Author: Agustina Torretta
Ornithological Council bimonthly news brief: January-February 2026
Over the last two months, Ornithological Council staff: 1. Developed a new Fact Sheet on the Proper Use and Cleaning of Bird Feeders. The Fact Sheet provides evidence-backed guidance to the bird feeding community on the proper use and cleaning of bird feeders. In addition to the longer fact sheet, which includes extensive references, there is a one-pager perfect for posting on bulletin boards and sharing. Both versions can be downloaded here. Met with USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service staff... Read More
Guest feature | Bye bye bycatch: a remotely closing trap for targeted songbird capture
They say necessity is the mother of invention, and that was certainly true of our new method of selectively trapping songbirds. We didn’t set out to engineer a remotely closing door for a feeder trap — we just needed a way to capture some cautious House Sparrows. The overall goal of this collaborative project is […] Read More
Journal of Field Ornithology | Editor’s Pick (Volume 96, Issue 4)
We are glad to present this new section, where for each new issue of the JFO, one of the journal’s co-Editors-in-Chief will highlight their favorite paper. This edition is courtesy of Dr. Rafael Rueda Hernández. Rafael says: This paper offers much-needed insight into an understudied yet critical stage of the avian annual cycle: the prealternate molt, which occurs before departure from the wintering grounds and, in some cases, extends into spring migration... Read More
Ornithological Council bimonthly news brief: November-December 2025
Over the last two months, Ornithological Council staff: 1. Attended a bi-monthly meeting of a new scientific society coalition. The Scientific Societies Working Group is a coalition of non-partisan associations with a common interest in promoting scientific integrity (including the people and process of doing science, and the application of scientific results to benefit the public) and building capacity within the scientific community in the U.S. and beyond. The purpose of the coalition is internal sharing and coordination to support... Read More
AFO grants & awards | Brooke Poplin: 2023 Bergstrom Grant recipient finished her Master’s with help of AFO grant
In 2023, Brooke Poplin, from the University of North Texas, was selected among five other candidates for an AFO Bergstrom Grant. A few days ago, two years later, she contacted us to let us know she had finished her Master’s. With support from AFO’s Bergstrom Award, I completed my master’s thesis on Harris’s Hawks in […] Read More
Guest feature | Poke, gape, or escape? Diurnal anthropogenic noise disrupts Eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis) incubation and nest attendance behavior
Eastern bluebirds are often classified as an urban-adapting species. Bluebirds are second cavity nesters, frequently settling into artificially made nest boxes in human-dominated landscapes. These landscapes are filled with various anthropogenic noise sources such as traffic, construction, and other forms of human activity. High levels of anthropogenic noise negatively impact the health and well-being... Read More
AFO news | The Journal of Field Ornithology is looking for a new co-Editor-in-Chief
With a 100-year history (beginning in 1925 as the Bulletin of the Northeastern Bird-Banding Association), the Journal of Field Ornithology (JFO) represents one of the longest-published research journals in Ornithology. Starting in 2022, as part of our commitment to lowering barriers and increasing access, the journal transitioned to a fully digital and open-access format through our publishing […] Read More
Ornithological Council bimonthly news brief: September-October 2025
The Ornithological Council’s mission is to: Over the last two months, Ornithological Council staff: 1. Tracked the effects of the government shutdown and pending layoffs on ornithologists. Both the continuing shutdown of the U.S. federal government due to a lapse in appropriations and the administration’s recent attempts to layoff employees have effects on science and ornithologists. […] Read More