Alaska Bird Observatory

ABO’s Year 2000 in Review

Nancy DeWitt, Executive Director

Although some people predicted great disasters for Y2K, the year brought many accomplishments and exciting events for the Alaska Bird Observatory. We started off the year with a membership drive that added 45 individuals and families from around Alaska, pushing our membership total over 400. We presented a paper and poster at the Alaska Bird Conference in Sitka, and gave talks at the annual Boreal Partners in Flight meeting. In March, Ted Swem took over the reins from long-time board president Lori Quakenbush and the board began development of a new strategic plan. As winter wound down we implemented a new owl census project with the help of numerous volunteers. By late April, lingering snow had us shoveling out a platform for our banding tent and stomping out paths to the nets.

We celebrated a major milestone in the spring when Anna-Marie Benson completed an extensive analysis of nine years worth of data from the Creamer’s Field Migration Station. She earned a well-deserved Master’s degree in the process, and proceeded to compile and submit manuscripts from her graduate work for publication in peer-reviewed journals.

Spring picked up speed with Andrea Swingley making weekly appearances on public radio to talk about spring migration, bird ecology, and conservation issues. We published weekly birding reports in the local newspaper and on our web site, answered numerous inquiries from birders planning to travel to Alaska, and pulled off a record-setting birdathon fundraiser in cooperation with the Arctic Audubon Society.

The start of the field season found us bursting the seams of our tiny office at Creamer’s Refuge. With two new research projects on our docket–one near Tok looking at habitat selection in an area scheduled for clear cutting, and one to monitor the effects of jet noise on birds at Eielson Air Force Base–our staff and intern roster swelled to 18 people. Many great volunteers helped at the banding station, including a young man from Oaxaca, Mexico, and folks from California and Texas. We sailed through June with nice weather, but July and August were colder and wetter than average, leaving us feeling seriously short-changed on summer.

By early September, the weather straightened itself out in time for us to host our first conference. Many participants here for the annual meeting of the Western Bird Banding Association were helping at the migration station when we shattered the record for most birds caught in a day. Thanks to David Shaw’s banding skills and the assistance of many great helpers, we processed 584 birds on September 6. It was one of many highlights during our ninth season of banding birds at Creamer’s Field.

Although the summer weather was more foul than we’re used to, we were treated to the mildest winter I’ve ever experienced here. Birders in Fairbanks ended 2000 with a Christmas Bird Count that was a whopping 70 degrees warmer than the previous year. Record numbers of birds were counted, perhaps due to the fact that observers had fewer layers of insulation covering their ears and were able to hear the calls of more birds!

Coming full circle, we ended the year in the midst of another membership drive. As we head into 2001 with the support of over 450 members, we are confident that many great things are in store for ABO. A new facility, at least one new research project, several new education programs, and a tenth anniversary celebration await our attention. We owe all of you a great deal of thanks for supporting our efforts and hope you will join us in celebrating our accomplishments for the past year.

2000 Financial Review

Fiscal Year 2000 highlights:

• Overall income was 45% higher than in 1999, due in large part to a new contract with the Department of Defense. Revenues from memberships increased by 50%, while contribution income increased by 39%. The latter was due primarily to a large gift of stock.
  
  
• Our fundraising revenue grew by 24%. The 2000 Birdathon, a joint fundraiser with the Arctic Audubon Society, raised $16,636 – $2,917 more than in 1999. In addition to a number of adult and family teams from Fairbanks, this year several youth teams and counters in Nome, Barrow, Anchorage, Tok, and Shemya participated.
  
  
• Net income from merchandise sales increased by 15%, thanks to sales of a new t-shirt designed by George West, the Bird Songs of Alaska CD, and the new Sibley Guide to Birds.
  
  
• ABO received $50,452 of donated equipment, supplies, fundraiser prizes, and volunteer services. Of special note was $12,775 worth of support toward our education program from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and in-kind office space, janitorial service, utilities, and use of copy and fax machines from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game.

