In September 2006, Craig Thompson, chair of the International Committee of the Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative and a regional land program supervisor for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, flew to Ecuador with 11 other birders on a trip they dubbed the “Jocotoco Birdathon.” They had two goals: to see fabulous tropical birds, including the Jocotoco Antpitta, a black-capped songbird discovered in 1997 by renowned ornithologist Robert Ridgely, and to raise money that would be used to conserve land in Ecuador critical to birds.
Tropical Birding, a Quito-based tour service, ran the tour, and the American Bird Conservancy (ABC) co-sponsored it. During their eight-day stay, the birders tallied 385 species, including the antpitta (see it in this video), and they raised $14,000 for the Jocotoco Foundation, which protects eight reserves throughout Ecuador. Thompson described the trip in a fantastic article that we published in our June 2008 issue. (Subscribers can read it online.) The opening pages are shown below.
Now a new website has been launched that will enable birders everywhere to do what Thompson and his crew did: Plan a birding trip and support bird conservation at the same time. It even highlights the places the Wisconsin birders visited.
The site, ConservationBirding.org, is sponsored by ABC and partner organizations in Peru, Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador, including the Jocotoco Foundation.
It is designed to help visitors plan their birding trips to help conservation by presenting detailed information on the reserves and ecolodges established by the conservation groups. It also lets users see reserves and ecolodges via Google Earth, presenting suggested routes, photographs of lodges and birds, and videos of rare and interesting species, such as the stunning Yellow-scarfed Tanager pictured above and the Rainbow Starfrontlet shown below.
The site offers suggested birding routes, such as the Santa Marta Route in Colombia, which covers “the most endemic-packed site in Colombia.” Exhibit A: The Santa Marta Screech-Owl was discovered at the El Dorado Bird Reserve, in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range in February 2007. Or you could plan a trip through central Peru, where you can look for the Yellow-scarfed Tanager and the endangered endemic Long-whiskered Owlet.
“We really think this is going to be a hit in the birding community,” says Bob Johns, ABC's public relations director. “Our plans are to grow the website substantially as time, dollars, and user input permit.”
That growth will include highlighting more routes and reserves. Mike Parr, vice president of ABC, says the site may eventually include birding destinations outside the Americas. Organizers also want birders to contribute photos, videos, and suggested routes.
“International birding travel is already popular, and we want more birders to know that their pastime can actually contribute to saving the species they love,” says Parr. “Visiting birders can provide a source of direct financial support to the reserves, helping them become self-sufficient and sustainable in the long-term.”
That's a goal we can all support. --Matt Mendenhall, Associate Editor
Photos: Yellow-scarfed Tanager by ProAves. Rainbow Starfrontlet photographed at the Utuana reserve in Ecuador by Dan Lebbin.
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