Common Spring and Summer Birds of Washington
Mondays, March 20th- April 17th, 2023
7:00 PM – 8:45 PM via Zoom
Eastside Audubon Society is excited to offer an online birding course, Common Spring and Summer Birds of Washington, taught by Dr. Thomas Bancroft. This course is perfect for helping you bird in Washington this spring and summer.
Common Spring and Summer Birds of Washington
Birding can be great fun but frustrating until you become familiar with the local birds and learn expert birders' skills. This course will kick-start your abilities. We will cover the best techniques to separate and narrow identification. Both beginner and intermediate birders will learn a lot and get a lot of practice. There will be self-assessment quizzes. Key characteristics will be reviewed, including shape, size, color patterns, behaviors, habitat, and sounds. We will cover about 120 common species found in Western Washington during the spring and summer, their identification, where they live, and a little about their songs and calls. As time allows, we will cover some of the species sought after on the Eastside of the Cascade Crest.
Learn to identify by sight birds that summer in your Washington neighborhood and learn a little about their ecology and breeding.
Look and learn identify species, looking at the best characteristics to consider in separating them. In addition, we will cover some calls and songs that may be helpful during the spring and summer.
Learn about various online resources that can help you find birding places in Washington. Local parks, national wildlife refuges, and waterfront areas provide outstanding birding.
Participants will gain an essential understanding of all the techniques that expert birders use to make their identification. As a result, you should have more confidence in knowing what to note so you can separate similar-looking species and how to narrow down the possibilities. The goal is to help you learn 120 species you might see during a trip to a local park, national wildlife refuge, or other good birding spots. In addition, we will cover the use of the Merlin App and Bird Books for identification and look at other birding resources that are available online.
DATES
Mondays: March 20, March 27th, April 3rd, April 10th, and April 17th, 2023
This course will be taught in five 90-100-minute sessions over zoom.
Classes will be recorded and watchable at a later date if you miss a course.
REQUIREMENTS
Participants will need a good internet connection and either a computer or tablet with a speaker and microphone. All lectures will be done using Zoom video conferencing software, which is free to download, and we will use all the protocols for security. To learn more about Zoom, click here or to download the application to your computer or tablet, click here. Students will receive information with the Zoom meeting invite a day or two before each class. We will use the security features in Zoom to avoid the problems being discussed in the media. Zoom offers many features that will allow for a great learning experience.
COURSE CANCELLATION POLICY
Cancellations made 14 days or more in advance of the starting date of the course will receive a 100% refund. Cancellations made within 7-13 days will incur a 20% fee. Cancellations made within 3-6 days will incur a 30% fee. Cancellations made within 48 hours to the start of the course are nonrefundable.
If you are unable to attend this course, you may transfer your registration to a friend. To cancel or transfer your registration to a friend, send an email to office@eastsideaudubon.org with the course name in the subject line.
REGISTRATION FEES
Class fees for current EAS Members is $100.00
Class fees for non-members is $125.00
Eastside Audubon offers a scholarship for someone who will benefit from this course and doesn’t have the means to participate otherwise. Please email our office for more info at office@eastsideaudubon.org
Instructor
Thomas Bancroft has been a birder all his life and has a Ph.D. in Ornithology. He has birded in 48 states, several Canadian provinces, and six continents. Tom has identified more than 560 species in the United States and slightly over 2,000 worldwide. Birds have been a big part of his life, both recreationally and professionally. Their identification, ecology, behavior, and systematics were central to his undergraduate and graduate schooling and remain a fundamental interest. Between undergraduate and graduate school, he worked in the bird laboratory at Carnegie Museums, analyzing bird banding data and helping with the banding program at Powdermill Nature Reserve. He studied Scrub-Jays, Blue Jays, and Boat-tailed Grackles in graduate school. While working for National Audubon, his fieldwork on wading birds and White-crowned Pigeons helped move the conservation agenda.
Before moving to Seattle, Thomas served as Chief Scientist for National Audubon, helping them integrate with the work of Birdlife International across the Americas. He is currently a science advisor to BirdNote. In addition, he volunteers for the Washington Ornithological Society. Tom helps teach the Introduction to the Natural World course for the Mountaineers and leads birding field trips for the Mountaineers and Washington Ornithological Society. He has been a member of Audubon since his teenage years.