[birdky] April PIF newsletter
- From: "Vorisek, Shawchyi \(FW\)" <Shawchyi.Vorisek@xxxxxx>
- To: <birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 10:34:41 -0400
April Partners In Flight Newsletter follows:
Shawchyi Vorisek
Avian Biologist/Partners In Flight Coordinator
Wildlife Diversity Program
KY Dept. of Fish and Wildlife Resources
#1 Sportsman's Lane
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502)564-7109 Ext. 368
shawchyi.vorisek@xxxxxx
www.fw.ky.gov <http://www.fw.ky.gov/>
<<Picture (Metafile)>>
PARTNERS IN FLIGHT NEWSLETTER
http://www.partnersinflight.org
April 2007
2006 Partners in Flight Awards
The PIF 2006 awards were again sponsored by the American Bird Association
(http://www.americanbirding.org/). The Awards Committee, chaired by Rich
Fischer, made the following selections, all in the category of Leadership.
Janet Ruth
Janet has been a key contributor to PIF since its inception in 1990. Few other
individuals have attended national PIF meetings, workshops, and conferences and
chaired various committees and working groups essentially without fail over the
entire existence of the initiative. Early on, Janet was assigned by USGS to be
their designated agency representative to PIF - a clear indication of Usage's
view of her ability to contribute and provide a critical link back to USGS.
Janet has not only routinely offered ideas on all aspects of PIF, she has
served as the Chair of the Research Working Group since its organization in
1997. She initiated and has been the driving force behind the Research Needs
database. This database contains information mined from the many PIF bird
conservation plans on bird conservation research needs of every type. As such,
it provides a key source of information to academia, USGS, US Forest Service
Research, and other entities working in scientific ornithology. Janet also
contributes directly to grassland bird conservation through her own research
and by organizing workshops and symposia on this topic.
Janet has also been absolutely essential for the PIF website. She arranged to
have USGS host the site and to commit people and resources to keeping it up to
date. Janet does not simply collect information to be served, she continually
thinks of the types of information that should be added to the site to make it
a truly useful and current source of information. This has entailed
contributing a great deal of personal time in the redesign and maintenance of
the website.
Janet has also provided significant leadership through her long-term
participation in national committee meetings and workshops. Her level of
knowledge, experience, and perspective becomes increasingly important as the
years go by and as people in the partnership turn over. It is people like
Janet, who contribute for the long haul with both energy and ideas, that make a
successful partnership.
Through her work to make the website ever more useful, her linking USGS and
PIF, her leadership in research needs, and her long-term participation on the
Implementation Committee, The Partners in Flight Awards Committee has
recognized Janet's contributions with a 2006 National Leadership Award.
Association Ecosystems Sandino (ECOAN)
Partners in Flight is pleased to provide a Leadership Award to Association
Ecosystems Sandino (http://www.ecoanperu.org/) for leading the conservation of
threatened and neotropical migratory birds in Peru through community-based
activities, creation and/or management of private and public conservation
areas, and applied research and monitoring.
ECOAN started in 2000 as a modest grass-roots effort aimed at preventing the
extinction in southern Peru of extremely imperiled bird species. The three
main regions for Coin's work include indigenous lands in the Vulcanite
Cordillera, close to Cuzco City; the new Abram Patricia Private Conservation
Area and Alto Mayo Protected Forest, in Northern Peru; and the 'Maranon-Alto
Mayo Birds Conservation Corridor', a corridor from Central to Northern Peru of
nearly 2.5 million hectares.
Focal species for Coin's work include the very rare Royal Concludes,
Ash-breasted Tit-tyrant and White-browed Tit-spine tail. These bird species
are totally dependant on the rare and declining Polymeric Forests, severely
threatened by human activities. Aware that these forests were located on
indigenous lands, ECOAN developed a community process aimed at preventing
forest destruction and bird extinction by providing short term alternatives for
raw materials and energy needs, developing multi-use plantations for midterm
use, implementing Polylepis forest restoration with and by the communities,
solving land tenure controversies among communities and public agencies,
developing bird population and forest conservation monitoring with community
members, developing a bird conservation awareness campaign through public
workshops and public radio broadcasting, and documenting their activities with
scientifically accepted protocols. ECOAN's work on Polylepis birds became so
successful that it went from 3 initial communities with forests, to 19
communities for a total of 1,500 families. Polylepis destruction in this area
has been almost totally halted. Moreover, the five highest conservation
priority communities have agreed to set aside a significant portion of their
lands for bird conservation.
