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A Shared Vocabulary for Bird Sounds Workshop

Photo of Willow Flycatcher by Mick Thompson

Join EAS as we learn from Author and Professor Nathan Pieplow about bird sounds. Most attempts to teach bird sound identification rely primarily on memorization. This workshop takes a different approach. Just as beginning birders learn the different parts of the bird and how to distinguish colors like “buff” and “rufous,” we will study the different parts of a sound and how to distinguish tone qualities like “burry” and “polyphonic.” Once we have a common vocabulary for describing bird sounds, we can apply these skills to some bird sound identification challenges in the region. No matter your level of experience, this workshop will help you listen to sounds more analytically, describe them more accurately, and use them more effectively in identifying birds. This workshop will be recorded and shared with registered participants.

This workshop will be held online with Zoom in two sessions.

Participants will need a good internet connection and either a computer or tablet with a speaker and microphone. All lectures will be done using Zoom video conferencing software, which is free to download, and we will use all the protocols for security. To learn more about Zoom, click here or to download the application to your computer or tablet, click here. Students will receive information with the Zoom meeting  invite a day or two before each class. 

Part I  : Monday, April 24, 7:00 - 8:30 PM PST

Part II  : Monday, May 1, 7:00 - 8.30 PM PST

Registration Fee for this two-part workshop is $50.00

Registration closes on April 22nd.



About the Instructor

Nathan Pieplow has been fascinated by birds since his childhood in South Dakota, and has intensively studied bird sounds since 2003. He is a professor at the University of Colorado and author of The Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern & Western North America. Find out more about Nathan on his blog.