Essex County Ornithological Club Calendar
Winter 2023

Speaker Series/Club Events
Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, 7:45pm
Taiwan: Gateway to Asian Birding
ECOC meeting 7:30-7:45pm
Join the meeting via Zoom here
Join expert birder and bird photographer Jared Keyes for a virtual exploration of Taiwan and its wildlife. This mountainous island nation is home to more than 650 species of birds. Keyes will explain what makes Taiwan such a good starting point for birding in Asia as he shares highlights from traveling and birding in the country over the past 40 years. Co-sponsored by PEM.


About the Presenter:
Jared Keyes is a Massachusetts native and lifelong birder. He operates an educational bird gallery on Facebook and Instagram with over 200k followers, publishing content concurrently in Portuguese, Spanish and English with a goal of linking people throughout the Americas through their shared birds and shared love of birds. Jared is a board member of the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, sits on the advisory board of Mass Audubon and leads field trips for ECOC, primarily on Cape Ann.
Friday, March 3, 2023, 7:45pm
The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds
ECOC meeting 7:30-7:45pm
In-person | Morse Auditorium, PEM
Hybrid on zoom (link coming soon)
Free and open to the public
In this talk that follows his bestselling new book A World on the Wing, author and researcher Scott Weidensaul takes you around the globe to learn about the world’s great bird migrations and the people fighting to save them.

Learn about the lab where researchers probe the limits of what migrating birds can do, the mountainous villages in northeastern India where locals saved the planet’s greatest gathering of falcons and the Mediterranean activists and police who battle bird poachers.
This event is made possible by a generous gift from The Echo Charitable Foundation. Co-sponsored by the Peabody Essex Museum.

About the Presenter:
Scott Weidensaul is the author of more than two dozen books on natural history, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist Living on the Wind. Weidensaul is a contributing editor for Audubon and writes for a variety of other publications, including Bird Watcher’s Digest and Living Bird. He is a Fellow of the American Ornithological Society and an active field researcher, studying saw-whet owl migration, winter hummingbirds and bird migration in Alaska. He is also a cofounder of Project SNOWstorm, which studies the winter movements of snowy owls.
Friday, April 7, 2023, 7:45pm
Flockology: Unraveling the Mysteries of Bird Flocks
ECOC meeting 7:30-7:45pm
In-person | Morse Auditorium, PEM
Hybrid on zoom (link coming soon)
Free and open to the public
Why do birds form flocks? Expert birder and wildlife tour guide Gina Nichol delves into the intriguing phenomenon of bird gatherings with video clips, vivid photographs, and colorful anecdotes.

Explore the choreography of mass movements, such as starling murmurations, and the benefits of flocking behavior as they relate to breeding, protection, and even avian babysitting services. Nichol shares some of the advantages and disadvantages of flocking, as well as the collective names used to identify bird groupings.
This event is made possible by a generous gift from Tim and Joanie Ingraham in loving memory of Honorary PEM Trustee and longstanding ECOC member Dorothy (“Dotty”) Addams Brown. Co-sponsored by the Peabody Essex Museum.

About the presenter:
Gina Nichol is the founder and principal tour leader of Sunrise Birding. A naturalist and birder for more than 20 years, Nichol began leading ecotours for Audubon Nature Odysseys in the early 1990s. Her avid interest in wildlife biology led her to the Yellowstone Institute in Wyoming where she studied animal behavior as well as methods for tracking animal movements. She has led wildlife tours in New England, Costa Rica, the Galápagos Islands, Colombia, Antarctica, India, Montana, and Texas. Nichol received her B.S. in Environmental Education from Cornell University and her M.A. in Educational Technology from Fairfield University.
Directions to the Peabody Essex Museum
PEM Connect Building is at 135 Essex Street, next door to PEM’s main entrance (at the corner of Essex and Liberty St. in Salem, MA). Morse Auditorium is in PEM’s main building. Note: if severe weather is forecast, call 978-745-1876 to confirm event.
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Please be advised: ECOC calendars are only sent via email, unless a member requests otherwise. The calendar can always be viewed here on our web site. Hard copies will also be available at programs.
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Notes:
- Please support ECOC programs for 2021-22 by renewing your membership today! Membership/renewal form available here
- ECOC President: Jim McCoy | ECOC-President@massbird.org
- ECOC Vice President/Programs Coordinator: Janey Winchell ~ 978-542-1627 | jane_winchell@pem.org
- ECOC Treasurer: Mary Stevens | ECOC-Treasurer@massbird.org
Essex County Ornithological Club 100th Anniversary Sponsors

Become a member of the Essex County Ornithological Club or renew a current membership.
Stay informed on upcoming ECOC events.
Add your name to our e-mail list.
Digital copies courtesy of the
Peabody Essex Museum
Club decal featuring
Frank Benson’s art work.
Avail. for $1.00 ea.