During the past two years, ECOAN has also focused on the conservation of some
of the rarest and more imperiled birds of the hemisphere. Among them, we have
Marvelous Spatulatail, Ochre-fronted Antpitta, Long-whiskered Owlet, Johnson's
Tody-tyrant, Lake Junin Grebe and Lake Junin rail. The Spatulatail is being
conserved in a private reserve developed through the first ever conservation
easement with a farmer community in Peru. ECOAN's achievements are now broadly
recognized internationally and several donors and conservation groups are
supporting its efforts or replicating its methodologies, like in North and
Southeastern Bolivia and more recently in Argentina. Because of their capacity
to deliver conservation, ECOAN has become an important bird conservation leader.
The president of EOCAN, Constantino Aucca Chutas, traveled to Portland to
receive this award in person during the USFWS Director's Reception and to
participate in some other meetings. His travel was supported by the American
Bird Conservancy.
Operation Migration
Since 2001, Operation Migration (http://operationmigration.org/index.html) has
been leading young-of-the-year Whooping Cranes from Central Wisconsin to the
Gulf coast of Florida behind ultralight aircraft to establish a discrete,
migratory population of these Federally endangered birds. This new flock will
augment the only naturally occurring population that migrates between northern
Canada and the southern United States. Whooping cranes, like a number of avian
species, learn to migrate by following their parents along an ancestral route.
Operation Migration pilots act as surrogates during birds' first season,
leading juvenile birds to their wintering grounds. Migration covers over 1200
miles through 7 states and can take as long as 70 days to complete.
Since beginning the Whooping crane reintroduction in 2001, seventy-two birds
have been taught the migration route and over 80% still survive. One hundred
percent of these birds migrate unassisted and 87% return to the core
reintroduction site in central Wisconsin. With this year's class of 18 birds,
there will be nearly 80 birds in this migratory flock, well over half way to
the goal of 125 individuals. This year, for the first time, a wild chick was
hatched, fledged and successfully migrated following his captive reared parents
to Florida. This is the first wild, migratory Whooping crane hatched in the US
in well over 100 years.
This reintroduction has become a very high profile project generating over 500
media stories annually. This project has been referred to as "the wildlife
equivalent of putting a man on the moon." One of the Operation Migration
aircraft will go on permanent display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space
Museum in 2007.
New PIF World Series of Birding Team
For the first time, PIF and International Migratory Bird Day (IMBD) are
competing in the World Series of Birding (http://www.njaudubon.org/WSB/). We
have formed a World Series Team - The Redstarts - which is composed of members
from Canada, the US, and Latin America. In this event, teams obtain pledges
from supporters that the team then designates to a worthy bird conservation
activity. Pledges can be made at http://www.birdday.org/wsb.htm.
In its first year, The Redstarts have elected to contribute funds to Cerulean
Warbler conservation, research, and education:
Cerulean Warbler Bird Reserve in Santander, Colombia for purchase of land to
expand the Reserve. Learn more from American Bird Conservancy at
http://www.birdconservationalliance.org
Fundación ProAves in Colombia for public education programs on Cerulean
Warblers and their conservation. Learn more at http://www.proaves.org/
Cerulean Warbler Technical Group to assist with studies of Cerulean
Warbler stopover sites. Learn more at <http://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/newsroom/
newsrelease/>2004/nr_2004-02-02-warblers.htm
Special thanks are due to Jon Bart for making this happen, to Ken Rosenberg for
critical advice on how to compete in the World Series, and to Sue Bonfield for
making this a partnership with IMBD.-Terry Rich (terry_rich@xxxxxxx)
International Migratory Bird Day 2007 Approaching Fast
We know you are planning some exceptional bird day festivities, in doing so
don't forget to register your IMBD events at (www.birdday.org). This year's
theme spotlights climate change, its effects on birds and their habitats.
Opportunities for Improving Avian Monitoring
The U.S. North American Bird Conservation Monitoring Subcommittee recently
released a landmark publication entitled Opportunities for Improving Avian
Monitoring. Representatives from federal agencies, the American Association of
Fish and Wildlife agencies, the Canadian Wildlife Service, Cornell University,
and the four bird conservation initiatives that NABCI encompasses, developed
this unique publication. Bea Van Horne, U.S. Forest Service, and Paul Schmidt,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are the co-chairs of the Monitoring Subcommittee
and led the effort to produce this publication.
The report describes how current, disparate efforts to monitor avian
populations could be improved. Recommendations and actions for general
consideration by the bird conservation community are provided, including ones
to be implemented by NABCI-US. This publication may be downloaded from
(http://www.nabci-us.org/main2.html). It is must reading for anyone
conducting, or planning to initiate, avian monitoring.
Northeast Coordinated Bird Monitoring Update
The website of the Northeast Coordinated Bird Monitoring Partnership
(www.nebirdmonitor.org) has been updated and significantly expanded to deliver
information, tools, and resources to northeastern bird monitoring
professionals. Browse over 100 bird monitoring publications, including the
web's most comprehensive collection of papers, presentations, and websites on
estimating avian detection rates, occupancy, and population trends. Learn
which bird monitoring projects received grants from the 2007 Survey Design and
Implementation Fund. And download the draft Register of Northeast Bird
Monitoring Programs, which includes information on over 420 local, state,
regional, and international bird monitoring initiatives that are active in
USFWS Region 5.
Representatives of several governmental and non-governmental organizations met
have drafted an outline and much of the text for the Northeast Coordinated Bird
Monitoring Framework. Working group leaders and others are now preparing
coordination, design, and implementation strategies for a comprehensive list of
game and non-game bird groups. To contribute to this work or offer your
editorial services during framework development, please contact the
coordinator. A draft will be available for public comment during the months of
July and August, with revisions to be completed before the October
workshop.-Dan Lambert (dlambert@xxxxxxxxxxxx)
Natural Resource Monitoring Partnership
The Natural Resource Monitoring Partnership (NRMP) is pleased to announce the
release of the new Monitoring Protocol Library and the Monitoring Locator. The
NRMP is a collaborative effort by the natural resource management community. To
foster coordination and collaboration of monitoring efforts the NRMP provides
two collaborative, internet-based tools. The Monitoring Protocol Library - An
internet accessible, searchable database that provides information on
monitoring protocols and resource assessment methodologies and The Monitoring
"Locator", an internet-based, GIS application that allows users to identify
what natural resource monitoring is being conducted within a particular
geographic area.
Please support this effort by contributing information on your protocols and
monitoring programs to make both databases a truly comprehensive, multi-agency
source of monitoring information. Visit the NRMP website
(http://nrmp.nbii.gov), to log in as a contributor and become familiar with its
tools. Encourage your colleagues in yours and other organizations to do the
same. A fact sheet and other materials can be downloaded
(http://biology.usgs.gov/status_trends/nrmp/overview_sheet_NRMP.pdf). -Amber
Pairis (apairis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx).
Multistate Conservation Grant Program, 2008
The Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (www.fishwildlife.org) is
soliciting proposals for the 2008 Multistate Conservation Grant Program
(MSCGP). The MSCGP is intended to address regional- or national-level
priorities of state fish and wildlife agencies. AFWA and the USFWS
cooperatively administer the MSCGP, with the Association soliciting, selecting,
and recommending to the FWS a "priority list" of projects to be funded.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 15-628). Additional program and
application information is provided in the 2008 MSCGP's Announcement of
Opportunity, which can be found on the Association's Multistate Conservation
Grant webpage (http://www.fishwildlife.org/multistate_grants.html).
Of the seven priority National Conservation Needs (NCN), two specifically
address bird conservation as follows:
NCN 2. Large-scale Habitat Conservation Design, Implementation, and Evaluation
for the Conservation of Birds and Other Fish and Wildlife Species
NCN 3. Landscape-scale Information on Migration Pathways and Distribution of
Fish and Wildlife Related to Potential Energy Development
Proposals are due Friday, 8 June 2007.-Christina Zarrella
(czarrella@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx)
Bird Conservation Through Education: A National Gathering
The subject conference was held 5-8 February 2007 at The Crossings
(www.thecrossingsaustin.com/), outside Austin, Texas. The conference was
organized by the Council for Environmental Education (www.councilforee.org/)
and Flying WILD (www.flyingwild.org). Over 150 educators and bird
conservationists attended the conference which can certainly be characterized
as successful.
