Common Grackle , Pine Siskin House Sparrow Brown—headed Cowbird American Goldfinch

Purple Finch Evening Grosbeak White-winged Crossbill

SOCIETY’S CAVENDISH FIELD TRIP: By Dwaine Oakley

This morning eight of us braved the light drizzle and cool temperature on May 21st to look for birds in Cavendish along the Homestead trail and campground. Here is a quick list of the 40 birds species that some or all of the group saw or heard. (Adapted from PEIbirders mailing list E-mail dated May/05)

Double—crested Cormorant American Crow Northern Waterthrush Gadwall Black-capped Chickadee Savannah Sparrow American Black Duck Boreal Chickadee Song Sparrow Red-breasted Merganser Red-breasted Nuthatch Swamp Sparrow Osprey Golden-crowned Kinglet White-throated Sparrow Greater Yellowlegs Ruby-crowned Kinglet White-crowned Sparrow Herring Gull Hermit Thrush Dark-eyed J unco Mourning Dove American Robin Common Grackle Belted Kingfisher European Starling Brown-headed Cowbird Downy Woodpecker Magnolia Warbler Purple Finch

Northern Flicker Yellow-rumped Warbler Pine Siskin

Least Flycatcher Palm Warbler American Goldfinch Blue-headed Vireo Black-and-white Warbler

Blue Jay Ovenbird

MARITIMES BREEDING BIRD ATLAS II: by Becky Whittam

The Maritime Breeding Bird Atlas Steering Committee is pleased to announce that Karel Allard, an enthusiastic birdwatcher, biologist and communicator, has been hired as the Atlas Coordinator. Karel will be employed by Bird Studies Canada in the BSC Atlantic office, housed with the Canadian Wildlife Service in Sackville, New Brunswick. Originally from southern Nova Scotia, Karel is fluently bilingual and a skilled and keen birder. He has eight seasons of experience working as an interpreter at Mount Revelstoke, Glacier, Pacific Rim, and Fundy National Parks, as well as experience teaching in schools and universities on subjects ranging from Math to the French language. Karel has also spent seven summer and three winter field seasons in the Canadian Arctic, as a biologist for the Canadian Wildlife Service. He possesses a B.Sc. (Honours) degree in Biology and a B.Ed. (secondary education) from the Université de Moneton. Karel is in the final stages of completing his Ph.D. from the University of New Brunswick, and will start work with the Atlas on the lst August, 2005, after submitting his thesis. ‘

Regarding the Maritimes Atlas project, Karel notes, "In addition to my passion for simply observing nature, I believe strongly in the development of tools needed to monitor trends in species distribution, productivity and survival. The birding community has demonstrated that large scale collaboration can lead to formidable results (e. g. breeding bird atlases). The continuance of the Maritime Breeding Bird Atlas project can contribute greatly to our understanding of species-specific habitat requirements at broad spatial scales over long time spans. Such tools together with others can help managers monitor species, identify potential threats, and develop appropriate protection measures."

Please join the Steering Committee in welcoming Karel to this position. (From an E-mail from Becky

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