David Sibley generously donated this original painting of Hooded Grebes to Birders’ Exchange to help raise funds to save Hooded Grebes. Proceeds from the sale of this painting are being used to support researchers
Read more »]]> The Hooded Grebe is a species that is endemic to Argentina, and one that is listed as “Endangered” by BirdLife International.

David Sibley generously donated this original painting of Hooded Grebes to Birders’ Exchange to help raise funds to save Hooded Grebes. Proceeds from the sale of this painting are being used to support researchers in Argentina who are carrying out monitoring and conservation projects in an effort to save these beautiful and iconic birds of Patagonia. Fine art prints of the Hooded Grebes painting are available for sale; for more information please contact Betty Petersen: bpetersen@aba.org

There was no comprehensive data on the conservation status of Chestnut Bellied Hummingbird (Amazilia castaneiventris) and Colombian Mountain Grackle (Macroagelaius subalaris) in Soata, Colombia for the last 20 years. However, getting the sponsorship to conduct this task in a huge geographical area was a great problem. The support from the American Birding Association’s
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There was no comprehensive data on the conservation status of Chestnut Bellied Hummingbird (Amazilia castaneiventris) and Colombian Mountain Grackle (Macroagelaius subalaris) in Soata, Colombia for the last 20 years. However, getting the sponsorship to conduct this task in a huge geographical area was a great problem. The support from the American Birding Association’s Birders’ Exchange program made it possible for me to carry on my research to find these birds. I am hereby expressing my sincere thanks to the ABA for their great support to save this endangered species. I am very much grateful to all of them.

Courtenay Rooks,
Read more »]]> On behalf of Paria Springs Trust and the people of Brasso Seco, Paria, we thank you and your donors for your wonderful act of kindness. In this world where we are constantly bombarded by the negative it is so refreshing to have acts of kindness shine through as an example to the world.

Courtenay Rooks, Paria Springs Trust, Trinidad

It’s fascinating to watch grassroots conservation movements evolve in developing countries, where the local inhabitants generally tend to be more concerned with basic needs like getting enough to eat than with conservation of natural resources for future generations. The idea of conserving habitats and resources at a large scale seems to be
Read more »]]> by Scott Olmstead

It’s fascinating to watch grassroots conservation movements evolve in developing countries, where the local inhabitants generally tend to be more concerned with basic needs like getting enough to eat than with conservation of natural resources for future generations. The idea of conserving habitats and resources at a large scale seems to be easier to grasp, accept, and especially prioritize if you’re not worried about your day-to-to day existence. But what if getting your daily bread actually depends on the existence of wild creatures, and not just for eating but for showing, alive, to other people? Suddenly conservation is not such an abstract concept.

Let’s look at an example of how ecotourism can encourage conservation and how Birders’ Exchange, a humble ABA program, can support all of the above. Birding tourism is well developed in Ecuador compared to most Latin American countries, and for many local operators it is viewed as an important way to make a living. I have found in my experience that most guides, lodge operators, and other professionals that rely on birding tourism for business quickly come to recognize the need to conserve the wild habitats that support the spectacular birds that visitors seek. It’s kind of a no-brainer: no habitat means no birds, and no birds will inevitably lead to no birders, which will leave the operator with no income.

Long-wattled Umbrellabird

It is exciting for me every time I encounter Ecuadorians who are just making this connection for themselves. They’re not becoming conservationists because they read about the need for conservation online, or heard a passionate presentation on the topic at school. They’re becoming conservationists through direct personal experience!

So to me it is logical that one way to further an agenda of conservation in developing countries like Ecuador is to encourage more people to become involved with birding – and wildlife observation in general – on an economic level. (I’d also like to see more Latin Americans involved with birding on a recreational level, but that’s another discussion.) While I was in Ecuador this summer I got to see this concept in progress.

In early July I finally visited a site that has been on my radar for a couple of years: Recinto 23 de Junio, a small village in the northwest that has already been profiled in several posts on the blog 10,000 Birds. 23 de Junio is famous for its healthy population of the bizarrely spectacular and enigmatically rare Long-wattled Umbrellabird, a species endemic to the wet Chocó bioregion of northwest Ecuador and southwest Colombia. I’ll let you read what others have already written about the origins of Recinto 23 de Junio on 10,000 Birds, but what I found was a local campesino, Luis Ajilla, who is experimenting with a new way of making a living that relies on maintaining the natural environment that surrounds his village rather than modifying or destroying it.

Orange-breasted Fruit-eater

I arrived at 23 de Junio the way the locals do, riding the chiva from nearby San Miguel de los Bancos. (Think of a truck chassis with a wooden bus “cabin” fitted onto the back where a cargo bed might be more appropriate.) I stayed the night at Luis’ modest cabaña that he and his son Luis Jr. have constructed so independent birders can spend the night and they don’t have to drive an hour or more from wherever they might otherwise stay. The water wasn’t working properly during my visit (small detail!) but the cabin was clean and comfortable and I had no trouble sleeping in the peaceful setting. And I spent a whole day exploring the forest patches about the village with Luis. He showed me the lek site at the edge of a pasture where the male umbrellabirds gather at dawn to perform their strange mooing serenades that give them their Spanish name: el pájaro toro. He showed me his own forest patch farther up the mountain where we found more umbrellabirds, as well as other rarities such as Orange-breasted Fruiteaters and Black Solitaires. The terrain was steep and rugged, the forest was steamy, and the trails were poorly defined. I loved it!

You probably don’t remember me, but I am one of the hundreds of people you help in the Neotropics. I still have my BEX donated binoculars, which are in great shape! Since we first met (about 10 years ago), I started and defended my PhD at the Louisiana State University, and I am
Read more »]]> Dear Betty,

You probably don’t remember me, but I am one of the hundreds of people you help  in the Neotropics. I still have my BEX donated binoculars, which are in great shape! Since we first met (about 10 years ago), I started and defended my PhD at the Louisiana State University, and I am currently a post doc at the Universidade Federal de Roraima, in northern Brazil.

I appreciate and congratulate you for the amazing job you have done over the decades!!!!!

Yours sincerely,

Luciano

–

Luciano Nicolas Naka

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Centro de Estudos da Biodiversidade

Universidade Federal de Roraima (UFRR)

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Research Associate

Museum of Natural Science

Louisiana State University

Here are some pictures of our local guides using the binoculars interacting with tourists at Volcan Mombacho Natural Reserve.

We thank you for your support!!!

aludos.

Jose

Jose M. Zolotoff-Pallais Asesor Cientifico FUNDACION COCIBOLCA Managua, Nicaragua www.mombacho.org