American Robin by Damion Bankhead
Who We Are
as of July 1st, 2024, the first day of our current fiscal year
Board of Directors
MAGGIE AMSLER, President
LOIS WOODWARD, President-Elect
DR. R SCOT DUNCAN PhD, Executive Director
LIANNE KOCZUR PhD, Science & Conservation Director
DENNIS BENNETT, Development Director
KEITH A. WOLFE-HUGHES, Financial & Administrative Director
ANDREW LYDEARD, Program Coordinator
ALLISON CIAMARRA, Communications Coordinator
TIM HIGGINS, Black Belt Coordinator
OLIVIA MORPETH, Coastal Biologist
CORTNEY WEATHERBY, Coastal Outreach Manager
SHANELL DOCK, Seasonal Biologist
CLAUDIA FROSCH, Seasonal Biologist
GREG HARBER, Secretary
LORI OSWALD, Treasurer
BARRY FLEMING, VP Conservation & Science
HEATHER McCALLEY, VP Development & Membership
JONAH COHEN, VP Education & Programs
MATT HUNTER, VP Field Trips At Large
ANNETTE KINDERMAN
CLIFF MARTIN
LINDA NEIGHBORS
JACQUELINE GRAY MILLER
JOE WATTS
MICHELLE WOOTEN PhD
RASHIDA FARID-TILGHMAN PhD
STEPHANNIE NIXON
support and passion of our members,
v This past year has been remarkable, and we couldn't have done it without you.
Your generosity and dedication have made all our achievements possible. being an essential part of our community!
Sincerely,
The Alabama Audubon Team
Our Mission
WORKING FOR ALABAMA’S BIRDS & THE PEOPLE WHO LOVE THEM
The mission of ALABAMA AUDUBON has been to promote conservation and a greater knowledge of birds, their habitats, and the natural world since our beginnings in 1927. We invite you to learn more about what we do, join us out in the field, and help us to protect the natural heritage of America’s fourth-most biodiverse state.
Eastern Phoebe by Damion Bankhead
New Board President & Board of Directors
Welcome to the presidency, Maggie Amsler!
Welcome to the Flock for 2024-2025!
Chipping Sparrows by Damion Bankhead
Dr. Michelle Wooten
Elizabeth Hargrave
Dr. Whit Gibbons Participants: 237 Events Offered: 16
Scot Duncan Book Talks Nature at Noon Guest Speakers
Book Talks: 19
Counties Included: 10
Attendees: 639
Topics:
Alabama’s Amazing Birdlife: Crafting a Bright Future for Birds and People
Southern Rivers: Restoring America's Freshwater Biodiversity
Vermilion Flycatcher by Andrew Lydeard
Connecting people to birds
Field Trips
Black Belt Interactions: 700 Coastal Interactions: 1,630 Other Public Interactions: 1,480
Volunteer-led Field Trips: 20 Participants: 493
Ticketed Field Trips: 11 Participants: 73
Free Field Trips: 19 Participants: 223
Accessible Events: 23 Participants: 279
Online Courses: 7 Participants: 80
Project Safe Flight
Fall 2023:
21 Volunteers
5 Cities
262 Surveys
283 Dead bir ds
55+ Species
Thank you to everyone who has supported this project!
Spring 20 24:
23 Volunteers
6 Cities
280 Surveys
110 Dead bir ds
40 Species
A stunned Northern Parula is rescued after colliding with a window.
To date we have applied decals to 6 buildings in B irmingham, totaling 2,350 square feet of windows.
The Black Belt Birding Festival had its 3rd year of success in 2023 . Estimated economic benefit brought to lo cal businesses: $40,000
Black Belt Festival birders: 171 Birders traveled from 7 states
Kick-off event hosted 20 non-pr ofit ecological organizations.
Keynote Speaker : Dr. James Lamb , who led a talk entitled THE BLACK BELT / Ancient Oceans, Dinosaurs in the Prairie , through which he explored how the, “Black Belt has produced more dinosaur skeletons than any other ar ea east of the Mississippi Ri ver, all unique to Alabama."
