ORAS wishes to support a student, teacher, individual, or group conducting research, designing outreach or educational activities, or undertaking habitat improvement that will benefit birds and other native wildlife in the Athens area. Awards are typically in the region of $300.

Successful applicants are expected to write a short report for our monthly newsletter and/or to give an oral presentation of 30min – 1hr at one of our monthly speaker meetings. The proposal should be 2-3 pages in length (single or 1.5 spaced), and should describe how the project will benefit birds, wildlife, and the Athens community. It should also contain an itemized list of supplies that will be purchased with the grant money. Please email applications to ORAS President Richard Hall, president@oconeeriversaudubon.org.

The deadline for receipt of these proposals is April 1st 2013.

The 2013 Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) will take place Friday, February 15, through Monday, February 18. Please join us for the 16th annual count!

 ATHENS – University of Georgia ecology professor John Pickering will share his knowledge about the often-unseen populations of moths in Northeast Georgia at the Oconee Rivers Audubon Society’s next meeting, set for 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 3, at Sandy Creek Nature Center.

Pickering, an associate professor in UGA’s Odum School of Ecology, will speak on the topic, Join the Dark Side of Life – The Fabulous Diversity of Local Moths.

Please join us for the Athens Christmas Bird Count this coming Saturday. It's not too late to sign up  - please contact Mary Case (secretary"AT"oconeeriversaudubon.org) if you're interested. Even if you can't join us on the day, be on the lookout for unusual species in the Athens area between 12th and 18th, as they all count towards our count week total. Happy counting, and happy holidays!

This Thursday, November 1, 7 p.m. at the Sandy Creek Nature Center, the Oconee Rivers Audubon Society is pleased to have Dr. Betty Jean Craige as our speaker.  She will present "Bird Brains: How Cosmo, a Parrot, Has Awakened Us to the Intelligence of Animals." Dr. Betty Jean Craige is Professor Emerita of Comparative Literature and Director Emerita of the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts at UGA. She has published 17 books in the fields of literature, politics, art, and history of ideas, among them a biography of ecologist Eugene Odum. Her most recent book is Conversations with Cosmo: At Home with an African Grey Parrot.

A big thankyou to new Athens resident Jackie Choi for making this fantastic movie of the recent ORAS field trip to Whitehall Forest. How many faces do you recognize?

Bird Walk at the Athens Landfill

 

Sunday, October 21, 2012 - 8:00am

The Oconee Rivers Audubon Society, in conjunction with the Athens-Clarke County Landfill, will be hosting a special Sunday birdwalk at the landfill on October 21st.  The landfill is a new rotation in our schedule, and this year's spring trip there was spectacular as there is rich and diverse habitat.  In particular, we are hoping for migrating fall Sparrows.  We will be meeting about a quarter mile inside the gate off of Lexington Road.

Our bird walks are open to the public.  We typically run 3-4 hours though birders may leave at their convenience.  Easy to moderate walking.  Please dress for the weather, wear practical shoes, bring insect repellent and snacks/water as desired.