Central Valley Birding Symposium Schedule of Events

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Thursday,November16th5:30AM—5:00PM BirdingwithJonDunnFieldTrip3:00PM—9:00PM RegistrationbeginsattheStocktonHiltonHotel6:00PM—7:00PM SocialHour—HorsD’oeuvres/NoHostBar7:00PM—7:30PM Introduction—DavidYee7:30PM—9:00PM KeynoteSpeaker—EdHarper

WingsovertheCentralValley

Friday,November17th5:30AM—2:30PM FieldTrips:Bufferlands,ColusaNWR,CosumnesRiverPreserve,EasternStanislausCo.,Merced

Refuges,MickeGroveRegionalPark,PardeeReservoirEagleBoat trip,RiponOakPark&WTP,SaltSpringValleyReservoir,SanJoaquinNWR,SESolanoCounty,StatenIsland&DeltaMeadowsSP,SutterButtes,W.AmadorandYoloCo.

5:30AM—2:30PM BirdingwithJonDunnFieldTrip7:00AM—2:30PM Nature/WildlifePhotographyFT—BobSteele

3:30PM—5:30PM BirdIdentificationPanel—ModeratedbyEdHarper6:00PM—7:30PM DinnerattheStocktonHiltonHotel7:45PM—9:00PM KeynoteProgram—DawnGarcia

BankSwallowColoniesontheUpperSacramentoRiver-TheirBiologyandConserva)on

Saturday,November18th

6:30AM—10:30AM LocalFieldTrips:CaswellMemorialStatePark,CosumnesRiverPreserve,Flood&WaverlyRds.,LodiLakeWildernessArea,WhiteSloughWaterPollutionPlant,MokelumneDayUseArea,RiponWTP,StocktonRuralCemetery,WoodbridgeRd.,andWoodbridgeWildernessArea.

7:00AM—11:00AM IntroductiontoImageEditingWorkshop—BobSteele8:00AM—10:00AM BirdSketchingWorkshop—KeithHansen11:00AM—12:15PM Presenters—DanAirolaandothers

UpdateonCentralValleyBirdConserva3onandResearchPrograms11:00AM—12:15PM BeginningBirding—SalSalerno12:30PM—2:15PM Lunch&CVBCMeeting2:15PM—4:15PM BeginningBirdingFieldTrip—SalSalerno2:30PM—3:45PM Presenter—LynneTrulio

WinteringBurrowingOwlsintheCentralValley4:00PM—5:00PM Presenter—ChristySherr

TheSurprisingBenefitsofBeetlesandFire-WildlifeNurseries5:00PM—6:00PM Wine&CheeseReception/BookSigning6:00PM—7:30PM DinnerattheStocktonHiltonHotel

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7:45PM—9:00PM KeynoteSpeaker—NoahStrycker

BirdingWithoutBorders:AnEpicWorldBigYear

Sunday,November19th

8:00AM—12:00PM CarvingSeminar(Beginners)—JimBurcioandBobSolari8:00AM—9:30AM Presenter—JoeMorlan

NeotropicMigrants9:45AM—11:15AM Presenter—JonDunn

WinterWaterfowlintheCentralValley11:45AM—3:45PM Local Field Trips: Bufferlands, Caswell Memorial State Park, Cli$on Court Forebay, Cosumnes

RiverPreserve,Flood/WaverlyRds.,HeritageOakWinery,LangeTwinsFamilyWinery,LodiLakeWildernessArea,White SloughWater Pollution Plant,Mokelumne Day Use Area, RiponWTP,StocktonRuralCemetery,WoodbridgeRdandWoodbridgeWildernessArea.

PROGRAM,WORKSHOP,ANDSPEAKERPROFILESAllworkshopsandprogramsareheldattheStocktonHiltonHotel.Itishighlyrecommendedthatyoubringyourbinocularstoallprogramsandworkshops.

Thursday,November16th6:00PM—7:00PM SocialHour—HorsD’oeuvres/NoHostBar

Please come and help us kick off this year’s CVBS! Comemeet the CVBS board & staff members! Reconnect with oldfriends!Meetnewones!TakeadvantageofthescrumptiousHorsD’oeuvresbuffet&NoHostBar!

7:00PM—7:30PM Introduction—DavidYee

During this timewewill coverFriday’s field tripsandmakeany special announcementsandadditions/or changes to theSymposiumschedule.

