Re: Green Jay, best spot for Western Tanagers

All records submitted to eBird remain in the eBird database unless removed by the observer. Reviewers can only effectively hide them from public output, we do not removed anything, much in the same way that rarities without sufficient documentation are hidden (they still count on that observers list, should they stay the course, but the reviewers don't feel the evidence justifies the claim). Non-natives, whether established or not, remain in the eBird database, they just don't all show up in public output. There is a specific list of species that eBird HQ requests regional reviewers follow for invalidating (hiding) or validating (allowing to appear on maps and bar charts). 

towards the bottom, click "Filter_taxa_recommendations_19Jan2016_CA.xlsx" 

Things like Pin-tailed Whydah and Red-masked Parakeet, which may be established/establishing at locals levels, but don't yet fit the criteria for inclusion on the California state list, are validated in eBird. One-off, obvious escapees, regardless of how long they stick around, like, well, any flamingo in California, Burrowing Parakeet, or Gray-crowned Crane, are invalidated [or in this case Green Jay]. Somewhere in the middle of that spectrum are things like Mandarin Duck and European Goldfinch which probably aren't close to establishment, but show up with enough frequency that they are worth keeping more public tabs on, and are therefore validated.

Of course, as more birders are introduced to birding and listing through eBird, what is acceptable in eBird and what people choose to enter in eBird vs. what is actually on the official state list for California or the ABA Area, leads to apples-to-orange Top 100 listing games (some will enter the [Green Jay] in San Diego into eBird and some won't). However, I'm told this is on a long list of improvements that eBird is working on to make it more apples-to-apples for the Top 100.

Justyn Stahl

North Park/San Clemente Island