Washtenaw Safe Passage

03/21/2025

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We are excited about the upcoming spring season and once again looking for new volunteers, for our Nest Box Monitoring Program!

Do you love birds? Do you enjoy watching and learning more about their behavior and life cycle? Would you want to experience birds up close while contributing to science? Then this might be a perfect volunteer opportunity for you! We are looking for dedicated people to be Nest Box Monitors. You’ll encounter Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, House Wrens, and more! To learn more about monitoring responsibilities please check out the Volunteer Community Science webpage link in our bio, or email Kelsey Dehring at [email protected].

We are particularly looking for a volunteer at Rolling Hills County Park in Ypsilanti.

03/16/2025

Researchers from Pennsylvania are asking people in Michigan to help them spot a specific yellow colored bird.

The Evening Grosbeak, once a frequent visitor to backyard feeders, has now lost almost 90% of its population in Northern America.

A group of researchers, as part of an initiative called the 'Road to Recovery,' are trying to tag these birds and learn about their rapid decline.

If you spot an Evening Grosbeak, researchers are asking people to contact the U.S. Geological Survey Bird Banding Lab.

Find the full story at https://radio.wcmu.org/local-regional-news/2025-03-10/researchers-ask-michiganders-to-keep-an-eye-out-for-evening-grosbeaks

03/11/2025

If you need an excuse to get out for some trivia….

Here are some past team names to inspire you: the Hawkards, the Fowl Mouths, the Loonatics. Bring your team and your bird puns to the Wed., March 26 at 7 pm at Bird Brain Trivia Night!

Register below or in the linktree events.

03/08/2025

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To celebrate International Women's Day, we wanted to share this Audubon article "Seven Women Who Made the World Better for Birds and People".

"When we hear the word “naturalist,” we often think of Charles Darwin and his theories, John Muir, the “Father of National Parks,” and of course, John James Audubon. But let’s not forget the women who rallied to preserve the natural realm. From creating the first avian field guide, to ending the feather trade, to dying in pursuit of birds, these seven femmes prove that the history of incredible women transcends any single month."

Pictured: Florence Merriam Bailey, maker of the first known bird guide, in New Mexico, 1901. Photo: Vernon Bailey Collection/American Heritage Center/University of Wyoming

https://www.audubon.org/news/seven-women-who-made-world-better-birds-and-people

03/01/2025

Have you seen more American Robins lately? Spring is coming (and they know it!), and so we celebrate this common thrush as our Bird of the Week. Not all Robins leave in the winter, but the ones that stay are less visible because, like us, they hunker down trying to stay warm. There is much discussion in the birding world about how Robins know that there are earthworms underground: by sight? hearing? vibrations? Isn't it great that we don't know everything about something so familiar as a Robin?

Photo by Josette Shindak

02/28/2025

The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge has officially been recognized by the Old-Growth Forest Network, a nonprofit dedicated to identifying and preserving ancient forests across the United States.

The designation applies to 32 acres of old growth forest within Humbug Marsh, a 405-acre site located just south of the refuge’s Trenton, Michigan visitor center. The marsh, which is considered the last undeveloped mile of the Detroit River along the U.S. mainland, contains trees estimated to be 300 years old.

Amanda LeClaire reports: https://wdet.org/2025/02/25/detroit-river-international-wildlife-refuge-gains-recognition-for-trees-more-than-300-years-old/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=news&utm_content=detroit_river_old_growth_forest_network 🔊
Photo courtesy of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge 📸

02/20/2025

This is a terrible idea for a variety of reasons, please speak up!

02/18/2025

Each February, the world comes together for the love of birds. Across four days, people spend time in their favorite places watching and counting as many birds as they can find and reporting them. Known as the Great Backyard Bird Count, these observations help scientists better understand global bird populations before one of their annual migrations. Learn more: https://www.detroitbirdalliance.org/community-advocacy or in our linktree.

Photo by Nick Hinnant, taken at Eliza Howell Park, Detroit.

02/16/2025

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/lcwmd8
The oldest known Great Lakes piping plover was recently spotted at her favorite wintering grounds on the Atlantic shore in Georgia.

Bird monitors recently spotted “Gabby,” a 16-year-old female piping plover at Cumberland Island National Seashore in Georgia. She was photographed while foraging on Jan. 29, casting a shadow on the beach during an oceanside island sunset.