Archives

25 February 2005 
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Jamaican Ornithology Workshop a Great Success

Photos: Stu Mackenzie

23 February 2005 - Stuart Mackenzie, BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory (LPBO) Program Coordinator, and Christian Friis, LPBO's Tip Warden, recently returned from facilitating a rigorous 15-day field ornithology workshop in the heart of Cockpit Country, Jamaica. BSC's Latin American Training Program was conducted in collaboration with the Windsor Research Centre, through support provided by BirdLife International, and funding by the United Nations Environment Program - Global Environmental Facility and the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica. Eight participants from four countries (Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica) received intensive training on all aspects of bird banding, migration monitoring program operations, forest bird monitoring techniques, and habitat and vegetation surveys. Three of the participants will be coming to Long Point this summer for one month to receive further training, with a focus on breeding bird biology. Keep an eye out in the spring issue of BirdWatch Canada for a more detailed report on the workshop. Bird Studies Canada and Nature Canada is the Canadian partner of BirdLife International.

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Baillie Birdathon Registration has Begun

25 February 2005 - If you want a really good excuse to go birding this spring, consider participating in the Baillie Birdathon. Each year, hundreds of enthusiastic supporters across Canada devote a day in May to raising money for bird conservation. Participants collect sponsors over the next several months, either at a flat rate or by species, and then spend up to 24 hours searching for birds.
  This year, new and returning participants have the option to register online. Each registrant receives an exclusive 2005 Baillie Birdathon t-shirt (see design above by Tom Godin) and the opportunity to win some fantastic prizes. To help you zero in on those elusive songbirds, you could win a Raven Spotting Scope (with 78mm objective lens and angled 20-60x zoom) and tripod, or a pair of Ranger 8 x 42 "Platinum Class" binoculars, courtesy of EagleOptics.ca. For those budding photographers, an OptioSV 5.0 megapixel digital camera (with 5X optical zoom) is available, courtesy of Pentax Canada, and for those seeking to boost their decor, the stunning framed print "Common Loon," has been offered courtesy of artist Chris Bacon. Most exciting of all, participants raising $250 or more are eligible to win an amazing all-inclusive guided tour in one of three destinations - Costa Rica, Arizona, or the high Arctic, courtesy of Eagle-Eye Tours. For information on additional prizes and all the details about participating in the Baillie Birdathon, click here. The Baillie Birdathon is an essential fundraiser for Bird Studies Canada’s research and conservation work.

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Atlantic Volunteers Needed for Beached Bird Survey

24 February 2005 - Bird Studies Canada (BSC) and the Downeast Heritage Center are teaming up with SEANET (The Seabird Ecological Assessment Network) to deliver Beached Bird Surveys in the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy. These surveys will provide baseline information about seabird mortality in this region and will help to identify and monitor mass mortality events such as oil spills. Numerous other threats such as contaminants, diseases, and offshore development threaten coastal and marine birds, which can serve as indicators of ecosystem and human health.
   Volunteers are needed along the Bay of Fundy shores of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and in northern Maine, to walk a designated stretch of beach once or twice per month in search of dead birds. Volunteers receive a kit including datasheets, a ruler, calipers, latex gloves and detailed instructions on how to conduct the survey. If possible, volunteers take photographs of specimens they find for confirmation of identification and for possible use in BSC and SEANET publications.
  A training session will be held at the Downeast Heritage Center, in Calais, Maine (across the border from St. Stephen, NB), Saturday, 26 March 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. to teach potential volunteers how to identify and measure specimens they find, as well as to provide tips on survey protocol. If you are interested in volunteering and/or attending the training session, please contact Becky Whittam at becky.whittam@ec.gc.ca or (506) 364-5047.
  Funding for this program is provided by Environment Canada's Ecoaction program, a Gulf of Maine Action Plan Grant, the Davis Conservation Foundation, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundationm, and NOAA Coastal Services Center.

