The

Raven's

Nest

March

2025

Friends,

We have some exciting changes coming up to our biggest annual fundraiser–the Birdathon!

Every spring, we hold the Birdathon–a 24-hour event where a teams of birders solicit donations and then compete to identify as many species in Western North Carolina as they can– to raise money for a conservation project. In past years, our Birdathons have raised thousands of dollars for a variety of deserving organizations such as preserving golden-winged warbler habitat with Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy; protecting wintering cerulean warbler habitat in Reinita Cielo Azul, Colombia; and building Motus Towers to help study birds in migration.

But all of these conservation efforts have been transactional in nature, many times funneling our donations through third parties like the American Bird Conservancy. With the publication of the National Audubon Flight Plan and its emphasis on Hemispheric Conservation, we thought the time was right to establish a more enduring relationship with an organization that affords protection to our beloved summer migrants during their stay in the tropics during our winter. These birds–including the cerulean, blackburnian, golden-winged and Canada warblers, wood thrush, and scarlet tanager– all face challenges due to habitat loss in their wintering quarters in Central and South America. We have identified a wonderful organization that is on the ground helping protect these birds not only by protecting the lands these birds need in Colombia, but also by investing in the surrounding communities to ensure that the people on these lands recognize the importance of and benefit from helping protect these birds too. SELVA Colombia has been doing great work on the ground since 2009 to these ends, and we are pleased to announce that this year–and hopefully for many years to come–we will be raising money to assist SELVA in building support for conservation efforts in Santa Maria, Boyaca region through environmental education and community-led protection management efforts in this region. 

We hope that this is just the beginning of a fuller relationship with SELVA and the people of Santa Maria who share our passion for birds and a willingness to protect them. If this investment succeeds, we hope to develop a “sister city” concept between our organizations and communities that will breed familiarity with each other and could expand to sponsoring scientific exchange opportunities, eco-tourism trips, and direct support for this community including bird-friendly coffee farms and cocoa plantations.

Also, we are reinvigorating our Birdathon this year by making it a synchronous effort–all teams will compete on the same day. Teams will have from 5 pm on Saturday, May 3 to 5 pm May 4th to find birds–and then everyone will meet at a local brewery or establishment (still TBD) for a convivial and social announcement of each team’s successes and announce the winners. We hope to have several categories for people to compete in including a zero-carbon category (only on foot/bicycle); a Yard Bird (stationary) category, and perhaps even a Young Birder Team category. Stay tuned for details in the April newsletter, but start getting your teams together now!

John Koon

Dynamics of nocturnal bird migration across Colombia

with Jacob Druker

Tuesday, March 18, 7 pm

Migratory birds that travel between temperate and tropical latitudes must contend with a range of climates that aid and impede their journeys, but most of what we know about bird migration is biased towards the global north. Join ornithologist Jacob Drucker to hear about his research on how birds navigate the skies and landscapes of Colombia using weather radars and acoustic monitoring and learn what familiar Carolinian species are up to on their way back to North America.

Jacob is a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Chicago and the Field Museum of Natural History where he studies how birds interact with tropical climates over ecological and evolutionary time. He uses remote sensing to study migratory flyways through Colombia, and behavioral and molecular data to study the ecological plasticity of birds in the tropical Andes. He has worked on a plethora of research and conservation projects across the Americas and beyond, and as a guide for Victor Emanuel Nature Tours.

Join us on Zoom at 7 pm on Tuesday, March 18 to hear about Jacob's fascinating and important research!

Meeting ID: 850 8354 8670

Passcode: 193302



WNC Sierra Club presents:

International Birding and Climate Change

with Simon Thompson

Wednesday, April 2, 7 pm

Former Blue Ridge Audubon board member and international birding expert, Simon Thompson, will discuss surprising effects of climatic change on North Carolina’s and the world’s wild bird populations.

Thompson says our area is not getting the consistently cold winters it once did, and that affects how and where birds spend the winter. Lake areas remain open longer and waterfowl seem to stay further north unless serious weather surrounds the Great Lakes.

Thompson will show brightly colored photographs of breeding birds coming through western North Carolina in the spring, along with the winter plumage of birds that stay here in the winter. He will also share some beautiful birds found on his tours.

Through his organization, Ventures Birding Tours, Thompson led birding expeditions across several continents. A former resident of Asheville, he will be stopping in town on his return to the UK from Ecuador.

This will be a great event for serious birders and hikers who want to learn the names of the birds they see on their walks.