The goals of the conference were to:
Initiate the development of a national bird education network
Highlight the most critical messages to be communicated through bird education
efforts
Examine outreach to diverse audiences as a priority goal within bird education
and share successful methods for involving diverse audiences in bird education
Share success stories in bird education through case studies and interactive
discussions
Most of the action in bird conservation to date has been in the realm of
improving the biological science foundation, changing national policies, and
increasing the resources available for bird conservation. It is now time to
generate concomitant action in environmental education. Bird educators and
bird education programs are widely distributed in the U.S. Most agencies,
conservation organizations, bird observatories, and similar entities have some
environmental education activities. However, with the exception of a few
national programs such as Flying WILD, most of these bird education activities
are disjointed and/or opportunistic. There has never been a national bird
conservation education plan whereby a more strategic approach could be
delineated.
One of the main resolutions agreed to by the Austin attendees was to write a
national strategic/marketing plan for bird education. This plan will address
all birds, will address educational objectives for all segments of society (not
just K-12), and will be sponsored by the Council for Environmental Education.
A working group to begin on the plan will hold their first meeting in July in
Denver.
Other actions immediately underway are to seek ways of interacting more
effectively with the North American Association for Environmental Education
(www.naaee.org), the National Association for Interpretation
(http://www.interpnet.com/), the National Science Teachers Association
(http://www.nsta.org/), and other national organizations with environmental
education interests.
Finally, the Council for Environmental Education would like to make the bird
educators conference an annual event. The second conference will be integrated
into the February 2008 Partners in Flight conference in McAllen, TX.-Terry Rich
(terry_rich@xxxxxxx)
Education at the 4th International Partners in Flight Conference
We plan to have a strong link to bird education in the 4th International
Partners in Flight Conference in McAllen next February (see PIF web site for
current information). 1) Half-day sessions on bird education topics will be
solicited just as for other areas of interest such as stopover habitat, wind
generators, and monitoring; 2) All sessions - no matter the topic - will be
requested to have at least one presentation that addresses the educational
issues attached to the session topic; 3) In each of the discussion sections
that follow the presentations within a session, we will be requesting specific
actions that can be taken in education, research, monitoring, habitat
management, population management, and policy; 4) We are pursuing the idea of
holding a Flying WILD (www.councilforee.org) teacher workshop in conjunction
with the conference that would allow for the participation of conference
attendees; and 5) We are offering support for adjunct meetings of educators
that may emerge.
Belize and Mesoamerica Edition: Recommendations for Landowners
Seven years in the making, a PDF of The Birds Without Borders - Aves Sin
Fronteras®, Recommendations for Landowners: How to Manage Your Land to Help
Birds (Belize and Mesoamerica edition) is available for free download on our
Web site: (http://www.zoosociety.org/Conservation/BWB-ASF/BelizeLandowner.php).
The manual is written in English, Belize's official language, but a Spanish
summary can be found on pages 7-11. It is being printed in Belize and we hope
the printing will be completed in April. We have a limited number of copies
that can be mailed to people in Latin America who will use it for conservation.
This publication is an excellent example of a bird conservation collaboration
between a state-based group - in this case the Zoological Society of Milwaukee
- and a neotropical country.-Vicki Piaskowski (www.zoosociety.org).
A Neotropical Companion: the Spanish Language Version
Birders' Exchange, a program of the American Birding Association, is pleased to
announce that a Spanish language version of John Kricher's highly acclaimed
book, A Neotropical Companion: An Introduction to the Animals, Plants, and
Ecosystems of the New World Tropics, is now available for distribution.
Hopefully the translation of this important work will prove to be one of the
Birders' Exchange program's most significant accomplishments to date. Birders'
Exchange plans to distribute at no cost as many copies of the book as possible
to individuals, organizations, libraries, or educational institutions
throughout the Neotropics that could benefit from having one or more copies.
Please contact me if you would like to have a copy (or copies) to distribute to
our Spanish-speaking colleagues, either in the Neotropics or in the U.S. -
Betty Petersen, (bpetersen@xxxxxxx).
Bird Monitoring and Detectability Symposium
Many attendees asked for a copy of the lectures that were presented at the Bird
Monitoring and Detectability Symposium in Fort Collins on February 27 - March
1, 2007. We have placed several on the website and will place any others as we
receive permission to post them. Please visit our website
(http://www.warnercnr.colostate.edu/fwb/distance.html) and click on the Bird
Monitoring and Detectability Symposium link. Scroll through the agenda to get
to the lecture links.-Joyce Pratt (Joyce.Pratt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx).
