Recorded Programs from 2021-2022
The Piedmont Bird Club conducts a program in conjunction with its monthly meeting. Programs feature local, state, and (sometimes) national experts speaking on a variety of topics relevant to birds and birding. Programs are open to the public. We encourage all interested persons to attend. Because of the pandemic, PBC's programs in 2021-22 were held via Zoom and recorded.
Thursday, November 18, 2021
Recorded Program – Saving Tanzania's vulturesThe PBC's second meeting of the season was held on November 18 through the Zoom online platform. Dr. Corinne Kendall, Curator of Conservation and Research at the North Carolina Zoo, has been involved in wildlife research and conservation with a focus on East Africa for fifteen years. She manages and supports several international conservation programs and oversees the zoo’s on-site research. Her current work includes research with vultures and giraffes in Tanzania and she is an active member of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group.
African vultures are undergoing rapid declines due primarily to poisoning. There are several motivations for poisonings; carcasses are laced with pesticides to kill predators which may have predated livestock, to kill vultures which may attract rangers to poached elephants, or to harvest vulture body parts. Since 2014, North Carolina Zoo has been monitoring vulture populations in southern Tanzania to understand status and trends. In addition, using satellite telemetry, the zoo has been able to assess connectivity between populations, habitat use, foraging ecology, and to identify hotspots for poisoning in an effort to better protect these important scavengers. Finally the zoo has been training rangers for faster and safer responses to poisoning events, which will more likely lead to arrests of perpetrators, and better ensure survival of any animals that are still alive. This program addressed why we should care about vultures as well as what the zoo is doing to protect them. Watch the recording by clicking here. Thursday, December 16, 2021Recorded Program – 2021 PBC Members Photo ShowIn this annual Holiday tradition, held via Zoom on December 16, Piedmont Bird Club members shared some of their favorite bird photos they have taken this year. It's always a treat to see what a talented group of photographers we have in the club.
Watch the recording by clicking here. Thursday, January 20, 2022Recorded Program – The Purple Martin, America's Favorite Bird
The PBC's January meeting of the season was held on January 20 through the Zoom online platform. Michael Bishop, founder and director of the Northern Virginia Purple Martin Initiative discussed the characteristics of Purple Martins and how to attract and provide nest houses for Purple Martin colonies. He also highlighted the work of the Northern Virginia Purple Martin Initiative, a grass roots effort to provide housing for Purple Martins and other native cavity-nesting birds at no cost on public lands. Founded in 2015, the Initiative has been successful in bolstering the numbers of selected cavity-nesting birds by installing housing in the proper habitat and monitoring by trained volunteers.
Watch the recording by clicking here. |
Thursday, February 10, 2022Recorded PBC/TGPAS Program – Know Your Nests
The PBC's February meeting of the season was a joint program hosted by the T. Gilbert Pearson Audubon Society, held on February 10 through the Zoom online platform. Curtis Smalling, Audubon North Carolina’s Director of Bird Conservation for North Carolina, provided an overview of bird nest identification, focusing on local species and those migrating through NC. Knowing some basics about nests can add to your enjoyment of birding and the birds in your neighborhood. This program introduced some of the various ways that birds have adapted to raising young and provided tips for identifying which bird might have built that nest you found.
Watch the recording on the TGPAS Facebook page by clicking here. Thursday, March 17, 2022Recorded Program – Birding Iceland: Land of Fire and IceThe PBC's March meeting of the season was held on March 17 through the Zoom online platform. In June, 2021, a group led by PBC member Dr. Lynn Mosely spent 10 days discovering the bird life of Iceland. Iceland is small volcanically-active island located on the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic Ocean just below the Arctic Circle. Its location gives it unique geographic and geologic features and makes it home to a great variety of birds. In addition to spotting many life birds, the group observed glaciers, geysers, and (at a distance) an erupting volcano. Dr. Moseley narrates this presentation, featuring photographs by Ann Van Sant, one of several PBC members on the trip.
Watch the recording by clicking here. Thursday, April 21, 2022Recorded Program – Recent Conservation in the Northwest Piedmont
The PBC's April meeting of the season was held on April 21. The meeting was in-person, with the content also streamed through the Zoom online platform. Ken Bridle, Stewardship Director for the Piedmont Land Conservancy, manages over 25,000 acres of land and more than 200 PLC projects. His presentation highlighted PLC properties and other protected areas open to the public across the Triad area and discussed how the PLC is helping people connect with nature through creation of trails and other activities.
Watch the recording by clicking here. |