BBC’s new Code of Ethics and Conduct
If you are involved with the Brookline Bird Club, we know that you have a great love for and appreciation of birds and nature. The BBC is committed to providing programs in which all participants have a safe and welcoming space to explore their own personal connection to birds and nature.
In keeping with this commitment, the BBC board thought it was time to take a fresh look at our Code of Ethics and Conduct and Trip Leader Guidelines. The resulting updates emphasize the importance of respect for birds, the environment, and for each other.
The board has also formed a Committee on Community and Culture that will assist the club in working toward its mission of building a more diverse, more welcoming community and a culture of inclusion and respect. To learn more about our work or to get involved, please contact the committee at community@brooklinebirdclub.org.
Across Massachusetts and the country, the birding community is moving forward with a new focus on programming that is more accessible to all who want to enjoy nature and policy that promotes safety and inclusion. The BBC is excited to be part of that movement!
We recommend following resources to learn more and get involved. If you have meaningful resources you would like us to add to this list, please let us know!
Resources on safer bird watching:
Safety Tips For Better Birding
The Murmuration, a crowd-sourced document of eBird hotspots in Massachusetts, including information on safety concerns.
Further reading on inclusivity in birding and nature:
It’s Time to Build a Truly Inclusive Outdoors, Corina Newsome (Audubon Magazine, Summer 2020)
Birds are Here for Everyone: How Black Birders are Finding Community, Aliya Uteuova, (The Guardian, June 2021)
Murmuration is the Movement: Panelists discuss diversity in birding, Jon Stinchcomb (Port Clinton News Herald, May 2021)
Birding While Black, J. Drew Lanham (Literary Hub, September 2016)
How to be a Welcoming and Inclusive Birder, (Ray Brown’s Talkin’ Birds)
Creating Safe Spaces: Promoting more-inclusive experiences for all (National Wildlife Federation, August 2021)
Organizations to check out and consider supporting:
2026 Daytime Pelagic and Marsh Cruise Program
2026 Daytime Pelagic and Marsh Cruise Program Join us on summer daytime pelagic trips and marsh cruises this summer. Note that these popular trips regularly sell out. Once sold out we will keep a waitlist
Trip to New Hampshire Lake Umbagog Region
Trip to New Hampshire Lake Umbagog Region During early June two groups of BBC birders traveled around the Errol, NH area in search of nesting neotropical migrants, boreal species and whatever else we could find
Hydrographer Canyon Overnight Pelagic Registration
Hydrographer Canyon Overnight Pelagic Registration The Brookline Bird Club's 2026 overnight pelagic trips to the edge of the continental shelf at Hydrographer Canyon are now open for registration! About the Trip Join the BBC on
Migration Madness Membership Drive Winners
Migration Madness Membership Drive Winners Thanks to new members who joined during our this spring's Migration Madness membership drive. We wrapped up a successful campaign at the end of May with 52 new members.
Bring Back Bobolinks!
Bring Back Bobolinks! This year the BBC is introducing new Endangered Species Program. Each year we plan to focus on a single bird species facing serious threats in Massachusetts and elsewhere. With this effort we
BBC Field Records Project
BBC Field Records Project For many years, the club engaged in a project to import our historic field card data into eBird. Our archive of about 10,000 cards dating back to 1926 might be unique
2026 Daytime Pelagic and Marsh Cruise Program
2026 Daytime Pelagic and Marsh Cruise Program Join us on summer daytime pelagic trips and marsh cruises this summer. Note that these popular trips regularly sell out. Once sold out we will keep a waitlist
Trip to New Hampshire Lake Umbagog Region
Trip to New Hampshire Lake Umbagog Region During early June two groups of BBC birders traveled around the Errol, NH area in search of nesting neotropical migrants, boreal species and whatever else we could find
Hydrographer Canyon Overnight Pelagic Registration
Hydrographer Canyon Overnight Pelagic Registration The Brookline Bird Club's 2026 overnight pelagic trips to the edge of the continental shelf at Hydrographer Canyon are now open for registration! About the Trip Join the BBC on
Migration Madness Membership Drive Winners
Migration Madness Membership Drive Winners Thanks to new members who joined during our this spring's Migration Madness membership drive. We wrapped up a successful campaign at the end of May with 52 new members.