Leonard Peyton Awarded Lifetime Membership

In March 2000, John Wright, on behalf of ABO, presented Leonard Peyton with a lifetime membership and White-crowned Sparrow print by Jon Van Zyle for Leonard’s contributions to the conservation and enjoyment of birds in Alaska. His bird recordings are an indispensable aid to scientists and birders in North America, and sales of the recordings are an important source of funding for the Alaska Bird Observatory.

ABO Directors, Staff, Committee and Interns

2000 Alaska Bird Observatory Research and Monitoring Program

by Anna-Marie Benson, Senior Biologist

During ABO’s busiest field season ever, we initiated several new studies; two of these studies will further our understanding of how large-scale disturbances such as logging and aircraft noise affect songbirds. These new ventures were exciting, but I’m most enthusiastic about the recent analyses of long-term data sets. We have learned fascinating things about high-latitude migrants from the nine years of mist netting at Creamer’s Field Migration Station. We shared this information through publications in peer-reviewed journals, presentations of our results at ornithological conferences, and through local public seminars.

As ABO continues to grow, we are committed to maintaining long-term monitoring efforts and periodically evaluating these programs. In late 2000, the ABO Scientific Advisory Council reviewed the value of our Creamer’s Field Migration Station to determine whether we were meeting our objectives with this massive mist-netting effort. The council decided that we should continue our current level of effort because the data are becoming extremely valuable. And, as Dr. Marty Morton, a distinguished ornithologist on our council, said, "the data are only going to become more valuable."

A brief summary of accomplishments from ABO’s research and monitoring efforts follows. For more information, visit our web site or contact our office.

Creamer’s Field Migration Station

• Published two manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals.
• Presented results at three ornithological conferences.
• Worked with more than 90 community volunteers.
• Reviewed our methods to determine whether we were meeting intended objectives.
• Conducted preliminary analysis of habitat use by migrants during migration and quantified the effectiveness of several aging and sexing techniques.
• Banded 5,271 birds during a 5-month period.

Landbird Monitoring in Denali National Park

• Monitored passerines along census routes for the eighth consecutive breeding season in Denali National Park and Preserve.
• Evaluated the current protocol and made recommendations for refining the effort to meet objectives presented in the conceptual plan for Denali’s long-term ecological monitoring.

Training

• Hosted the North American Banding Council’s second certification session. Three ABO staff members received banding certification.
• Trained eight people during our 10-day bander-training course.
• Provided training in censusing birds by sight and sound.

Internships and Mentoring Programs

• Provided 11 internships in landbird censusing, nest searching, bird banding and mist netting, and conducting banding presentations.
• Supervised a study entitled "Nest success of tree swallows at Creamer’s Field " with a 13-year-old scientist. His results were presented in a local science fair.

Nesting success of Neotropical migrants in interior Alaska: effects of intense jet noises

• Established three nest-monitoring plots at a treatment location (Eielson Air Force Base) and three plots at a control location (Bonanza Creek) for a three-year study.
• Monitored nest success of 48 nests. We found that 87% of the nests at Eielson and 93% of the nests at Bonanza Creek were successful.
• Compared species richness and relative abundance between the two locations.
• Collected vegetation data at each plot.
• Documented new information about the breeding ecology of Boreal Chickadees in interior Alaska.

Habitat selection by birds in the Tok River drainage

• Worked cooperatively with the USFWS to examine the distribution of birds among 14 habitat types in the Tok River drainage.
• Conducted point-count censuses at 298 random points.
• Collected vegetation data at each census point.

Other Projects

• Conducted two surveys to examine bird species diversity along the Noyes Slough in Fairbanks.
• Furthered our commitment with the Denali Institute to maintain a long-term migration station by training three interns who banded 760 birds during 28 days of netting.
• Submitted quarterly reports on unusual bird sightings for North American Birds.

