Biodiversity Research Institute

A good opportunity to get your questions answered!

Calling all sea duck hunters! Send us your questions about sea duck biology, ecology, conservation, and management!

The 8th International Sea Duck Conference is bringing together sea duck experts from across North America this November. They want to answer YOUR sea duck-related questions at the conference!

Email your questions to [email protected] by November 1 to participate. The Sea Duck Joint Venture will share out the answers this winter.

Learn about the Sea Duck Joint Venture 🔗 seaduckjv.org

Learn about the Sea Duck Conference 🔗 seaduckconference.org

New research is helping identify where conservation efforts could have the greatest benefit for highly mobile seabirds across the Atlantic Ocean! 🌊

Countries are committed to expanding the network of Marine Protected Areas by 30%, increasing protections for seabirds and boosting biodiversity. 🌎

Scientists compiled tracking (movement) data from more than 13,000 individual birds across 44 highly mobile Atlantic seabird species. 📊 The researchers mapped seabird distributions throughout the year to identify important regions in both national waters and the High Seas.

⭐️ This massive study is the first to map the ocean-basin distribution of Atlantic seabirds! BRI’s Dr. Iain Stenhouse is among the many researchers who contributed data and expertise to this large international collaboration.

🔗 Read the full paper in Conservation Letters: https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/con4.70075

Secure your perch for the final Maine Bird Atlas presentation!

We’re celebrating the historic culmination of the Atlas, and the countless volunteers and partners who made it possible, with the final Maine Bird Atlas presentation. Come discover where Maine birds are today, and where conservation is heading tomorrow.

📅 This Wednesday, September 16 at 7pm
🖥️ Free online presentation
🐦 Register: maineaudubon.org/events/maine-bird-atlas-final-presentation-online

The Maine Bird Atlas was a collaborative effort directed and funded by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, with coordination, editing, and publication led by Maine Natural History Observatory in partnership with Maine Audubon and Biodiversity Research Institute. Online preorders of the Atlas from each of the project collaborators for the book open at 8:30pm following the presentation.

The Atlas is not only a bird book, it represents the largest natural history collaboration and statewide resource assessment ever undertaken in Maine.

Register now for the Maine Bird Atlas Final Presentation!
Wednesday, September 16th at 7:00 pm (EDT).
Link to register: https://maineaudubon.org/events/maine-bird-atlas-final-presentation-online/
This online presentation will highlight the most significant findings from the Maine Bird Atlas, give context for why the Atlas matters, share volunteer stories, and discuss range shifts, population estimates, research beyond the Atlas, archiving Atlas data, and more!

ATLAS PREORDERS:
Preorders for the Atlas will open at 8:30pm following the final Atlas presentation on September 16th, but you are not required to attend the presentation to place an order.

The Atlas will be available to preorder from the 5 collaborating organizations and publisher:
- Maine Natural History Observatory (https://mainenaturalhistory.org/product/maine-bird-atlas-book/)
- Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife (https://www.maine.gov/ifw/fish-wildlife/maine-bird-atlas/index.html)
- Maine Audubon (https://maineaudubon.org/naturalist/)
- Biodiversity Research Institute (https://briwildlife.org/maine-bird-atlas/)
- University of Maine Press (https://umaine.edu/umpress/catalog/)

Choose which organization you want to support by ordering from them directly.

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The process of preparing the Maine Bird Atlas for publication has been a long road, and wouldn't have been possible without the hard work of many! The Atlas authors spent 3 intensive years checking and interpreting all the data, designing the book layout, producing over 800 detailed maps, and writing the species accounts for the over 300 breeding and wintering bird species in Maine. The Maine Bird Atlas was a collaborative effort directed and funded by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, with coordination, editing, and publication led by Maine Natural History Observatory in partnership with Maine Audubon and Biodiversity Research Institute. The Atlas is not only a bird book, it represents the largest natural history collaboration and statewide resource assessment ever undertaken in Maine.

Front cover art: Jada Fitch (Jada Fitch Illustration)
Back cover art: Michael Boardman (Coyote Graphics)

Only a few days left before conference rates increase for the 8th International Sea Duck Conference! 🌊 It's shaping up to be a great week with a packed science program, fantastic art show, and more!

🔗 seaduckconference.org/registration

Early bird registration for the Sea Duck Conference ends one week from today!

Register for iCDUX8 before midnight on September 9 for early bird prices.

🔗 seaduckconference.org/registration

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the LIFE-SIZE bird portraits in the Lewis Gallery at Portland Public Library! 🦩🦉🦜

These paintings feature endangered birds found in Amboseli National Park, in striking detail! As these birds are threatened by habitat loss and other pressures, this exhibit seeks to raise awareness for conservation and policy efforts to protect them.

More than birders. More than birding.

To take flight, the Maine Bird Atlas required a multi-talented team from planning through publication. Directed and funded by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, with coordination, editing, and publication led by Maine Natural History Observatory in partnership with Maine Audubon and Biodiversity Research Institute, the completed Atlas reflects nine years of collaboration.

Finding birds was just one piece of the puzzle. It took a village for protocol development, administrative and technological support, data management, web development, outreach, editing, publication, and more.

The result:
📊A powerhouse dataset that propels Maine bird conservation forward with the rigor of current science.
🏆A demonstration of scientific leadership as the largest natural history collaboration and statewide resource assessment ever undertaken in Maine.
📖An indispensable resource for biologists, educators, policymakers, and birders alike.

From knowledge needed to safeguard species and protect habitat, to fuel for curiosity and community engagement, the Maine Bird Atlas is a must-read for anyone invested in the future of Maine birds. The window to preorder begins next month!