Current Projects and Goals

Current Projects and Goals is regularly published about once a quarter. Its purpose is to communicate to our membership about important issues that the board of directors and committee members are involved with.

Projects and Goals September 2021

SBAS is actively working on many projects related to our three main focus areas: education, conservation, and science.  This column is updated regularly with an overview of selected current projects and goals (project list is not all-inclusive).  Likewise, the goals summarize what each SBAS committee is working towards with occasional opportunities for member involvement.

From the desk of Katherine Emery, Executive Director

Current Projects

Goals

Education
  • Continuing to provide programs at local retirement
    communities. (Contact Dotti Pak to set up.)
  • Presenting Eyes in the Sky raptor ambassadors in person at Cachuma Lake, El Capitan State Beach and Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.
  • Preparing fall monthly Evening Programs.
  • Sharing 3rd fun new SBAS video How to Start Birding.
    https://santabarbaraaudubon.org/videos/
 
  • Teach updated SBAS Meet Your Wild Neighbor curriculum in local classrooms over 2021-2022 school year. (Reached 12 lower elementary classrooms last year!)
  • Provide bird and habitat lessons to older students. (6 upper elementary and high school classrooms visited last year!)
  • Further outreach to local retirement communities and the Santa Barbara Braille Institute. (Provided 5 events last year!)
  • Organize 2022 Winter Bird Count 4 Kids event.
  • Continue working with Goleta Coast Audubon chapter to bring young people into active participation on behalf of birds.
Conservation
  • Meeting with agency decision-makers, providing public comments, and authoring local conservation letters to promote bird, habitat, and biodiversity protections. (e.g., Heritage Ridge project, Goleta LED Street Lighting Plan, letters of support for other environmental nonprofits)
  • Using science to advocate for bird and habitat protections for Goleta creeks and watersheds and City of Santa Barbara Community Wildfire Protection Plan.
  • Extending reach of information and photos about the 10,300 records in the Breeding Bird Study.
  • Monitoring SB County’s only population of Purple Martins.
  • Working together with Goleta Coast Audubon to conduct the 12th year of Nest Box monitoring of breeding Tree Swallows and Western Bluebirds at Lake Los Carneros (LLC).
  • Processing aquatic invertebrate data for Coal Oil Point Reserve and North Campus Open Space to provide quantitative data in support of understanding and evaluating ecosystem health.
 
  • Continue to build advocacy to protect local open spaces, wetlands, bird habitats, and ecosystems. (e.g., protecting White-tailed Kites and the health of open spaces they rely on)
  • Outreach to key departments within the City of Goleta, City of Santa Barbara, and SB County to advocate for bird and bird habitat protections.
  • Research proposed wind turbine energy projects offshore of the Central Coast.
  • Remind home owners and agencies that tree-trimming should occur during months ending in the letter “R” to avoid nesting season.  Trim in September, October, November and December.
  • Collect and analyze 2021 breeding data for Tree Swallows and Western Bluebirds at 22 Nest Boxes at LLC. 
  • Complete transfer of invertebrate data program to UCSB Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, and analysis of 2019 data.

Projects and Goals June 2021

SBAS is actively working on many projects related to our three main focus areas: education, conservation, and science.  This column is updated regularly with an overview of selected current projects and goals (project list is not all-inclusive).  Likewise, the goals summarize what each SBAS committee is working towards with occasional opportunities for member involvement.

From the desk of Katherine Emery, Executive Director

Current Projects

Goals

Education
  • Providing SBAS Zoom outreach programs at local retirement
    communities. (Contact Dotti Pak to set up.)
  • Presenting Eyes in the Sky raptor ambassadors to schools
    and other groups. (Contact Hannah Atkinson.)
  • Presenting monthly Evening Programs via Zoom.
  • Sharing new SBAS video Why are Birds Important? at Santa
    Barbara Earth Day festival and beyond.
    https://santabarbaraaudubon.org/videos/
 
  • Complete school year teaching of Meet Your Wild Neighbor
    curriculum at 12 local 1st-3rd grade classrooms.
  • Evaluate our new “pandemic style” 2021 Winter Bird Count 4
    Kids event and brainstorm 2022 event.
  • Reintroduce in-person raptor outreach at Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.
  • Continue work with UCSB Goleta Coast Audubon.
Conservation
  • Meeting with agency decision-makers, providing public comments, and authoring local conservation letters to promote bird, habitat, and biodiversity protections. (e.g., work
    plan for the City of Goleta’s Public Works Department, Baron
    Ranch Master Plan, letters of support for other environmental
    nonprofits).
  • Using science to inform decision making for bird protections and habitat for Goleta creeks and watersheds and City of Santa Barbara Community Wildfire Protection Plan.
  • Running the Breeding Bird Study (BBS) for its 6th year;
    gather, edit, and curate the 9300 BBS records & continue
    promoting breeding data as a tool to inform land management
    and resource planning.
 
  • Build advocacy to protect local open spaces, wetlands, bird habitats, and ecosystems.
  • Outreach to key departments within the City of Goleta, City
    of Santa Barbara, and SB County to advocate for bird and
    bird habitat protections.
  • Continue support for saving San Marcos Foothills.
Science
  • Working together with Goleta Coast Audubon to conduct
    the 12th year of Nest Box monitoring of breeding Tree Swallows and Western Bluebirds at Lake Los Carneros (LLC).
  • Processing aquatic invertebrate data for Coal Oil Point Reserve and North Campus Open Space to provide quantitative data in support of understanding and evaluating ecosystem health.
 
  • Collect breeding data for Tree Swallows and Western Bluebirds at 22 Nest Boxes at LLC.
  • Research proposed off-shore wind turbine energy projects off the coast of Santa Barbara County.

