This course will introduce students to field ornithology including identification of birds by sight and sound, ethical and animal care considerations for field studies and basic methods in field ornithology (optics, field guides, sound recording, digital photography, DNA sampling, banding, standard survey protocols, estimating numbers, classifying and recording bird behaviour, data acquisition and data archiving). The majority of the course time will be held in a variety of outdoor settings in the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area where students will see and hear numerous species of birds at an early stage in their spring migration.

Timed to coincide with the spring waterfowl migration and northward movement of raptors, students will have the opportunity to practice a sampling of field ornithology skills through direct observation and discussion with the instructors and other students. Bird observations made during the course will be submitted to the eBird database as an example citizen science platform for field studies.

The course schedule is as follows:

Mon April 3, 7-9pm

Tues April 4, 7am-5pm, with optional evening field trip to listen for owls.

Wed April 5, 6:30am-12pm

A course outline is available upon request. Email office@cmiae.org