A CITIZEN SCIENCE PERSPECTIVE OF THE LANIIDAE IN ISRAEL

Citizen Science (CS) is currently widely used to collect data to assess large geographical areas and is advantageous in that the observations are random and independent, which collectively offer a database that is eclectic and free of professional biases. We availed of such a BioGIS database of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and evaluated the status of the True Shrike (Laniidae spp.) in Israel. We found that in the Red-backed Shrike (Lanius collurio) the annual population growth rate (λ) in the exponential model for the entire period was 0.02 over 46 years; for the Great Grey Shrike (L. excubitor aucheri) was 0.07 over 53 years; for Isabelline Shrike (L. isabellinus) was 0.04 over 17 years; for Masked Shrike (L. nubicus) was 0.101 over 49 years; for Lesser Grey Shrike (L. minor) was 0.02 over 38 years; and for Woodchat Shrike (L. senator) was 0.11 over 48 years. Except for the decline in the breeding population of the Red-backed Shrike in Northern Israel, the rest of the species appear to be stable. Our study underlines the importance of CS for collating scientific data by the general public.