When people think about birds in games these days, they are usually of the angry variety. But a different kind of game is unfolding on the Web, with 34 pecking and chirping species just daring users to catch them.
The National Audubon Society introduced the interactive game, Birding the Net, in early October to reach out to a broader audience of birders, perhaps hooking a younger generation on the pleasures of spotting and naming all kinds of striped and tufted avian friends.
Web surfers can encounter animated birds on any one of 100 participating Web sites, from the Discovery Channel to AOL to Slate, The birds will behave much the way they do in the real world, flying, perching, and shying away from those who approach too quickly (with a cursor).
Clicking on the animated birds takes players to an Audubon Facebook pagewhere they can sign up to collect and trade “bird cards” that feature recordings of birdsong, bird facts and video. The first players to collect all species of birds — from the Florida scrub jay to the Atlantic puffin — will win a trip to the Galapagos Islands.
Audubon says that in just four weeks it has drawn 10,000 players, and 37,000 people have “liked” its Facebook page. Some 200 blogs and Web sites have played host to birdhouses where visitors await the appearance of a species they are looking for.
David Yarnold, chief executive of Audubon, sees the game as an unusually ambitious use of social media and the Web for an environmental group. The point, he said, is to make clear that “this is not your grandmother’s Audubon.”
As part of the game, Audubon will collect contact information from new players and eventually seek to get them involved in its work. For those who are just hearing of the game now, you can still join in — but you only have till Monday to catch your flock.
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