This free program is open to the public at UNCA OLLI/Reuter Center

300 Campus Drive, Ashevillle and will also be on Zoom.



Save the date - Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary Celebration!

Sunday, April 27, 1 - 4 pm

Come join us for the annual Blue Ridge Audubon "Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary Celebration"! Our annual spring event is a wonderful time for families and friends to come out and explore Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary. This is an afternoon filled with tables from local vendors, local artists showcasing their nature/bird pieces, raptors, Eco Explorer, bird and nature walks, naturalist stations on the boardwalk, and lots of bird activities for kids!

What will be open this spring?

by John Koon



As Western North Carolina continues to recover from the damage wrought by Hurricane Helene, birders are asking "What is open to go birding in?". Unfortunately it looks like many of our favorite Spring Migration birding hot spots will be closed and inaccessible this spring and even into the summer:

• The Blue Ridge Parkway will not be open from the Folk Art Center eastward past Mount Mitchell nor between the French Broad River (Hwy 191) and just shy of Mount Pisgah (Hwy 151) this spring or summer, as the roadbed was physically destroyed in several places by landslides. While the repairs are now underway, they cannot even clear the hundreds of trees down on the road until this work is done. Access, even on foot, is illegal due to the constant threat of heavy machinery and the perilous state of fallen trees along the road in these areas. The associated portions of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail that run along these sections are also closed and have not been cleared of trees and debris. Follow the latest repair updates from their website.

• Likewise Mount Mitchell State Park will not be accessible this spring or summer for the same reasons.

• Owen Park in Swannanoa will be closed for the foreseeable future. At some point Buncombe County will solicit public comments to shape the reconstruction of the park--and we have some ideas on how to make it even more bird-friendly! 

• But many other sites will be open. Most of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Appalachian Trail are open, as are more local favorites like Lake Julian and our own Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary.  

So while many traditional places to bird will not be options for birders this spring, there lie many other undiscovered places that birds will be waiting for us. So let's get out and find them!



Climate Watch

by Tom Tribble

The goal of Audubon’s Climate Watch community science program is to assess the projections made in its published report Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink. The study concludes that rising temperatures and changing precipitation patterns will likely result in the colonization of new territories by North American birds.

The study is also the first to use independently gathered volunteer observations to validate climate suitability projections. The authors of the study conduct further assessment of the habitat suitability of the newly colonized territories to determine whether these new areas can sustain the avian newcomers.

Climate Watch, an Audubon community science program that invites volunteers to count and identify select species of birds deemed climate vulnerable by Audubon climate science, provides the observation data used in the analysis. Each year, from January 15 to February 15 and May 15 to June 15, community scientists all across the country look for 12 species. Blue Ridge Audubon’s target bird is Brown-headed Nuthatch but our volunteers report all species seen or heard during the survey.

The dual month-long windows represent wintering and breeding seasons for the chosen species. The climate-suitable ranges for each of these species are projected to change as their habitats shift, shrink, or expand due to rising global temperatures. Regularly gathered observations allow researchers to track any shifts in species distributions.

“Climate Watch volunteers have confirmed the accuracy of Audubon’s climate projections, which show that two-thirds of North American birds are at risk of extinction by the end of this century,” said Brooke Bateman, PhD, Audubon’s senior climate scientist and lead author of Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink.

Blue Ridge Audubon is proud to be in its 9th year of conducting Climate Watch surveys – one of the few chapters to participate every year since then program began in 2017. Our survey incudes 10 teams that count birds at 12 stops each during one morning in the winter and summer survey windows. The grids are scattered over 5 counites. Our thanks go out to the many volunteers, some of whom have participated every year since 2017! For questions about our Climate Watch surveys contact Tom Tribble.

Photo: Brown-headed Nuthatch by Douglas Clarke, Audubon Photography Awards



Turn off Lights at Night to Help Spring Migrants

by Audubon NC

Birds face a number of threats during their long migration journeys, but you can help by simply turning off unnecessary lights at night and advocating for your neighbors, employer, or local government to do the same. 

Many municipalities are doing their part to advance Lights Out across the state. Last fall, the city of Winston-Salem passed a Lights Out proclamation thanks to advocacy by Forsyth Audubon. The city joins eight other municipalities and counties who have passed Lights Out policies, including Asheville, Greensboro, Matthews, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Cary, Durham, and Cumberland County. 

The momentum for Lights Out comes at an important time; a study published last year estimates that more than one billion birds die each year from fatal building collisions in the United States. This is much more than previously estimated and is due largely to lights and reflective windows that cause birds to become disoriented as they pass through our cities and towns. 