Raptor Protection on Power Lines: The State of the Art in 2006
Produced as a cooperative effort of the Avian Power Line Interaction Committee,
the Edison Electric Institute, and the California Energy Commission, this book
provides a profile of the research and safeguards now available to remedy the
issue of raptor electrocutions. This new edition is a significant update of the
1996 publication. Concerted joint efforts by industry, government, and
conservation groups have led to an ever-increasing positive management of the
issue. This fourth edition of the guide focuses on opportunities in the US and
throughout the world for avoidance or mitigation of electrocution problems,
highlighting management options. You may purchase the book online
(http://www.eei.org/products_and_services/descriptions_and_access/suggested_pract.htm)
or download a free pdf version
(http://www.aplic.org/SuggestedPractices2006(LR).pdf).
Long-Billed Curlew Draft Status Assessment And Conservation Plan
The subject document is now available for comments. The draft is posted at
http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/species/birds/longbilled_curlew/ in both PDF
and WORD formats. We are soliciting your review and comments in any format
you prefer. Please send comments to Suzanne Fellows by 1 July 2007.-Suzanne
Fellows (suzanne_fellows@xxxxxxx)
Swainson's Warbler Profile
There is a new species profile on Swainson's Warbler by John Gerwin of the
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, who is also the NC Partners in
Flight Monitoring/Research Committee chair. Biologists, researchers and land
managers will find it informative. On the NC PIF home page click on 'Learn
About NC Birds' and then click on "species Profiles'. The NC PIF web site
address is (http://faculty.ncwc.edu/mbrooks/pif/index.html).-Mark Johns
(johnsme@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx).
Refuge Friends Group Grants
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has announced the opening of the 2007
Refuge Friends Group Grant Cycle. This is a great opportunity for all friends
and refuge support groups - old and new. Please read below and to learn about
what kind of grant might be right for you if you are a new group, be sure to
read about Start Up Grants, and for established groups, learn about grants to
build capacity or to complete a specific project. Proposals for this cycle are
due 4 September 2007 with final funding decisions and applicant notification
by 22 November 2007. You can access all related information online:
(http://www.nfwf.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&Template=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentID=4639).-John
Cecil (jcecil@xxxxxxxxxxx)
NMBCA and NAWCA Proposal Reviews
As some of you know, I am on a panel that reviews projects submitted for
funding to the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act
(<http://www.fws.gov/ birdhabitat/Grants/NMBCA/index.shtm>). I have also been
asked, along with representatives from the shorebird and waterbird initiatives,
to informally review Technical Question 2 on proposals submitted to the North
American Wetlands Conservation Act (<http://www.fws.gov/birdhabitat/
Grants/NAWCA/index.shtm>) . Although much of this information is confidential,
if anyone has general questions or concerns about either program I would be
happy to discuss them with you. Also be aware that both programs have advisory
committees that help provide guidance and set policy for use of those
funds.-Terry Rich
International Seminar on Protected Area Management
The International Seminar on Protected Area Management is held in the northern
Rocky Mountains of the western United States. Designed for senior level
planners and managers of nationally significant protected areas worldwide, this
integrated state-of-the-art course examines strategies to conserve the world's
most special places. The program, sponsored by the US Forest Service
International Programs and the Universities of Montana, Idaho and Colorado
State, will evaluate policies and institutional arrangements that sustain both
people and natural resources. Application Deadline: May 7, 2007
See http://www.fs.fed.us/global/is/ispam/welcome.htm for details.
