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BIRDERS' EXCHANGE RECIPIENTS

Ricardo Perez, El Salvador

Report for Birders' Exchange Program
To: Betty Petersen and Susie Vancura
Prepared by: Ricardo Pérez, representing Hawkwatchers of El Salvador.

I want to thank you for supporting the Hawkwatchers crew of El Salvador. In this report you will read about all our work for birds conservation in our country, for which the equipment you'd supplied us had helped us to develop our efforts.

• Ricardo Pérez taught a basic workshop on Biology and Conservation of diurnal raptors, offered to biology students of El Salvador University in January 2003. We have continued using equipment as binoculars, a scope and Hawk ID books to lead field trips and develop hawk ID skills in the students during 2003 and 2004. As the principal result of the workshop and period of trainee, a biology student had the idea of forming the first crew of hawkwatchers in El Salvador, which intends to achieve a net of people interested on conserving raptors and their habitat, by leading hawkwatching trips and giving talks about the importance of diurnal raptors in the ecosystems elsewhere in the country.
• Birdathons. During October 2004, SalvaNATURA, Salvadoran non-profit organization, organized the first birdaton in El Salvador, during the World Bird Festival supported by BirdLife International, in which biology students participated and used BEX equipment.
• Workshop on basic ornithology. During December 2003, SalvaNATURA, organized a workshop based on basic field ornithology to biology students, which developed different bird ID skills as well as birdcounting techniques to study avian population. For this workshop, SalvaNATURA used binoculars, a compass, a pocket weather station and Hawk ID books, equipment donated by BEX to Hawkwatchers of El Salvador.
• Christmas bird count in El Imposible National Park. On December 30, SalvaNATURA organized a Christmas bird count with help of different people including biologists, birdwatchers and a crew biology students who used equipment donated by BEX
• The BEX had donated a GPS to the Hawkwatchers crew, which it has been used to locate different sites in El Salvador where hawk migration has been seen. This small project intends to mark migration routs countrywide, which will help in the short term to bring local and foreign people to watch this amazing phenomena and interest them on raptors conservation.
• During 2004, we plan to develop several activities as a second workshop on biology and conservation of raptors, give talks about raptor conservation during earth day and other festivals, and continue participating in different birdatons organized by SalvaNATURA as the one leaded during Bird Festival in October 2003.
• Also, part of the equipment will be used by undergraduate biology students who will work on their thesis "Breeding success of Slate-colored solitare Myadestes obscurus, Wren Troglodytes ruffociliatus and Orange billed nightingale thrush Catharus aurantiirostris at Los Andes area, Los Volcanes National Park, El Salvador" from March to June 2004.

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Salvadoran biologist Ricardo Perez is bursting with energy and spreading his enthusiasm as he directs his efforts towards raptors and conservation of their habitats. He has gained valuable experience as an education intern at Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania in 2002 and as an intern and official counter at the HawkWatch International site in Corpus Christi in 2003. From the monitoring station in Corpus Christi he wrote, "We had flights of 100,000 birds in the last 5 days, each day, imagine how cool it is!"

Ricky has participated in a variety of projects in El Salvador, including a study of the distribution of diurnal raptors in El Imposible National Park. Currently he is teaching a course "Biology and Conservation of Diurnal Raptors" to biology students and is providing training in identification, methods of counting and educational information for working with the public. A project to survey the abundance, density and habitat use of Harris's Hawk in one area of El Salvador is underway.

An exciting initiative in its initial stages is the establishment of the first hawk watch site for observation and monitoring of the spring and fall migration of raptors in El Salvador. This also includes the training of local guides and park rangers as well as development of environmental education programs.

Birders' Exchange has been delighted to provide Ricky with some of the equipment he needs for his training activities and the establishment of the hawk watch monitoring station. He writes, "Thanks for your supportive words that raise my feelings and give me forces to continue working for birds' conservation."

The photo shows Ricardo with some of the students he is training and some other birders.

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