March 2007

En Español

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The Hummingbird Monitoring Network
By Susan Wethington

In September and October 2006 the Hummingbird Monitoring Network (HMN), supported by an SJV Award, held two workshops (one in Arizona and one in Sinaloa) to train Mexican biologists and students in hummingbird banding techniques.

The Arizonan workshop (September 7-16, 2006) began at the Southwestern Research Station (SWRS) owned by the American Museum of Natural History in the Chiricahua Mountains. At the station, participants learned about HMN, were trained in a feeder-watch protocol, and were given an introductory course in hummingbirds and the flowers that hummingbirds pollinate.

For the next three days, participants monitored hummingbird populations at five sites: SWRS, the George Walker House, Paradise, AZ, and El Coronado Ranch (these first three sites are in the Chiricahua Mountains), and TNC Aravaipa Canyon and Harshaw Creek in the Patagonia Mountains. Additional activities were planned so that the students could learn about conservation work done by HMN partners, such as habitat restoration at El Coronado Ranch in the Chiricahua Mountains and conservation work done by The Nature Conservancy in Ramsey Canyon in the Huachuca Mountains.

For the remainder of the workshop, participants were trained to band hummingbirds, identify individuals to species, age, and sex, manage monitoring data, and make bands and traps. They also learned about other aspects required for managing a monitoring station. The goal was for participants to gain enough experience and knowledge to eventually establish an HMN monitoring station at El Palmito, Sinaloa. One of the most significant outcomes of the workshop was the opportunity for people from four nations to work together. Participants came from Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Ecuador.

The Sinaloa workshop took place in El Palmito from October 13-17 2007. The original agenda for the workshop in El Palmito, Sinaloa was to complete banding training so the students from Mexico could establish a monitoring site there. However, the number of hummingbirds was low at the site, possibly because the nectar resources available for hummingbirds were just beginning to bloom. This site appears to have many different plant species visited by hummingbirds and is likely a good site for over-wintering hummingbirds. Due to the low number of birds, it was impossible to complete banding training. Instead, we used the workshop to for the students to learn other research techniques and to define thesis projects.

During the workshop, we learned of areas that have good nectar resources (not yet in bloom) and defined two 1-hectare study plots. The students were also trained to do area searches, in techniques used to characterize nectar production of plants, and in techniques used to estimate abundance of flowers and hummingbirds.

They also learned a number of research techniques for conducting scientific studies. The data gathered and analyzed for their theses will add to Pronatura’s information about birdlife at El Palmito. Their data will also help HMN and Pronatura determine the best monitoring techniques for and the important nectar resources for hummingbirds at El Palmito.

For more information about the Hummingbird Monitoring Network, contact Executive Director Susan Wethington.

IBP Molt-Migration Study (MoMS) in July-September 2007
The Institute for Bird Populations (IBP) will be undertaking a study on "molt-migrants" in southeastern Arizona and northwestern Mexico during 15 June-15 September 2007. Molt-migrants are western species of landbirds (Lazuli and Painted buntings, Western Tanagers, Orchard Orioles, Ash-throated Flycatchers, Western Kingbirds, Lark Buntings, Lark Sparrows, and Lucy's Warblers, among others) for which adults migrate to the monsoon region of southeast Arizona, Sonora, and northern Sinaloa to molt in July-early September, before continuing on to more southerly wintering grounds in September-October. Virtually nothing is known of the stop-over requirements of these species during this important phase of their annual cycle.

The study will consist of point counts and area searches throughout the time period to determine densities of molt-migrants in different habitats and at different elevations. It will also consist of three banding stations to be operated 15 July-15 September in Arizona (and several more in Mexico) to obtain important information on molt-migrants in the hand, such as molt timing, physical condition of molting individuals, and length of the stopover period for molt. Banding stations will be modeled after MAPS stations, consisting of 10-16 nets in an 8-20 ha area, and will be operated once every four to five days.  IBP seeks the following information and assistance from banders, stopover ecologists, and birders in se. Arizona:

1) Any information on molt migrants from field observations.
2) Information on potential sites to operate the three banding stations.
3) Assistance recruiting two interns to run the banding stations. Internships will include five days of intensive training to learn banding techniques and a total of 51 days of work for $24 per day per diem. Travel will also be covered.
 
Please contact Peter Pyle if you are willing to share any information, have a potential site in mind to operate a banding station, or know of any potential interns (local birders who know the birds and would like to learn banding might be especially appropriate). Assistance will be much appreciated and acknowledged.