Contributions to Boreal Partners in Flight

• Conducted three Breeding Bird Surveys in interior Alaska.
• Summarized statewide passerine banding data.
• Conducted owl surveys near Fairbanks, summarized owl survey data from throughout Alaska, and completed a summary report.
• Summarized statewide data on Wilson’s Warbler migration.
• Gave presentations at annual meetings.

Major funding was provided by ABR, Inc. Environmental Research & Services; Arctic Audubon Society; ExxonMobil; Skaggs Foundation; and our Adopt-a-Net sponsors. ABO had contracts and cooperative agreements with the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, The Denali Institute, Department of Defense, Institute for Bird Populations, National Park Service, Noyes Slough Action Committee, and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

2000 Publications, Presentations, & Reports

Publications and Reports

• Bartecchi, K. M. 2001. Effects of military overflights on nesting Neotropical migrants. Submitted to U. S. Air Force.
• Benson, A. M. and K. Winker. 2001. Timing of breeding range occupancy among high-latitude passerine migrants. Auk 118 (2): in press.
• Benson, A. M., T. H. Pogson, and T. J. Doyle. 2000. Updated geographic distribution of eight passerine species in central Alaska. Western Birds 31:100-105.
• Benson, A. M. 2000. Timing of migration, molt, and fat storage among high-latitude passerine migrants. M.S. Thesis. University of Alaska, Fairbanks
• Benson, A.M. 2000. Owl surveys conducted in Alaska during 2000: a summary report. Submitted to the USFWS Office of Migratory Bird Management.
• Benson, A.M. 2001. Passerine Monitoring in Denali National Park and Preserve: 2000 Annual Report. Submitted to the National Park Service.
• Shaw D. W. and A. M. Benson. 2000. Creamer’s Field Migration Station: 2000 Fall Report. Submitted to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Presentations

• Benson, A. M. and K. Winker. Timing of breeding range occupancy among high-latitude passerine migrants. Cooper Ornithological Society annual meeting. Riverside, CA. 4/00.
• Benson, A. M. and K. Winker. Timing of breeding range occupancy and patterns of fat storage among high-latitude passerine migrants. Alaska Bird Conference, Sitka, AK. 2/00.
• Benson, A. M. and K. Winker. Time-energy trade-offs among high-latitude passerine migrants. Western Bird Banding Association annual meeting, Fairbanks, AK. 9/00.
• Benson, A. M. and K. Winker. Time-energy trade-offs among high-latitude passerine migrants. Presentation for the ABO winter-seminar series, Fairbanks, AK. 12/00.
• Shaw, D. W. and A. M. Benson. Ladies first? Between-sex differences in the timing of autumn migration in five high-latitude migrant species. Western Bird Banding Association annual meeting, Fairbanks, AK. 9/00
• Swingley, A. B. S. The development and evolution of the Alaska Bird Camp. Alaska Bird Conference, Sitka, AK. 2/00.
• Swingley, A. B. S. Teaching materials available from the Alaska Bird Observatory. Boreal Partners in Flight Outreach and Education Workshop, Sitka, AK. 2/00.
• Swingley, A. B. S. The ABC’s of the Alaska Bird Camp. Boreal Partners in Flight Outreach and Education Workshop, Sitka, AK. 2/00.
• Swingley, A. B. S. Winter survival strategies of Alaskan birds. Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival, Homer, AK. 5/00
• Swingley, A. B. S. How to give a good bird banding presentation. Western Bird Banding Association annual meeting, Fairbanks, AK. 9/00.
• Swingley, A. B. S. Simple ways to capitalize on the growing interest in bird-watching. Alaska Travel Industry Association Convention, Fairbanks, AK. 10/00.

Plus a number of educational presentations about ABO to clubs and organizations in Fairbanks, Girdwood, North Pole, and Salcha.

