Autumn migration is the first major challenge in the life cycle of migratory birds as young birds leave their nests and make their first flights to wintertime places where they have never been before. For our October #BigYearAtHome challenge we invite you to come together as a part of World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) to celebrate this phenomenon of migration around the world. In October, WMBD will take us to sites where our shared birds stop to rest and refuel and to the places where they breed. Join the WMBD community at BIRD DAY LIVE (www.birddaylive.com)!

Ottawa, Neal Smith and Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuges, as well as the La Crosse District of Upper Mississippi River National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, will be receiving funds for the Interior Great Lakes Region billion bird-friendly facility challenge.

In celebration of the August #BigYearAtHome challenge, #BirdingFromHome, we feature a fun article by Mike Green about his 2021 Green Big Year.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has announced the release of the Birds of Conservation Concern (BCC) report. The BCC list relies heavily on the Avian Conservation Assessment Databsae (ACAD) to help guide the conservation status of species, and ACAD would not have been possible without the dedicated work of the Partners in Flight network. Many thanks to those in the Partners in Flight network who worked on the ACAD and the BCC, ensuring linkages between the BCC list and PIF objectives. Here is some more details from the USFWS regarding his new BCC Report.

Through the Partners in Flight Awards, PIF has been recognizing outstanding individuals and groups for their exceptional contributions to the field of landbird conservation since 1996. The 2020 PIF Awards, sponsored by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, were presented on March 11, 2021 at the 86th North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference. The 2020 PIF Awards highlight exceptional talent and commitment to conservation. Click to learn more and to watch the 2020 PIF Awards Presentation.

People have come to the Partners in Flight network through different routes from different backgrounds. For PIF’s 30th anniversary year, we asked our partners to share their stories of becoming involved in PIF, and how their involvement has been beneficial. Please enjoy these rich Testimonials.

The endangered Least Bell’s Vireo was once common in San Diego and California’s Central Valley until habitat loss and other threats propelled their decline. Multiple efforts including riparian habitat restoration work by River Partners have helped California’s breeding population of Least Bell’s Vireos rebound from about 300 breeding pairs in 1986 to about 2,500 in 2004.

Studying a species that is poorly understood has many challenges, but it also brings opportunity; most importantly the opportunity to build a community from the ground up. Elegant yet enigmatic: we know little about nighthawks, and yet they are declining in many parts of their range. A new collaborative study in Ecography is a big step in the right direction for this species.

Researchers at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s Appalachian Laboratory, University of Delaware, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Colorado State University, Georgetown University, University of Massachusetts and Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center defined a new migration metric called the stopover-to-passage ratio (SPR). Using eight years of data from 12 weather surveillance radars, they found approximately half of the birds migrating through the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coasts of the southeastern U.S. stop within 100 km of its coastlines, totaling ~1.2 to 2.0 billion birds each spring and autumn. Further, the drivers of stopover habitat use differed between spring and autumn migration, suggesting seasonal differences in habitat function.

Recognizing the need for new perspectives to address the severe declines of North American birds, on October 28, 2020, the Western Working Group of Partners in Flight convened virtually to stimulate novel thinking around the Five Game Changers concept and to generate actionable ideas to make the Game Changers game-changing.