Dominica is to participate in the ninth annual Caribbean Endemic Birds Festival (CEBF) slated for April 22 (Earth Day) to May 22 (Biodiversity Day).
The purpose of the festival is to raise public awareness and appreciation of our region’s exceptionally rich and threatened bird life.
The theme chosen by the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds for this year’s festival is “Connecting People to Bird Conservation”.
According to a release from the Forestry Division Matthew Walter, Minister for Agriculture and Forestry, will officially launch the 2012 CEBF on Monday 23rd April.
The programme of activities include a combination of educational and environmental awareness activities:-
• Presentations on local birds and birding field trips with schools and Pre-Schools;
• Radio Quizzes on the island’s four radio stations;
• a television programme;
• live radio discussions on the subject of birds and the Festival on all four major local radio stations;
• interviews;
• a public lecture on the theme Connecting people to Bird Conservation, and this will be presented in partnership with the University of the West Indies Open Campus on 17th May;
• publishing of a newspaper article;
• a boat trip to Pointe des Foux on Dominica’s south coast to view colonies of nesting seabirds and roosting Yellow-crowned Night Herons on 19th May
The Dwivayèz and DABEX Hiking Clubs will connect with birds along with the Forestry Division on 12th May, during a hiking trip. The festival will climax with the “Whistle Like A Bird Contest” when Dominicans who can imitate the vocalization of birds will show off their talents and skills imitating the calls and songs of selected Dominican birds at the Alliance Française Auditorium.
This will take place on May 22.
The Forestry, Wildlife and Parks invites the general public to participate in this year’s Caribbean Endemic Birds Festival by testing their knowledge of birds during the 8 radio quizzes (on different days on the radio stations), joining the live radio discussions, and attending the public lecture at UWI.
CEBF 2012 in Dominica is co-ordinated by the Forestry, Wildlife & Parks Division of the Ministry of Agriculture & Forestry and sponsored by the Forestry, Wildlife & Parks Division and the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation of Florida, USA.
For further information contact the Forestry, Wildlife & Parks Division at 266- 5856 or 266-5852, or email us at [email protected]
The bird shown in the photo is called the frigate bird (in creole, called (phonetically) ‘fwaygard’). You can see it flying high in the sky over the Atlantic ocean, most of the time. It is a fisheater and hangs around the crags along the coastline. It is also called the MAN-O’-WAR BIRD. It is perhaps the most aerial of all birds except the swift, soaring tirelessly and alighting only to sleep or tend its nest. The scientific name is (Fregata minor).
wow i going to buy bullets for my pellet gun to participate in that activity… birds DEAD!
Can someone name the bird in the above photo? Local, english or biological name. Thank you.
COULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT BIRD IS THAT? I`M FROM DOMINICA AND HAVE NEVER SEEN THIS BIRD BEFORE
Lovely Dominica I would hate to leave.
That’s so wonderful. That’s connecting us more to our culture. We are truly a divine people. The first in everything according to our African history.