historical material such as the Illinois Birds and Birding journal (published by Illinois Audubon Society, compiled by Vern Kleen, January 1985–December 1991) and The Meadowlark (quarterly magazine of the Illinois Ornithological Society, 1992–2026).

Common Stumbling Points

• Reporting a species not on the Review List. Check the list first; the committee reviews rare occurrences, not general sightings.
• Thin documentation. The accepted examples all carry a named photographer and a precise date and county. Match that level of specificity.
• Expecting instant confirmation. The process involves committee review and voting decisions, which are then published in the database.

For questions about the committee itself, the site's "Learn more about the Illinois Ornithological Records Committee" section covers its history and role.