Wild Bird Imports Banned in European Union
For the past several years, many of you and your organizations have worked
together to stop the European Union's (EU) importation of wild birds. I'm
delighted to inform you that the EU has decided to do exactly that - all wild
bird imports have been banned permanently. The temporary ban on all live bird
imports has been extended until June 2007, and the new regulation takes effect
on 1 July 2007. I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for your
enthusiastic support of this effort, and hope you and your organizations feel
proud to have been part of making this momentous decision possible. This ban
will spare about four million wild birds a year ... forever! Visit
http://www.worldparrottrust.org for more information.-James D. Gilardi
(gilardi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx)
Eagle Optics Supports Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp
Eagle Optics is proud to launch a campaign to help raise awareness of one of
the most successful conservation initiatives ever - the Migratory Bird Hunting
and Conservation Stamp. We are now offering and distributing a protective
cover for people to proudly display or wear their duck stamp. The protective
cover will be available through Eagle Optics for only $1.00. Every package
that is sent to our customers will contain an informational sheet explaining
why they should purchase a "Duck" Stamp and how to purchase one. We have added
a prominent link on our Eagle Optics Website, taking visitors to The Federal
Duck Stamp Story Article, from the US Fish and Wildlife Service
(http://www.eagleoptics.com/index.asp?pid=4426).-Adam Vrotsos
(avrotsos@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx).
Neotropical Ornithological Society
The Neotropical Ornithological Society (http://www.neotropicalornithology.org/)
is an organization devoted to promoting the scientific study of Neotropical
birds and their habitats throughout their breeding and non-breeding ranges, and
the sharing of scientific information. One method in which Information is
disseminated is through the publication of the society's journal, Ornitología
Neotropical, now in its 16th annual volume. The journal is widely cited in the
ornithology literature and indexed by the major scientific indexing
organizations. The Society also plays a growing role in supporting students
as evident in the recently established endowment of the François Vuilleumier
Fund, which provides fellowships to graduate students from Latin America and
the Caribbean. We are also establishing a Fund for Conservation in honor to our
founder, the Dr Mario A. Ramos Olmos. However, it is mostly through the NOS's
sponsorship of international meetings that the society has stimulated interest
and the exchange of information pertaining to the scientific study of birds of
the Neotropics.-Patricia Escalante (tilmatura@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx)
New Blog for Shade-grown Coffee
This Blog is dedicated to coffee lovers concerned with the environmental
impacts of the coffee industry. Leopoldo Miranda-Castro, the founder of this
website, has worked extensively with coffee growers in Puerto Rico. He is
developing his Ph.D., dissertation on the use of shade grown coffee plantations
to manage and protect tropical areas around the world. Visit this
well-designed website and join the conversation
(http://shade-growncoffee.blogspot.com/).
The Charcoal Forest
A former PRBO (http://www.prbo.org/cms/index.php) field technician recently
completed this children's book on the fire ecology of forests. She wrote this
while working on a PRBO project looking at fire and birds in the northern
Sierra Nevada. The book is available at amazon.com.-Aaron Holmes
(aholmes@xxxxxxxx).
MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES
VIII Neotropical Ornithological Congress, Venezuela
The VIII Neotropical Ornithological Congress will be held in Maturin,
Venezuela, 13-19 May 2007. The congress is being hosted by the Neotropical
Ornithological Society and the Venezuelan Ornithological Union. Details are
available at http://www.nocvenezuela.org/en/index.cfm. PIF has organized 4
workshops/roundtables. One item we will be exploring in addition is the value
of Venezuela to wintering migrants from North America.
Migratory Bird Education for Educators,
This course will be held 18-21 June 2007 at the National Conservation Training
Center, Sheperdstown, WV. It will teach knowledge, skills, and strategies to
educate others about birds and their conservation. Participants will learn to
teach others basic bird identification, explore a wide array of available
educational resources, and identify potential cross-culture connections. Some
key objectives include how to work with teachers to incorporate migratory bird
education into school curriculum, how to analyze how a program could be
integrated internationally, and how to describe processes to incorporate
inquiry science into education programs. The registration deadline is April
27, 2007. Details are at (http//traiing.fws.gov/catalog/cousecontents.html).
77th Annual Meeting Of The Cooper Ornithological Society
The next COS conference will be held at the Holiday Inn in Moscow, Idaho, 19-23
June 2007. Details at http://www.dfa.uidaho.edu/ceis/conferences/cooper/.
Association Of Field Ornithologists' 2007 Meeting
AFO will meet at the University of Maine in Orono 26-29 July 2007.
Information about the meeting, pre- and post-meeting trips, and the Gulf
of Maine region are available at www.afonet.org/.
American Ornithologists' Union
the125th stated meeting of the AOU will be held at the University
of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, 8-11 August 2007. Information about the
meeting can be found at www.aou.org/meetings/2007/index.php3.
