Hello Cayuga Birders Happy almost-fall to all. The Lab of Ornithology is pleased to continue the Monday Night Seminar series this semester. We are kicking off the season with a special talk by John Fitzpatrick. Hope to see you there!
*September 15, 7:30pm* *Martha’s Question: “Have You Learned Anything From My Passing?” Reflections on the Tragic Centenary of the Last Passenger Pigeon* *John W. Fitzpatrick, director, Cornell Lab of Ornithology* To this day the Passenger Pigeon story represents the most famous human-caused extinction in history. Fitzpatrick will review the remarkable biology and the tragic disappearance of the Passenger Pigeon, once the world’s most abundant bird species. He will explore how and why a bird could achieve such spectacular numbers, and the multiple forces that led to its catastrophically rapid population collapse. The very last Passenger Pigeon, named Martha, died in the Cincinnati Zoo in September 1914. Fitzpatrick asks the question that Martha might ask if she could do so today: Have we humans yet learned to respect abundance in nature? The seminar will explore important lessons we can take from the world’s fisheries and some emerging conservation success stories in this bittersweet tribute to Martha and her lost species. *As always, these seminars are free and open to the public. The doors open at 7:00. * *This coming Monday, we will be streaming the seminar live. Be sure to bookmark http://dl.allaboutbirds.org/cornelllab-monday-night-seminars <http://dl.allaboutbirds.org/cornelllab-monday-night-seminars> for quick access on Monday evening. And if you missed them, you can also watch the archived versions <http://www.birds.cornell.edu/Page.aspx?pid=1579> of the previous live-streamed lectures. * *UPCOMING MONDAY NIGHT SEMINARS:* *September 29* *Hawaii’s Birds: Past, Present and Future* *Speaker: Jack Jeffrey, wildlife biologist and photographer* Over 5 million years ago, a small flock of Asian finches arrived on an isolated volcanic archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean. Through adaptive radiation and ecological opportunity, over 60 species of Hawaiian Honeycreepers (Drepanidinae) evolved an amazing array of bill forms, color, and specialized feeding behaviors. These and numerous other forest birds inhabited the Hawaiian Islands until human contact over one thousand years ago. Since first contact, humans have triggered an extinction process through habitat destruction, agricultural practices and the introduction of alien species including large herbivores, mammal predators, invertebrates, diseases, and invasive plants. These introductions have caused, and continue to cause, extinction and endangerment of many native forest bird species throughout the Hawaiian Islands. Today, conservation efforts are attempting to reverse this trend through habitat protection, forest restoration, reforestation, alien species prevention and control, captive propagation, and public awareness and education. Join Jack Jeffrey, photographer and wildlife biologist, in an entertaining, informative, and humorous program about Hawaii’s wonderful forest birds, their problems, and the extensive efforts being made to protect these amazing forest creatures from further decline and extinction. *October 6* *Birds in Flight: the Art and Science of How Birds Fly (seminar and book signing)* *Speaker: Carrol Henderson, wildlife biologist, photographer, and author* Carrol Henderson has long been captivated by the phenomenon of birds in flight. During this seminar, he will take you through the stages of an “Avian Flight School 101.” Learn about the physics-based miracles of flight ranging from “Bernoulli’s effect” to the “secret of the alula,” the venetian blind effect, dynamic soaring by albatrosses, and the amazing process by which hummingbirds hover—all illustrated with photos taken by Henderson in the course of his international travels. Henderson's book, "Birds in Flight," will be available for purchase and signing. *October 13* *CAYUGA BIRD CLUB MEETING* *The Bluebird Effect: Uncommon Bonds with Common Birds (seminar and book signing)* *Speaker: Julie Zickefoose, writer/artist* Doors open at 7:00 p.m., Cayuga Bird Club meeting begins at 7:30 p.m.; seminar begins after the meeting at approximately 8:00 p.m. Join writer/artist Julie Zickefoose for an evening exploring the intersection of birds and spirituality in our lives. Can a bird become a demigod to some? Can certain species achieve the level of a totem or spirit guide? Are there phenomena that occur between human and nature that cannot be explained by conventional means? These are concepts that have surfaced over a lifetime of helping broken birds and mothering those who are orphaned, and in so doing coming to know birds from the inside out. A scientist at heart, Julie has lately found herself wondering more than knowing. This talk will help you keep your spirit “open to the thrust of grace,” thinking about the unexplainables in your own life. Zickefoose's book, "The Bluebird Effect," will be available for purchase and signing. *October 20* *Science and Nature in the Galapagos Islands* *Speakers: Irby Lovette, director, Fuller Evolutionary Biology Program, Cornell Lab Ornithology; Fausto Rodriguez, Galapagos Park Naturalist and founder of Galapagos Best* The Galapagos Archipelago has long been celebrated as an icon of evolution and wondrous natural history. The Galapagos remains an otherworldly setting where the wildlife from boobies to finches to fur seals, penguins to giant tortoises to frigate birds shows no fear of humans, and where the remoteness of the archipelago has fostered the evolution of wonderful organisms and spectacular adaptations found nowhere else in the world. Lovette and Rodriguez have many years of experience in Galapagos, and they will recount some the wonders they have witnessed on their trips through the archipelago, present new research findings from their own projects and those of their colleagues, and discuss some of the challenging conservation issues that may change the Galapagos forever. *November 03* *Fighting Crime with...Feathers: The Casebook of a Forensic Ornithologist* *Speaker: Pepper Trail, Senior Forensic Scientist/Ornithologist, National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory* When a crime is committed against a bird, a forensic ornithologist identifies the victim. Pepper Trail is likely the world’s only full-time ornithological crime-fighter. Trail works at the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Ashland, Oregon, where he identifies all bird evidence submitted by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service enforcement officers. This evidence ranges from oil-soaked seabirds to the plumes of birds-of-paradise, from carved hornbill skulls to live South American parrots. Join us for a look behind the scenes at one of the world’s most fascinating crime labs, and learn how feathers are powerful weapons in the fight to protect the world’s birds. *November 17* *Sierra Wings: Birds of the Mono Lake Basin (seminar and book signing)* *Speaker: Marie Read, photographer* Nationally known bird photographer Marie Read takes us on a journey exploring the birdlife of Mono Lake and its surrounding basin, located in California¹s Eastern Sierra. Marie’s stunning photography, now featured in her newly released book "Sierra Wings: Birds of the Mono Lake Basin," reveals the fascinating lives of the birds that breed or migrate through this spectacular birding hotspot, famous for bizarre tufa towers and highly saline and alkaline water. Enjoy Read's stories from the field and learn how she obtained some of the behavior and action shots in the book. Books will be available for purchase and signing. ------------------------------ Marc Devokaitis Cornell Lab of Ornithology -- 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/ --