Read the full article on nc.audubon.org



Beaver Lake Clean up on February 22

by Art Hulse

On Saturday the 22nd of February 27 volunteers gathered at the Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary to assist in the clean-up of storm debris left by Helene. What they accomplished was exceptional. The main thrust of the workday was to remove and consolidate flood and wind debris left behind from Helene. The debris, primarily tree trunks, limbs and branches, was removed to an area at the south end of the parking lot where it was stacked and consolidated. Ultimately all of the debris gathered from the sanctuary will be converted to mulch. The mulch can then be used where it is needed in the sanctuary. 

While the work on Feb. 22 accomplished much, there is still work to be done. We are going to have a second workday on Saturday March 22. If you are interested in assisting on the work day please contact Art Hulse at achulse201@gmail.com.

Photos by Beth Godbe and Alicia Hulse



Be on the lookout for nesting Merlins!

by Clifton Avery

We know you all LOVE Merlins, those small but fierce falcons who will readily take on a bird twice their size. So, we are reaching out to ask for your help documenting NESTING Merlins in western NC. You may have noticed increasing reports of Merlins nesting in WNC, from the pair at Linville Land Harbor in 2020, to the pair nesting at Lees McCrae College in 2021, and the pairs active in the summer months around Mt Mitchell and the Great Balsams. Merlins are spreading south in the eastern US. Don Nixon, a Merlin enthusiast helping with Pennsylvania’s Breeding Bird Atlas, reached out to North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) and other state wildlife agencies to see if we could rally birders to be on the lookout for breeding evidence.

FINDING NESTING MERLINS: One of the tricks for finding Merlins on an active breeding territory is to be familiar with vocalizations of these, at times, very noisy birds. March and April are when Merlins begin courtship, which involves a lot vocalizing in and around the nest. 

Listen to this diagnostic courtship call now so you recognize it in the field:

Spring Mating Activity Call (normally heard from March or April, 1- 2 times per hour until the nest goes quiet during incubation). Description: twi twitwitwititititititit. The female call is slightly lower, and slower than the harsher male call.  

Remember, these falcons have a somewhat unusual nesting strategy: they do not build their own nest. They will re-use nests of American Crows or hawks.  These adaptive birds have proven to successfully nest in urban and suburban forests, in addition to the spruce-fir forests of western NC’s highest elevations. Golf courses, college campuses, and the spruce/fir ecosystem are areas where we have confirmed sightings of breeding behavior in western NC. Other urban areas they may nest include, residential areas, parks, school yards, and cemeteries. These are good places to check. 

REPORTING NESTING MERLINS: If you are interested in searching for an active nest in your locale and seek further guidance please contact Clifton Avery –

Clifton.avery@ncwildlife.gov, 828-500-1131. Clifton is aware of the most up-to-date Merlin records in western NC and will provide helpful guidance to anyone that is interested in looking for nesting Merlin. Note that we are NOT seeking sightings of individual Merlins at typical stopover/wintering sites such as Mills River Park or Hooper Lane; we’re looking for evidence of a PAIR on a NESTING TERRITORY.  

USING eBIRD: If you have found a pair of Merlin or a nest, we highly recommend logging it on eBird and adding a breeding code. Here are some codes we suggest using and how to use them on the app: after selecting “Merlin,” click on “add breeding code” and either choose “P” (pair), “UN” (used nest – no birds), or “ON” (occupied nest).

Did you just see a Merlin but no breeding evidence? Just do your usual thing and submit a checklist to eBird without a breeding code. We can query eBird later. 

While you’re out there, keep an eye out for pairs of Sharp-shinned Hawks showing breeding behaviors. Unlike Merlins, Sharp-shinned Hawk (SSHA) are listed as Species of Greatest Conservation Need. They too will nest in conifers, perhaps in more extensive forest than Merlin, but there’s an association with openings in the forest canopy. So please also be on the lookout for SSHA nests.  

We will be back in touch again in June, when we can start expecting to hear fledgling vocalizations.  

Thank you, 

Clifton Avery and Chris Kelly

North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission

Photos by Alan Lenk



Blue Ridge Audubon is a chapter of the National Audubon Society, serving Buncombe, Henderson, and surrounding counties in western North Carolina.

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are

tax-deductible to the extent

allowed by law.

