About This Site
Corrections and Updates
Errors here get fixed in the open, not quietly deleted. This page explains how that works and how to make us do it.
The short answer
- Substantive errors are corrected on the page, the update date changes, and the page is not quietly deleted.
- Corrections, routine updates and clarifications are handled differently, and only corrections go in the log.
- A useful report has four parts: the page URL, the exact sentence, what you think is correct, and a source if you have one.
- The correction log is currently empty because the site is new, and we will not pad it with cosmetic entries.
- URLs are not deleted silently: a merged or retired page redirects to whatever now covers the subject.
- Advertisers cannot request a correction, and corrections are never traded for anything.
A reference site is only worth reading if it fixes itself. This one covers a whole continent and several hundred pages of specific numbers, in a subject where guidance genuinely changes, so it will be wrong sometimes. What matters is what happens next.
The short version: if something here is wrong, we change the page, change the update date, and say so where the change was substantive. We do not delete a page to make an error disappear, and we do not edit a claim out from under a reader who acted on it last week.
This page sits alongside the editorial policy, which sets the standards, and how we research and fact check, which explains the source hierarchy those standards run on.
The commitment#
Three rules, and they are not conditional on who noticed:
- Errors get fixed on the page where they appeared, not buried by deleting the page.
- Any change to a factual claim moves the page's update date, which reflects a real review and not an automated timestamp.
- Substantive corrections are recorded, dated, and described, so a reader can see what changed and when.
There is a version of this we refuse. Some sites treat an error as a reputational problem, delete the page, and let the URL rot. That strands anyone who bookmarked it and hides the fact the advice was ever given. We would rather carry a visible correction.
Correction, update or clarification#
Not every change to a page is a correction, and calling everything one would make the log useless. Three categories, with different consequences:
| Type | What it means | What it triggers |
|---|---|---|
| Correction | A factual claim was wrong: a bad measurement, an out of date disease recommendation, a species listed outside its range, a dilution or ratio that does not match its source | The claim is fixed, the update date changes, a dated note is added to the correction log, and every other page carrying the same figure is checked |
| Update | The facts changed rather than the page being wrong: an agency revises its guidance, a range shifts, a regulation changes, new research lands | The page is revised and the update date changes. No log entry, because the page was not wrong when it was published |
| Clarification | The claim was right but read badly: an ambiguous sentence, a missing unit, a step that assumed knowledge the reader did not have | The wording is improved and the update date changes if anything about the meaning moved. No log entry |
Two things follow. A correction to a shared number is never a one page job: figures such as the nectar ratio on the nectar recipe or the 5-7-9 rule on the squirrels page appear on many pages, and all of them change together. And a page that contradicts another page here is treated as a bug, reported or not.
How to report an error#
Send it through the contact page. Four things make a report immediately actionable, and they take about a minute to write:
- The page URL. There are several hundred guides here, and "your bluebird page" can mean four of them.
- The exact sentence you think is wrong, copied and pasted, so we are correcting the thing you actually read.
- What you believe it should say instead.
- A source, if you have one. A link to Cornell Lab, NestWatch, USGS, APHIS or your state wildlife agency settles most questions in one step.
You do not need to be an expert
Some of the most useful reports come from people who simply noticed that a bird we described as absent from their state is sitting on their feeder right now. Regional detail is exactly where a site written for a whole continent gets things wrong, and local knowledge is genuinely valuable to us.
A source is helpful, not required. If you know a number is off but cannot say why, send it anyway and we will check it. What we cannot act on is "this page is wrong" with no sentence attached, because that turns into guesswork about which of several claims you meant.
What happens after you send one#
- The report is read against the page and against the sources listed at the bottom of it.
- If the claim traces to a named source and the source still says what we said, the page stands and we will tell you why if you asked for a reply.
- If the claim is wrong, the page is fixed, the update date changes, and any other page carrying the same figure is checked and fixed in the same pass.
- If it turns out to be a case where the evidence is genuinely thin rather than a clean error, the page is rewritten to say so instead of swapping one confident number for another.
- Substantive corrections go into the log below with the date and a plain description of what changed.
On timing, honestly: this is a small operation and we will not promise you a number of hours. Anything that could affect a bird's health, a disease recommendation, a dilution, a takedown instruction, is looked at ahead of everything else, because a wrong line on avian flu and feeders matters in a way a wrong wingspan does not. The rest is worked through as it comes, not every message gets an individual reply, and the fixed page is the real response.
The correction log#
Substantive corrections are recorded here with the date, the page affected, and what changed. The point is that you can see the history rather than take our word for the accuracy.
The log is currently empty
This site is new, and no substantive correction has been made yet. That is a statement about the site's age, not a claim about its accuracy, and we are not going to pad the log with cosmetic entries to look diligent. When the first correction happens it will appear here.
Routine updates and clarifications do not appear in the log. They show up as a changed update date on the page itself, which is where a reader is actually looking.
When a page is merged, retired or redirected#
Site structure changes. Two guides turn out to be one subject, a page is thin enough that it should never have been split off, or a topic gets big enough to deserve its own page. The rule is that a URL you can reach today does not silently stop working.
- Merged: the content moves into the surviving page and the old URL redirects to it, landing on the section that replaced what you were reading where that is possible.
- Retired: if a subject is dropped, the URL redirects to the closest relevant guide or to the hub page for that cluster, not to a dead end.
- Renamed: the old URL redirects to the new one and keeps working. Bookmarks and inbound links are not collateral damage.
- Withdrawn for accuracy: if a page is too wrong to fix in place, it is replaced with a corrected version and the log says it was rewritten and why. It does not vanish.
Definitions that move between pages during a merge stay findable through the glossary, and the hub pages are kept current so a redirect always lands somewhere useful.
Advertisers cannot buy a correction#
The site is funded by display advertising, as described on the about page and in the privacy policy. The separation between that funding and this policy is absolute, and it cuts in both directions.
- No advertiser can request a correction, an edit or a removal to get rid of content it does not like. Corrections come from evidence, not from commercial pressure.
- Corrections are never traded. Nobody gets a fix in exchange for a link, a mention, a partnership or coverage.
- We do not review or rank products, so there is no unfavorable review to lean on in the first place, which removes the most common route for this kind of pressure.
- A manufacturer who spots a genuine factual error is welcome to report it exactly like anyone else, with the URL, the sentence and a source. It gets treated the same way, and it does not get treated better.
What is not a correction#
Disagreement with a position is not an error, and we will say so plainly rather than quietly changing a page to end an argument. Several stances here are deliberate: no greased poles, caution about hot pepper seed, and taking feeders down when local guidance says to. If you think the reasoning is wrong, say why and send the evidence. If you simply prefer different advice, the page will probably stay as it is.
We also cannot correct what we never claimed. This site does not give veterinary, legal or wildlife rehabilitation advice, and the terms set out those limits. For a bird in distress right now, contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator rather than waiting on an email.
Frequently asked questions#
How do I report an error on a page?
Use the contact page and include four things: the page URL, the exact sentence you believe is wrong, what you think it should say, and a source if you have one. A pasted sentence is far more actionable than a description of the problem, and a link to Cornell Lab, NestWatch, USGS or your state wildlife agency usually settles the question in a single exchange.
How quickly are corrections made?
We do not promise a specific turnaround, because this is a small operation and a promise like that would be decorative. Anything affecting bird health, such as a disease recommendation or a cleaning dilution, is prioritized ahead of everything else. Other reports are worked through as they arrive, and the fixed page is the response.
Why is the correction log empty?
Because the site is new and no substantive correction has been made yet. We would rather show you an empty log than invent entries to look diligent. Routine updates and clarifications never appear in the log anyway; they show up as a changed update date on the page itself.
What happens to a page you decide to remove?
Its URL keeps working. Merged pages redirect into whatever absorbed them, retired subjects redirect to the closest relevant guide or its hub page, and renamed pages redirect to the new address. We do not delete URLs silently, because that strands anyone who bookmarked or linked to them.
Can an advertiser get something corrected or removed?
No. Advertisers have no input into what is published, and a correction request from a company is judged on exactly the same evidence as one from a reader. Corrections are never traded for links, mentions or coverage. Since the site does not review or rank products, there is nothing here for a brand to be unhappy about in that sense anyway.