Call for
Applications – Baillie Fund Small Grant Program
9 January 2009 – Applications for
the Small Grant Program of the James L. Baillie Memorial Fund are
due next week, by January 15, 2009. Up to 10 grants, ranging in
amount from $250 to $1000 each, are available through this program
for individuals or non-profit groups for volunteer-based projects.
Project expenses covered by previous grants include, for example,
purchases of mist nets or educational materials, production of data
forms or information brochures, and volunteer recruitment expenses.
Grant decisions will be announced by April. Visit the
Bird Studies
Canada website for application forms and additional
information.
Using proceeds of the annual Baillie Birdathon, the
Baillie Fund supports projects that increase the understanding,
appreciation, and conservation of Canadian birds in their natural
environment. For more information, contact the Baillie Fund
Secretary at
aheagy@birdscanada.org or 1-888-448-2473 ext. 166.
The 109th
Christmas Bird Count
Photo: Tanya Luszcz
8 January 2009 – The 109th
Christmas Bird
Count took place
from December 14 through January 5, and will be remembered by many
birders across the country as one of the stormiest, snowiest,
windiest, and coldest counts on record. Many counts were rescheduled
because of severe weather, and some were cancelled outright when
conditions were considered unsafe for travel. But the birds were
there, and the intrepid birders who counted them had many
interesting sightings to make the effort worthwhile. Data is still
being entered, but you can explore the counts that have been put in
the database already by going to the
Audubon website
and clicking on “Current Year’s Results.” The Christmas Bird Count
is coordinated in Canada by Bird Studies Canada in a joint program
with the National Audubon Society.
2009 YOW: Teen Birders Invited to Apply!
8 January 2009 – The 2009 Doug Tarry Natural History
Fund’s Young Ornithologists’ Workshop will be held at Long Point
Bird Observatory near Port Rowan, Ontario, from Friday, July 31 to
Sunday, August 9. Participants will receive hands-on field
ornithology training, including bird banding, censusing, field
identification, birding trips, preparing museum specimens, guest
lectures, and more! Six of Canada’s most promising ornithologists
between the ages of 13-17 will be selected to attend, and will
receive the Doug Tarry Bird Study Award to cover all on-site
expenses. For those traveling long distances, special grants may
also be available to help offset air travel costs. Applications are
due April 30, 2009. For more information and an application form,
contact our Landbird Programs Coordinator at
lpbo@birdscanada.org,
or visit the Bird Studies Canada website.
New Issue of
Avian Conservation and Ecology Now
Available
7 January 2009 – The latest issue of
Avian
Conservation and Ecology – Écologie et Conservation des Oiseaux
(ACE-ÉCO), Volume 3, Issue 2, December 2008, has been published.
This open-access, fully electronic scientific journal is sponsored
by the Society of Canadian Ornithologists and Bird Studies Canada.
To browse the table of contents or read a variety of new articles,
visit the ACE-ÉCO website.
Jon McCracken Appointed to COSEWIC
2 January 2009 – The Committee on the Status of
Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) is Canada’s national panel
of scientific experts who oversee the preparation and review of
species status reports. It is responsible for evaluating and
recommending species at risk designations for flora and fauna at the
national level. Bird Studies Canada’s Director of National Programs,
Jon McCracken, has been elected to Co-chair COSEWIC’s Birds
Specialist Subcommittee. He is replacing Dick Cannings, who is
stepping down after serving very capably in this capacity for the
past eight years. Jon has over three decades of experience as a
professional biologist and is looking forward to being an important
asset to the COSEWIC team. He will be working closely with Dr. Marty
Leonard (Dalhousie University), who has been the other Co-chair for
the past six years. For more information about the work of COSEWIC,
select this link.
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