Raven's Nest Editor: 

Jennie Burke

jennifer_bradbury85@yahoo.com

Blue Ridge Audubon Chapter

PO Box 18711

Asheville, NC 28814

Blue Ridge Audubon's mission is to protect birds and the places they depend on. We believe that a world in which birds thrive is a world that benefits all living things.

Our vision is a vibrant and just community where the protection of birds and our natural world is valued by everyone.

The

Raven's

Nest

March

2025

Friends,

We have some exciting changes coming up to our biggest annual fundraiser–the Birdathon!

Every spring, we hold the Birdathon–a 24-hour event where a teams of birders solicit donations and then compete to identify as many species in Western North Carolina as they can– to raise money for a conservation project. In past years, our Birdathons have raised thousands of dollars for a variety of deserving organizations such as preserving golden-winged warbler habitat with Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy; protecting wintering cerulean warbler habitat in Reinita Cielo Azul, Colombia; and building Motus Towers to help study birds in migration.

But all of these conservation efforts have been transactional in nature, many times funneling our donations through third parties like the American Bird Conservancy. With the publication of the National Audubon Flight Plan and its emphasis on Hemispheric Conservation, we thought the time was right to establish a more enduring relationship with an organization that affords protection to our beloved summer migrants during their stay in the tropics during our winter. These birds–including the cerulean, blackburnian, golden-winged and Canada warblers, wood thrush, and scarlet tanager– all face challenges due to habitat loss in their wintering quarters in Central and South America. We have identified a wonderful organization that is on the ground helping protect these birds not only by protecting the lands these birds need in Colombia, but also by investing in the surrounding communities to ensure that the people on these lands recognize the importance of and benefit from helping protect these birds too. SELVA Colombia has been doing great work on the ground since 2009 to these ends, and we are pleased to announce that this year–and hopefully for many years to come–we will be raising money to assist SELVA in building support for conservation efforts in Santa Maria, Boyaca region through environmental education and community-led protection management efforts in this region. 

We hope that this is just the beginning of a fuller relationship with SELVA and the people of Santa Maria who share our passion for birds and a willingness to protect them. If this investment succeeds, we hope to develop a “sister city” concept between our organizations and communities that will breed familiarity with each other and could expand to sponsoring scientific exchange opportunities, eco-tourism trips, and direct support for this community including bird-friendly coffee farms and cocoa plantations.

Also, we are reinvigorating our Birdathon this year by making it a synchronous effort–all teams will compete on the same day. Teams will have from 5 pm on Saturday, May 3 to 5 pm May 4th to find birds–and then everyone will meet at a local brewery or establishment (still TBD) for a convivial and social announcement of each team’s successes and announce the winners. We hope to have several categories for people to compete in including a zero-carbon category (only on foot/bicycle); a Yard Bird (stationary) category, and perhaps even a Young Birder Team category. Stay tuned for details in the April newsletter, but start getting your teams together now!

John Koon

Blue Ridge Audubon Chapter

JohnKoonBRAC@gmail.com

Dynamics of nocturnal bird migration across Colombia

with Jacob Druker

Tuesday, March 18, 7 pm

Migratory birds that travel between temperate and tropical latitudes must contend with a range of climates that aid and impede their journeys, but most of what we know about bird migration is biased towards the global north. Join ornithologist Jacob Drucker to hear about his research on how birds navigate the skies and landscapes of Colombia using weather radars and acoustic monitoring and learn what familiar Carolinian species are up to on their way back to North America.

Jacob is a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Chicago and the Field Museum of Natural History where he studies how birds interact with tropical climates over ecological and evolutionary time. He uses remote sensing to study migratory flyways through Colombia, and behavioral and molecular data to study the ecological plasticity of birds in the tropical Andes. He has worked on a plethora of research and conservation projects across the Americas and beyond, and as a guide for Victor Emanuel Nature Tours.

Join us on Zoom to hear about Jacob's fascinating and important research!

Meeting ID: 850 8354 8670

Passcode: 193302



WNC Sierra Club presents:

International Birding and Climate Change

with Simon Thompson

Wednesday, April 2, 7 pm

Simon Thompson, an international birding expert, will discuss surprising effects of climatic changes on North Carolina’s and the world’s wild bird populations.

Thompson says our area is not getting the consistently cold winters it once did, and that affects how and where birds spend the winter. Lake areas remain open longer and waterfowl seem to stay further north unless serious weather surrounds the Great Lakes.

Thompson will show brightly colored photographs of breeding birds coming through western North Carolina in the spring, along with the winter plumage of birds that stay here in the winter. He will also share some beautiful birds found on his tours.

