Monthly Meeting and Lecture
Monthly MEETING and LECTURE: “Insights gained from 50 years of study: the socially complex lives of Florida Scrub-Jays” by Reed Bowman, Ph.D., Director, Avian Ecology Program, Archbold Biological Station
Date and Time
April 2, 7:00 p.m. meeting & lecture.
Light refreshments at 6:30 p.m.
Rooms 101 and 102 at FAU Pine Jog Environmental Education Center, 6301 Summit Blvd, (near Jog Road) in West Palm Beach. Meeting is free and open to the public.
Program Overview
In his program, “Insights gained from 50 years of study: the socially complex lives of Florida Scrub-Jays,” Dr Reed Bowman uses insights gained from the long-term study of the Florida Scrub Jay at the Archbold Biological Station to describe the behaviors of this unique species. The only species of bird endemic to Florida and one of only 15 species endemic to the entire continental United States, it is tracked by birders who travel from across the country to observe it. The bird is known to have been present in Florida as a distinct species for at least 2 million years
About Dr. Reed Bowman
Dr. Reed Bowman is the Director of the Avian Ecology Program at Archbold Biological Station. He has lived and worked in Florida for nearly 35 years and is co-author of the recent book Florida Bird Species: An Annotated List. For the last 35 years, he has studied several of Florida’s most endangered birds: the Florida Scrub-Jay, Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Florida Grasshopper Sparrow, and White-crowned Pigeon. He is a Fellow of the American Ornithological Society, past President of the Association of Field Ornithologists and the Florida Ornithological Society, and recipient of the Margaret Morse Nice Medal for lifetime achievement in ornithology from the Wilson Ornithological Society. He directs the long-term study of Florida Scrub-Jay ecology, one of the world’s longest-running studies of wild birds, now in its 50th year. He has authored over 90 scientific papers, edited or authored three books, and was one of the co-founders of JayWatch, a volunteer citizen-science project that monitors populations of Florida Scrub-Jays throughout the state.
Audubon Everglades has been a strong supporter of the JayWatch program. The Florida Scrub-Jay was officially listed as a threatened state species by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in 1975, and it was listed as a threatened federal species by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1987. It is estimated that, in the last 100 years, 90% of the Florida Scrub-Jay’s population has been lost.
More Meeting Information
Meeting and program is free and open to the public. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for light refreshments, in rooms 101 and 102 at FAU Pine Jog Environmental Education Center, 6301 Summit Blvd (near Jog Road) in West Palm Beach. We look forward to seeing you there!
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