FY-2008 Science Support and Quick Response Program
Through the Science Support Partnership Program, the U.S. Geological Survey partners with the Fish and Wildlife Service to understand and provide the critical science information required to effectively manage our nation’s resources. For more information about the SSP visit the program website.

New resources for SJV partners
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 by clicking here. The manual is written in English, Belize’s official language, but a Spanish summary can be found on pages 7-11. A limited number of copies are available for mailing to people in Latin America who will use it for conservation.

The Illegal Parrot Trade in Mexico: A Comprehensive Assessment is available (in English and Spanish) by clicking here.

Please contact Carol Beardmore if you are planning on coming to the meeting and if you need a ride from Tucson to Hermosillo.

Bird Conservation Through Education: A Gathering
The Council for Environmental Education and Flying Wild hosted a national conference in Austin, Texas for professionals involved in efforts to educate students and the public about birds and their conservation needs. Approximately 150 people from national and regional education programs, wildlife agencies, state education boards, foundations, non-profit organizations, school districts, zoos/aquariums, nature centers, city park departments, and bird-related businesses attended the four day event, which took place at The Crossings in Austin, Texas from 5-8 February 2007.

The meeting provided a forum for discussion, network building, and planning to further the reach of bird education efforts in North America and beyond. 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.

One of the big topics of discussion at the conference was the development of a national bird education strategy or plan. Rick Bonney from the Cornell of Ornithology and Terry Rich from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, led a session that provided insights about their experience with the Partners In Flight planning process and how it might apply to an education strategy or plan. Joint ventures were discussed as having great value in acting as regional coordinating mechanisms for a national or international bird education strategy or plan. Jennie Duberstein, SJV Education and Outreach Coordinator, gave a presentation during this session about the joint venture model of bird conservation, highlighting the work of the Sonoran Joint Venture. A second meeting, where this idea will be discussed and developed further, is planned for sometime in 2007.

Upcoming grant deadlines
A complete list of funding opportunities is available by clicking here.

• bp Research Fellowship Program
  Deadline: 15 March 2007
  Description: The Research Fellowship Program (RFP) is a small grants program designed to build capacity for the next generation of conservationists through supporting individual field research projects that have a clear application to the conservation of threatened wildlife and wildlife habitat. RFP seeks projects that are based on sound and innovative conservation science and that encourage practices in conservation that can contribute to sustainable development in their home country. The WCS RFP supports field research in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
• Captain Planet Foundation
  Deadline: 31 March 2007, 30 June 2007, 30 September 2007
  Description: The Captain Planet Foundation will fund projects that promote understanding of environmental issues, focus on hands-on involvement, involve children and young adults 6-18 (elementary through high school), promote interaction and cooperation within the group, help young people develop planning and problem solving skills, include adult supervision, commit to follow-up communications with the Foundation. The Foundation only funds projects to organizations or sponsoring agencies that are exempt from federal taxation under the Internal Revenue Code Section 501. Grants typically range from $250-$2500 USD. In an effort to conserve paper the Captain Planet Foundation requires grant applicants to apply for funding using the online application form. Should you have any questions regarding the grant application or the small grants program, please contact Taryn Murphy, CPF's program director.
• The Christensen Fund
  Deadline: 31 March 2007, 31 August 2007
  Description: The Christensen Fund makes grants to organizations that work towards maintaining the rich diversity of the world—biological and cultural—over the long run, including the persistence and adaptation of indigenous systems for managing landscapes that sustain cultural and biological value and diversity.
• Natural Resources Conservation Service: Conservation on Private Lands
  Deadline: 1 April 2007 (preproposal); 1 June 2007 (full proposal)
  Description: Support high quality projects that engage private landowners, primarily farmers and ranchers, in the conservation and enhancement of fish and wildlife habitat and natural resources on their land. Primary focus for this year includes conservation projects that would enhance sage grouse, grasslands, and agricultureal land upstream from or adjacent to coral reefs.
• Canon National Parks Science Scholars Program
  Deadline: 3 May 2007
  Description: By providing support to Ph.D. students throughout the Americas, the Canon National Parks Science Scholars Program hopes to develop the next generation of scientists working in the fields of conservation, environmental science, and national park management. It is these scientists who will learn, discover, invent, and create solutions to preserve the national parks of the 21st century. For this program, the Americas include Canada, the United States, Mexico, the countries of Central and South America, and the countries of the Caribbean.

Upcoming meetings and workshops

2nd National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration: 22-27 April 2007, Kansas City, Missouri.

American Ornithologists' Union: 8-11 August 2007, Laramie, Wyoming.

See complete details about upcoming meetings and workshops.