Bird of the Month

The May bird of the month is the Potoo. There are many species of Potoo but we could not decide just one so we are doing the whole family! Potoos are one of the weirdest birds. They are in their own order along with the oilbird but they are related to other nightjars. Their songs are a loud "waaapppp" continued by shorter "wap"s - definitely take time to listen and laugh at their sounds when you learn more about them! If you are down in the Carribean, Central America, or South America, make sure to go look for these elusive nocturnal birds that often mimic tree branches. A bird that they are not closely related to but look very similar to is the Tawny Frogmouth that lives on the other side of the world. This is an example of convergent evolution for insectivores on the wing!

Many thanks to Buffalo Audubon for creating a $10 discount on the Spring Birding Challenge for WNYYBC members! Use the code nuthactch24 at https://outsidechronicles.com/springbird!/

Happy birding!

June events include Get Outdoors & Get Together Day at Reinstein AND Guillemot Appreciation Day at Hyatt’s! Make sure to check out all our upcoming events below!

Upcoming Events

• May 31 - June 2: Sign up now for Allegany Nature Pilgrimage, a weekend of wonderful nature programming for all ages!
• June 8: Get Outdoors & Get Together Day @ Reinstein Woods - for more info visit https://reinsteinwoods.org/events/get-outdoors-get-together-day-2024/
• June 29, 4pm: Celebrate International Guillemot Appreciation Day at Hyatt’s with a guillemot talk, snacks, guillemot art, and prizes for people wearing guillemot costumes!
• July: Birds & books @ Alice, Ever After Books!
• August: No scheduled events - let us know what birds you see on summer adventures!

DON’T FORGET TO BE WORKING ON YOUR I BIRD NY CHALLENGE!

As always visit our Events page to stay up to date on our latest events at any time! Don't forget to let us know your ideas by email or using this brief survey.

Want to organize an event? Just reach out! We are hard at work planning activities for 2024 and welcome your ideas!

Friends

Thanks to all the great local nature organizations for their support of the club! There is no financial or legal obligation to friendship! Friends simply help spread the word and, if interested, organize an event for the young birders. We share information about friends on the website and in emails - we also try to make sure to list bird-related events friends are hosting on our calendar and friends' camps on our camp list. The WNYYBC operates in partnership with Birds on the Niagara, an international Buffalo-based organization celebrating birds, conservation, and social justice. For more information visit http://www.birdniagara.org/.

Don't Forget - Birding Gear Freecycle!

Did you upgrade to a better scope or outgrow a favorite birding t-shirt? Do you need to trim down your field guide collection or rehome some old bird feeders? Donate your gently used* birding gear! Gear can range from optics and cameras to books to clothes and warm weather gear to feeders, dvds, and more - anything potentially bird-related is fair game! All gear is inventoried at https://www.wnyybc.org/local-birding-resources/gear-freecycle.

The WNY Young Birder Club, The Spark Bird Project, the Feminist Bird Club of Buffalo, and Birds on the Niagara will work with community partners to redistribute gear to individuals who love birds but may not have the resources to afford birding gear and/or folks just starting their birding journey. Please contact one of these organizations if you would like to donate or receive birding gear!

*please only gear in good, working order