7:30PM—9:00PM KeynoteProgram—EdHarper

WingsovertheCentralValleyEdwillbepresen-ngavisualdisplayofbirdsinflightseenintheCentralValley,focusingontheirnaturalhistory.Status,distribu(on,seasonality,andiden(fica(onaidswillbediscussedasweviewEd’sphotos.We’llgetachancetoseeraptorssoaring above as well as one-!me special!es in the CV that include Marsh Sandpiper, Vermillion Flycatcher, FulvousWhistlingDuck,andLong-tailedJaeger.

Anesteemedphotographerandpresenter,EdHarperwasalong-!meeducatorbeforetakingupbirdphotography.Heandhiswifesplittheir,mebetweenSacramentoandMontana.EdhaslongdirectedtheBirdIDworkshopsattheSymposiumandatWFOmee+ngs.

Friday,November17th

3:30PM—5:30PM BirdIdentificationPanel—EdHarper

Thisprogramhasbecomeanannualfavorite.Whatbetterwaytolearnaboutthefinerpointsofbirdidentificationthanbylisteningtotheexpertsgothroughtheprocess!OurillustriouspanelwillincludeSteveHowell,JonDunn,KeithHansenand

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others. They will be presented with photos of difficult-to-identify bird groups (such as golden-plovers, winter plumageducks,femalegoldeneyes,etc.),theneachwillmentionwhatfeaturestheyusetoaidinclinchinganID.

7:45PM—9:00PM KeynoteProgram—DawnGarcia

BankSwallowColoniesontheUpperSacramentoRiver-theirbiologyandconserva2onTheBankSwallowisprimarilyariparianspeciesthroughoutitsNorthAmericanandEurasianbreedingrange.Oncelocallyabundant in suitable habitats, numbers havedeclined statewide in recent years. It is now absent as a breeding bird insouthernCalifornia.ADepartmentofFishandWildlifestudyofthestatewidepopula9onofBankSwallowsin1987foundthat thecurrentpopula-oncenter for thespecies isalong theSacramentoandFeatherRivers in theSacramentoValley.Otherconcentra+onareas includetheKlamathBasinandModocCountyareas innortheasternCalifornia.MosthistoricalrecordsofBankSwallownes0ng colonieswere fromcentral and southernCalifornia,wherepopula.onsno longerexist.During 1987, only four colonies were found south of San Francisco Bay. The Sacramento River and Feather Riverpopula&onscompriseabout64percentofthecoloniesand70-90%oftheCaliforniapopula2on.

TheBankSwallowTechnicalAdvisoryCommi4ee,agroupofState,Federal,andlocalprivateinterests,isleadingtheeffortto coordinate research and monitoring, habitat restora1on and management, and outreach and educa1on. Dawn willdiscuss the ecology and monitoring of Bank Swallows in the Upper Sacramento watershed, as well as local efforts inrestora'onandmanagement.

Dawn Garcia is an avid birder and professional avian ecologist. She acquired herMS at Chico State conduc9ng qualityassurance of 22 years of Bank Swallow (BANS,Riparia riparia) survey data on the SacramentoRiver from1986 through2008. She represents Altacal Audubon Society as a member of the Bank Swallow Bank Swallow Technical AdvisoryCommi%ee,whosegoalistorecovertheSacramentoRiverpopula8onofBANS.Dawnhasco-authoredaBANSpublica3onintheCVBCjournal(2008)andhascontributedtoasecondmanuscriptcurrentlyinreview.

Saturday,November18th

7:00AM—11:00PM Presenter—BobSteele

IntroductiontoImageEditingWorkshopJoinprofessionalbirdphotographerBobSteeleasweexploredigitalphotoeditinginPhotoshop,PhotoshopElements,andLightroom.Topicsdiscussedanddemonstratedwill include:imagestorageandbackupstrategies,convertingRAWimagesusingAdobeCameraRAW(PSandPSEplug-in),basicimageeditingforJPEGandTIFFimages,sizingandsharpeningimagesfordifferentoutputs—email,internet,printing—andagroupdiscussionwithquestionsandanswers.

BobSteelehasbeen involved inbirdingandbirdphotography forover20years.He lives in thebird-richCaliforniaKernCounty,which is centrally locatedat the convergenceofmultiplebio-regions, givinghim theopportunity tophotographmanyaviansubjects.Workshopfee—$25.

