The Oregon Vesper Sparrow is a prime example of what birders refer to as “little brown jobs” – those small, drab, hard to identify birds that we sometimes overlook. But this little brown job is an imperiled subspecies unique to the Pacific Northwest. One that serves as an indicator of the health of our grassland ecosystems, and is in need of our attention and protection. With its small population size and declining trend, the Oregon Vesper Sparrow has recently been petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act.
Klamath Bird Observatory is undertaking a multi-year, full life cycle study to help determine the causes of its decline – always a challenge for a migratory bird that can be impacted by events on their breeding, migratory stopover, or overwintering grounds. However, new technologies such as miniaturized GPS tags and Motus are starting to uncover the secrets of where these birds go when they’re away from our study sites.
Dr. Sarah Rockwell will share some recent research on this unique at-risk subspecies. Including what we’ve learned from detailed nesting studies and new migration tracking technology. The talk will be held through the Salem Audubon Society over Zoom on February 8th, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm. Click here to register for the talk.
About the Speaker
Dr. Rockwell is a Research Biologist at Klamath Bird Observatory in southern Oregon. She joined KBO in 2013 after completing her doctorate at the University of Maryland and Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. Where she studied the ecology of the then-endangered Kirtland’s Warbler in her home state of Michigan. Currently, she studies avian response to coniferous and riparian habitat restoration, including bird abundance, diversity, and demography, to improve conservation and management. Sarah also leads research on specific imperiled species, including Oregon Vesper Sparrow and Western Purple Martin.
Klamath Bird Observatory (KBO) presents Birding Beyond Borders in partnership with Mantiqueira Bird Observatory (OAMa). This evening will feature a presentation by Shannon Rio, KBO board president, celebrating KBO, birds, scientists, conservationists, and people from all over the globe. She will be showing two short videos about KBO’s international work. Highlighting the value of diversity in all aspects that nature provides us: diversity of landscape, people, and culture.
Luiza Figueira, past KBO intern and Executive Director of OAMa, will talk about the development of the bird observatory in Brazil, their research and outreach projects to promote bird conservation. You will also be led through a diversity of local birds and will “walk” the trails in the tropical forests where OAMa does the long-term bird monitoring. We will have the opportunity for a low-key chat with the OAMa crew to ask any questions you have about their work. This presentation is part of OAMa’s fundraising campaign for their 2022 projects and activities, and you are invited to join their collective efforts.
The free online presentation is on February 24th, 6 pm – 7 pm PT. The zoom link will be emailed to you once you have registered.
The Klamath Bird Observatory family would like to congratulate Laura Fleming on her Friend to the Environment Award. Laura, owner of the Medford, Wild Birds Unlimited store received the prestigious Friend to the Environment Award in 2019 at the annual meeting of the Wild Birds Unlimited franchisees. This award is presented to one of over three hundred store owners yearly to recognize those who exceed the mission to “bring people and nature together”.
Laura received the award in part due to her leadership role in supporting a wide variety of her community’s nature education activities and conservation organizations. She does so by providing financial support, giving countless hours of volunteer time, promoting and supporting their events and programs, and serving as an officer or board member for a couple of these organizations. Laura recently completed five years of service to the Klamath Bird Observatory as an officer and member of its Board of directors. Currently she is a member of the Board of Directors for the Rogue Valley Audubon Society.
Dr. John Alexander, the Executive Director of the Klamath Bird Observatory stated, “It’s hard to capture the extent of Laura’s leadership and impact.Her quiet, yet focused leadership and her leading by example were incredibly influential and inspiring for our board members and staff.Laura walks the talk.”
Laura attends numerous events throughout the area to promote her store and conservation. A few of these events include: the Rogue Valley Migratory Bird Day; the Klamath Basin’s Winter Wings Bird Festival; Rogue Valley Earth Day Celebration; Klamath Bird Observatory’s Wings and Wine Gala; the Bear Creek Salmon Festival; the Master Gardener Spring Fair; the Vaux’s Happening Fall Carnival and many others. She often “wears several hats” at these events. Promoting her store but also taking the opportunity to promote the Rogue Valley Audubon Society and the Klamath Bird Observatory.
Laura is frequently asked to give talks in her community for garden clubs; libraries; adult education classes; historical societies; retirement centers; rotary clubs; and more. These talks primarily revolve around feeding and identifying birds throughout seasons, designing backyard habitats, nesting tips, attracting hummingbirds, and other topics.
Through educational events at Wild Birds Unlimited, Laura and her staff hold many free events at the store every month. These include: a monthly educational talk which usually hosts a local community expert. The store also hosts a monthly bird walk to various birding “hot spots” in the valley. Post bi-monthly Chickadee Chats which are informal discussions on what is happening in the avian world, generally focusing on a specific bird group.