2000 Alaska Bird Observatory Education Program

This was another exciting year for ABO’s education program. We offered an array of educational programs on songbirds, bird ecology, and conservation that attracted 3,500 participants in 2000. Additionally, some programs, such as our segments on public radio, reached more rural listeners than we could count. Our overall goal for 2000 was to continue combining science with education to encourage awareness, understanding, appreciation, and critical thinking about Alaskan bird ecology and conservation.

Our major accomplishments in 2000 included the following:

• We presented bird banding demonstrations that introduced the Alaska Bird Observatory, methods of songbird research, and conservation issues for 76 school, camp, adult, and youth groups (1,918 participants), and 428 independent visitors to the Creamer’s Field Migration Station. The independent visitors came from at least 27 states and 13 foreign countries. Visitors from late August through September enjoyed ABO’s new outdoor classroom, complete with benches and a demonstration table. We installed a new interpretive sign about migratory songbirds near the new education area.
• We successfully conducted the third year of our five-day Alaska Bird Camp for ten youth ages 10-12. From June 5 — 8, participants learned about bird identification and ecology, conducted research, explored careers in science, talked with resource professionals, and met other youth with similar interests. The camp was based at Creamer’s Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge and included field trips to various habitats.
• We trained one intern in environmental education methods during the 2000 field season. Anna Thaler conducted countless banding demonstrations, served as a counselor for the Alaska Bird Camp, assisted with the operation of the Creamer’s Field Migration Station, entered data, created a photographic essay about ABO, and developed a lesson to take into classrooms.
• We conducted a variety of different workshops, walks, and seminars for the Fairbanks North Star Borough community and visitors to Alaska. The 14 ABO-sponsored programs attracted 469 participants. The best attended programs were the February winter seminar, ABO annual meeting, the celebration of International Migratory Bird Day, the spring Basics of Birding workshop and walk, and the two winter bird feeding workshops.
• ABO was invited to present 20 programs to 627 people in 2000. Requests came from school teachers, tour operators, and other educators. Program topics included bird migration, birds of Alaska, winter survival strategies of Alaskan birds, and winter bird feeding. Many of these programs were presented away from Creamer’s Refuge in communities such as Salcha, North Pole, and Homer.
• We distributed the Boreal Forest Songbirds of Alaska teaching unit to 256 educators and 4,158 copies of the Alaska Songbird Activity Book to students and educators. The teaching materials are available to anyone interested through the ABO web site at http://www.alaskabird.org/bfsunit/index.html.
• During spring and fall migration, ABO was invited to record 13 segments about local birds that aired during Alaska Edition on KUAC-FM, a public radio station broadcast throughout Alaska.
• We produced a new brochure about birdwatching opportunities around Fairbanks. Nearly 1,800 copies of the brochure have been distributed since May 2000. We also published weekly birding reports in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and on our web site during spring migration.
• ABO received approximately 333 requests for information about various bird-related subjects via telephone calls, letters, or e-mail messages in 2000. This represents an increase of 21% (71 requests) over 1999. Many questions dealt with bird identification, bird sightings, bird behavior, and how to handle injured, dead, or baby birds. We received several requests for information about birding in the Fairbanks area and other parts of Alaska. The bulk of the requests came between April and October. Most information requests came from local bird-enthusiasts, but some came from places such as New York, Texas, California, Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, and Florida.

Major support for our education program was provided by: ABR, Inc. Environmental Research and Services; ACS; Alaska Conservation Foundation — Watchable Wildlife Conservation Trust; Alaska Department of Fish & Game; Alaska Feed Company; Alaska Fund for the Future; Alaska Tent & Tarp; Arctic Audubon Society; Beaver Sports; City of Fairbanks; Ducks Unlimited, Fairbanks Chapter; ExxonMobil; Friends of Creamer’s Field; GCI; Information Insights; Philips Alaska, Inc.; Skaggs Foundation; True North Foundation; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Williams Alaska Petroleum.

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Updated 01 Jan 03