Subject: INTERNATIONAL DAWN CHORUS...
Date: Apr 9 05:13:57 1996
From: Don Baccus - donb at Rational.COM


Oregonians: consider joining us for the International Dawn Chorus Day,
and/or Birdathon. Washingtonians: you most likely have not heard of
the day, but it is kind of a cool idea, originating in London. Get
with the program!

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INTERNATIONAL DAWN CHORUS DAY, MAY 5TH 1996
Join bird watchers from the Portland Audubon Society to listen to the
chorus of birds singing at the Pittock Mansion at dawn, the morning of May
5th. Lynn Herring, long time conservation activist with the Audubon
Society of Portland, will lead the Portland, Oregon contingent in the
International Dawn Chorus which is organized each year by the Urban
Wildlife Trust of London, England. Portland Audubon will compete with Dr.
David Goode's team from the London Ecology Unit. Dr. Goode's team will be
listening for birds in similar habitat in a London woodland. Other
participants from across the globe will gather as the sun rises in their
part of the world to participate in the 13th annual International Dawn
Chorus, which the Wildlife Trust describes as "the world's biggest
birdwatch."

The Audubon Society of Portland will combine the Dawn Watch with its annual
Birdathon, the Society's biggest annual fundraiser. Other PAS Birdathon
teams will also be listening in at dawn on the 5th of May as they are
spread throughout the state. The "Gonzo Birdathon" team, will see over
200 species of birds as they trek from the Oregon coast to Malheur National
Wildlife Refuge in southeast Oregon. Birdathon participants will then bill
their sponsors for each avian species sighted in the 48 hour weekend
birding blitz. Last year the Society raised nearly $40,000 which funds the
Society's conservation and education programs.

The International Dawn Chorus will provide additional impetus to get out
early to enjoy a cacophony of bird melodies. Lynn Herring, long time
conservation activist at the Portland Audubon Society and her intrepid,
early morning crew will keep tabs of which birds they see at the Pittock
Mansion the morning of are heard around the state, beginning one-half hour
before dawn until sunrise.

Interested in Portland Audubon Society's Birdathon? Call Dave Eshbaugh,
292-6855 x104; email: deshbaugh at audubon-pdx.org. Want to start your own
Dawn Chorus challenge? Contact the Urban Wildlife Trust, Neil Wyatt, 130
Pershore St., Birmingham, United Kingdom, B56ND; fax: 44 121 622 4443;
phone: 44 121 666 7474; email: urbanwt at cix.compulink.co.uk.

####

Mike Houck, Urban Naturalist
Audubon Society of Portland
5151 NW Cornell Road, Portland, OR 97210
Phone: 503-292-6855 ext. 111
FAX: 503-292-1021
e-mail: houckm at teleport.com
mhouck at audubon-pdx.org



- Don Baccus, Portland OR <donb at rational.com>
Nature photos, on-line guides, at http:://www.xxxpdx.com/~dhogaza