Date: 3/25/26 5:13 pm From: Tommy Goodwin <tommy.j.goodwin.jr...> Subject: Missouri Statewide Discord Server - Now Live
Happy spring MOBsters,
I'm writing to share a new option for communicating about birds in Missouri.
Discord is a website and app similar to the old school forums where there
are separate channels for different topics. The platform has become widely
used for group messaging, video/voice calling, archiving, photo sharing,
and networking. We developed a birding Discord server for the St. Louis
Circle back in 2020 and it has slowly evolved over time. It was always the
intention to expand the server for the state, which was delayed due to the
effectiveness of existing communications (e.g. MOBirds-L, Facebook groups,
local Group Me chats, etc.). In the last few months, I have gotten several
requests to expand Discord for the state, so it was time to expand
statewide in hopes of avoiding further fragmentation. This is not meant to
take away from the other groups, but enhance communication options and
accessibility; please consider crossposting to MOBirds still for the
benefit for those birders who are still hesitant to try this server.
I would like to officially welcome statewide birders to this Discord
server, which is reformatted to accommodate statewide discussions. This
server is broken down into several categories including statewide and
regions of the state (e.g. St. Louis Circle, Columbia, Cape Girardeau,
Kansas City, etc.), so birders can have statewide conversations or regional
conversations. There are different chat threads for rare birds and general
conversation, and eBird rare bird alerts are integrated in a channel. Not
sure what counties are part of which region? There is a colored map in the
server for regions as well.
If you join the server, you will be automatically given an “unverified”
role. To become verified and see the contents of the server, you will need
to follow a short verification process including reading the rules and
guidelines (detailed in that channel). Upon completion, you will
immediately see all the content. If you have any issues getting set up,
please contact me and I will help fix the issues.
I think the biggest concern with this influx of members is that
notification settings may not be optimized upon account creation. You can
mute (i.e., stop receiving notifications for) any channel (or the entire
server). I recommend muting most channels for new users to limit your
notifications. Directions for this and other helpful tricks are located
in the #how-to-use-discord channel that all members (including unverified)
can view.
I have created a permanent (I hope) link to join the the Missouri Birders
Discord server below:
If there are any concerns, comments, or questions, please reach out to me.
Text will get the quickest response if you have my number (also listed in
the MBS member directory), but I will also respond to emails.
Get out there and bird and share your excitement!
*Tommy J. Goodwin*
St. Charles, MO
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The Missouri Birding Society's Wild Bird Discussion Forum