Bring Back Bobolinks!
Bring Back Bobolinks! This year the BBC is introducing new Endangered Species Program. Each year we plan to focus on a single bird species facing serious threats in Massachusetts and elsewhere. With this effort we
BBC Field Records Project
BBC Field Records Project For many years, the club engaged in a project to import our historic field card data into eBird. Our archive of about 10,000 cards dating back to 1926 might be unique
2026 Daytime Pelagic and Marsh Cruise Program
2026 Daytime Pelagic and Marsh Cruise Program Join us on summer daytime pelagic trips and marsh cruises this summer. Note that these popular trips regularly sell out. Once sold out we will keep a waitlist
Trip to New Hampshire Lake Umbagog Region
Trip to New Hampshire Lake Umbagog Region During early June two groups of BBC birders traveled around the Errol, NH area in search of nesting neotropical migrants, boreal species and whatever else we could find
Hydrographer Canyon Overnight Pelagic Registration
Hydrographer Canyon Overnight Pelagic Registration The Brookline Bird Club's 2026 overnight pelagic trips to the edge of the continental shelf at Hydrographer Canyon are now open for registration! About the Trip Join the BBC on
Migration Madness Membership Drive Winners
Migration Madness Membership Drive Winners Thanks to new members who joined during our this spring's Migration Madness membership drive. We wrapped up a successful campaign at the end of May with 52 new members.
Bring Back Bobolinks!
Bring Back Bobolinks! This year the BBC is introducing new Endangered Species Program. Each year we plan to focus on a single bird species facing serious threats in Massachusetts and elsewhere. With this effort we
BBC Field Records Project
BBC Field Records Project For many years, the club engaged in a project to import our historic field card data into eBird. Our archive of about 10,000 cards dating back to 1926 might be unique
News Categories
Upcoming Field Trips
Field Trips / Events
-
-
Bring Back Boblinks: Bobolinks at Daniel Webster, Marshfield
Marshfield - Daniel Webster MAS Wildlife Sanctuary 169 Winslow Cemetery Rd, Marshfield, MA, United StatesPart of our Bring Back Boblinks conservation series. Walk among open fields where we are likely to see and hear bobolinks, Our early start increases the likelihood that we will hear the bobolinks’ burbling morning song. Be prepared for muddy trails, depending on recent rainfall. Trails are mostly flat.
-
Bring Back Bobolinks: Norfolk Airport (New!)
Norfolk - Norfolk Airport - River Rd entrance west from 60 River Rd, Norfolk, MA, United StatesAdding to our Bobolink conservation series. Observe and appreciate Bobolinks in breeding habitat! Bobolinks are nesting throughout the airport. We will walk the runways less than 2 miles walking total. This area is all grasslands, around 400 acres.
-
Belle Isle Marsh Reservation – Winthrop Side
Winthrop - Belle Isle March and Marine Ecology Park Banks Street, Winthrop, MA, United StatesJoint with Mass Audubon BNC. Join us to observe resident birds and spring migrants in a unique urban habitat that is a favorite for many bird species, including uncommon and rare flycatchers, swallows & warblers. Birders of all levels will enjoy this walk. The trails are generally flat and easy to walk. A water bottle,
-
-
Bring Back Bobolinks: Bobolink Walk at Appleton Farms Ipswich with the Grasslands Survey Team (New!)
Ipswich - Appleton Farms paid parking, free for TTOR members 219 County Road, Ipswich, MA, United StatesNew addition to our Bring Back Bobolinks conservation series. Rani date July 2 - check with leader in case of rain. Join new BBC members and Trustees Grassland Birds Monitoring Project volunteers Andy and Tina Haubert on their regular survey at this well known location for breeding and nesting Bobolinks. We’ll observe field marks, song,
-
Quabbin Reservoir
Quabbin Reservoir - Gate 10 235 Daniel Shays Hwy, Pelham, MA, United StatesJoin Glenn on a 5-to-6-mile walk through a very birdy area with species ranging from Broad-winged Hawk to Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Blue-headed Vireo, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Baltimore Oriole, and lots of stuff in between. (Maybe a moose or a bobcat!) Co-sponsored with the South Shore Bird Club.