World Migratory Bird Day 2011 breaks all records!

Bonn, 2 August 2011 - An amazing 205 registered events in 64 countries worldwide made World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) 2011, which was celebrated on 14-15 May 2011, an absolute record breaker!

WMBD is a global initiative devoted to celebrating migratory birds and for promoting their conservation worldwide. It is jointly organized by the Secretariats of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) and the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA).

The WMBD 2011 campaign has also received support from UNEP, BirdLife International, Wetlands International and the Partnership for the East Asian - Australasian Flyway (EAAFP) and was made possible through a voluntary contribution given to the CMS and AEWA Secretariats by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU).

From Argentina to Palau and from Canada to India, school children, teachers, conservationists, politicians, clubs, wildlife conservation organizations, journalists and many other dedicated groups and individuals around the world joined World Migratory Bird Day 2011 by organizing events which brought people together to raise awareness about migratory birds and the loss and degradation of their habitats. World Migratory Bird Day 2011 also stimulated growing media interest, with hundreds of news articles related to WMBD published around the world and a number of statements received from key WMBD supporters.

The theme for World Migratory Bird Day 2011, which focused on the negative effects human activities are having in migratory birds, their habitat and the planet's natural environement was 'Land use changes from a bird’s-eye view'.

The CMS and AEWA Secretariats would like to once again take this opportunity to thank all WMBD organizers for supporting World Migratory Bird Day 2011 and making it such a great success. We hope that we will be able to welcome all of you back next year to celebrate WMBD 2012 on 12-13 May 2012!



We have received reports on a large number of WMBD events this year and have made them all available on the WMBD website.

Please also visit the WMBD Event Map which provides a full overview of the events which took place around the world!

EVENT MAP

To give you a taste of what WMBD is all about, here is a small random selection of some of the WMBD events which took place this year:

South Korea:

The East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) Secretariat invited Incheon city officials with their children (80 participants in total) to a waterbird watching and education programme. Half of the day was designed to promote awareness of tidal flats in the region of Incheon as an important habitat for migratory waterbirds and to stimulate public efforts to conserve them for the future. After a lecture about waterbirds and threats along their journey, highlighting the theme “Land use changes from a bird’s-eye view”, participants visited Namdong Reservoir and Yeongjong Island to observe nesting Black-faced Spoonbills and different shorebirds.

For more information about this event please visit: http://www.eaaflyway.net/partnership-news.php

Kenya:

Staff members from the BirdLife International Africa Secretariat in Nairobi celebrated WMBD 2011 together with members of Nature Kenya, Olorgesaile Environment and Wildlife Conservation Group (OEWCG) and staff of the Olorgesaile Prehistoric Site. This site, a bird watcher’s paradise, was also the venue for the event and functions as an important habitat for many bird species that are using the Great Rift Valley Flyway. This year’s WMBD theme was very appropriate for this area, because for the last few years it has been suffering from degradation driven by the high demand for charcoal and fuel wood. The highlight of the event consisted of a birdwalk within the Olorgesaile area followed by speeches, talks and discussion sessions lead by staff members from the different participating organizations.

For more information about this event please contact: BirdLife Africa Partnership Secretariat, Mr. George Eshiamwata, [email protected]

Rwanda:

The “Association pour la Conservation de la Nature au Rwanda (ACNR)” in collaboration with the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) and the Rwanda Birding Association (RBA) organized a joint WMBD event which included a round table discussion on migratory birds, their habitats, their conservation and aspects of eco-tourism. The discussion was broadcasted live on Rwanda Television and a press release on World Migratory Bird Day 2011 and the events in Rwanda was sent out to the media. The highlight of the event was a birdwatching excursion with more than 100 participants. At the end of the event participants were invited to write down their personal impressions, ideas and wishes concerning WMBD on small paper bird sculptures. To give the event an even bigger impact, all paper birds were afterwards collected and put together in the shape of one big bird, which was hung up in the RDB entrance hall, where more than 1000 people pass by every day.

For more information about this event, please contact: Association pour la Conservation de la Nature au Rwanda (ACNR), Ms. Julia Ritsche, [email protected]

Iraq:

Nature Iraq, the BirdLife International partner in Iraq, organized several activities on the occasion of WMBD 2011. The events varied from bird identification trainings to lectures on soaring birds and the role of Iraq for their protection. The latter was broadcasted by the media. Additionally, the Iraqi celebrations included an exhibition and a talk given by Dr. Azzam Alwash (CEO of Nature Iraq) on the Mesopotamian Marshes as one of the key sites for migratory birds in Iraq.

For more information about this event, please contact: Nature Iraq, Mr. Korsh Ararat, [email protected]

India:

In India, several WMBD events where organized by WWF India in collaboration with other partner organizations in high altitude areas of Ladakh and Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir. The organizations invited students to take part in painting and slogan writing competitions both related to this year’s WMBD theme. The core activity of the WMBD celebrations in India were two birdwatching trips - one of them with 110 participants - to the Shey marshes and Muradpur close the Rajouri River. Students learned about various scientific techniques for studying birds, about International Flyway Conservation Projects and were able to watch many different migratory bird species.

For more information about this event, please contact: WWF India, Mr. Pankaj Chandan, [email protected]

Bangladesh:

Destitute children in Dhaka, Bangladesh, were invited by “Bird Lover” and the “Center for Environmental and Geographic Information Services (CEGIS)” to celebrate WMBD 2011 at Gulsha Lake. The programme started with a talk about migratory birds and was followed by an open discussion which was mainly led by the children raising many interesting questions. The programme also included a bird quiz and video show about a Ramsar site of Bangladesh and a birdwatching activity in Koriel. At the end, the children received small presents and prizes and closed their WMBD celebrations with singing songs. It was the first time that the 35 children, aged 4 – 15 years learned about migratory birds and World Migratory Bird Day.

For more information about this event, please contact: Bird Lover, Md. Sharif Hossain Sourav, [email protected]

Syria:

In Syria, World Migratory Bird Day was celebrated on 14 and 15 May 2011 demonstrating the particular importance of Labboul Lake for migratory waterbirds. Children from an orphanage joined the activities of this celebration by drawing pictures of migratory birds known in Syria. The celebration was organized by the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad (SPANA) at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Al Baath University and the Directorate of Children Culture of the Ministry of Culture. Many articles and interviews were published in local and national newspapers, magazines and TV channels.



For more information about this event, please contact: Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad (SPANA), Dr. Darem Tabbaa, [email protected]

Peru:

The “Asociación Scouts del Perú - Región Scout XX” carries out several activities for children in the Wetlands of Pantanos de Villa - a Ramsar site and resting place for migratory and endemic birds, throughout the year. For WMBD 2011, the organization together with PROHVILLA (a decentralized agency of the Municipality of Lima which protects the Wetlands of Pantanos de Villa) implemented a series of educational workshops, service activities, a kids camp (ECOCAMP), an environmental photography competition and several field trips to observe birds of the Wetlands of Pantanos de Villa and other areas inside and outside the city of Lima.

For more information about this event, please contact: Asociación Scouts del Perú - Región Scout XX , Ms. Rosa María Yacarini Herencia, [email protected]

World Migratory Bird Day 2011 has also generated significant interest on the Facebook Fan Page and Twitter.

We would like to thank the WMBD followers for their contributions and would like to encourage them to carry on the discussions until the 2012 campaign picks up at the end of this year.

For more information about World Migratory Bird Day, please visit the WMBD website at: www.worldmigratorybirdday.org

or contact the AEWA Secretariat at:

[email protected]