8:00AM—10:00AM Presenter—KeithHansen

BirdSketchingWorkshopHaveyoueverobservedabirdandjustwishedyoucouldsitdownandbegintodrawitonpaper,butdidn’tknowwheretostart?Well,here’sachancetolearnhowsojoinKeithHanseninthisBirdSketchingworkshop.

KeithHansenisaprofessionalbirdar.stwhoillustratedDiscoveringSierraBirds,Distribu4onalChecklistofNorthAmericanBirds,BirdsofYosemiteandtheEastSlope,CaliforniaWildLands:AGuidetotheNatureConservancyPreserves,andTheNaturalHistoryofthePointReyesPeninsula,amongmanyotherbooks.BirdsoftheSierraNevada:TheirNaturalHistory,Status,andDistribu-on,authoredbyEdwardBeedy&EdwardPandolfino,wasillustratedbyKeith.

11:00AM—12:15PM Presenters—DanAirolaandothers

UpdateonCentralValleyBirdConserva3onandResearchPrograms

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Joinlocalresearcherswhowillpresentup-to-dateresultsonstudiesofCentralValleybirds.Five15-minutepresenta,ons,chosenbyBulle-neditorDanAirola,willcatchusuponthelatestinCentralValleybirdstudies.

• TricoloredBlackbirdUpdate(Statewidesurveyresults,2017agcolonyprotec+onresults,2017foothillsurvey)—

DanAirolaandpossiblyBobMeese,SamanthaArthur

• WinteringBirdsofPutahCreekRiparianHabitat—AndyEngilis

• BurrowingOwlBreedingStatusUpdate—ChrisConard

• PutahCreekBluebirdNestBoxProgram—MelanieTruan

• CVSwainson'sHawkMigra1onPa3ernsandWinteringAreasRevealed—DanAirola,JimEstep

DanAirolaistheEditorandfrequentcontributortotheCentralValleyBirdClubBulletin.In2014and2015,hecoordinatedavolunteerbasedstudytounderstandtheTricoloredBlackbird’sbreedingpopulationstatus,ecology,andconservationstatusinthegrasslandregionofthelowerSierraNevadafoothills.

11:00AM—12:15PM Presenter—SalSalerno

BeginningBirdingClassThisworkshopwillcoverthebasics:howtochooseanduseopticsandfieldguides,whenandwheretobird,andthefirststepstowardidentifyingabird.SalispresidentofStanislausAudubonSocietyandeditorof“TheBirdingSitesofStanislausandMercedCounties.”SalhasbeenteachinganEarlyBirdersclassatModestoJuniorCollegesince2008,andhewritesamonthlycolumnonbirdsandbirdersforValleyHabitat.

12:30PM—2:15PM Lunch&CVBCmeetingTheCVBSservesastheannualmeetingoftheCentralValleyBirdClub.Wewillconductabriefmeetingtogivemembers(ifyouattendtheSymposium,youareanautomaticmember)anupdateontheclub,andtotakecareofanybusinessthatrequires theapproval by themembership. This is alsowhenwewill conduct theever-popular rafflewheremanyof thevendorsandartistsdonatewonderfulitemsandworkstosupporttheClub.

2:15PM—4:15PM Presenter—SalSalerno

BeginningBirdingFieldTripThisfieldtripwillemploymanyoftheprinciplesthatSalcoveredinthemorningworkshop.HewillvisitOakGroveRegionalParkinnorthStockton,wherewinteringbirdsabound.Bringbinoculars,afieldguideandnotebook.

2:30PM—3:45PM Presenter—LynneTrulio

WinteringBurrowingOwlsintheCentralValleyDr.TruliowilldiscusstheecologyanddistributionofburrowingowlsinCalifornia,aspeciesofSpecialConcerninthestate.Although the species is not listed as State or Federally threatened or endangered, studies by the Institute for BirdPopulationsshowedthattheirnumbershavedeclinedsignificantlyinpartsofCaliforniainthelast35years.Dr.Truliowillalsopresentherongoingworkontheecologyandmigratorybehaviorofwinteringburrowingowls inSantaClaraValley,whereshedoesmuchofherresearch,andwillconsiderwhatthesefindingsmightmeanforbirdsstatewide.