Black Belt Bus Tour
Bus Tour areas explored:
Perry Lakes Park, Old Cahawba Archaeological Park, Weissinger Lakes, Orrville Farmer's Market
Attendees: 43
Black Belt Presentations & Events: 7
Growing the Arts in
Visiting artist, U AB pr ofessor, and Alabama Audubon member, Doug Baulos , led 2 workshops.
Black Belt Sponsors & Partners
Mike & Gillian Goodrich Foundation
The Curtis & Edith Munson Foundation
The Daniel Foundation
City of Greensboro
Alabama Power Foundation
Indigo Bunting Calligraph y Flourishing
Druid City Brewing
Pepsi-Co Selma
Project Horseshoe Farm
The Historic Greensboro Opera House
The Joe Farm
Painted Bunting by Andrew Lydeard
Coastal Bird Banding
Fort Morgan
Visitors:
Birds Banded:
Birds Recaptured:
Species Represented:
A Gray Catbird that was banded in Michigan in May 2023 and a Brown Thrasher that our team banded at Fort Morgan in April 2018 , making it at least 8 years old.
Presented in partnership with the Alabama Department of Conservation & Natural Resources, Mississippi State University, and Fort Morgan State Historic Site, the Alabama Audubon spring and fall banding station is one of the few in the U.S. that are open to the public. Other sponsors include Alabama Tourism Department, Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism, The Curtis & Edith Munson Foundation, Saunders Yachtworks, Bill & Paula
Barnhill, Town of Dauphin Island.
Great Crested Flycatcher
Wood Thrush
Coastal Stewardship Program
Nesting Season
Nesting acres protected: 28
350: Vistiors
Nesting sites: 19
Nesting surveys: 406
All species
Total nests monitored: 2,833
Total fledglings: 1,384
Audubon Coastal Bird Surveys
Sites Surveyed: 21
Lead Volunteers: 11 Volunteers: 17
Volunteer Hours: 228
Staff Hours: 187
Supporting species such as the Snowy Plover, Least Tern, and Black Skimmer . This program combines education and habitat protection to promote long-term c onservation awareness among the public.
Piping Plover by Andrew Lydeard
Banded Snowy Plover by Olivia Morpeth
MAPS Bird Banding at Ruffner Mountain 2023
Banded Birds: 122
Species: 25
Recaptured: 27
Most common: Northern Cardinal, White-eyed Vireo, Carolina Wren and Kentucky Warbler
2024
Banded birds: 113
Species: 18
Recaptured: 36 (16 were banded in 2023)
Our most common species were Hooded Warbler, White-eyed Vireo, Northern Cardinal and Carolina Wren .
In partnership with Jefferson County Greenways Commission, we started a MAPS banding station at Ruffner Mountain in 2023. MAPS is a continent-wide collaboration aimed at understanding and conserving bird populations and their habitats. Brown-headed Cowbird by Damion Bankhead
Giving Back
Walter F. Coxe Research Grant Program
Congratulations to Thomas Thompson, who is currently a master's student at Alabama A&M University, studying the breeding success of Cerulean Warblers in their southernmost breeding range in William B. Bankhead National Forest, Alabama.
This is one of the Cerulean’s southernmost breeding locations in the U.S. and one of only a few breeding locations in the state. In Alabama, Cerulean Warblers are a species of highest conservation concern.
Cerulean Warbler populations have been negatively impacted by factors such as the loss of mature contiguous deciduous forest.
Granted $100K of funding for research in the past 10 years to dozens projects.
Educational Mini-Grants
Friends of the Locust Fork River (Blountsville, AL): Native Bird Discovery
The Hillsboro School (Helena, AL): Systems Thinking and Statistical Approach to Learning Birds of Alabama: A Way of Thinking and Understanding Systems Thinking By Observing Nature
W.E. Putnam Middle School awarded Alabama Audubon Mini-Grant
Cerulean Warbler
Annual Report 2023-2024 is dedicated to the everyday birds of Alabama.
Yellow-rumped Warbler by
Andrew Lydeard
