Manitoba Breeding Bird Atlas

Pulling for plovers: http://www.cbc.ca//weed-pull-riverton-sandy-bar-lake-winni

We have lost one billion birds.... and counting: http://www.theglobeandmail.com//report-fi/article31876053/ surely it is time to wake up!

Hi everyone, The first of the breeding bird atlas species accounts have been submitted in draft format and we are making progress towards preparing the first batch for web publication. In order to get things ready, we are requesting submission of photographs to [email protected] for species accounts that meet the following requirements: Horizontal format, minimum 1800 pixels in width (i.e. can print at 4x6" @300 dpi) File name in the followi...ng format (important!): SpeciesName_Photographer_Location_Month_BreedingEvidence.jpg; e.g. Yellow Warbler_Jane Smith_Winnipeg_June_CF.jpg (note: you can use banding codes for species if you know them, e.g. YWAR_Jane Smith_Winnipeg_June_CF.jpg). You can add sex and other information at the end if you wish. Preferably: o taken in Manitoba o showing the bird and its key features clearly o in breeding season / breeding plumage o showing more than one plumage, e.g. both sexes for polymorphic species or adult with juvenile o showing some aspect breeding behaviour o showing some habitat association (e.g. a photo that shows the bird clearly in its habitat is preferable to a frame-filling portrait with a melted bokeh). We are also interested in receiving wide-angle habitat photos that show the habitat where a species was found in Manitoba. The photos will be processed to 533 pixels wide for online publication but we will do the selection and editing for you (the larger file is important if we go to print-on-demand books later). However you may submit both a large file and a small file if you wish. Some people have submitted photos previously (e.g. for newsletters) and where necessary we will consider these in our selection process; however, the very best way to have your photo selected for a species account is to send us your very best images, labelled and formatted as described above, to [email protected]. If you prefer to send a submission of many large images at once, we can also receive files on disk, memory stick or through an FTP program. Given the not-for-profit status of the project, we are unable to compensate photographers financially for their contribution but of course you will receive photo credit (not to mention being a key visual highlight of a major project). Thank you for your understanding! Garry Budyk and Christian Artuso (photo editors, both based in Winnipeg)

WARBLER NECK! I have been trying to work on Manitoba Breeding Bird Atlas writing tasks but the warblers and other migrants are streaming through the neighbourho...od today, giving me, and sometimes them, an odd case of warbler neck This Wilson’s Warbler appears just as distracted as I am but maybe we all need an occasional distracting reminder of who we are? See more

On finding a needle in a haystack or the importance of Important Bird Areas: http://artusobirds.blogspot.ca//the-importance-of-importan [http://artusobirds.blogspot.ca//&h=xaqha9vb_&enc=azpvnmbmu] (a satellite-tagged Pectoral Sandpiper in several IBAs)

http://www.audubon.org//the-arctic-just-got-welcome-reprie