Meetings and Programs

 - Mike Slater, BOC Member

From far southern South America home of the Giant Hummingbird and the Green-backed Fire-crown in Chile; up the Andes to Ecuador and north through central America for tropical beauties that may be shy or outgoing and into Berks County where Ruby-throats rule in the summer and Rufous Hummingbirds occasionally visit in the fall; Mike will share some of his most memorable hummingbird pictures and experiences with us.

White-necked Jacobin photo by Mike Slater

 - Vince Smith, Valley Forge Audubon Society president 

Just in time for hawk migration, Vince will be teaching the basics of raptor identification. This presentation will discuss some of the tricks you can use to improve your hawk, eagle, and vulture ID skills. Some topics covered include how to tell vultures from eagles and how to tell the difference between a buteo, accipiter, and falcon.

2 page Legal Size list 8.5x14)

3 page Letter size list (8.5x11)

For our 2022-2023 meetings at Nolde Forest EEC, your Board of Directors asks:

 If you are feeling ill, have recently been exposed to COVID, or are awaiting the results of a test for COVID-19, please stay home.

 Consider wearing a mask if you wish to minimize your risk for contracting the virus. A highly effective mask (N95, KN95, or KF94) is recommended. 

---------------------

As of Aug. 23, Berks County is rated by the CDC as "low" community risk, based mainly on the risks for overburdening our healthcare system and for severe disease. This Community Risk rating does not mean that the risk of contracting COVID is low at this time in Berks. Current CDC guidance regarding masking is: “At all levels, people can wear a mask based on personal preference, informed by personal level of risk. People with symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID-19 should wear a mask.” Individuals would do well to base their decisions on the risk to the most vulnerable person they have close contact with.” 

Video coming soon

 - Sheila Martin, 

BOC Vice-president

Five species of grouse inhabit the high chaparral, northern valleys & prairies of the US. All have spectacular mating displays, yet are exceedingly difficult to find away from their display grounds. Sheila traveled to observe these thrilling but elusive birds on their leks, plus scored two even more secretive winged denizens of the high-country West. She may even include a few surprises from onward travels this summer! This inaugural meeting of the 2022-23 season will include a social. Bring snacks to share. Drinks will be provided. Please minimize use of throw-away plastic.

7:30 PM at Location: Nolde Forest EEC, 

(In person only, no Zoom*)

To paraphrase Thoreau, I have traveled much in Reading. A layoff and COVID-19 isolation allowed me to explore the bird life possibilities within the city limits. We'll talk about the places, the people and the birds I encountered during my City of Reading Big Year counts. 

--------------

Due to recent problems with internet access at the meeting location, we are unable to have the meeting available live via Zoom as well as in person.  

Mike Slater is planning on making video recordings of the meetings with the speaker's permission and making them a available here on this site a few days after each meeting.

Fox Sparrow at Angelica Park

Photo by Russ Hoffman

Mar 11, 2022 7:30pm - American Kestrel Conservation: Successful Partnership, PGC and the Birding Community  - Dan Mummert, PGC, Wildlife Diversity Biologist In 2015, the American Kestrel was added to Pennsylvania’s list of species of conservation concern due to a loss of nearly half their population since the mid-1960’s throughout North America. In response, the PA Game Commission’s southeast region created a kestrel conservation initiative that is working to learn more about their local population and help in their conservation. This presentation will discuss this program and the team effort it has been between the PGC and the birding community.  

Feb 11, 2022 7:30 pm - Ecology of the Northern Clapper Rail - meeting by Zoom only

Elisa Elizondo, University of Delaware, Ph.D. candidate

It's spring! Time to head for the coastal marshes with hopes of glimpsing elusive clapper rails (Rallus crepitans crepitans). The Saltmarsh Habitat Avian Research Program (tidalmarshbirds.org) is 

dedicated to the study of salt marsh birds and recent efforts led by Lisa Elizondo seek to uncover more information regarding this secretive species. This program will include recent data from Delaware on clapper rail nesting ecology and movement patterns, including the first chick survival data and the first GPS tag data.

(Meeting Via Zoom Only)

Read some more about the Clapper Rail research.

 Photo: A GPS tagged Clapper Rail at the Delaware Woodland Beach Wildlife Area (Photo: Elisa Elizondo, University of Delaware)  

Jan 14, 2022,  7:30pm - Migration and Overwintering Strategies of Veeries Breeding in the Mid-Atlantic Region - meeting by Zoom only.

Christopher M. Heckscher, Prof. of Environmental Science & Ecology, Delaware State University and Todd J. Underwood, Prof. of Biology, Kutztown University

Veeries breed in dense, wet forests of eastern North America and are easily recognized by their distinctive song. Using the latest tracking technology suitable for small songbirds, we followed the migration of Veeries from their breeding grounds in the Mid-Atlantic Region to their overwintering sites in South America. In this lecture, we will discuss patterns of migration, hurricane avoidance, overwintering locations, and movements, and compare the overwintering locations of birds that breed at French Creek State Park in Pennsylvania to birds that breed at White Clay Creek State Park in Delaware. 

(Meeting Via Zoom Only)

Please contact us at membership@bairdornithological.club if you are a guest or a member who needs a link.  

Veery in Pennsylvania

Photo by Ken Lebo

November 12, 2021? *

Scott Weidensaul

BOC 100TH ANNIVERSARY BANQUET PROGRAM

 Below is a press release from Scott’s publisher describing his latest book, which will be available for signing and sale 

A World on the Wing
The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds
by Scott Weidensaul (Author)

An exhilarating exploration of the science and wonder of global bird migration.
In the past two decades, our understanding of the navigational and physiological feats that enable birds to cross immense oceans, fly above the highest mountains, or remain in unbroken flight for months at a stretch has exploded. Certain species, such as thrushes, avoid dehydration by “drinking” from their own muscles and organs, extending their flight range by more than two thousand miles; it now seems all but certain that birds orient themselves using Earth’s magnetic field through a form of quantum entanglement that made Einstein queasy.
These and other revelations convey both the wonder of bird migration and its global sweep, from the mudflats of the Yellow Sea in China to the remote mountains of northeastern India to the dusty hills of southern Cyprus. This breathtaking work of nature writing also introduces readers to those scientists, researchers, and bird lovers trying to preserve global migratory patterns in the face of climate change and other environmental challenges.

Please see the printable reservation PDF form

Scott Weidensaul is the author of nearly thirty books, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist Living on the Wind. A writer and re-searcher specializing in birds and bird migration, he is a native of Pennsylvania now living in New Hampshire.

Male Rufous Hummingbird in Pennsylvania.

Photo by Mike Slater