Hello All,
The Cayuga Bird Club has started an effort to establish a network of sister birding clubs in North and Central America linking the migratory pathways of neotropical songbirds. Many of the colorful and familiar "Birds of Summer" that we enjoy so much in North America during the breeding season (e.g., think Wood Thrush and Golden-winged Warbler) are experiencing big decreases in their populations. Among many factors are loss of habitat on the breeding and wintering areas. While those of us in North America are aware of the general population declines for many neotropical migrants, Birding clubs in Central America are more aware and knowledgeable of the situation on the ground in their countries. Some of the benefits of establishing sister birding clubs is to share information, pictures, and stories with each other about what the habitat threats and situations are like, and what people on the "other end" of the migratory pathway can do or need help doing. As president of the Cayuga Bird Club, I have contacted many birding clubs and Audubon Society chapters in NY and PA about the idea, and interest here in North America is high. I will be traveling to Honduras later this fall to participate in the Honduras Birding Tour for Conservation (HBTC). The HBTC is an effort to bring awareness to both the plight of birds in Honduras as well as the opportunities for tourists to experience the amazing bird life of that Central American country. I also plan to meet with as many of the six existing birding clubs in Honduras as possible to discuss the sister birding club idea. He have made contacts with someone from most of those clubs, which are scattered around a country the size of Virginia. Lacking any professional or institutional support for this effort, I have started a Go Fund Me campaign (www.gofundme.com/2rha68nv<http://www.gofundme.com/2rha68nv>) to raise funds to support my travel within Honduras to visit these clubs. Please consider making a donation to support this effort (even $5 or $10 donations can help!). Also, please contact me by email at presid...@cayugabirdclub.org if you are interested in knowing more about this effort or want to help in some other way. Thanks so much! Jody W. Enck, PhD Conservation Social Scientist, and President of the Cayuga Bird Club -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --