The 2018 Earth Week Birding Classic at Penn State Altoona, held the weekend of April 21–22, continued the success of past competitions. “We raised just over $1,200 with 11 teams competing in seven categories,” says Catie Farr, a Penn State Altoona alumna and avid birder who has organized this event for all three years (see here for year 1 and here for year 2).
While the Classic has grown each year in the number of participants, one of Farr’s goals has been to get more students competing and—she says—“we had three student teams this year so that is really cool!” In addition, of the 11 teams, one was composed completely of “brand-new birders; it was their first competition. They competed in the Mallard category, which meant they were only birding on the Altoona Campus, but they saw 29 species.”
Birders were treated to a bonus this year; in addition to the 24-hour birding competition, Laura Palmer, associate professor of biology at Penn State Altoona, gave a presentation on her 2017 bluebird study, which was funded in part by proceeds from the 2016 Classic. Palmer spoke “about data gathered during a small pilot study I conducted in the summer of 2017 assessing the effects of nest box temperature on the fledging success of Eastern bluebirds. The study was performed at Canoe Creek State Park in Hollidaysburg, PA.”
With a three-year history to the competition, the money raised—divided between the Juniata Valley Audubon Society (JVAS) and the Penn State Altoona Sustainability Council (PSUA)—is reaping benefits in a number of areas. “The JVAS purchased native plant seed for a wetland reclamation site in Blair County. And the PSUA has plans for the 2017 and 2018 money on upkeep in the seminar forest,” Farr says. “We just sent money to Madison Botch, an intern at Shavers Creek, to go to Hog Island for a leadership camp”; “Sharing Nature: An Educator’s Week” teaches educators how to engage both children and adults in environmental education.
Seeds, upkeep, plus education— far beyond the initial goal of providing a bird count for environmental research, the Earth Week Birding Classic will continue to contribute for years to come.
–Therese Boyd, ’79