Utah Breeding Bird Atlas Project Training

A training session for Northern Utah birders for the Utah Breeding Bird Atlas (Utah BBA) project will be held on Saturday, April 17 at the Utah Division of Wildlife Office Director's Conference Room from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.

If possible, we will have an outdoor training session at a spot nearby from 8:00 am to 9:30 am where we will cover the Atlas Survey observation and recording techniques. Final word and the location will be sent by April 10. If you have suggestions for a good outdoor training location, please email me by replying to this message.

To get an over-all flavor of the project and how it will be conducted, please visit the Guidelines page at the Utah BBA web site at: http://www.utahnature.com/utahnature/utahbbaguidelines.php.

In summary, a Breeding Bird Atlas (BBA) is a book of maps (hence the 'Atlas' part of the name) showing the distribution of breeding for every species known to breed and rear young in an area. The Utah BBA project is divided into two distinct phases, the first being doing the outdoor field work of surveying the state to determine what birds are breeding where. The second phase involves actually writing and publishing the Atlas book or CD.

The surveying phase of the project will be accomplished by volunteers selecting one or more survey squares and surveying it for a breeding season, reporting what they find. Depending on the habitats at their square, they may select 5 or more survey points and observe as many birds as possible, noting the behavior that demonstrates breeding.

Computerized tools have been developed to make the job of chosing and learning about a square easier. For example, a facility has been provided that lists the birds known to nest in specific habitats. If the square you choose has mountain riparian habitat, it is easy to obtain a list of the birds known to nest in mountain riparian habitat. This is helpful because it makes it easier to anticipate the birds that may be seen (or heard) in the square. The Internet-based tools for the Utah BBA are still being finalized. If you have a comment or suggestion, please let me know.

It will be beneficial to attend the training but is not absolutely required. If you cannot attend, please study the materials provided at the web page.

Note that there are many survey opportunities for birders in Utah, all worthwhile. The Breeding Bird Atlas has not been done in Utah before but has been done in the majority of the other states and provinces in North America. The Utah BBA differs from other projects in that is covers the state systematically and does not focus on places of known birding importance.

Please participate if you can. Should you wish to volunteer for an extended time, such as for a month or so, please contact me directly.

If you plan on attending this training, please email me (robin@utahnature.com) so that I might have adequate training materials on hand.