During the presentation of the Friend to the Environment award, Laura also received recognition for helping to raise awareness of the local Vaux’s Swift population in partnership with Rogue Valley Audubon Society and Southern Oregon Land Conservancy; holding a fundraiser for Badger Run Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, and supporting and partnering with Siskiyou Audubon Society during their nest box building workshops and selling 100 of their pre-made nest boxes each spring.
Wild Birds Unlimited, located in Medford, OR is part of the original and largest franchise system of backyard bird feeding and nature specialty stores. There are more than 300 locations throughout the United States and Canada. They specialize in bringing people and nature together with their bird feeding and nature products, their expert advice, and educational events. Visit our Web site at www.wbu.com.
Valentines Day is a day of love for your fellow humans. Why not have a day to share your love for birds?
Join Shannon Rio on February 10th at 6 pm for a presentation on Contemplative Photography – For the Love of Birds. This hour and a half presentation will include a 30-minute slideshow of Kirk Gooding’s photography where we will share our love for birds and nature through his art. After the slideshow, we will return to the individual pictures and discuss them in more detail.
This event is free and held via Zoom. To get the Zoom link click here to register.
Contemplative photography combined with nature photography can be deeply soul-soothing, educational, and plays an important part in conservation. It gives details about the appearance or behavior of birds and has resulted in the protection of landscapes and species. The inspiration for this presentation was William Finley. Finley was a conservation photographer that prompted Roosevelt to set aside land as refuges for birds. Because of his photos of the mass slaughter of herons and egrets, this led to what is now the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
This presentation on February 10th, at 6 pm celebrates the power of photography and our love for birds. Kirk Gooding selected some of his favorite nature photos and created this series set to music. After a brief introduction, we ask you to sit back and connect to the sights and sounds created in this presentation. After the slide show, we will look at each photo one by one and discuss the bird or the landscape as a way of learning about places in Oregon to bird, and what you might expect to find.
This online event is free to say thank you for your support of the Klamath Bird Observatory.
About the Photographer and Presenter
Kirk Gooding is an amateur photographer who enjoys being open to the forms and patterns of nature. He especially enjoys his forays with his wife, Shannon Rio, out into the wide, open spaces of their favorite haunts, The Shasta Valley and the Lower Klamath Wildlife Refuge: sitting there, watching and listening. Not too long ago while Shannon was volunteering at Badger Run Wildlife Rehab Center they drove weekly for a year to the Refuge after returning home by way of Shasta Valley. Most of the photos in the short montage entitled, Contemplative Photography, were taken during those trips.
Shannon Rio is the board president of the Klamath Bird Observatory because of its work to preserve birds and wild places in nature. She is a wildlife educator with a goal to connect people (and herself) with nature so that they will want to protect what they love. She teaches classes in various settings and also teaches yoga, works as a nurse practitioner, is devoted to family and friends and community, and loves learning anything about the natural world through hiking and birding and sitting quietly observing the wonder of it all.
The Klamath Siskiyou Oak Network (KSON) is holding its first quarterly meeting of 2022 on Thursday, January 27th from 9-10:30 am. This collaborative regional partnership works to conserve oak habitats on private and public lands in southern Oregon and northern California. The upcoming KSON meeting will include an introductory presentation on the partnership and is open to the public. Please email mlm@klamathbird.org for the Zoom link.
Klamath Bird Observatory is still looking for highly motivated candidates to fill our bird banding internship and point count technician positions.
Point count field technicians work from May 2nd through July 15th (some positions available through July 29th), to complete point count surveys throughout the diverse and beautiful regions of southern Oregon, eastern Oregon, and/or northern California. Technicians will work on multiple projects consisting of monitoring effects of oak and stream restoration and long-term monitoring in both private and public lands. Surveyors will work in the Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Crater Lake National Park, Oregon Caves National Monument, eastern Oregon sagebrush habitat, and more. Applicants should be able to identify a large variety of Western birds as they may be working in a range of habitats including oak woodlands, riparian areas, coniferous forests, montane meadows, and shrub-steppe. Click here to learn more about the point count position.
Bird banding interns participate in our long-term landbird monitoring program. This position requires independent drive and patience for the travails of fieldwork but also affords an amazing opportunity to build practical experience in field biology and master a variety of bird monitoring and research skills in a beautiful part of the country. Click here to learn more about our bird banding internship.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Forest Ecology Working Group, National Conservation Training Center, and Migratory Bird Program have developed a 12-part monthly lecture series to address the 50-year decline of 3 billion birds through partnerships, conservation science, and forest management. The series tells a compelling story about forest bird population declines, partnership opportunities, and forest management actions that can support bird population recovery and sustainability. Klamath Bird Observatory’s executive director John Alexander will be hosting a webinar on January 18th at 10 am PT, “Effectiveness Monitoring – Evaluating the Effects of Forest Management on Bird Populations”.
John will be discussing the monitoring triad: implementation, effectiveness, and validation monitoring. The data management tools that allow synthesis over large areas over long time periods. How population models address issues through management and the importance of feedback loops.
