Author: KBO

August 6, 2011

Listen to our August 6th, BirdNote by searching the BirdNote website.

Barbara Massey and Bob Quaccia discuss a nest of American Dippers in an Ashland Daily Tidings article by Vickie Aldous. Several of these small, water-loving birds have made their nest under the Water Street Bridge in downtown Ashland. The young dipper chicks have recently begun to investigate the quieter pools along the edge of the creek. Before the chicks had even developed enough to leave the nest, however, the adult dippers were fully committed to their children, giving the Klamath Bird Observatory an opportunity to band the dippers. However, as Barbara explains, observatory staff did not handle the chicks. The full article can be read on the Daily Tidings’ website.

April 22, 2011

“Bird in the Hand”: Banding gives researchers a wealth of information, from reproduction to migration, and local students get in on the act. Medford Mail Tribune.

The Klamath Bird Observatory is looking for volunteers for a pair of field trips. These trips will take place on May 20th and May 21st for fourth/fifth grade students and third grade students respectively. These trips will make up KBO’s fourth season of coordination with Chiloquin Elementary to take students to such locations as the Upper Klamath Lake and Wood River Wetland. More can be read on My Outdoor Buddy’s website.

April 4, 2011

Great Blue Herons Return to Breeding Colonies. Press Release. March 29th, 2011.

“Homing in on Herons: Biologists will survey Great Blue Heron rookery sites in Southern Oregon and statewide to see how the species is doing.” Medford Mail Tribune. April 4th, 2011.

During the spring and summer many birds are migrating thousands of miles and often right over our homes. Along the way birds use “rest stops” to eat food, drink and rest. Migration itself is the most dangerous part of a bird’s life but now, with ever changing landscapes many places that used to  provide birds with food, water and shelter along their journey are drained, paved and developed.

Landowners play a significant role in protecting habitat and bird populations. About 50% of the land in the Western U.S. and 80% in the Great Plains is privately owned. Klamath Bird Observatory’s director John Alexander says “Just having hedgerows, diversifying crops, or changing when you mow can make a difference.” Because each species of bird has its own specific needs, no matter what type of landscape you have it can probably be used by birds. Planting native, seasonal species and flowering plants can provide substrate and food for many species.

To read the full article in the John Deere magazine Homestead and to learn more about what you can do to help improve your yard for bird habitat click here. 

The US Forest Service’s Wings Across the Americas Program has recently awarded John Alexander, KBO’s Executive Director, an international award for bird conservation. The Klamath Bird Observatory has been active not only in the Klamath-Siskiyou Bioregion, which makes up parts of southern Oregon and northern California, but also has partnered with Costa Rica Bird Observatories to improve bird monitoring in the new world tropics. Establishing these sorts of observatories in Latin America, where many migratory birds spend the winter, has expanded the reach of bird conservation efforts significantly.

For more information, read the press release, or one of these articles in The Oregonian, Medford Mail Tribune, orAshland Chamber of Commerce website.

The analysis of toenails and feathers may provide clues to where birds, such as song sparrows, spend their winters. Barbara Massey and staff of the Klamath Bird Observatory spent last spring collecting these tissue samples, which they hope will answer this question through analysis of hydrogen levels. As Barbara explains in an article for the Ashland Daily Tidings, birds will pick up different hydrogen levels depending on where they are living. The full article can be read here.