Flagship education program BirdSleuth Caribbean was featured in ZiNG magazine.
BirdSleuth Caribbean, one of BirdsCaribbean’s flagship education programs, was featured in the April-June 2015 issue of ZiNG Magazine, the in-flight magazine of the Caribbean airline LIAT. The program uses a bird curriculum—specifically adapted to the Caribbean—to engage kids in science and conservation.
According to BirdsCaribbean Executive Director Lisa Sorenson, “As adults it’s easy to over-complicate things. Kids love being outside, they love interacting with the natural world and we often lose sight of that. We need to harness that enthusiasm and develop it in an active, fun, engaging way. By doing that you make a connection that lasts. That’s what BirdSleuth is all about.”
You can find ZiNG Magazine in the seat pocket in front of you anytime you are on a LIAT flight. You can also download a PDF of the article to learn more. The BirdsCaribbean-LIAT partnership also includes a regular featured called Caribbean BirdWatch which showcases birds and bird conservation on a different Caribbean island in each issue.
The Sooty Tern is abundant on Dog Island near Anguilla. (Photo by Farah Mukhida)
How to spot it:
Known locally as the ‘egg bird’, the Sooty Tern is Anguilla’s most abundant seabird. It is named for its strikingly dark black upperparts, which contrast with white underparts. It has a thin, black bill and legs, long wings and deeply forked tail. A conspicuous white forehead patch extends to the eye. Males and females look similar, even when they are not breeding, and their black napes turn greyish. Juveniles have a blackish-brown head and chest, and upperparts that are speckled with white.
Where to find it:
Sooty Terns occur in tropical oceans, breeding in huge, noisy colonies on rocky islands and cays throughout the equatorial zone. They spend most of their lives over the open ocean, rarely landing. After fledging from their nests, they will not return to land for several years. Between May and August, breeding sooties tend to return to their birthplace, scraping out nests on the ground and laying one egg, sometimes under low-lying scrub vegetation. The best place in Anguilla to see these birds – over 130,000 pairs of them – is on Dog Island, a 205-hectare privately owned offshore cay.
What does it eat?
Wandering over the open ocean, Sooty Terns eat small pelagic fish and squid, grabbing their prey from near the surface of the water and eating while in flight. They often feed over large predatory fish, especially tuna. Fishers often look for flocks of these birds, a sure sign of excellent fishing grounds.
Global status:
Sooty Terns have a large, wide-ranging global population. As with all seabirds, their populations are impacted by threats on water and land. They are especially vulnerable to oil pollution and spills and the reduction of tuna populations as they depend on these larger fish to bring smaller ones to the surface. On land, predation of eggs and chicks by introduced species like rats and cats, egg collecting, and human development on offshore cay nesting habitats has caused serious declines.
Mazarine Treyz is the author of The Wild Woman’s Guide to Fundraising.All of us work very hard to raise funds for our conservation programs—there are never enough funds for urgent projects, much less support to pay the staff that are essential to carry out the work. Many organizations are hanging on by a thread for their very survival. To help YOU to be a stronger and more effective organization, we are excited to announce that we have secured the help of Mazarine Treyz of Wild Woman Fundraising to do a training workshop on fundraising for us.
Mazarine Treyz is the author of The Wild Woman’s Guide to Fundraising, and founder of WildWomanFundraising.com, a popular fundraising resource with 50,000 monthly readers. She also wrote The Wild Woman’s Guide to Social Media, given a 5 star rating by nonprofit About.com. Her latest book, Get the Job! Your Fundraising Career Empowerment Guide, was also given a 5 star review by Nonprofit.About.com. Ms. Treyz has co-founded a nonprofit and worked in fundraising roles for 10 years. She’s raised millions for small, national and international charities via grants, events, sponsorships, crowdfunding, appeals. She’s trained over 10,000 people from 2011-2015 and helped nonprofits raise millions more.
Engaging photography can make it easier to promote your events.
If you ever wished you had better photos to commemorate and promote your conservation and outreach work, you’ll want to attend the event photography workshop at this year’s BirdsCaribbean meeting in Jamaica. It will be a practical, hands-on workshop to help any organization look their best and increase their exposure in traditional and social media through better event photography.
