Track 4: Designing a Farm to Be Bird Friendly

Lesson 7: Making the Most of Birds’ Diet and Foraging Strategies

Presenters: Wendell Gilgert - NRCS and Point Blue (Emeritus) & Jo Ann Baumgartner - WFA

Wendell enjoyed a 34 year career with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) as a Conservationist and Fishery and Wildlife Biologist at the field, area, state, regional, and national levels. Upon retirement, he joined Point Blue Conservation Science to initiate and develop their Working Lands Partner Biologist program. He retired as emeritus director of that program.

Jo Ann, Executive Director of Wild Farm Alliance, is the author of many farm publications on birds, biodiversity, food safety and organic agriculture. Before joining WFA in 2001, she received her Master’s researching birds eating codling moths in apple orchards, worked for other sustainable agricultural nonprofits and was an organic farmer for over a decade.

Continued Education Credits/Units Approved:

Learning Objectives

• Differentiate between insectivores, carnivores and omnivores.
• Distinguish between aerial, tree, shrub and ground foraging birds.
• Evaluate the different roles birds play based on when, what and how they eat, and where they forage.
• Determine what type of birds to support based on the farm’s crops and their pests.

Presentation Recording

Videos

WFA Publications

• Supporting Beneficial Birds and Managing Pest Birds

More resources coming soon!