[obol] 2008 Oregon Shorebird Festival

[Roy Lowe]

Wildlife Gardening and Arctic Breeders Featured at the 22nd Annual
                         Oregon Shorebird Festival

The Oregon Shorebird Festival will celebrate 22 years from August 29
through August 31, 2008. The festival is headquartered at the Oregon
Institute of Marine Biology in the small fishing community of  
Charleston,
OR. Activities include expertly guided field trips to Bandon Marsh  
National
Wildlife Refuge and the Coos Bay area; a pelagic trip hosted by The Bird
Guide, Inc.(already sold out!  sorry folks); ocean watches for  
seabirds and
marine mammals by Shoreline Education for Awareness and evening  
programs on
current bird research. A Friday evening presentation will be given by
Louise Bacon-Ogden, a widely traveled educator and bird enthusiast.  
Titled
“Gardening for Wildlife,” the talk will focus on how to landscape your  
yard
to entice birds and other wildlife to come and visit.  The Keynote
presentation on Saturday features Audrey Taylor, a doctoral candidate at
the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Ms. Taylor’s presentation will draw
from her vast experience working with shorebirds on their breeding  
grounds
on the North Slope of Alaska. “Shorebird Communities in the Arctic:
breeding, pre-migratory behavior and conservation” will take the  
audience
to the tundra and share the summer activities of the shorebirds that  
many
visitors will see during the festival. Ms. Taylor will also incorporate
information regarding her current research as well as some of the
conservation issues facing arctic breeding shorebirds.

Despite all of the great events festival attendees can enjoy while  
seated
do not leave your binoculars at home. Bring your best pair to the  
festival
as Bandon Marsh and Coos Bay are renowned for shorebird watching and  
each
year a few rarities have delighted field trip goers. Rarities have  
included
Ruff, Curlew sandpiper, Mongolian plover, and Hudsonian godwit. Regular
migrants include Black-bellied plover, Semi-palmated plover, Pacific
golden-plover, Western sandpiper, Least sandpiper, Dunlin, Whimbrel,
Long-billed dowitcher, and Red-necked phalarope. So come on down to the
southern coast of Oregon for a weekend of birding fun and challenges!

To register for the festival or for more information please visit our
website at www.fws.gov/oregoncoast/shorebirdfestival.htm or contact Dawn
Grafe at 541-867-4550.
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