Join Alabama Audubon and special guest, Dr. Joe Gyekis from Penn State University, for an introduction to Night Flight Calls that you won't want to miss! During migration, especially in the fall, many songbirds use specialized calls while flying high in our atmosphere en route to their next destination. Nocturnal flight calls (NFCs) are short vocalizations made by birds during nighttime migration that are distinct from the typical songs and calls birds make during the day.
The exact uses for NFCs are not fully understood, but they are thought to be used to communicate with other migrants nearby who are navigating in almost complete darkness. Researchers use these calls to detect specific species, record migratory trends, and study them in comparison to the daytime songs and calls we are more familiar with, so that they to get an understanding of how and why birds communicate during these nighttime journeys. There will be time for questions and comments at the end of the presentation.
Dr. Gyekis is a health science teacher at Penn State and a lifelong birder with particular interests in patch listing, nocturnal flight calls, bird window collisions, and dispersal/irruption of mostly non-migratory songbirds. He frequently leads bird walks and speaks to various groups in Pennsylvania. As one of the experts in this field, his knowledge about nocturnal flight calls, including timing, trends, and spectrograms, will provide participants with a unique perspective about what is going on above our heads in complete darkness!
Accessibility : Online/ Zoom
Registration Fee: Alabama Audubon Members $20.00 // Non-members $30.00
*Please note: Registrants will be sent a Zoom link prior to the event with the email that was used for registration. Be sure to check your junk/spam folders for this email if you have not received it prior to the event! If you have questions, please reach out to Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard (andrew@alaudubon.org) for more information.