THE 38th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE WATERBIRD SOCIETY

THE  38^th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE WATERBIRD SOCIETY and

THE XIII CONGRESO PARA EL ESTUDIO Y CONSERVACION DE LAS AVES EN MEXICO ORGANIZADO POR CIPAMEX (La Sociedad para el Estudio y Conservación de las Aves en México) will be held jointly from 5-8 NOVEMBER 2014 in La PAZ, BCS, MEXICO.

This meeting will be held in La Paz, on the beautiful Baja California peninsula, México.

This is the first call for symposia and workshops topics.  

SPANISH announcement link

Symposia proposals should include: (1) title of symposium, (2) a 2-5 sentence rationale for the symposium's topic, (3) names, contact information, and presentation topics of presenting speakers, (4) requested length of symposium (whole day or half day; whole day would be two 2.5 h sessions, whereas a half day would be a 2-2.5 h session in morning or afternoon) and (5) the contact details of those organizing the symposium. Symposia speakers could speak for 15-30 minutes each, depending on number of speakers, leaving time for wrap-up at the end of the symposia to summarize main messages and allow audience participation. Please also indicate language preference (English or Spanish).

Workshop proposals should include (1) title of workshop, (2) a 2-5 sentence rationale for the workshop's topic, (3) names and contact information for the workshop's leaders, (4) short description of target audience, (5) requested length of workshop, (6) anticipated format and required logistical resources (e.g., room size/type, projection equipment, large table, field access, etc.), (7) maximum number of participants, (8) any required additional costs and/or equipment/software needs to participants and (9) language preference (English or Spanish).

The deadline for submission of symposium and workshop proposals is Friday, 21 February 2014. Please direct questions or submit proposals to ERICA NOL (EM: enol@trentu.ca). A request for abstracts for the general sessions will be made in mid-March. Professional translation services (English to Spanish, Spanish to English) will be made available for all participants.

Meeting details will be on the Waterbirds web site soon.

Atlas of Breeding Colonial Waterbirds in the Interior Western United States

Many states in the western U.S. identified information on colonial waterbird distribution and populations as a priority.  The primary issues included determining their status, identifying conservation issues, and refining conservation actions. The Western Colonial Waterbird Survey (WCWS) was implemented during 2009, 2010, and 2011. The final product is a report with the numbers and colony locations of 19 waterbird species in eight western interior states. 

This final Atlas of Breeding Colonial Waterbirds in the Interior Western United States is completed and available on the Internet.

This Atlas consists of two parts:  the Maps for all the sites surveyed during the WCWS and an Atlas data table.  In addition to this Atlas, the final report includes a State database of the survey data.  All data from the WCWS were entered into Microsoft EXCEL spreadsheets, one for each state.  Each spreadsheet has three parts (sheets):  1) Breeding birds; 2) Nonbreeding, if collected in that state; and 3) historical data, if compiled for that state.

This final Atlas: the State maps, Atlas data tables and State databases are described in: Cavitt, J.F., S.L. Jones, N.M. Wilson, J.S. Dieni, T.S. Zimmerman, R.H. Doster and W.H. Howe. 2014. Atlas of breeding colonial waterbirds in the interior western United States. Research Report, U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Denver, Colorado.  The Atlas is available from U.S. FWS or from Weber State University.

Movement Patterns of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters

Movement Patterns and Habitat Selection of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters (Puffinus pacificus) Breeding at Aride Island, Seychelles.  Jacopo G. Cecere, Licia Calabrese, Gerard Rocamora and Carlo Catoni.  Waterbirds 36(4): 432-437.

Waterbirds is an International journal, publishing new information on little known species and promoting new technologies and methods to study waterbirds.  In the December 2013 issue, seabird movements during foraging trips and documenting their preference for particular areas was the focus. During the last decade, the use of new devices, such as Global Positioning System (GPS) devices and geo-locator loggers, has allowed researchers to perform more investigations of this type. GPS devices were used on Wedge-tailed Shearwaters (Puffinus pacificus) breeding on Aride Island, Seychelles, to identify the main foraging areas used. Thirteen foraging trips were recorded, 61.5% of which lasted one day. The identification of key marine conservation areas, like those identified in this study, is a priority for designating marine Important Bird Areas and identifying habitat management measures.  Free access to article.

The International Journal of Waterbird Biology

 

Waterbirds

The International Journal of Waterbird Biology

The Waterbird Society publishes the results of scientific research in a refereed, international journal, formerly called Colonial Waterbirds. In 1999, the journal becameWaterbirds to reflect the society’s expanded focus on all aquatic birds and their habitats. The journal is open to submitted papers concerning the biology, conservation, and techniques of study of the world’s waterbirds including seabirds, wading birds, shorebirds, and waterfowl (http://www.waterbirds.org)

The Waterbirds Facebook site will publish a free access article (Editor's Choice) every quarter, as well as other articles of interest for waterbird conservation and ecology.   (https://www.facebook.com/groups/waterbird.journal/?hc_location=stream)

December Table of Contents:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4MubW2pluWcYlAtMGc0MHdGZ3c/edit?usp=sharing

To Join Waterbirds:  http://www.waterbirds.org/join_us

Wind Turbines Influence the Presence of Inland Shorebirds

 Influence of Wind Turbines on Presence of Willet, Marbled Godwit, Wilson's Phalarope and Black Tern on Wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota and South Dakota

Neal D. Niemuth, Johann A. Walker, Jeffrey S. Gleason, Charles R. Loesch, Ronald E. Reynolds, Scott E. Stephens and Michael A. Erickson.  Waterbirds 36(3):263-276. 2013.


In the September 2013 issue of Waterbirds, the influence of wind turbines on inland shorebirds is documented. In addition, the Waterbirds September issue documents recent advances in the understanding of long-distance migration using satellite and radio geolocators. Technological advances often spawn new discoveries, and this is certainly true of avian migration.  http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1675/063.036.0304