Category: Volunteers - San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory

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On the Board-Walk: Meet Karan Gathani

5/8/2022

By Guest Blogger & SFBBO Board Member Karan Gathani

My foray into volunteering with the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory was set into motion after attending a docent-led hike by Jan Hintermeister, who was Chair on the SFBBO Board at that time. We spotted a Pied-billed Grebe diving in one of the ponds, which triggered a discussion about identifying birds by their shapes. Long story short, Jan coaxed me to check out SFBBO as an organization I should volunteer with since it overlaps with my interest areas.

Science Teacher Connects Students to Israel's Birds

7/7/2020

By Guest Blogger Wendy Gibbons

As a Bay Area science teacher, I love finding ways to connect my students’ learning to the natural world around them. I recently had the opportunity to do just that while chaperoning the junior class from Kehillah Jewish High School on an experiential learning program for 3 weeks in Israel. Did I bring binoculars in my tightly packed suitcase? You bet! I even lugged a second pair just in case a student or two wanted to take a closer look at a winged marvel. What follows is a brief summary of some adolescent as well as avian highlights from the trip.

Our adventure began in Southern Israel at the Negev Desert, where we were rewarded with views of Pale Crag Martins, Fan-tailed Ravens, ...

Oilapalooza 2019

11/18/2019

By Guest Blogger Jackie Vargo

Oilapalooza is an annual convention put on by the organization OWCN, the Oiled Wildlife Care Network. This year, on October 16th and 17th, I got the pleasure to attend my first Oilapalooza in Eureka. It was also my first time in Eureka. As a San Jose resident, it was lovely to enjoy such a lush environment for a couple days.

OWCN partners with local organizations like SFBBO to train and provide volunteers for potential oil spills. Oilapalooza is a good way to meet everyone in the OWCN team, learn more about oil spills ...

2019 California Fall Challenge a Big Success!

11/18/2019

By Outreach and Communications Director Kristin Butler

Thanks to great participation from all of our staff, voluntees, and SFBBO community, we reached our goal to raise $30,000 through our 2019 California Fall Challenge (CFC)!

We also had a great Annual Membership Meeting on Oct. 27! Thank you to our great guest speaker Dorian Anderson, to our t-shirt designer Julie Ho, to volunteer photographer Rachel Podlishevsky of Pro Bono Photo, and to all of our event volunteers that day! Read more below for highlights!

Une visiteuse de France passe son été à aider les oiseaux de la région de la Baie

8/10/2019

Par la blogueuse invitée Clara Millecamps

Cette année, pour l’été, j’ai décidé de faire quelque chose de complètement différent. C’est alors que j’ai pris mon courage à deux mains et que je me suis envolée pour les Etats-Unis toute seule. J’avais pour principal objectif d’améliorer mon anglais mais étant passionnée depuis toujours par tout ce qui a un rapport avec la nature, je me suis vite mise à la recherche d’une association ou d’un organisme dans lequel je pouvais être bénévole. Trouver cet organisme me tenait vraiment à cœur car c’était un moyen pour moi d’approfondir mes connaissances en biologie mais aussi de faire quelque chose que j’aimais vraiment tout en pratiquant mon anglais.

Grâce à l’intermédiaire du Dr. Ainley, j’ai eu l’extraordinaire chance d’être bénévole à la San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory (SFBBO). J’ai ainsi eu l’occasion de travailler sur différents projets tels que Snowy Plovers avec Ben Pearl et Landbird ...

A Visitor from France Spends Her Summer Helping Bay Area Birds

8/10/2019

By Guest Blogger Clara Millecamps

This summer, I gathered my courage to do something completely different and flew to the United States. My main goal was to improve my English, but because I have always been passionate about nature, I also looked for an association or organization where I could volunteer so I could deepen my knowledge in biology while practicing my English.

Thanks to the advice of Dr. David Ainley, I had the amazing opportunity to volunteer at the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory (SFBBO). While there this summer, I worked on different projects such as Snowy Plovers with Plover Program Director Ben Pearl and bird banding with Landbird Program ...

The Wonder of the Swainson's Hawk

6/28/2019

By Guest Blogger Stephanie Klein

This spring and summer I have been on a mission to find Swainson’s Hawks in the Bay Area. While I have always enjoyed watching birds, especially water birds and passerines, I only recently became acquainted with hawk species in a raptor class offered at De Anza College. It was in that class that I learned about and first observed a Swainson’s Hawk.

When our class went out to look at raptors in Coyote Valley, we found a male Swainson’s Hawk perched atop a tall cedar tree. Our instructor, Ryan Phillips, said he was likely guarding a nest nearby. While we were there, a Cooper’s Hawk ventured into the nesting area. Sure enough, the Swainson’s Hawk immediately launched ...

Humble Caretaker Upgrades Our Coyote Creek Field Station

4/30/2019

By Plover Intern Illianna Termuehlen

As the rain stops and it begins to look like spring again, the Coyote Creek Field Station will take advantage of the sunny days and continue banding birds. The Coyote Creek Field Station would not be the same without volunteers like Gerry Ellis. A lifelong birder, Gerry discovered CCFS decades ago through an article in the paper advertising bird banding training. He came for a few classes and stayed for years. Gerry has been an asset to SFBBO, not only as a bird bander but as a humble caretaker of the field station.

Can the Number of eBird Check Lists Predict the Number of Species at a Site?

4/3/2019

By Waterbird Intern Alicia Manfroy

Ulistac Natural Area is not as quiet as one would expect on a Saturday morning. The sound of rushing cars is replaced by the twitter of birds as I move farther towards the park’s interior. I made this trip to the meandering park in Santa Clara because I wanted to see one of the eBird birding hotspots mentioned in a recent data analysis by SFBBO volunteer Chris Johnson. The results of his analysis showed that the number of eBird checklists a site has can explain much of the variation in species number between birding locations.

Johnson used data from eBird to find the top birding locations ...

Avian Disease Prevention Program 2018 Season A Success

12/17/2018

By Biologist Cole Jower

With the closing of 2018 also comes the end of another Avian Disease Prevention Program season in the South Bay! This year we collected and removed 10 dead birds of 5 species (American White Pelican, California Gull, Double-crested Cormorant, Mallard, and Canada Goose), 17 dead striped bass, and 1 unknown fish species. In addition, we captured 10 sick or injured birds with 8 California Gulls, 1 Herring Gull, and 1 Mallard. All live birds were taken to the ...