It may be hard to define great event photography, but we know it when we see it: bright, colorful images of busy events with people of all ages and backgrounds engaged and having fun. These are the images that help get your press release featured prominently in the local newspaper and generate positive buzz on social media. They are the hook that grabs visitors when they see your website and the emotional connection that drives sponsorships and donations.
In this workshop, learn how to consistently get great photos at events—from planning to shooting to editing to sharing—whether you are working with a photographer or developing your photo chops in house. The workshop will take you step by step through the process, focused on practical advice that can be implemented by any organization and hands-on practice during the workshop. You can put your new skills immediately to good use by photographing events at the meeting and entering your photos in the BirdsCaribbean Photography Competition.
The Ruddy Turnstone travels amazing distances each year. (Photo by Anthony Levesque)
How to spot it: This stocky shorebird is identified, in its breeding plumage, by its reddish-brown
back, black bib, orange legs and small pointed bill. A striking white-and-dark pattern on its wings, back and tail is visible in flight. The colors on adults in winter plumage and young birds are duller, but the same pattern is retained. Turnstones have a variety of calls, including a loud, nasal cuck-cuck-cuck, increasing in volume.
Where to find it:
Ruddy Turnstone can be found on our beaches, mudflats, pond edges, and both sandy and rocky coasts. It is one of 40 to 50 shorebird species recorded in the Caribbean. It is an amazing long-distance migrant, since it breeds in the Arctic tundra and winters as far south as Argentina. In the West Indies, it is observed mainly from August to May, on our beaches and lagoons. Yearlings stay in our islands in June and July because they reproduce only in their second year.
What does it eat?
Turnstones are named for their method of feeding, in which they walk along the beach, deftly overturning small stones and pebbles and seizing the invertebrate food items hiding underneath. They also dig holes in the sand, often larger than themselves, in pursuit of burrowing crustaceans.
Global status:
Ruddy Turnstone has a global distribution and its populations are stable, but, as with many other shorebirds, it is threatened by the destruction of coastal habitats from development and pollution.
On December 14, KIDO Foundation incorporated BirdSleuth Caribbean program in Kids with Cameras environmental education activities, initially involving secondary school trainees, who were part of KIDO after school programs since 2012. Since December 2014 they ran 7 sessions of presentations, games and field trips, following BirdSleuth Caribbean curriculum, involving more than 70 kids from two secondary and four primary schools in Carriacou. Read more
A yellow warbler on a small island in the Portland Bight Protected Area, Jamaica. (Photo: Robin Moore)Wonderful prizes await participants in the 2015 Digital Photo Contest at BirdsCaribbean’s 20th International Meeting, to take place at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, Jamaica from July 25 – 29 (Haven’t you registered yet? Well, now is the time!) The contest is open to all photographers (aged 18 years and over), except board members of BirdsCaribbean, the judges of the contest and their immediate families. The contest is open to all participants of the conference regardless of residence or citizenship, so long as the laws of their jurisdiction allow participation.
Contestants will need to take the photographs (and date them!) between the dates of July 18 and August 5, 2015 and during the conference. A range of field trips and early morning bird-watching sessions will provide ample opportunity to see and photograph the diversity of Jamaican birds. Participants should sign up now for mid-conference field trips (on July 27) to the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park (where almost all Jamaica’s endemic bird species live); to the Ramsar Site and Protected Areas of the Port Royal Wetlands and Cays; or to the Portland Bight Protected Area, including Goat Islands and neighboring cays (designated an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International). There will also be pre- and post-conference trips on offer, showcasing Jamaica’s incredible variety of landscapes, flora and fauna as well as giving a taste of the island’s vibrant culture.
The workshop will provide hands-on training in the preparation, documentation and long-term storage of bird study skins. Participants will actively prepare their own specimen from start to finish. Present guidelines for maintaining and managing a skin collection, how to prepare specimen labels and how best to store study skins to ensure their long-term scientific and educational value (many museums house specimens over 200 years old that are nearly as pristine as when they were prepared).