Shorebird Ecology and Management
Offered by the National Conservation Training Center (http://training.fws.gov/)
on 21-24 August 2007, at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Brigham City,
Utah,
this course will teach basics of how and why to integrate shorebird habitat
considerations into wetland management planning. Sessions will include
shorebird identification and ecology, survey techniques, and approaches for
managing impoundments and other habitats for shorebirds. Sessions will be
conducted in both the classroom and in the field. Participants will learn to
identify common shorebirds and their habitats, describe and perform simple
shorebird survey techniques, and describe how to integrate shorebird habitat
management strategies with existing wetland management projects. This course
will be useful to biologists and other natural resource professionals
participating in shorebird inventories or management. Details available from
the web site above.
.
Raptor Research Foundation and Hawk Migration Association Of North America
Joint Conference
.
The RRF 2007 annual conference will be held in conjunction with the
HMANA tri-annual conference in Allentown, Pennsylvania, hosted by
Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association. The conference dates, 12-16
September 2007, are timed to enjoy the annual broad-winged hawk and osprey
migration through eastern Pennsylvania. Details are linked at
http://raptorresearchfoundation.org/.
Next National PIF Committee Meetings
The next meeting of the PIF Implementation Committee (IC) will be 16-17
September 2007 near Louisville, KY (exact location TBA). As usual, these
meetings will be held immediately prior to the Association of Fish and Wildlife
Agencies' (AFWA) annual conference (<http://www.fishwildlife.org/
annualmeet.html>). Those who have not attended IC and related AFWA committee
meetings are welcome and encouraged to participate.
The Wildlife Society 14th Annual Conference
The TWS annual conference will be held in Tucson, Arizona on 22-26 September
2007. PIF is holding a symposium entitled, Conservation of Biodiversity
through Actions Benefiting High Priority Landbirds. This will feature examples
from around the Western Hemisphere. For conference information, see
http://www.wildlife.org/conference/index.cfm.
Northeast Bird Monitoring Workshop
The 2007 Northeast Coordinated Bird Monitoring Workshop, originally slated for
spring of 2007, has been rescheduled for 3-5 October 2007. It will be held at
the Patuxent National Wildlife Visitor's Center in Laurel, MD. The goals of
the workshop are to 1) finalize review of a strategic plan for coordinated bird
monitoring in the Northeast; 2) complete detailed survey designs needed to
align monitoring of priority bird groups; 3) begin implementation of the
coordinated plan; and 4) develop an approach to optimizing the involvement of
volunteer observers. Biologists and statisticians from the Patuxent Wildlife
Research Center will be on hand to help us achieve these goals, just as they
were at the Ithaca workshop. Please save the dates and watch for more
information in the coming months.-Dan Lambert (dlambert@xxxxxxxxxxxx).
2nd Michigan Bird Conservation Initiative Ornithological Congress
The MiBCI conference will be held at the University of Michigan Biological
Station at Pellston on 5-7 October 2007. Details are available at
http://www.mibci.org/.
National Association for Interpretation
As a part of the new PIF initiative to get more involved in bird conservation
education, we will be presenting at least one paper and otherwise participating
in the next NAI conference in Wichita, KS, on 6-10 November 2007. Our intent
is to become regular participants so as to get bird education more thoroughly
integrated into environmental education programs and curricula. See
http://www.interpnet.com/workshop/ for details of this conference.
North American Association for Environmental Education
As a part of the new PIF initiative to get more involved in bird conservation
education, we will be presenting several papers and participating in the next
NAAEE conference in Virginia Beach, VA on 14-17 November 2007. Our intent is
to become regular participants so as to get bird education more thoroughly
integrated into environmental education programs and curricula. See
http://www.naaee.org/conference for details of this conference.
The 4th International Partners In Flight Conference
As you know, our next conference will be held 13-16 February 2008, at the new
McAllen Convention Center in McAllen, Texas. The conference theme will be
Tundra to Tropics: Connecting Birds, Habitats and People, which will be shared
with International Migratory Bird Day (http://www.birdday.org/) for 2008. The
focus of the conference will be on international connections that further bird
and habitat conservation throughout the Western Hemisphere.
Concurrent paper sessions will focus on issues in bird conservation. The goal
of each session will be to produce a strategic action plan to be distributed to
all partners within weeks of the conference. A preliminary list of sessions
and invitation to submit other session ideas will be distributed broadly in a
few weeks.
