With three directors reaching the end of their term limits in 2022, BCFO is seeking potential nominees to its Board of Directors from both within, and from outside its current membership.

Although BCFO membership is required for board members, we anticipate that non-members may have an interest in being active in the provincial ornithological community through engagement in BCFO at the director level.

Our organization not only manages the BC Bird Records program, but also publishes the refereed ornithological journal, British Columbia Birds. In addition it engages young birders through its annual Young Birder Awards. 

Most members are keen birders, including both amateur birders and professional ornithologists. Annual listing reports are published in our quarterly news magazine BC Birding, and members participate in many citizen science projects such as the Breeding Bird Survey, Coastal Waterbird Survey, Nocturnal Owl Survey, and Christmas Bird Counts.

Our annual conference is held at a different location each year, focusing on bird-rich areas of the Province. Elections of Board members will take place this year at our conference in Smithers, BC, June 25, 2022.

BCFO strives to maintain representation of the entire provincial birding community by selecting members from varied regions of the province and of varied backgrounds. To ensure that the Board is inclusive of the diversity within the provincial birding community, women, Indigenous Peoples, Black and people of colour, persons with disabilities, persons of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity or expression (LGBTQIA2S+), and others are strongly encouraged to apply.

To express your interest in being nominated, or to seek additional information, please contact Gary Davidson, BCFO president.

For current BCFO members, more details of the nomination process for directors is found at:<https://bcfo.ca/bcfo-members/https://bcfo.ca/bcfo-members/>

For the past two years Tara Imlay of the Canadian Wildlife Service and her colleagues have been researching bird mortality from things such as collisions with windows and vehicles, and those killed by cats and other domestic animals.

This is their final year of carcass collection which will take place from September 2021 to April 2022.

They are again requesting BCFO members and other interested members of the public to send in carcasses of birds that they find. Please record the day and location where the bird was found, and freeze the body (placing in a Ziploc bag or similar is sufficient).

Amie MacDonald of Birds Canada has a request:

Hello BC birders,

Birds Canada has recently started a research project using radio-telemetry and leg flags to track overwintering movements of Dunlin in the Fraser River Estuary and their migration. We would appreciate hearing about any sightings of birds with leg flags if you happen to see any while out birding – you can email me directly at amacdonald@birdscanada.org. Spotting a leg flag in a large flock of Dunlin is certainly no easy feat, but we know birders are up for the challenge! We will collect a lot of movement data through the Motus Wildlife Tracking System, but leg flag sightings help in areas where there is no Motus coverage and offer very precise locations. Complete reads of the 3-digit code are great, but even just one or two of the digits can be very helpful if you can’t get a complete read.

Thanks and happy birding!

Amie

Amie MacDonald
Motus Analyst and Coordinator, British Columbia
Birds Canada | Oiseaux Canada
(506) 232-1219 | amacdonald@birdscanada.org
www.birdscanada.org | www.motus.org
(she/her)

The American Robin pictured above is certainly not looking for earthworms in a mountain ash tree, but for most of us these ubiquitous birds foraging in a grassy field is another familiar sight.

Dr Rob Butler has made a study of a question that has likely puzzled many of us over the years: ” How exactly do they find the earthworms that they eat? Do they use sight or sound or …?”

Read Rob’s article here to see what he found out.

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA) Job Posting – Deadline extended to October 15, 2020

BC Nature is seeking a part-time coordinator to manage the Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA) Caretaker Network in British Columbia.

The IBA program monitors and conserves a network of more than 11,000 of the world’s most important places for birds and biodiversity. Please find the job posting on the button below, as well as in your BC Nature Fall 2020 Magazine, coming to your mailboxes soon.

Please submit a cover letter and resume to manager@bcnature.ca by October 15, 2020.

The request from Tara Imlay reads as follows:

Last year, my colleagues and I began a research project to understand the breeding area of bird species that experience high rates of anthropogenic (human-caused) mortality in southwestern British Columbia.  The sources of anthropogenic mortality are varied, but can include things like collisions with windows or vehicles, or from cats and other domestic animals. For this work, we are collecting carcasses from this region until Summer 2021. Last year we received a large number of carcasses from the public, and we gratefully thank those who contributed.

This year, we are again asking your members, and other interested members of the public, to send us carcasses of birds that they find.  We ask that they record the day, time, and location where the bird was found, and freeze the body (placing in a Ziploc bag or similar is sufficient).  I have attached a poster that summarizes this information and this poster can be shared with your members, other organizations, or on social media.

We would also be happy to give a talk to your members about the findings of this work or other research we are involved with.

Thank-you in advance for your assistance,

Tara