First Institutional Member in the French Caribbean
Les Fruits de Mer recently became the first institution in the French Caribbean to join BirdsCaribbean.St. Martin’s connection to the regional conservation community just grew a little bit closer. Local non-profit association Les Fruits de Mer recently became the first institutional member of BirdsCaribbean in the French Caribbean. BirdsCaribbean is the largest regional organization devoted to wildlife conservation in the Caribbean. Although the two organizations have been working together for almost two years, joining helps integrate Les Fruits de Mer, St. Martin and the French Caribbean into the regional bird education and conservation community.
“Working with BirdsCaribbean has really helped us have a big impact quickly, even though we’re a young association,” explained Les Fruits de Mer President Jenn Yerkes. “They’ve provided training and materials developed for the Caribbean that have really enhanced many of our events and educational workshops. Simply being part of something bigger also makes an event more meaningful and interesting to our members and the public.”
Visitors learn about birds with the help of bird study skins at the the Bahamas National Trust CEBF exhibit at the Mall at Marathon in Nassau, Bahamas.From the grand opening of an ornithological center in Puerto Rico to birding by boat at remote cays in the Grenadines, Caribbean birds were celebrated in more ways than ever during the past month. The 14th annual Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival (CEBF) included dozens of events on over 20 Caribbean islands. This unique festival focuses on the bird species that are endemic to—found only in—the Caribbean. Each year, events organized as a part of this festival reach more than 80,000 participants throughout the region.
This year, the theme of “Restore Habitat, Restore Birds” inspired new activities and direct action to restore habitat on many islands. In St. Martin, over 100 seedlings of the native, but endangered, lignum vitae tree were distributed as part of a heritage tree habitat restoration project. At many events, attendees learned about the special relationships between endemic birds and native plants and trees.
A peregrine Falcon surveys his domain. (photo by Anthony Levesque)
How to spot it:
The Peregrine Falcon is a powerful and fast-flying large crow-size falcon. It’s dark grey above and cream-colored with dark brown bars below. Pointed wings, long, narrow tail and rapid pigeon like flight identify it on the wing. When perched, its mask-like head pattern is distinctive. Immatures are brown above, cream-coloured with heavy brown streaks below.
Where to find it:
An uncommon-to-rare migratory bird, it can be found throughout the West Indies primarily from October to April in coastal areas, offshore cays and rocks, woodlands, forests and cities. One breeding record exists for Cuba and another for Dominica. Peregrines are among the most widespread bird species in the world, found on all continents except Antarctica and on many oceanic islands.
What does it eat?
Peregrine Falcon eat mostly birds, especially flocking doves, waterfowl, songbirds, waders and pigeons. They take birds on the wing, usually while flying low to the ground and surprising their prey from behind as they take off. Peregrines also dive on prey from high above, striking with their feet. They are said to be the fastest animal in the world, reaching speeds over 320 km/h (200 mph) or more during hunting dives.
Global status:
Peregrine populations crashed in 1950-1970 due to the use of pesticides, especially DDT, and it was declared an Endangered Species. Following the ban on DDT in the early 1970s, protection of nesting places, and releases of captive-bred birds to the wild, the species recovered enough to be removed from the Endangered Species List in 1999 – a conservation success story!
Jamaican Tody by Wendy LeeJoin us for BirdsCaribbean’s 20th International Meeting in Jamaica, home of reggae, amazing birds and biodiversity, from Saturday, July 25th to Wednesday, July 29th (inclusive). The purpose of the meeting is to bring together Caribbean and international wildlife professionals, ornithologists, educators, decision makers, tourism interests, community leaders, students and others to share information and learn about the latest avian research and initiatives to conserve Caribbean birds and their habitats. The meeting will feature exciting keynote speakers, symposia and paper sessions as well as training workshops, round-table discussions, and working group meetings that promote applied conservation and collaboration to solve our shared environmental challenges.
The meeting will be held at the Knutsford Court Hotel in New Kingston, Jamaica. We have arranged for discounted rooms at the conference hotel; restaurants, shopping and more are located within walking distance. Members of the Local Organizing Committee include the Forestry Department, Hope Gardens, Jamaica Conservation Development Trust, Caribbean Coastal Area Management Foundation, University of the West Indies, Windsor Research Centre and others.
The theme of the meeting is “Birds—Connecting Communities and Conservation.” In addition to the 5 days of the main conference, there will be wonderful pre- and post conference workshops and field trips (a chance to see all 29 of Jamaica’s endemic birds!), so be sure to save dates on your calendar for several days before and after the conference to participate in some of these events.
