Use of early successional forests by birds during the post-fledging period

Populations of many migratory birds that require large tracts of mature forest to nest are declining across the eastern states, despite the fact that our forests are maturing and in many states are stable or increasing in area. birds provide vital ecological functions in forests, including pest control and seed dispersal, so continued declines in bird populations may negatively affect forest health and regeneration. Reversing these declines requires an understanding of the habitat needs of forest birds throughout their life cycle. This research focuses specifically on the 1-2 month period between nesting and migration, a period of the life cycle which isn't well studied. This is a formal study which involves a dedicated group of citizen scientists. there is also an associated outreach and education program, which is held through the Jamestown, NY Audubon Society for five Saturdays every spring, beginning the last Saturday in April. I am combining these two projects for the purpose of this database. The larger outreach and education project allows more informal opportunities for citizen science, and data collected through that effort is still entered in the (North American) Bird Point Count Database for scientific use.