SFBBO February 2006 e-News!

WINGBEAT!

MAY 2006

    1 New Volunteer Orientation
    2 SFBBO Events
    3 Coyote Creek Field Station Update
    4 Birds of the Baylands Update
    5 News on the Fly
     6 Wish List

Calling All New Volunteers!
Monday, May 22, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Location: SFBBO office

Learn more about SFBBO's programs and find out how you can participate in SFBBO's fieldwork! This orientation is required for people who are interested in volunteering or have already begun volunteering but have not yet attended an orientation. Please RSVP to jchow@sfbbo.org by May 17th.	photo by Juliana Chow
If you would like to attend but cannot make this date, please e-mail jchow@sfbbo.org with available evenings or weekends.

Venture Out into the Urban Wilds

Wings Over the Basin, May 19 - 21, Santa Cruz Mountains
Join SFBBO members Karen DeMello and Jan Hintermeister at the Big Basin birding weekend where they'll be leading activities. Check their website for registrations information.

CCFS Bird Banding Demonstration, May 27 and June 3, 8:30 a.m.
Visit SFBBO's field station and see how birds are banded! Tours to the mist nets and banding stations start at 8:30 a.m.. Contact Education Specialist Laura Weiss, lweiss@sfbbo.org, for more details and to sign up.

Birding the Bay Trail with Eric Feuss, June 11, 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Join Eric Feuss on SFBBO's "Birding the Bay Trail" walk at Shollenberger Park. The walk is currently full, but we will take RSVP's for the wait list.

"Birding the Bay Trail" will be on a short summer hiatus to await the fall return of shorebirds and waterbirds to the Bay Area. Look for our next scheduled walks in July's "Wingbeat"!

Coyote Creek Field Station Update
Notes from Biologist Gina Barton

Spring migration is in full swing with the disappearance of Ruby-crowned Kinglets; the decline in capture rates for the Yellow-rumped Warbler and the Hermit Thrush; and the reappearance of the Swainson’s Thrush and the Wilson’s Warbler. In addition, the Brown-headed Cowbird was a new capture for 2006. Read more...

Birds of the Baylands Update
Notes from Biologist Cheryl Strong


SFBBO volunteers kayaking at Baumberg ponds	After getting off to a wet start with all the rain, Snowy Plovers, California Gulls, and American Avocets are now nesting around the South Bay. Forster’s and Caspian Terns are also beginning to set up shop on islands in marshes and ponds. We are scheduling our California gull colony counts May 13 –18. Kayak out to the salt pond sites and brave the swarms of gulls with SFBBO!

If you are interested in helping out (and getting muddy as well as poopy!), please contact Cynthia Padula, cpadula@sfbbo.org.

News on the Fly
South Bay Salt Pond Symposium, June 6, 9 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.

The South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project (the Project) is sponsoring a South Bay Science Symposium to allow researchers currently studying South Bay physical and biological factors and processes to present their findings and provide analysis relevant to the Project. The event is free and open to the public.

SFBBO Biologist Cheryl Strong will be presenting at this symposium and there will also be a reception afterwards from 5:30 - 7 p.m. For more information, go to www.southbayrestoration.org.

Spring Wish List
Office and Field Equipment Donations Wanted

It's time for spring cleaning and getting rid of those odds and ends that have been gathering dust in your home or office! Consider donating something to SFBBO; we're on the lookout for a fold-up table, carry-on size luggage with wheels, book prop-up stands, and more.

What's wrong with this picture?

SFBBO is also rearranging our office furniture in June, and we're in need of some office equipment: cubicle walls (50" - 60" tall), book cases (6 ft. tall), conference table (about 8 ft. x 4 ft.), file cabinets, and flat-screen computer monitors.

Please contact Juliana Chow, jchow@sfbbo.org, to see if we can take your donation. Check out the complete Wish List.

If this e-newsletter has piqued your interest in the SFBBO, consider taking the next step. If you are not already a member, please join us! Be a part of our bird conservation science and outreach programs in the Bay Area as a member and volunteer. To our current members, we greatly appreciate your continued support. Looking for other ways to support SFBBO? Check out our Wish List.

Pass this e-newsletter on to your friends. Sign up for Wingbeat!

Can't take any more of our upbeat charm? Unsubscribe from Wingbeat.