More than 30 eager viewers attended the BBC showing of Neil Rettig’s stunning “Bird of Prey” film on Tuesday, November 12th, at the Woburn Public Library. Fortified by a variety of refreshments and the library’s state-of-the-art audiovisual technology, viewers who braved windy, freezing temperatures watched as the Great Philippine Eagle was located, tracked, bore, tended to, and ultimately fledged a healthy chick within what remains of the once thriving forests of the Philippine Islands archipelago. Together with a multidisciplinary, multi-national team that included Tree Rigger/Forest Guide Perfecto Balicao, and others, this huge eagle, once named “Monkey-eating Eagle, had been renamed Great Philippine Eagle by former president Ferdinand Marcos, who simultaneously promoted the bird’s name association with and supported widespread deforestation of his country. The film depicts despair and hope, as organizations like the Philippine Eagle Foundation work literally around the clock on essential tasks that include ensuring and monitoring safe nesting sites, tracking released chicks, and engaging school children and communities in education and advocacy for their national bird.
Stay tuned for future BBC-sponsored events that include movie evening, game night, and birds and breakfast/lunch.
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Upcoming Field Trips
Members Only Webinar: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification
Shorebirds are among the most fascinating and diverse groups of birds, but identifying them can sometimes feel overwhelming. This session will provide practical tips and techniques to sharpen your shorebirding skills. We will also be scheduling a limited participation field trip focused on Shorebirds where you will practice the skills you learned during the webinar. [...]
Forest Beach Conservation Area
Chatham - Forest Beach 375-331 Forest Beach Rd, South Chatham, MA, United StatesCo-sponored with Cape Cod Bird Club. We’ll walk the marsh trail to where it meets Mill Creek and return via the beach, less than a mile round trip. We’ll then head towards the overlook where we’ll likely view herons, egrets, shorebirds, passerines, gulls, osprey and Northern Harrier. This is another area with mixed habitat, a [...]
Whale and Seabird watching trip out of Plymouth
Plymouth - Captain John's Whale Watching Tour Company 10 Town Wharf, Plymouth, MA, United StatesThe BBC is partnering with the Captain John's Whale Watching Tour Company to travel to Stellwagen Bank - primary feeding grounds for the Humpback Whale, the endangered Right Whale, and other marine wildlife, including seabirds. With the help of onboard naturalists, we will search for seabirds - storm petrals, shearwaters, gulls and terns, gannets, and [...]
An Oasis for Birds at Belle Isle Marsh
East Boston - Belle Isle Parking Lot 1399 Bennington Street, Boston, MA, United StatesJoin DCR park staff for a relaxed, one-mile bird walk through flat, easy terrain at this Massachusetts State Reservation and birding hot spot. At Belle Isle and at additional nearby locations— We’ll search for large groups of herons and egrets, and shorebird rarities. Participants are responsible for their own transportation between locations (by car or [...]
Squantum – Quincy
Quincy - Squantum - Moswetuset Hummock Quincy, MA, United StatesWe'll check the marshes and the mudflats in Squantum for shorebirds, starting at Moswetuset Hummock and visiting other spots nearby. At high tide (~6:15 am), we'll try checking the high tide roosts for shorebirds as well. Be prepared for the possibility of biting insects. Cosponsored with South Shore Bird Club.