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Wetland Inventory Project Initiated in U.S. Areas of Concern

23 Feburary 2005 - BSC’s Marsh Monitoring Program (MMP) recently entered into a renewed partnership agreement with the Great Lakes Commission (GLC) to develop a practical strategy to improve long-term monitoring of wetland habitats in Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOC). This project is supported by the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Great Lakes National Program Office.
  AOCs located along the Clinton River, Muskegon Lake, Rouge River, White Lake, Rochester Embayment, and Cuyahoga River were selected as priority areas for expanded MMP coverage in 2005. GLC and BSC have cooperatively begun the process of identifying suitable wetlands for increased monitoring, and many MMP volunteers active in these AOCs have been contacted to request their support for the project. Expanded monitoring of a similar number of AOC's is planned for 2006.
  Upcoming events associated with this project include an MMP training /recruitment session at the Irondequoit Wetlands Center, Irondequoit, New York on Saturday 12 March 2005 and at the Big Conservation Brunch at the Muskegon Community Center, Muskegon, Michigan on Sunday, 2 April 2005. For additional information on this project or the associated events, please contact Greg Dunn, Project Biologist, at gdunn@bsc-eoc.org or 1-888-448-2473, ext. 218.

MMP Québec Presented at Migratory Bird Round Table

14 February 2005 - Twice per year, Environment Canada biologists from Québec meet with local conservation groups and outfitters to present the latest results of studies, surveys, and harvesting of migratory birds conducted in the province. Catherine Poussart of BSC’s Québec regional office was invited to present the Québec Marsh Monitoring Program (MMP) results at the last meeting held in Québec City on 11 February. The MMP in Québec will undergo its second year in 2005 and data collected along the St. Lawrence River will be used by Environment Canada as an indicator in the State of the St. Lawrence Monitoring Program. For more information click here. 

Deux fois par année, les biologistes d’Environnement Canada de la région du Québec rencontrent les groupes de conservation québécois et les associations de pourvoyeurs et de sauvaginiers afin de leur présenter les derniers résultats d’études, d’inventaires et de données de récoltes d’oiseaux migrateurs effectués au Québec. Catherine Poussart, employée d’ÉOC au Québec, a été invitée à présenter le Programme de surveillance des marais au Québec (PSM) www.bsc-eoc.org/regional/qcmarais.html dans le cadre de la dernière réunion tenue le 11 février à Québec. Le PSM au Québec en sera à sa deuxième année et les données amassées dans les marais le long du Saint-Laurent seront utilisées par Environnement Canada à titre d’indicateur dans le Programme Suivi de l’état du Saint-Laurent.

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BSC Meets with AQGO Representatives in Québec

10 February 2005 - Bird Studies Canada staff George Finney, Denis Lepage, and Catherine Poussart met with representatives from the Association québécoise des groupes d'ornithologues to discuss how the two organization could collaborate together in Québec. 

Les employés d'ÉOC George Finney, Denis Lepage et Catherine Poussart ont rencontrés des représentants de l'Association québécoise des groupes d'ornithologues afin de discuter de quelles façons les deux organismes pourraient ensemble collaborer au Québec.

Bald Eagle Bonanza

4 February 2005 - Bird Studies Canada’s Bald Eagle program coordinator, Dawn Laing, recently gave a presentation to the Sunshine Coast Natural History Society of British Columbia in Sechelt, BC. Dawn was invited to talk to the group about BSC national and regional programs, with a specific focus on Destination Eagle. The group was comprised of keen birders and naturalists from the area, and much of the discussion revolved around Bald Eagles and the advancement of technology to study them.
  Following the meeting, Dawn was invited to attend a release of a rehabilitated Bald Eagle by Mr. Clint Davy, a wildlife rehabilitator and manager of the Gibson's Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre. The eagle had been retrieved with injuries sustained from fighting with another eagle. Following a quick recovery, it was released with a clean bill of health.
  The 2004 southern Ontario Bald Eagle final report is now available by clicking here. Bald Eagle enthusiasts are encouraged to read over the document and learn about the recovery of this species in southern Ontario.

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