Be sure to mark your calendars and plan to attend! Jamaica is an incredibly beautiful country with a wealth of birds, biodiversity and stunning landscapes. You will definitely want to spend time exploring the country and should plan some extra time for this. Plan a holiday with your family or friends before or after the meeting!
20th International Meeting of BirdsCaribbean
New Kingston, Jamaica
25-29 July 2015
Birds—Connecting Communities and Conservation
Read more about the meeting agenda, programs, field trips, and how to register at the meeting web site.
Find the meeting report and other information from BirdsCaribbean’s previous meeting on the Grenada 2013 web site.
The Whimbrel has a long, curved bill that is perfect for pulling fiddler crabs from their burrows. (Photo by Mark Yokoyama)
How to spot it:
Whimbrel are a large plain grey-brown shorebird, but its long down-curved bill and strong black head stripes are distinctive. Look for these waders in shallow wetlands and mudflats.
Where to find it:
Each fall thousands of Whimbrels fly from their breeding grounds in the Arctic to their winter homes in the Caribbean and coast of South America. These long-distance migrants may fly non-stop over the ocean to countries such as Guyana. Others stop at wetlands in the Dominican Republic, Virgin Islands, Trinidad and other islands where they spend the winter, or “refuel” before continuing south.
What does it eat?
Whimbrels use their long curved bills to probe deep into the soft mud for fiddler crabs, their primary winter food. They also eat fish, aquatic worms and insects. In their northern breeding grounds they add berries and even flowers to their diets.
Global status:
This species is declining in numbers, mostly due to destruction of its coastal habitats. In recent years scientists have been learning about the migration of Whimbrels by fitting them with small satellite transmitters. In 2009-2010, a bird named “Hope” was tracked and discovered to have a round-trip migration of 14,170 miles (22,800 km), from her breeding grounds in northwest Canada to her winter home at Great Pond, St Croix, US Virgin Islands.
Learn about the birds of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.The latest issue of Caribbean BirdWatch takes us down to St. Vincent and the Grenadines for a look at their endemic Whistling Warbler, a tour of the top birding sites on the island and an inside look at an upcoming book about the birds of these islands. Download the PDF.
ZiNG is the complementary magazine from LIAT, the Caribbean Airline.
How do you CEBF? In The Bahamas, they mounted a Caribbean Endemic Bird Exhibit in a local shopping mall to celebrate and share the five Bahamian endemic bird species, teach about bird conservation and showcase their current bird-related projects: Birdsleuth Caribbean Program, Audubon Bird Tourism Project, TNC Kirtland’s Warbler Project and Discovery Club. Spearheaded by the Bahamas National Trust, they had volunters from the Bird Club of New Providence, Royal Bank Canada, students from Queen College, College of BahamasNassau Christian Academy and CR Walker High Schools and the Proprietor and an employee from Ebiz, a local tech company.
The exhibit directly engaged 1200 people in just one day, and the Bahamas National Trust will be following up this week with those who wanted to learn more about these programs.
The Endemic Animal Festival is brought to life by an all-volunteer team. (Photo by Marc Petrelluzzi)The Les Fruits de Mer association’s Endemic Animal Festival—now in its second year—was bigger and better than ever, attracting over 250 residents and tourists. The event celebrates the animals found only on St. Martin or only in our region and features a guided nature walk, an Endemic Animal Discovery Station, and other family-friendly activities related to endemic wildlife.
“We were absolutely thrilled with the great turnout and how excited the attendees were,” said Les Fruits de Mer President Jenn Yerkes. “More than any other event we organize, the Endemic Animal Festival showcases the unique natural heritage of St. Martin, and it’s really a joy to share that with people.”
The Green-throated Carib hummingbird depends on a steady source of flower nectar to feed herself and her chicks. (Photo by Mark Yokoyama)“Restore Habitats, Restore Birds” is the theme for this year’s Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival (CEBF). At dozens of events throughout the region, participants of all ages will learn how restoring local habitats can benefit the unique birds found only in the Caribbean. Events on many islands will include habitat restoration activities like clean ups and distribution of native tree seedlings for planting.
