August 2012 "Winging It" online now!

In the past, I have started these posts with something like, "By now, you should have received your copy of Winging It in the mail..." Well, no longer. The August issue was put to bed a week ago, and we have the technology to show it to you right now. Why wait? And besides, we on the ABA's publications team want more of you to start utilizing our online resources. Here, you'll find an incresingly large amount of content that's unavailable in our printed media.

The August issue's lead article, by Jennifer Rycenga, is about how birdfinding guides have evolved so far in the 21st century. Specifically, it's about the birdfinding guide she manages...online. Anyone hoping to produce a local guide in the future--and have it remain relevant--would be well advised to closely consider Jennifer's sage suggestions.

A new column, "Fowl Language", attempts to untangle potentially confusing birder and scientific jargon. Guest author Stacia Novy spells out the differences between reintroduction and repatriation, census and survey, and venomous and poisonous. This piece is well worth your time. I've had to alter how I speak in one instance: I'll never think of "reintroduction" the same way again.

Tom Schulenberg informs us of some of the 2012 changes to the Clements Checklist. (Can you say Haemorhous?) Brad Andres tells us about how Birders' Exchange is helping with chorlito studies in Chile and Argentina, and Bill Stewart announces the ABA's Mid-Atlantic Young Birder Conference (22 Sep. 2012 in Delaware).

And our regular Winging It contributors continue to provide the high-quality content you've come to expect: Paul Hess's "News and Notes", Eric Salzman's "Books for Birders", Bill Schmoker's "Geared for Birding", and last but not least, Amy Davis's "Sightings". Even if you're not into rarities, David Seibel's photo of a gorgeous Red-necked Stint makes it worth flipping though Amy's dutifully-researched column. But you can only fully appreciate it when viewed in color, which can't be done with the black-and-white printed copy headed to your mailbox. So check out Winging It--online and in color--now! It's as simple as clicking here. 

I used to think that Aplomado Falcons
had been reintroduced in coastal Texas.
It appears I may have been wrong.