Lynne Trulio joined theDepartment of Environmental Studies at San José StateUniversity in 1991. She is currently theDepartmentChair.Dr.Trulioconductsresearchinvestigatinghumanimpactstospeciesandhabitatsinurbansettingsandseekseffectivemethods tomitigateoreliminate those impacts. Specific researchwithcolleaguesandgraduate studentsincludesstudiesoftheecologyandrecoveryofthewesternburrowingowl(Athenecunicularia)inCalifornia,theeffectsofrecreationonwildlife,andtidalsaltmarshrestorationintheSanFranciscoBay.ShereceivedherPh.D.inEcologyfromUCDavisandherundergraduatedegreeinBiologyfromGoucherCollege,MD.

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4:00PM—5:00PM Presenter—ChristySherr

TheSurprisingBenefitsofBeetlesandFire-WildlifeNurseriesMixedintensityfiresandna)vebeetlescreatesomeofthemostproduc)veandcri)calhabitatsforCaliforniabirdsandwildlife,comparableorbe0erthanevenlate-successionor"oldgrowth"forest.Large,densepatchesofstandingdeadtreesarepreferredbyahostofplants,insects,mammals,andbirds,includingevenmanyofourmostthreatenedandendangeredspeciessuchasspo/edowlsandpacificfishers.Comeexploretheuniquebeautyofthisextremelyimportanthabitatandfindoutwhysomanywildlifespeciesbenefitfromcondi/onscreatedbybeetlesandfire.ChristySherrisare,redNa,onalandStateParkRanger,currentlyworkingasafieldbiologistandEduca,onCoordinatorfortheJohnMuirProjectoftheEarthIslandIns6tute.SheisapastpresidentoftheSierraFoothillsAudubonChapter,andwatchedherelevenyearolddaughterbecameabirderinaburnedforest!

5:00PM—6:00PM Wine&CheeseReception,BookSigning

Thisisatimetovisitandhavefunwithoneanother.Manyofourspeakershaveauthoredbooksthatmaybeinyourlibrary,soremembertobringyoursifyouwantitsigned.Somebookswillbeavailableforpurchase.

7:45PM—9:00PM KeynoteProgram—NoahStrycker

BirdingWithoutBorders:AnEpicWorldBigYearIn2015,birdnerdNoahStryckerofOregonbecamethefirsthumantoseemorethanhalfoftheplanet’sbirdspeciesinasingle,year-long, round-the-worldbirding trip.Anythingcouldhavehappened,anda lotdid.Hewasscourgedbyblood-suckingleeches,sufferedfeversandsleepdepriva0on,survivedairlinesnafusandcarbreakdowns,mudslidesandtorren0alfloods, skirtedwarzones,andhadthe1meofhis life.Birdingonsevencon1nentsandcarryingonlyapackonhisback,Strycker enlisted the enthusias(c support of local birders to (ckmore than 6,000 species, including Adelie Penguins inAntarc'ca,aHarpyEagleinBrazil,aSpoon-billedSandpiperinThailand,andaGreen-breastedPi+ainUganda.Hesharedtheadventureinreal-meonhisdailyblog,andnowherevealstheinsidestory.Thishumorousandinspiringpresenta7onaboutStrycker’sepicWorldBigYearwillgiveyouarealapprecia9onforthebirdsandbirdersoftheworld.

Noah Stryckeris a 31-year-oldwriter, photographer, andbirdmanbasednear Eugene,Oregon. In 2015, during a questspanning41countriesandallsevencon3nents,hesetaworldrecordbyseeing6,042speciesofbirds(morethanhalfthebirdsonEarth)inonecalendaryear.

Hehaswri*entwowell-receivedbooks:TheThingwithFeathers(2014),abouttherela2onshipsbetweenbirdandhumanbehavior,andAmongPenguins(2011),describingasummerinanAntarc6cfieldcamp.HisbookBirdingWithoutBorders,about his around-the-worldBig Year, is dueout in fall 2017.Noah is Associate Editor of Birdingmagazine and regularlywritesforAudubonandotherpublica4ons.Heisapopularcommentatoronbirds,havinggivenhundredsofpresenta.onsfornaturalhistorygroups,fes2vals,universi2es,andconven2ons.