The festival, now in its 14th year, is led by BirdsCaribbean, the largest organization devoted to wildlife conservation in the Caribbean. The month-long festival includes Caribbean-wide activities beginning today – Earth Day (April 22), through to International Biodiversity Day (May 22), in more than twenty countries. The event celebrates the 150 bird species that are found only in the Caribbean, known as endemics. The highly successful program attracts over 80,000 participants and volunteers each year.
BirdsCaribbean President Leo Douglas.Welcome to the new BirdsCaribbean website!
Twenty years ago, when I became a member of BirdsCaribbean I did not imagine that one day I would be president. However, the things that attracted me to the organization then are very much a part of why I am even more committed to the organization now – BirdsCaribbean is a vibrant international network of members and partners deeply committed to conserving wild birds of the Caribbean and their habitats. My first BirdsCaribbean conference was nothing but life altering. Never had I been surrounded by such a diverse gathering of cultures, languages, academics and non-academics all vested in sound science, education, and capacity building towards creating a region where people appreciate, conserve and benefit from thriving bird populations and ecosystems.
Our programs, such as the Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival, Caribbean Waterbird Census, West Indian Whistling Duck and Wetlands Program, and International Migratory Bird Day reach more than 100,000 people each year; positively influencing attitudes to conservation, changing people’s lives and contributing to our knowledge of Caribbean birds. We have trained partners from over 30 countries in outreach and education, research and monitoring techniques, sustainable tourism, and habitat conservation. We have raised funds to conserve some of the region’s most threatened species, such as the Grenada Dove, and successfully advocated for greater protection of the region’s birds, such as the West Indian Whistling-Duck and migratory shorebirds.
BirdsCaribbean is proud to be part of a fantastic new transboundary bird conservation project in the Grenadines aiming to document local knowledge. Please support this outstanding project that will enhance appreciation of birds in the Grenadines, every little bit helps. We are very close our goal!
“Who pays the birds?” is the theme for the 2014 Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival (CEBF). At dozens of events throughout the region, participants will learn about the many beneficial services provided by birds, from pollination and pest control to leading fishermen to fish and attracting tourists. Although these services often go unnoticed and unappreciated, they are very important to both the ecology and economic prosperity of the Caribbean.
The festival, now in its 13th year, is led by BirdsCaribbean, the largest organization devoted to wildlife conservation in the Caribbean. The month-long festival includes Caribbean-wide activities beginning today – Earth Day (April 22), through to International Biodiversity Day (May 22), in more than twenty countries. The event celebrates the 150 bird species that are found only in the Caribbean, known as endemics. The highly successful program attracts over 80,000 participants and volunteers each year.
Bananaquit by Andrew DobsonThe Bananaquit (Coereba flaveola) is featured on BirdsCaribbean’s new logo, as chosen by our members.
How to spot it:
This small, friendly and ubiquitous songbird has a sharp, curved bill, black head and upperparts with a white eyestripe, gray throat and yellow underparts. However, there is high colour variability across its range. On Grenada and St Vincent some birds are mostly black. Often heard chattering with a high-pitched squeaking.
Where to find it:
This very active bird is easily-recognised in gardens where it can become quite tame. Its’ attraction to sugar resulted in its widespread local name of sugarbird. Common in nearly all habitats, but less frequent or absent from mangrove, mountain tops and very dry lowlands. Most often found near flowering plants, where it moves rapidly between flowers.
BirdsCaribbean’s new logo.On October 23, 2013 the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds (SCSCB), the largest single organization devoted to wildlife conservation in the Caribbean, announced the renaming of the organization to “BirdsCaribbean.” The name change reflects the proactive, multi-faceted, and inclusive nature of the organization, which continues in its role of assisting wildlife professionals, educators, and community members throughout the Caribbean in their efforts to understand and conserve birds and their habitats.
The organization also launched a new logo featuring the Bananaquit, a conspicuous and well-known bird common on most islands. “The shorter new name and lively logo reflect our interest in making our organization more accessible and well-known in wider Caribbean society,” commented Lisa Sorenson, Executive Director of BirdsCaribbean. “We need to reach more people and engage them in the wonderful world of birds and our mission to conserve the Caribbean’s rich but threatened natural heritage.” said Sorenson.