We are seeking $80,000 in contributions and we have a good start toward
reaching that goal. You can view those who have already contributed on the PIF
conference web site (linked at www.PartnersInFlight.org) . A detailed budget
is continually being refined and is available from Terry at any time. Contact
Terry if you have any funding that might be available. The Gulf Coast Bird
Observatory (http://www.gcbo.org/) will be handling contributed funds. Details
will be posted on the PIF web site (http://www.partnersinflight.org) and
distributed through various bird conservation listservs as they develop. In
the mean time, contact Terry Rich with inquiries (terry_rich@xxxxxxx).
Special Meetings and Workshops at 4th International PIF Conference
We will have access to the McAllen Convention Center on Wednesday, 13 February
2008, and to a number of other venues earlier in the week for those who want to
hold a special meeting, a regular meeting, or a workshop in connection with
this conference. Many groups took advantage of this type of arrangement at the
NAOC, and it worked extremely well. This is a great way to get new people
educated or involved in your particular topic. Contact Terry Rich if you want
to book space for your meeting.
National Science Teachers Association
As a part of the new PIF initiative to get more involved in bird conservation
education, we will be presenting at least one paper and otherwise participating
in the next NSTA conference in Boston, MA on 27-30 March 2008. Amazingly, the
call for papers is already closed (and you thought you planned ahead). Our
intent is to become regular participants so as to get bird education more
thoroughly integrated into environmental education programs and curricula. No
conference details are available yet, but NSTA can be found at
http://www.nsta.org/.
Ingestion of Spent Lead Ammunition: Implications for Wildlife and Humans.
The subject conference is being convened by The Peregrine Fund on 12-15 May
2008 at Boise State University, Boise, Idaho. The goal of the conference is to
promote a better understanding of ingested spent lead ammunition as a source of
lead exposure and to reduce its effect on wildlife and humans. For details,
visit: http://www.peregrinefund.org/Lead_conference/. For a flyer to post on
bulletin boards, visit: <http://www.peregrinefund.org/Lead_conference/
Flyer%20March08.pdf>.
NEWS OF PEOPLE
DOW Director Bruce McCloskey to Retire After 33 Years
Bruce L. McCloskey, 54, director of the Colorado Division Wildlife, announced
that he is retiring from his position with the agency effective May 31. Bruce,
a 33-year veteran of the agency, has worked as director for the last three
years. More importantly to PIF, he has served as the chair of the State Agency
Committee since September 2002 and was instrumental in orchestrating the PIF
strategic planning session in Winston-Salem in March 2003. Under his
leadership, the Colorado Division of Wildlife Contributed in a number of ways
in the state, the region, and the continent to furthering landbird
conservation. Bruce's style of speaking plainly and to the point was sometimes
challenging, frequently funny, and always productive. For more details, see
http://www.wildlife.state.co.us/NewsMedia/PressReleases/Press.asp?PressId=4284
New Coordinator for Appalachian Mountain Joint Venture
Brian W. Smith has started with the American Bird Conservancy to serve as the
Appalachian Mountain Joint Venture Coordinator. He will be working throughout
a 13-state region with state, federal, university, and NGO partners to guide
bird conservation in the Appalachian Mountains. Brian will be working from
home and his old Kentucky Division of Fish and Wildlife Resources office for a
while until new office arrangements are finalized. He can be reached at
bsmith@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
New Coordinator for Intermountain West Joint Venture
Dave Smith of Missoula, Montana is now the new Coordinator of the Intermountain
West Joint Venture (IWJV). The IWJV (http://www.iwjv.org/) encompasses all or
a part of 11 western states including Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho,
Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. As
Coordinator, Smith will lead IWJV's planning, development and funding
assistance for restoration projects of wetlands, riparian habitat diverse
uplands characteristic of the region. He served as Wetlands Biologist and
Wetlands/Farm Bill Coordinator for the California Department of Fish and Game
for 12 years prior to moving over to the Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) in 2004. Smith spent the last three years as Area Biologist and Area
Resource Conservationist for Farm Bill Programs with Montana NRCS. Dave can be
reached at dave@xxxxxxxxx
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The next newsletter will be issued on 1 July 2007. Items are due 15 June 2007
to Terry Rich (terry_rich@xxxxxxx). The PIF Newsletter is assembled by Jina
Mariani and Terry Rich.
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