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:
BBC Global Big Day Count – May 10
BBC Global Big Day Count On May 18, 1974 Bob Stymiest led the BBC trip with the all time largest species count for the club - 162 birds seen during 20 hours across Essex County. [...]
Camp Edwards Grassland Bird Tours
The Massachusetts Army National Guard’s Natural Resource Program is hosting grassland bird tours in May on Camp Edwards. This is an unusual opportunity for avid birders, naturalists and photographers to walk through the Camp Edwards [...]
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards The BBC Conservation and Education Committee is pleased to announce our two annual Bill Drummond Young Birder Scholarship recipients, Sydney Beard of Cambridge and Jonas Johnson of Canaan, CT. [...]
US Fish & Wildlife Service Major Staff Cuts
According to the National Wildlife Refuge Association, “The intentional dismantling of science and conservation is happening now. Hundreds of dedicated U. S. Fish and Wildlife Services employees—many of them biologists—have been fired, gutting an [...]
2024 Annual Report
The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 283 species for 2024, with 274 species in Massachusetts (four more than 2023), and nine additional species reported from New Hampshire and Maine. This total was based upon 262 [...]
April 25 Annual Members Meeting – All Welcome
April 25 Annual Members Meeting - All Welcome Please join us on April 25 for our Annual Members Meeting. The evening begins with a social hour at 6:30. The program starts at 7:00 with the [...]
BBC Global Big Day Count – May 10
BBC Global Big Day Count On May 18, 1974 Bob Stymiest led the BBC trip with the all time largest species count for the club - 162 birds seen during 20 hours across Essex County. [...]
Camp Edwards Grassland Bird Tours
The Massachusetts Army National Guard’s Natural Resource Program is hosting grassland bird tours in May on Camp Edwards. This is an unusual opportunity for avid birders, naturalists and photographers to walk through the Camp Edwards [...]
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards The BBC Conservation and Education Committee is pleased to announce our two annual Bill Drummond Young Birder Scholarship recipients, Sydney Beard of Cambridge and Jonas Johnson of Canaan, CT. [...]
US Fish & Wildlife Service Major Staff Cuts
According to the National Wildlife Refuge Association, “The intentional dismantling of science and conservation is happening now. Hundreds of dedicated U. S. Fish and Wildlife Services employees—many of them biologists—have been fired, gutting an [...]
2024 Annual Report
The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 283 species for 2024, with 274 species in Massachusetts (four more than 2023), and nine additional species reported from New Hampshire and Maine. This total was based upon 262 [...]
April 25 Annual Members Meeting – All Welcome
April 25 Annual Members Meeting - All Welcome Please join us on April 25 for our Annual Members Meeting. The evening begins with a social hour at 6:30. The program starts at 7:00 with the [...]
BBC Global Big Day Count – May 10
BBC Global Big Day Count On May 18, 1974 Bob Stymiest led the BBC trip with the all time largest species count for the club - 162 birds seen during 20 hours across Essex County. [...]
Camp Edwards Grassland Bird Tours
The Massachusetts Army National Guard’s Natural Resource Program is hosting grassland bird tours in May on Camp Edwards. This is an unusual opportunity for avid birders, naturalists and photographers to walk through the Camp Edwards [...]
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards The BBC Conservation and Education Committee is pleased to announce our two annual Bill Drummond Young Birder Scholarship recipients, Sydney Beard of Cambridge and Jonas Johnson of Canaan, CT. [...]
US Fish & Wildlife Service Major Staff Cuts
According to the National Wildlife Refuge Association, “The intentional dismantling of science and conservation is happening now. Hundreds of dedicated U. S. Fish and Wildlife Services employees—many of them biologists—have been fired, gutting an [...]
2024 Annual Report
The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 283 species for 2024, with 274 species in Massachusetts (four more than 2023), and nine additional species reported from New Hampshire and Maine. This total was based upon 262 [...]
April 25 Annual Members Meeting – All Welcome
April 25 Annual Members Meeting - All Welcome Please join us on April 25 for our Annual Members Meeting. The evening begins with a social hour at 6:30. The program starts at 7:00 with the [...]
News Categories
Upcoming Field Trips
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Belle Isle Marsh Reservation
East Boston - Belle Isle Parking Lot 1399 Bennington Street, Boston, MA, United StatesLet's explore the East Boston side of Belle Isle Marsh in winter! We'll look for ducks, hawks, Bald Eagles, winter finches and many more birds! Belle Isle is a fantastic birding destination in any season. All of the trails are flat and easy, with a slight elevation on the small hill going through the meadow. [...]
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Midweek Hunt for Alcids and Seabirds
Rockport - Halibut Point State Park Halibut Point State Park, Rockport, MA, United StatesJoin us for a mid-week hunt for alcids and other wintering seabirds. Be prepared for cold and windy weather. If bad weather is predicted, contact the leader by 6:00 pm the previous evening.
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Millennium Park
Boston - Millennium Park Canoe Launch 300 Gardner Street, Boston, MA, United StatesJoin us to look for birds in a unique urban habitat that often draws numerous uncommon and rare birds. Birders of all levels will enjoy this trip. The trails are flat and easy to walk. We may offer optional 30-60 minute trip extensions to adjacent locations such as West Roxbury High School Marsh and/or Brook [...]
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Sconticut Neck and West Island, Fairhaven
Fairhaven - Sconticut Neck and West Island 209 Huttleston Ave,, Fairhaven, MA, United StatesWe will make several stops on the neck and then onto West Island to search for winter ducks, loons, grebes and shorebirds.
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Belle Isle Marsh and Vicinity
East Boston - Belle Isle Parking Lot 1399 Bennington Street, Boston, MA, United StatesLed by DCR staff. We will search on foot up to one mile, on flat, easy terrain for snowy owls and other raptors, native sparrows, finches, waterfowl, and other birds. This is a traveling program by car or bike. Prepare for ticks. Ages: Adults and kids 8 years+ with adult chaperone. Binoculars recommended. ADA/Reasonable Accommodations [...]