2007 Meeting - Orono, Maine

The Association of Field Ornithologists held their 85th annual meeting at the University of Maine campus in Orono, 26-29 July, 2007. The meeting was co-sponsored with Maine Audubon, the University of Maine, and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife. Over 85 people, from as far away as Alaska and the United Kingdom, attended this year's meeting. Dr. Stephen Kress of the Seabird Restoration Program and National Audubon Society opened Friday's session with his talk, "Restoring Endangered Seabirds: Lessons from Puffins and Terns". A day of contributed oral papers followed the morning's plenary and was capped off with a poster session and reception. Dr. Peter Marra of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and National Zoo, began Saturday's session with his talk titled "Pathways of Dispersion: The Flyways and Byways of Avian Influenza", a topic of interest to researchers and general public alike. This was followed by an all-day symposium titled "Lessons from Long-term Monitoring Studies", which featured a spectrum of case histories on a broad array of species, such as the Kirtland's warbler, Atlantic seabirds, and American woodcock, and included different methodologies. The symposium was followed by a panel discussion, with the audience raising many interesting points to consider with long-term monitoring data.

Students featured large in this year's meeting: twenty-four out of the 41 (58%) contributed papers (31 oral, 9 poster) were given by students and, for the first time, the AFO sponsored student presentation awards in recognition of the high quality of research being done by students. The meeting also featured activities to promote student career development and networking, including a student-professional mentoring luncheon, a student evening social, and a student-only early morning canoe trip on the Stillwater River.

July was prime seabird viewing in the mid-coast Maine region and many people got to see puffins, razorbills, terns and many other species on their trips to Machias Seal Island. Birders also enjoyed local trips to see landbirds of the local forests and bogs. Attendees sampled the foods of Maine during the receptions, Friday¹s lobster bake buffet, and Saturday's banquet. The meeting ended with the Clam City Ramblers providing Celtic music in traditional and "fusion" style. The organizers wish to thank all who attended this year's AFO meeting!