Through his organization, Ventures Birding Tours, Thompson led birding expeditions across several continents. A former resident of Asheville, he will be stopping in town on his return to the UK from Ecuador.

This will be a great event for serious birders and hikers who want to learn the names of the birds they see on their walks.

This free program is open to the public at UNCA OLLI/Reuter Center

300 Campus Drive, Ashevillle and will also be on Zoom.



Save the date - Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary Celebration!

Sunday, April 27, 1 - 4 pm.

Come join us for the annual Blue Ridge Audubon "Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary Celebration"! Our annual spring event is a wonderful time for families and friends to come out and explore Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary. This is an afternoon filled with tables from local vendors, local artists showcasing their nature/bird pieces, raptors, Eco Explorer, bird and nature walks, naturalist stations on the boardwalk, and lots of bird activities for kids!

What will be open this spring?

by John Koon



As Western North Carolina continues to recover from the damage wrought by Hurricane Helene, birders are asking "What is open to go birding in?". Unfortunately it looks like many of our favorite Spring Migration birding hot spots will be closed and inaccessible this spring and even into the summer:

• The Blue Ridge Parkway will not be open from the Folk Art Center eastward past Mount Mitchell nor between the French Broad River (Hwy 191) and just shy of Mount Pisgah (Hwy 151) this spring or summer, as the roadbed was physically destroyed in several places by landslides. While the repairs are now underway, they cannot even clear the hundreds of trees down on the road until this work is done. Access, even on foot, is illegal due to the constant threat of heavy machinery and the perilous state of fallen trees along the road in these areas. The associated portions of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail that run along these sections are also closed and have not been cleared of trees and debris. Follow the latest repair updates from their website.

• Likewise Mount Mitchell State Park will not be accessible this spring or summer for the same reasons.

• Owen Park in Swannanoa will be closed for the foreseeable future. At some point Buncombe County will solicit public comments to shape the reconstruction of the park--and we have some ideas on how to make it even more bird-friendly! 

• But many other sites will be open. Most of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Appalachian Trail are open, as are more local favorites like Lake Julian and our own Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary.  

So while many traditional places to bird will not be options for birders this spring, there lie many other undiscovered places that birds will be waiting for us. So let's get out and find them!



Climate Watch

by Tom Tribble

The goal of Audubon’s Climate Watch community science program is to assess the projections made in its published report Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink. The study concludes that rising temperatures and changing precipitation patterns will likely result in the colonization of new territories by North American birds.

The study is also the first to use independently gathered volunteer observations to validate climate suitability projections. The authors of the study conduct further assessment of the habitat suitability of the newly colonized territories to determine whether these new areas can sustain the avian newcomers.

Climate Watch, an Audubon community science program that invites volunteers to count and identify select species of birds deemed climate vulnerable by Audubon climate science, provides the observation data used in the analysis. Each year, from January 15 to February 15 and May 15 to June 15, community scientists all across the country look for 12 species. Blue Ridge Audubon’s target bird is Brown-headed Nuthatch but our volunteers report all species seen or heard during the survey.

The dual two-week windows represent wintering and breeding seasons for the chosen species. The climate-suitable ranges for each of these species are projected to change as their habitats shift, shrink, or expand due to rising global temperatures. Regularly gathered observations allow researchers to track any shifts in species distributions.

“Climate Watch volunteers have confirmed the accuracy of Audubon’s climate projections, which show that two-thirds of North American birds are at risk of extinction by the end of this century,” said Brooke Bateman, PhD, Audubon’s senior climate scientist and lead author of Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink.

Blue Ridge Audubon is proud to be in its 9th year of conducting Climate Watch surveys – one of the few chapters to participate every year since then program began in 2017. Our survey incudes 10 teams that count birds at 12 stops each during one morning in the winter and summer survey windows. The grids are scattered over 5 counites. Our thanks go out to the many volunteers, some of whom have participated every year since 2017! For questions about our Climate Watch surveys contact Tom Tribble.

Photo: Brown-headed Nuthatch by Douglas Clarke, Audubon Photography Awards



Turn off Lights at Night to Help Spring Migrants

by Audubon NC

Birds face a number of threats during their long migration journeys, but you can help by simply turning off unnecessary lights at night and advocating for your neighbors, employer, or local government to do the same. 

Many municipalities are doing their part to advance Lights Out across the state. Last fall, the city of Winston-Salem passed a Lights Out proclamation thanks to advocacy by Forsyth Audubon. The city joins eight other municipalities and counties who have passed Lights Out policies, including Asheville, Greensboro, Matthews, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Cary, Durham, and Cumberland County. 

