Description: Purple martins have been in long-term decline in California. Since the 1990s, Dan Airola has been studying and working to conserve the last Central Valley population, which nests in elevated freeways and overpasses in Sacramento. He also has conducted status surveys throughout Northern California.  His talk presents these study results and describes conservation measures that have been implemented and are needed to protect and recover the species.

Biography: Dan Airola is a Wildlife Biologist and Ornithologist who has worked for over 40 years on bird conservation issues in Northern California.  His recent research has addressed status, ecology, migration, and conservation of at-risk species, including the Tricolored Blackbird, Swainson’s Hawk, Yellow-billed Magpie, fire-adapted forest species, and migrant songbirds.  Dan also serves the Central Valley Bird Club as a Director, Conservation Chair, and editor of the journal Central Valley Birds.

Description:

“Fall Raptors of Fresno County”

As winter settles in our neck of the woods, various species of raptors migrate into our locality, both increasing the numbers of common summer residents and adding a few overwintering species as well.  This presentation will provide comparisons of the natural history, behavior, structure, and field marks for several species, including Golden and Bald Eagles, Turkey Vulture,  Red-tailed, Red-shouldered, Ferruginous, and Rough-legged Hawk, and Cooper’s and Sharp-shinned Hawk, and American Kestrel, Merlin, and Peregrine and Prairie Falcons.

Homer Hansen

BIO:

Homer Hansen grew up in Willcox, Arizona surrounded by Sandhill Cranes in winter and Cassin’s Sparrows in summer.  Homer has a passion for sharing bird watching with others and is a regular field trip leader for several festivals and has served as chairman of the Wings Over Willcox Birding & Nature Festival for nearly 20 years.  Homer loves working with youths and co-founded the Sulphur Springs Valley Young Birders Club and the associated Arizona Young Birder’s Camp, non-profits dedicated to educating youths about birds.  He also instructs workshops on sparrows, raptors, flycatchers, warblers, birding by ear, and bird ecology, including: the Lifelong Learning courses for the Tucson Audubon Society, the Southwestern Sparrows IFO for the American Birding Association, and educational workshops for the Western Field Ornithologists (WFO) conferences.  Homer is a life member of the WFO, Cooper Ornithological Society (COS), and Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS), and just completed two terms with the WFO board as chairman of the Student Programs Committee.

Description: Wild Turkeys, up close and personal

Biography: 

Robert received a PhD in French from the University of Wisconsin, became a university professor, but eventually left academia to pursue a career in computer technology consulting.

He began photographing birds in preparation for a safari in Botswana. What better way to learn how to use a camera than photographing birds, he reasoned. Birds eventually became his favorite photographic subject. “I’ve never met a bird I didn’t want to photograph,” he admits.

His photograph of a Cedar Waxwing was selected to appear in a special Audubon Photography Awards gallery of  “our favorite female bird shots 2021.”

Choosing to be a bird photographer necessitated becoming an avid birder, and that pursuit led to storytelling about his experiences observing birds.

You can read FAS member Robert Groos’ stories on his website: robertgroosphotography.com

Description: 

I will be speaking about the Hawk Migration Association of North America, our current programs and the work we do to support the raptor migration monitoring network. I’ll talk about HawkCount.org, the largest citizen science database in the world and how these data are being used to determine raptor population trends across the continent.

Biography: 

Description: 

Since the dawn of recorded history, humans have wanted to fly like the birds. Although many studied the secret of avian flight during the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, it was not until the Industrial Revolution that the technological tools for humanity to fly became available. By the mid and late 1800s, spurred on by the science of bird flight, dozens of people, and the Wright Brothers were not the first, were attempting to master human flight. This culminated in the early 20th century with pioneering aviators on both sides of the Atlantic, and the Pacific as well, joining the birds in the air. 

Biography: 

Larry is a retired high school English teacher who currently teaches for the Osher Adult Continuing  Education Program at Fresno State. He has been a member of Fresno Audubon for over 30 years, and was its president during the 1990s. He currently leads field trips for both Audubon and the San Joaquin River Parkway, and is also involved in the Parkway’s  environmental education program for elementary school students. He has also had a longtime interest in the space program and aviation, which led him to tonight’s presentation.