Five Minute Bird Count Nationwide tailored courses available Level 4

If the scheduled dates and locations do not work for you, we can arrange to deliver the course on another date and at another location.

Please register your interest here(external link), and one of our friendly team members will contact you.

Academic requirements

If you under 20 years old: Achieved NCEA Level 2 – (credits in Numeracy, Science or English desirable).
If you are 20 years or over: No minimum academic requirements.

English language requirements

All applicants must have a level of English sufficient to be able to study at this level.
If English is not your first language you should have an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) overall Academic score of at least 5.5 issued within the last two years (or equivalent).

Other requirements

You will be required to notify facilitation staff of any medical issues that NMIT and DOC need to be aware of. This should be done upon enrolment if the medical issue may impact upon your ability to meet the demands of the training. Other medical issues of lesser impact should be brought to NMIT staff attention at the start of the course. Each course will include a documented group job safety analysis to keep everyone safe. This adheres to the “Health and Safety in at Work Act 2015”.

Special Entry

In exceptional circumstances, an applicant under the age of 20 years who does not meet the academic entry requirements may be granted entry to the programme where they supply evidence of their ability to succeed on the programme.

The Study dates reflect the preparation time that you may need prior to the actual face-to-face workshop.

Accommodation

Travel and accommodation arrangements are your own responsibility.

Catering

You will need to bring a packed lunch with you for both course days. Tea and coffee will be provided.

Contact us

Should you need to make contact before, during or after the workshop, please contact our friendly team via information and enrolments or contact the facilitator for the course.

There is a great deal of information to get through during the week. 

Please take the time to complete these online courses so you are prepared. You will need to allow up to 8 hours. 

• Bird Identification(external link)
• Birds: incomplete counts(external link), pages 2-4, 7-8, 17-20
• Field Skills(external link) 
• Introduction to Natural Heritage, modules 1-3(external link)

Expand your knowledge with DOC online courses(external link). 

DOC staff can find these courses via DOCLearn.

Hearing test

Collecting accurate data for Five Minute Bird Counts relies on the practitioner to be aware of their hearing limitations prior to recording bird calls. Hearing loss will affect the quality of data collected, and you need to be aware of any limitations.

Information on a hearing test will be sent to participants by email.

A hearing test is recommended but not required.

You must bring the following to the course:

• Pen and pencil 
• Headphones (with a 3.5mm connection) will be provided. You can bring your own headphones if you would prefer.
• A laptop or tablet (optional)
• Footwear suitable for walking off and on tracks, you may get your feet wet 
• Warm outdoor clothing and a raincoat 
• Drink bottle and small daypack 
• Optional - A pair of binoculars, if you use these

On successful completion of this course, ākonga will be able to:

• Describe the purpose of conducting a Five-minute Bird Count.
• Apply the Five-minute Bird Count method and accurate notation of data in line with the Five-minute Bird Count protocol in a field setting.
• Identify the behavioural characteristics, calls and habitat of a range of commonly encountered New Zealand forest birds.