The Medford District BLM is pleased to nominate the Klamath Bird Observatory (KBO) for the BLM Conservation Partner Award. KBO has been our partner for over 20 years in which they have run a network of southwestern Oregon bird banding/monitoring stations including two stations for BLM (Medford and Lakeview Districts). However, we want to especially highlight their more recent activities that have directly improved the Medford District’s on-the-ground conservation actions.
“Public lands management requires collaboration and science-based strategies to address pressing natural resource issues,” said Elizabeth Burghard, District Manager for the BLM Medford District. “I’m honored to celebrate the work of the Klamath Bird Observatory in advancing bird conservation on public lands.”
KBO has been instrumental in applying avian science to inform oak conservation, a locally imperiled vegetation habitat in southwest OR. The 2016 Southwest OR Resource Management Plan identified oak systems as a unique plant habitat with specific management direction and support a high diversity of birds and other wildlife species. Oak systems are prominently represented on Medford BLM lands but are threatened by conifer encroachment, invasive species, and fragmentation. KBO has continued to coordinate the Klamath-Siskiyou Oak Network, which recently completed a Strategic Conservation Action Plan (SAP) and Companion Summary that serves as a roadmap for achieving continued and accelerated oak woodland conservation across the Bioregion. The SAP identifies a gradient of oak habitats in southwest OR that have unique threats and conservation strategies. One of these unique habitat gradients is southwest OR oak/chapparal. KBO continues to conduct avian monitoring to inform ecologically functioning habitat structure and arrangement to support bird biodiversity and has recently incorporated results from a 2019 field study examining chaparral-associated bird density in retention patches into an existing chaparral Decision Support Tool and into the Southern Oregon and Northern California Oak Landowner Guide (KBO and LRP 2014).
KBO has been banding birds and training banding interns for more than 20 years across the BLM Medford District. (c) Julia Rodrigues
KBO also works closely with the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, located in the Medford District. In 2020, they worked with the Monument ecologist to install 20 long-term permanent breeding bird transects that are designed to track population trends in the oak woodland community. This is a collaborative regional program between the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and KBO that will provide valuable information on bird population trends within the Monument and in the surrounding region. The Monument also works closely with KBO studying the Oregon Vesper Sparrow, a species of concern that has been petitioned for listing under the federal Endangered Species Act. KBO is working to produce a series of products to inform conservation actions for this BLM Special Status Species. Specifically, they are identifying breeding ground limitations to nest success and productivity, as well as habitat relationships. This information will highlight potential management conservation actions. KBO is actively providing valuable education through social media, blogs, and web content that promotes the importance of BLM lands for this imperiled species.
Additionally, KBO is involved in several local partnerships, including the Rogue Forest Partners, comprised of ten partners, including non-profit organizations and federal and state forest land managers, who are engaging with private landowners and diverse communities to implement a Rogue Basin Cohesive Forest Restoration Strategy. Currently the partnership is implementing restoration across public and private lands in southwest Oregon with support of Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB) funding. This partnership is already leveraging additional dollars to contribute toward fuel reduction and forest restoration across all-lands. KBO serves a critical role in the partnership, continuing to bring and emphasize the importance of science and the role of birds as indicators to inform and improve natural resource management actions.
Finally, KBO has been a state and national BLM partner in developing the Avian Knowledge Network, analyzing years of monitoring data, as well as helping to lead Partners In Flight (PIF) and the PIF Western Working Group. Most recently KBO has played an important role as we develop a strategy to establish Motus towers throughout Oregon and Washington. KBO has been our key partner in developing PIF bird conservation plans for the northwest. They are our go-to partner for bird conservation in Oregon!
The Bureau of Land Management manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 11 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The agency’s mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. Diverse activities authorized on these lands generated $111 billion in economic output across the country in fiscal year 2020—more than any other agency in the Department of the Interior. These activities supported more than 498,000 jobs.
Dr. Rockwell is a Research Biologist at Klamath Bird Observatory in southern Oregon. She joined KBO in 2013 after completing her doctorate at the University of Maryland and Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. Where she studied the ecology of the then-endangered Kirtland’s Warbler in her home state of Michigan. Currently, she studies avian response to coniferous and riparian habitat restoration, including bird abundance, diversity, and demography, to improve conservation and management. Sarah also leads research on specific imperiled species, including Oregon Vesper Sparrow and Western Purple Martin.
The Klamath Bird Observatory family would like to congratulate Laura Fleming on her Friend to the Environment Award. Laura, owner of the Medford, Wild Birds Unlimited store received the prestigious Friend to the Environment Award in 2019 at the annual meeting of the Wild Birds Unlimited franchisees. This award is presented to one of over three hundred store owners yearly to recognize those who exceed the mission to “bring people and nature together”.
Valentines Day is a day of love for your fellow humans. Why not have a day to share your love for birds?
The 
Klamath Bird Observatory is still looking for highly motivated candidates to fill our bird banding internship and point count technician positions.
