Hello!

We are already in week 4 of data collection, and our team has enrolled more than 1,600 volunteers! If you recently signed up, welcome! We are happy to have you on board. If you have already been at this for awhile, wonderful! We hope your weekly bird monitoring surveys are fun and relaxing.

For our new volunteers (and anyone who needs a refresher), here are our detailed step-by-step instructions as well as a video demonstration. If you have any further questions about the survey process, please check out our FAQs or send us an email. If you are having trouble identifying birds, don’t worry — we are here to help. Our website provides recommended resources on species ID, as well as tips on how to improve as a birder. We also schedule virtual office hours on request, so if you’d like to talk face-to-face with a team member, feel free to send us an email to set that up.

We would love your input on in-person and virtual events featured in this year’s programming! If you have any ideas or suggestions, feel free to share them with us using this form.

Happy birding!

Yuka Wu (she/her), Communications Lead | Project Phoenix

BIRD OF THE WEEK: Mourning Dove

The gentle coos of the Mourning Dove are a key feature of early morning soundtracks across the country. These soft brown and gray birds live nearly everywhere, perching on telephone wires or foraging on patches of open ground. And while these birds may be known for their calming call, they are also recognizable for the whistling noise that their wings make when they take flight. As air passes through a Mourning Dove’s wings, the tips of its flight feathers vibrate, creating a distinct whistling. This whistling is thought to potentially startle predators or warn flock mates of dangers.

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT:

Peggy Maurer

Project Phoenix volunteer Peggy Maurer is a long-time resident of Castro Valley, California. Peggy is an avid artist, who first began creating bird collages back in 2022. Her collages feature a wide variety of plant material found in nature, including flower petals, leaves, and seeds. Peggy holds workshops at her local library and with Art, Inc., a local group of artists, to share the art of creating bird collages with her community. Each collage takes her 10 to 20 hours to complete, and Peggy says that she knows when the piece is complete when the bird “comes alive.” As someone who enjoys bird watching, nature hikes, gardening, and is interested in plants, birds, and other wildlife, Peggy eagerly signed up for Project Phoenix after hearing about our participatory science initiative from her local newspaper. If you would like to connect with Peggy to learn more about her craft or cool birding spots in Castro Valley, feel free to email her at peggymaurer8@gmail.com.

In the picture above, Peggy holds a collage of an American Kestrel (made of bottlebrush leaf, black walnut husks, and California sycamore seeds, to name a few) and a hummingbird (made of juniper and eucalyptus bark, amaryllis seeds, daisy seeds, cottonwood leaf, and other found materials).

Thank you so much for your contributions to Project Phoenix, Peggy! 

We love to hear from our volunteers! What motivated you to join Project Phoenix? Click here to share your story.

JOIN OUR WEEKLY BIRD WALKS

Join us on our weekly bird walks on Tuesdays from 10 to 10:30 a.m. at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County! This is a great chance to meet and talk with other Project Phoenix volunteers and team members in the L.A. area while enjoying all the wonderful birds who call the nature garden home.

VIRTUAL SEMINAR

Out of the Fire, Into the Smoke: How wildfire smoke impacts birds with Dr. Olivia Sanderfoot

Join Project Phoenix and Birds Connect Seattle on Wednesday, August 6th from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for an evening seminar with Dr. Olivia Sanderfoot, Program Director here at Project Phoenix. Olivia be giving a talk all about how wildfire smoke impacts birds. She will share what we know so far about the effects of smoke on avian physiology, behavior, and reproductive success and highlight opportunities for you to get involved in critical research on this urgent conservation topic. If you are interested in tuning into this talk, please register. The event is open to members of the public and there is no fee to participate.

MEET OUR PARTNERS

Join Birds Connect Seattle for a Workshop on Urban Birds

Hanae Bettencourt, Community Engagement Manager at Birds Connect Seattle, is offering an online Intro to Urban Birds class on September 10th at 7:00 p.m. This class is free for all Project Phoenix volunteers! Learn more and sign up here.

Virtual Office Hours

Do you have a question about our survey protocol? Are you struggling to use eBird? Feeling a little lost on species ID? Come chat with us! Our team hosts virtual office hours upon request. Just send us an email at projectphoenix.socal@gmail.com, and we’ll set up a time to chat on Zoom.