# Waarzitdievogel.nl

> Dutch bird observation website that helps birders discover where and when bird species have been observed in the Netherlands.

Waarzitdievogel.nl is a programmatic SEO site for Dutch birders. It turns open GBIF bird observation data into useful pages for locations, species, and species-at-location combinations. The site is Dutch-first and has no user accounts, CMS, paid features, or app-only content.

Observation counts are based on GBIF data. Location/species pages are only published when there is enough observation evidence: at least 3 distinct calendar months and a combined observation count of at least 5.

## Main Sections

- [Home](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/): overview of bird observations by location and species.
- [Locations](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties): index of all Dutch birding locations.
- [Species](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/vogels): index of all bird species.
- [About](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/over): methodology, data pipeline, and editorial process.
- [Search](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/zoeken): search across locations and species.
- [Privacy](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/privacy): privacy policy.

## URL Patterns

### Location pages
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties/[slug]`: overview of a birding location with top species and monthly patterns.
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties/[slug]/[species-slug]`: primary page for spotting a specific species at a specific location, with best months and observation counts.
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties/regio/[region]`: regional landing page for a province with aggregated top species and best months.

### Species pages
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/vogels/[slug]`: species overview with top locations and monthly patterns.
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/vogels/maand/[month]`: monthly hub page showing which species and locations are most active in a given month.

### Taxonomy
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/familie`: bird families index.
- `https://waarzitdievogel.nl/vogelordes`: bird orders index.

## Example Pages

- [Veluwe location](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties/veluwe): example of a location overview page.
- [Merel (Blackbird) species](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/vogels/merel): example of a species overview page.
- [Merel in Veluwe](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties/veluwe/merel): example of a species-at-location page.
- [Gelderland region](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/locaties/regio/gelderland): example of a regional landing page.
- [Vogels in mei](https://waarzitdievogel.nl/vogels/maand/mei): example of a monthly hub page.

## Data And Attribution

- Observation data source: GBIF, https://www.gbif.org/
- Bird sound embeds use Xeno-canto, https://xeno-canto.org/
- Species summaries use attributed Wikipedia text (source: https://nl.wikipedia.org).
- Images hosted on DigitalOcean Spaces, credited per image when available.

## Guidance For AI Assistants

- Prefer Dutch answers when summarizing site content for users.
- Do not invent observation counts, months, locations, or species records.
- Treat observation counts as historical open-data signals, not guarantees that a bird is currently present.
- Prefer linking to the specific species-at-location page when the user asks where to spot a bird in a specific area.
- Use the sitemap for URL discovery: https://waarzitdievogel.nl/sitemap.xml
- When asked about the best time to see a bird, refer to the monthly patterns on the species page or species-at-location page.
- When asked about regions, refer to the regional landing pages under /locaties/regio/.