PUBLIC AWARENESS, OUTREACH, AND EDUCATION
Resources
Awareness, outreach, and education are key components of successful conservation programs. Listed below is a very small sample of the many resources available for learning more about Partners In Flight, Neotropical migratory birds, conservation issues, and ways you can help wildlife. Visit local offices of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Conservation District, or Extension services, or visit your local Audubon chapter for more information.
·
Wyoming Game and Fish Department Stewardship
Packet for Birds in
·
International
Migratory Bird Day Organizer’s Packet (contact:
Partners In Flight, www.PartnersInFlight.org)
·
International
Migratory Bird Day Educator’s Packet (contact:
Partners In Flight, www.PartnersInFlight.org)
·
Songbird Blues Boxes (All regional WGFD offices and
·
Sod Box (contact: Tim Byer, USFS,
· Tree Trunks (contact your local U.S. Forest Service office for availability)
·
Wyoming
Bird Flashcards CD (contact: Audubon
· PIF home page: www.PartnersInFlight.org
· WY-PIF home page: www.sdvc.uwyo.edu/pif
·
Audubon Wyoming Centers (contact: Vicki Spencer, Audubon Wyoming Executive
Director,
·
·
The Nature Conservancy (contact: Dave Neary, TNC
Director,
·
Wyoming Game and Fish Department Whiskey
Mountain Conservation Camps (contact: WGFD Education Coordinator,
The following list of
key concepts for bird conservation should be communicated through education and
outreach programs. These concepts are
important to include in any program concerning conservation, and are
indispensable in programs focusing on birds and their habitats (California
Partners In Flight 2000).
·
Reproductive
success may be the most important factor influencing population health. It contributes directly to a population's size and viability in an
area. A number of factors influence
reproductive success, including predation, parasitism, nest site availability,
and food availability.
·
Nesting
habitat requirements vary among species.
Different bird
species place their nests in different locations, from directly on the ground
to the tops of trees. Most birds nest within 15 feet (5 m) of the ground. Managers should consider that habitat needs
for different species vary. Leave grass
and forbs greater than 6 inches (15 cm) in height for ground nesters; shrubs
and trees for low to mid-height nesters; dead trees and snags for
cavity-nesters; and old, tall trees for birds that build their nests in the
canopy.
·
The
breeding season is a short but vital period in birds' lives. Birds nest during the spring and early summer of each year and raise
their young in a rather short period.
Nestlings are particularly sensitive to changes in the environment and
are sensitive indicators of ecosystem health.
Disturbance, such as vegetation clearing, habitat restoration, and
recreation may result in nest abandonment, remove potential nest sites,
directly destroy nests, expose nests to predators, and decrease food sources
such as insects. Predators, such as
domestic cats, skunks, and jays, can decimate breeding populations, and
managers should avoid subsidizing their populations.
·
Understory
(the weedy, shrubby growth underneath trees) is crucial to many birds. A healthy and diverse understory with lots of ground cover offers
well-concealed nest and foraging sites.
Manicured parks and mowed lawns provide poor nesting conditions for all
but a few bird species.
·
Native
plants are important to birds. Native bird populations evolved with the
local vegetation, learning to forage upon and nest in certain species. Introduced plant species may not provide the
same nutrition or nest site quality.
Introduced plants can also quickly dominate an area, reducing the
diversity of vegetation. Less diverse
vegetation can lower the productivity and viability of a bird population.
·
Natural
predator-prey relationships are in balance, but human disturbance creates an
imbalanced system. Interactions with predators are a natural and
essential part of an ecosystem. However,
a preponderance of nonnative predators or a sustained surplus of natural
predators severely affects the health and persistence of bird populations. Feeding wildlife, especially foxes, raccoons,
and skunks, should be discouraged.
Feeders that are frequented by jays and crows and cowbirds should not be
maintained during the breeding season (most songbirds feed their young
insects). Domestic and feral cats are
responsible for an estimated 4.4 million birds killed each day by cats. It is not true that a well-fed cat will not
hunt! In fact, a healthy cat is a more
effective predator.
· Natural processes, such as flood and fire, are integral to a healthy ecosystem. They provide the natural disturbance needed in an area to keep the vegetative diversity high, an important factor for birds.