Asanon-boardornithologist forexpedi2onstoAntarc2caandthehighArc2c,NoahhastraveledtoEarth’spolarregionsmore than 20 ,mes and is an expert on the birds of high la0tudes. He has also worked on field research projects inAmazonian Ecuador, Costa Rica, Panama, the Australian Kimberley, the Farallon Islands, Hawaii, Michigan, Florida, andMaine.

Noah graduated on academic scholarship fromOregon StateUniversity in 2008with a degree in Fisheries andWildlife,minoringinFineArts.HewasnamedtheAmericanBirdingAssocia5on’s“YoungBirderoftheYear”in2004.

He isalsoacompe,,ve tennisplayerandcaptained theOregonState teamat#1 singles. In thesummerof2011,Noahhikedtheen)re2,665-milePacificCrestTrail fromMexico toCanada,averagingabout22milesperday for fourmonthsstraight.

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Sunday,November19th

8:00AM—12:00PM Presenters—JimBurcioandBobSolari

CarvingSeminarforBeginnersJoin master carvers from the Pacific Flyway Decoy Association for a four-hour carving seminar. All of the necessarymaterials,includingastudyguideandthebestknivesonthemarket,willbeprovidedforthisseminar.Shortlectureswithlotsofhands-oncarvingwillenableyoutocompleteafeedingDunlin.Topicsincludewheretogetyoursupplies,howtousereferencematerial,woodselection,andhowtousehandtoolsandpowertools.Thereisa$25feeformaterials.Thepriceincludesaone-yearmembershipinthePacificFlywayDecoyAssociationandaclubdirectory,soyou’llknowwhoiscarvinginyourarea.Mustbefifteenyearsoldorolder.Pre-registrationnecessary.

8:00AM—9:30AM Presenter—JoeMorlan

NeotropicMigrantsThis presenta,on will focus primarily on species that breed in California butmigrate long distances toMexico, CentralAmericaandSouthAmericaforthewinter.Thecostsandbenefitsofmigra3onwillbediscussedaswellastheoriesabouttheevolu)onofmigra*onandvariousmigra*onstrategies.Wewillspeculateontheroleofclimatechangeinthebehaviorofthesemigratoryspecies,manyofwhicharedecliningbecauseoflossofhabitatontheirwinteringgrounds.Pleasejoinusforwhatpromisestobeanentertainingandinforma/vepresenta/on.

JoeMorlanhastaughtOrnithologyatCityCollegeofSanFranciscoformanyyears,andiscoauthorof"BirdsofSanFranciscoandtheBayArea"and"BirdsofNorthernCalifornia."Heisalsocoordinatoroftherecorded"NorthernCaliforniaBirdbox,"pastchairoftheCaliforniaBirdRecordsCommi8ee,andwinnerofthe2010LudlowGriscomAwardforcontribu)onstoregionalornithology.HelivesinPacifica.

9:45AM—11:15AM Presenter—JonDunn

WinterWaterfowlintheCentralValleyJonwilldiscussthestatusandiden0fica0onoftheabundantwaterfowlwinteringintheCentralValley.

JonDunnhaslivedmuchofhislifeinCalifornia,wherehebecameabirderatageeight,aneventtriggered,hesays,bythelife-alteringappearanceofabrightmaleHoodedOrioleinhisgarden.JonhasextensiveknowledgeoftheidentificationanddistributionofNorthAmericanbirds,andhaspublishednumerouspapers inawidevarietyof journals.Hehasalso longbeen interested in Asianavifaunas. Jon has been Chief Consultant/Editor for all six editions of theNational GeographicSociety’sFieldGuidetotheBirdsofNorthAmerica,themostrecentpublishedin2011.Heistheco-writerandhostofthetwo-video set Large and Small Gulls of North America, as well as co-author (with Kimball Garrett) ofBirds of SouthernCalifornia: Status and Distribution and the Peterson Field Guide to Warblers. Jon is a member of the Committee onClassificationandNomenclatureoftheAmericanOrnithologists’UnionandtheABAChecklistCommittee,andhasservedmore than 20 years on the California Bird Records Committee. In 2012, Jonwas the recipient of the ABA’s Roger ToryPeterson Award, given for a lifetime of achievements in promoting the cause of birding. Beyond birds, Jon has a keeninterestinpolitics,history,andthecinema.