The momentum for Lights Out comes at an important time; a study published last year estimates that more than one billion birds die each year from fatal building collisions in the United States. This is much more than previously estimated and is due largely to lights and reflective windows that cause birds to become disoriented as they pass through our cities and towns. 

Read the full article on nc.audubon.org



Beaver Lake Clean up on February 22

Thanks to all the volunteers that helped clean up at Beaver Lake Bird Sanctuary last month!

Photos by Beth Godbe and Alicia Hulse



Be on the lookout for nesting Merlins!

by Clifton Avery

We know you all LOVE Merlins, those small but fierce falcons who will readily take on a bird twice their size. So, we are reaching out to ask for your help documenting NESTING Merlins in western NC. You may have noticed increasing reports of Merlins nesting in WNC, from the pair at Linville Land Harbor in 2020, to the pair nesting at Lees McCrae College in 2021, and the pairs active in the summer months around Mt Mitchell and the Great Balsams. Merlins are spreading south in the eastern US. Don Nixon, a Merlin enthusiast helping with Pennsylvania’s Breeding Bird Atlas, reached out to North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) and other state wildlife agencies to see if we could rally birders to be on the lookout for breeding evidence.

FINDING NESTING MERLINS: One of the tricks for finding Merlins on an active breeding territory is to be familiar with vocalizations of these, at times, very noisy birds. March and April are when Merlins begin courtship, which involves a lot vocalizing in and around the nest. 

Listen to this diagnostic courtship call now so you recognize it in the field:

Spring Mating Activity Call (normally heard from March or April, 1- 2 times per hour until the nest goes quiet during incubation). Description: twi twitwitwititititititit. The female call is slightly lower, and slower than the harsher male call.  

Remember, these falcons have a somewhat unusual nesting strategy: they do not build their own nest. They will re-use nests of American Crows or hawks.  These adaptive birds have proven to successfully nest in urban and suburban forests, in addition to the spruce-fir forests of western NC’s highest elevations. Golf courses, college campuses, and the spruce/fir ecosystem are areas where we have confirmed sightings of breeding behavior in western NC. Other urban areas they may nest include, residential areas, parks, school yards, and cemeteries. These are good places to check. 

REPORTING NESTING MERLINS: If you are interested in searching for an active nest in your locale and seek further guidance please contact Clifton Avery –

Clifton.avery@ncwildlife.gov, 828-500-1131. Clifton is aware of the most up-to-date Merlin records in western NC and will provide helpful guidance to anyone that is interested in looking for nesting Merlin. Note that we are NOT seeking sightings of individual Merlins at typical stopover/wintering sites such as Mills River Park or Hooper Lane; we’re looking for evidence of a PAIR on a NESTING TERRITORY.  

USING eBIRD: If you have found a pair of Merlin or a nest, we highly recommend logging it on eBird and adding a breeding code. Here are some codes we suggest using and how to use them on the app: after selecting “Merlin,” click on “add breeding code” and either choose “P” (pair), “UN” (used nest – no birds), or “ON” (occupied nest). See screenshots in The Raven’s Nest newsletter for how easy it is in eBird. 

Did you just see a Merlin but no breeding evidence? Just do your usual thing and submit a checklist to eBird without a breeding code. We can query eBird later. 

While you’re out there, keep an eye out for pairs of Sharp-shinned Hawks showing breeding behaviors. Unlike Merlins, Sharp-shinned Hawk (SSHA) are listed as Species of Greatest Conservation Need. They too will nest in conifers, perhaps in more extensive forest than Merlin, but there’s an association with openings in the forest canopy. So please also be on the lookout for SSHA nests.  

We will be back in touch again in June, when we can start expecting to hear fledgling vocalizations.  

Thank you, 

Clifton and Chris  

North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission

Blue Ridge Audubon is a chapter of the National Audubon Society, serving Buncombe, Henderson, and surrounding counties in western North Carolina.

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are

tax-deductible to the extent

allowed by law.

Raven's Nest Editor: 

Jennie Burke

jennifer_bradbury85@yahoo.com

Blue Ridge Audubon Chapter

PO Box 18711

Asheville, NC 28814

Blue Ridge Audubon's mission is to protect birds and the places they depend on. We believe that a world in which birds thrive is a world that benefits all living things.

Our vision is a vibrant and just community where the protection of birds and our natural world is valued by everyone.