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Greater Victoria bird monitoring organization celebrates 25th anniversary

The Rocky Point Bird Observatory is hosting a special event for the public
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A northern saw-whet owl (File contributed, Gary Warbler, RPBO)

Ornithologists and amateur bird enthusiasts alike are welcome to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Victoria’s own Rocky Point Bird Observatory (RPBO).

Volunteers at the RPBO have worked at tracking the migraion of Canadian birds for more than two decades, since they started at the Department of National Defences’ Rocky Point Ammunition Depot in Metchosin in 1994. Now, the RPBO also works out of downtown Victoria, with stations in Peddar Bay Marina.

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Over the years RPBO has taken on other projects and sites, including the Hummingbird Project, the monitoring of the migration of Northern Saw-Whet Owls, and breeding birds via the Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) project.

To celebrate the quarter-century anniversary, the RPBO is hosting a special event for the general public to see at the Sunset Labs at 400 Herald Street on Thursday, Oct. 3. at 7 p.m.

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Naturalist Connel Bradwell will guide the audience through examples of research, publication and monitory activities, while Dr. Alison Moran will share her recent discoveries on the diet of hummingbirds. RPBO board member Ann Nightingale will also be available to offer tips on preparing your yard for winter birds.

The event will also include a livestream of the Northern Saw-When Owl monitoring project, based out of Peddar Bay Marina.

People can attend in person or via livestream, and purchase tickets online at rpbo.org. Tickets are by donation, with a suggested price of $10.

vnc.editorial@blackpress.ca


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