The birds are already winging their way up here!
Male Bobolink surveying his territory
Photo: Aiesha Aggarwal
Spring migration is happening! Many birds are already back, or continuing on northwards into the boreal and arctic regions. Currently we may be getting the first of our three target species, Eastern Meadowlark, Bobolink, and Barn Swallows.

The first to arrive are either still on the move, or are beginning their preparation for establishing a territory and nest. If you are not that familiar with these species now is a great time to brush up on your ID and then keep an eye (and ear) out for them over the next month or so. This way you will be ready to conduct your point counts when the survey season starts on May 24th.

I will be putting together maps of the area to cover and I will send those once they are ready. They will likely cover the same area as you had before. I am hoping that for this year you could go out twice, once early (late May, early June) and once near the end of the survey season (Early July). This way we will be able to see whether the birds were able to stay and breed successfully in those locations. It would be good to note if any of these sites were mowed by the time you returned for the second visit.

Now is a great time to read over your monitoring manual as a refresher before the birds arrive back from their wintering grounds.
These bar charts show show when each species has been found in Simcoe County over the years, it won't be long before they are all back!
Images: eBird
Training:
In the field and online
In The Field Training
(Well, in this case, next to the field)
We have two outdoor training sessions for the grassland bird monitors. They are both the same, so you just need to register for the date that works best for you.

We will be meeting at the Bluebird Ranch parking lot. We will do some test point counts along Wylie Road, this should give us plenty of opportunity to see all three species and hear their songs.
Female Bobolink among the grasses. Remember that the females do not perch as obviously and blend in better with their environment, so are more easily overlooked during surveys.

Photo: Dave Hawke
Online Training
We have created some online training, for many of the community science programs. Currently I have not put one together for grassland birds but I am hoping to get an ID quiz made soon. I would encourage everyone to get signed up with the app and I will let you know when the grassland bird ID course is available.

This will be self directed learning with photos, audio, and quizzes to get you thinking about the upcoming survey season! You can sign up for EdApp by clicking here. Make sure to sign up to EdApp with this link, otherwise you will not be able to see any of our training content.

As a Grassland Bird Monitor you will be looking for the Grassland Bird Surveys course once it is available.

Feel free to also sign up for one of our 'drop-in' training sessions at the office. We can help if you would like assistance signing up for EdApp, or if you would like to do the training at the office with staff available for any questions you might have. You can sign up for one of those sessions through eventbrite by clicking here.
Assistance in the field
If you would like some help conducting a survey then I can arrange to join you for one of your visits. If you let me know then we can schedule it in.


If you are running into any issues, have questions, or would like some feedback then feel free to get in touch.
Our three target species
If you are not already familiar with our three target species then I would encourage you to look at their All About Birds pages below. Make sure to read the descriptions, look at the photos, and especially listen to their songs by going to the 'sounds' tab.
Eastern Meadowlark Identification, All About Birds,...

The sweet, lazy whistles of Eastern Meadowlarks waft over summer grasslands and farms in eastern North America. The birds themselves sing from fenceposts and telephone lines or stalk through the grasses, probing the ground for insects with their...

Read more
www.allaboutbirds.org
Barn Swallow Identification, All About Birds, Cornell...

Glistening cobalt blue above and tawny below, Barn Swallows dart gracefully over fields, barnyards, and open water in search of flying insect prey. Look for the long, deeply forked tail that streams out behind this agile flyer and sets it apart...

Read more
www.allaboutbirds.org
Bobolink Identification, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of ...

Perched on a grass stem or displaying in flight over a field, breeding male Bobolinks are striking. No other North American bird has a white back and black underparts (some have described this look as wearing a tuxedo backwards). Added to this...

Read more
www.allaboutbirds.org
Things to remember:

  • The Grassland Bird Survey Monitoring Program Manual

  • Monitoring Forms

  • Binoculars


If you don't have a copy of the manual then contact Toby at toby@couchconservacy.ca.
A Barn Swallow flitting around looking for insects. Remember to look for the distinct forked tail as a key ID feature.
Photo: Toby Rowland
What to do if you find wildlife on the road?
I am Toby Rowland, the Conservation Biologist at The Couchiching Conservancy. If you have questions about Community Science, Species At Risk, or wildlife in general then feel free to get in touch.

Work hours: 9:00am-5:00pm
Phone: (705) 559-5278
You are receiving this email because you are a Grassland Bird Monitor with The Couchiching Conservancy. Please let us know if things have changed and you can longer volunteer, or do not wish to receive these emails. 
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