Ornithology and Gender Equality: women who decided to chart their own flight

The OrnitoMulheres Network is made up of women who admire, study and work with ornithology and/or bird watching in Brazil. The main objective of our network is to support connections, encourage scientific empowerment and give visibility to ornithologists and birdwatchers. Through the union of many, we seek to inspire and provide the necessary support for the development of research and actions in favor of female performance in Brazilian ornithology.

Beatriz de Moraisa biologist from the Federal Rural University of Pernambuco. She is part of the governing body of the Rede OrnitoMulheres. Scientific communicator active mainly in the areas of ornithology and herpetology. She works with scientific communication at the National Center for Research and Conservation of Reptiles and Amphibians at the Chico Mendes Institute for the Conservation of Biodiversity and at Conservare Wild Consulting. She has experience in migratory birds, study and conservation of fauna, rehabilitation and welfare of birds of prey.

Venezuela is the best kept secret in America: Advances in ornithological exploration and current openings in bird watching

Venezuela has remained the least visited country by birdwatchers and scientists in the Americas in the last 10 years, and is the least known by new generations of birdwatchers outside the country. However, ornithological explorations and bird watching by locals have been maintained throughout this time of international closure. A few ornithologists and many bird enthusiasts have increased knowledge of the avifauna, with the discovery of more than a dozen new species for the country and the discovery of new species that are in the process of being described. Venezuela is now opening up to the bird world.

Jhonathan Miranda. Biologist from the Central University of Venezuela, dedicated to the study of birds. He has worked on different studies on natural history, biogeography, bioacoustics, taxonomy and conservation of birds at a national and neotropical level. Member of the board of the Venezuelan Ornithologists Union, coordinator of the Venezuelan Bird Records Committee, eBird reviewer for Venezuela, member of the Wandering and Hypothetical Species Committee and the Committee for the Compilation of Lists of Species by Countries and Territories of the SACC.

A world of urban birds

The renowned Urban Birdwatcher, David Lindo, takes us on a tour of the world’s urban birds. More than 20% of all the birds on the planet live in our towns and cities, and many times we don’t even realize it. You will be surprised by the variety of urban birds that David will introduce you to. The only thing we must do to see many of these species is simply open our hearts and minds, and above all, look up!.

David Lindo. The Urban Birder, driver, writer, speaker, educator and bird tour leader. His mission is to engage people in cities around the world with their environment through birds.

Crossing the Arctic with the Human Swan – what we have learned about “bird’s eye” migration

Sacha will share her story of the migratory journey with birds, where the idea came from, and what we can learn by following birds on their migration. From surprising interactions with people, what it feels like to fly across the Russian tundra, to how an actress managed to save an expedition. Sacha will share her stories of a different way of doing conservation-oriented expeditions: being among the birds and thinking like them.

Sacha Dench. Australian biologist Sacha Dench has been nicknamed “The Human Swan” in recognition of her record-breaking 7,000 km journey, in a light aeroengine, chasing Bewick’s swans across 11 countries from arctic Russia to the UK. After her expedition with the swans, Sacha was named United Nations ambassador for the Convention on Migratory Species. In 2019, she founded the organization Conservation without  Borders, which seeks to raise awareness of migratory species through powerful images and storytelling. Sacha has a proven history of creating innovative campaigns and communication strategies that lead to real change.

Neotropical bird classification committees and their relevance to birding, science, and conservation

Whoever birds, works in science or conservation, needs to anchor their data to some kind of biological classification. Building a biological classification is a difficult task, which requires the integration of different data sources (morphology, vocalizations, behavior, phylogenetic relationships) that make sense when carefully examined to understand their adequacy to a series of concepts (nomenclature, genus, species). , subspecies, etc.). Taxonomy committees work to generate strong and consistent classifications based on the available evidence. However, different committees often come to different conclusions. Here I will explore a bit why this can happen by discussing real cases, I will show some recent taxonomic changes and I will tell about possible new changes to come. Finally, I will discuss the need for and usefulness of committees.

Juan I. Areta. Argentine ornithologist, author of the recent book Birds of Argentina and the south-west Atlantic (Helm Field Guides, 2020). He works for the Laboratory of Ecology, Behavior and Natural Sounds of the Institute of Bio and Geosciences of the Argentine Northwest. He is a member of the South American Committee for the Classification of Birds of the Ornithological Society of America and was president of the Neotropical Ornithological Society.