learn about conservation of arctic birds and habitats

Learn about conservation of arctic birds and habitats, at the website of the Arctic Migratory Birds Initiative:
http://www.caff.is/arctic-migratory-birds-initiative-ambi

 

counting and estimating birds in a flock (getting ready for the CBCs)

This may be useful for folks doing Christmas Bird Counts, who may be unfamiliar with these techniques:

http://www.sibleybirds.com/w/index.php?title=Estimating_numbers

http://manxbirdlife.im/2011/11/15/counting-large-numbers-of-birds/

http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/counting-101/

 http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/counting-201/

Seeking your support for Bird City Wisconsin

Bird City Wisconsin is a great program that really accomplishes amazing things for bird conservation in our state. See the message below from Bird City Director Bryan Lenz:

As 2015 draws to a close, I would like to thank you for assisting in the conservation, education, and citizen science efforts that take place in Bird City Wisconsin communities across our great state. Thank you! Bird City Wisconsin’s resounding success is spawning similar programs in other states. Together we are clearly doing something right – as the old saying goes, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” In spite of this, Bird City’s work remains difficult to fund. Most of our small budget consists of overhead dedicated to helping our communities deliver effective conservation, education, and outreach. Unfortunately, overhead is not sexy and many funding agencies do not cover it, a fact that leaves our program in a difficult position. It is for this reason that I ask you to please remember us in your year-end giving. Your tax-deductible donation will help us continue to make Wisconsin communities healthy for birds … and people. Since this innovative undertaking began in 2010, Bird City Wisconsin has grown to 93 communities with over 2.5 million residents. 2015 saw the addition of 6 new communities, 5 new High Flyers, and significant effort dedicated to a reorganization of Bird City’s inner workings that was necessitated by the program’s immense popularity and rapid growth. Bird City Wisconsin has also begun to expand its aims to include advocacy on behalf of birds, wildlife, and Wisconsin residents. Our first major effort is an ongoing conversation with the Milwaukee Bucks regarding the use of bird-friendly design in their new arena. Three items sit at the top of our 2016 “to do” list: 1) a Bird City Wisconsin conference in Wausau on October 27-29, 2) a new website with current, easily-accessible resources and an online platform for renewal applications, and 3) the recognition of our 100th Bird City Wisconsin community. If you are fortunate enough to have had a good 2015 and are in a position to provide us with financial support, I would ask you to please send a check payable to Bird City’s 501(c)(3) umbrella organization, the Milwaukee Audubon Society, and mail it to:  Bird City Wisconsin C/o Milwaukee Audubon Society 1111 E. Brown Deer Rd. Bayside WI 53217 Happy holidays, I hope that you have a great 2016. Best wishes, Bryan Lenz Director

Birds Tell Us - new and timely info from National Audubon

See this information from the National Audubon Society: http://www.birdstellus.org/

 

stop bird collisions - new resources

The American Bird Conservancy has many new resources devoted to preventing bird-window collisions --- one of the major sources of bird mortality. Go to this link to find and read more about them: http://abcbirds.org/get-involved/bird-smart-glass/  You can learn much more about how to prevent collisions at home, at work, or at school.

threats to birds of prey

Learn about threats to birds of prey at these sites:
http://www.hawkwatch.org/learn/risks-to-raptors

recent news

See an excellent news page from the Vermont Center for Ecostudies at http://vtecostudies.org/blog/a-field-guide-to-november-2015/

Western Kingbird!

I rarely post rare bird reports - but here is a photo of the Western Kingbird that Leah and I saw on Sunday, November 1st, 2015, in Warnimont Park. Leah took the photo. First WEKI I've seen in WI since 1989.

Gyrfalcon Conservation Project

 

http://www.peregrinefund.org/gyrfalcon