Projects and Goals March 2021

SBAS is actively working on many projects related to our three main focus areas: education, conservation, and science.  This column will be updated regularly with an overview of selected current projects and goals (project list is not all-inclusive).  Likewise, the goals summarize what each SBAS committee is working towards with occasional opportunities for member involvement.

From the desk of Katherine Emery, Executive Director

Current Projects

Goals

Education
  • Providing socially distant education & outreach programs to serve community during COVID
  • Teaching online Meet Your Wild Neighbor curriculum at 12 local 1st-3rd grade classrooms.
  • Bringing Eyes in the Sky raptor ambassadors to local schools and other groups via Zoom for 15-60 min. presentations. (Contact Hannah)
  • Presenting monthly Evening Programs via Zoom.
 
  • Schedule new SBAS Zoom outreach program at local retirement communities. (Please contact Hannah or Dotti to set this up.)
  • Circulate new SBAS Learning Resources and Additional Resources:
    https://santabarbaraaudubon.org/learning-resources/
  • Reintroduce in-person raptor outreach at Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.
  • Continue work with UCSB Goleta Coast Audubon.
Conservation
  • Meeting with agency decision-makers, providing public comments, and authoring local conservation letters to promote bird, habitat, and biodiversity protections. (e.g., Manzana Wind Power Project Condor Incidental Take Permit, City of Goleta LEDs, and Baron Ranch Master Plan.)
  • Using science to inform decision making for bird protections and habitat for Goleta creeks and watersheds and City of Santa Barbara Community Wildfire Protection Plan.
 
  • Build advocacy to protect local open spaces, wetlands, bird habitats, and ecosystems.
  • Collaborate with Goleta Parks & Open Space Manager, SB County Flood Control staff, and others to preserve birdlife and habitat at regional open spaces and stream corridors.
  • Run the Breeding Bird Study (BBS) project for its 6th year; gather, edit, and curate the 9300 BBS records & continue promoting breeding data as a tool to inform land management and resource planning.
Science
  • Exploring community science outreach about Nest Box monitoring of breeding Tree Swallows and Western Bluebirds at Lake Los Carneros (LLC).
  • Processing aquatic invertebrate data for COPR and North Campus Open Space to provide quantitative data in support of understanding and evaluating ecosystem health..
  • Working on Kite Watch, the community-based program of gathering White-tailed Kite breeding data.
 
  • Plan 2021 Nest Box monitoring & related outreach.
  • Strategize adapted Winter Bird Count For Kids community science event at LLC.
  • Devise COVID-safe ways of encouraging community members to gather White-tailed Kite breeding information for the season that began in January and goes till September. (Contact Mark Holmgren.)

Projects and Goals November 2020

SBAS is actively working on many projects related to our three main focus areas: education, conservation, and science.  This column will be updated regularly with an overview of selected current projects and goals (project list is not all-inclusive).  Likewise, the goals summarize what each SBAS committee is working towards with occasional opportunities for member involvement.

From the desk of Katherine Emery, Executive Director

Current Projects

Goals

Education
  • Providing new adapted socially distant education & outreach programs to serve community during Covid
  • Creating new Learning & Additional Resources webpages with education materials: videos, birdcalls & field guides.
  • Bringing Eyes in the Sky (EITS) raptor ambassadors to local schools via Zoom for 30-45 min presentations. (Contact Hannah for pricing.)
  • Providing adapted monthly Evening Programs.
  • Reintroducing redesigned in-person raptor outreach at Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.
 
  • Circulate SBAS Learning Resources and EITS video. https://santabarbaraaudubon.org/learning-resources/
  • Provide new interactive online Meet Your Wild Neighbor (MYWN) curriculum to 12 local 1st-3rd grade classrooms in the 2020-21 school year.
  • Adapt and deliver new SBAS Zoom outreach program to retirement communities and other audiences.
  • Continue work with UCSB Goleta Coast Audubon.
Conservation
  • Meeting with agency decision-makers, providing public comments, and signing local conservation letters to promote bird, habitat, and biodiversity protections.
  • Using science to inform decision making for bird protections and habitat for Goleta creeks and watersheds and City of Santa Barbara Community Wildfire Protection Plan.
  • Reminding agencies that fuels reduction (trimming & removal of vegetation/trees/habitat) should occur during non-breeding times, specifically during months ending with “r”: September, October, November, December. (Sent 80 Tree Trimming letters Oct. 2020).
 
  • Build advocacy to protect local open spaces, wetlands, bird habitats, and ecosystems.
  • Collaborate with Goleta Parks & Open Space Manager, SB County Flood Control staff, and others to preserve birdlife and habitat at regional open spaces (e.g., Lake Los Carneros (LLC) & Ellwood), creek corridors, and Coal Oil Point Reserve (COPR).
  • Continue promoting the use of Santa Barbara County Breeding Bird Study records as a tool to inform land management and resource planning.
  • Work with City of Goleta to consider the use of raptor perch at LLC to control pests and prevent use of rodenticides.
Science
  • Exploring community science outreach about Nest Box monitoring at LLC: study of Tree Swallows (TRES) and Western Bluebirds (WEBL) breeding.
  • Processing aquatic invertebrate data for COPR and North Campus Open Space to provide quantitative data in support of understanding and evaluating ecosystem health.
  • Processing White-tailed Kite breeding data from February through September; 11 nesting events produced a minimum of 14 young.
 
  • Plan 2021 Nest Box monitoring & related outreach.
  • Promote 2021 Winter Bird Count For Kids community science event at LLC. (Moved to April.)
  • Explore research and conservation fund to protect Purple Martins.
  • Welcome more volunteer Kite Watchers to assist tracking kites and other raptors in open spaces in 2021. (Contact Mark Holmgren.)