The goals of the 98QB are:
General contest rules
The contest will run from 12:01 am January 1, 1998 to midnight December 31, 1998. All efforts for this contest must occur within Utah State. All bird sightings and other activities must be recorded as they occur.
The contest will be on a quarterly basis, with the quarters being Winter (January, February and March), Spring (April, May and June), Summer (July, August and September) and Fall (October, November and December). Late entrants into the contest will still have to meet the average requirements.
A properly filled out official contest form (or copy) must be received by the contest judge by Jan 10, 1999. The decision of the contest judge is final.
Learning
The Quality Birder will have seen and identified correctly an average of 98 species in each quarter of 1998. To average the species per quarter, the number of species seen in each quarter will be totaled then divided by 4, which must be equal to or greater than 98. Slacking off or missing one quarter must be offset by increased effort in the other quarters.
Field Trips
The Quality Birder will have participated in at least one official Utah County Birders field trip in each quarter. If a quarter is missed, it may be made up by 2 additional field trips in a subsequent quarter (this means 1 field trip to satisfy the quarter's minimum and 2 more field trips to make up the missing quarter).
Utah County Birders
The Quality Birder will have brought at least one additional adult to a regularly scheduled Utah County Birders meeting sometime during the year. Two people may not count bringing each other.
Cooperation
The Quality Birder will have assisted other groups, such as Cub and Boy Scouts, BYU students, beginning birders and other birders encountered while birding during the year. This will not be measured.
Service
The Quality Birder will participate in 2 volunteer birding activities. These may include Breeding Bird Surveys, Christmas Bird Counts or organized school activities.
The awards given consisted of the Utah County Birders patch with 'Quality Birder' embroidered on it.