BBC’s new Code of Ethics and Conduct
If you are involved with the Brookline Bird Club, we know that you have a great love for and appreciation of birds and nature. The BBC is committed to providing programs in which all participants have a safe and welcoming space to explore their own personal connection to birds and nature.
In keeping with this commitment, the BBC board thought it was time to take a fresh look at our Code of Ethics and Conduct and Trip Leader Guidelines. The resulting updates emphasize the importance of respect for birds, the environment, and for each other.
The board has also formed a Committee on Community and Culture that will assist the club in working toward its mission of building a more diverse, more welcoming community and a culture of inclusion and respect. To learn more about our work or to get involved, please contact the committee at community@brooklinebirdclub.org.
Across Massachusetts and the country, the birding community is moving forward with a new focus on programming that is more accessible to all who want to enjoy nature and policy that promotes safety and inclusion. The BBC is excited to be part of that movement!
We recommend following resources to learn more and get involved. If you have meaningful resources you would like us to add to this list, please let us know!
Resources on safer bird watching:
Safety Tips For Better Birding
The Murmuration, a crowd-sourced document of eBird hotspots in Massachusetts, including information on safety concerns.
Further reading on inclusivity in birding and nature:
It’s Time to Build a Truly Inclusive Outdoors, Corina Newsome (Audubon Magazine, Summer 2020)
Birds are Here for Everyone: How Black Birders are Finding Community, Aliya Uteuova, (The Guardian, June 2021)
Murmuration is the Movement: Panelists discuss diversity in birding, Jon Stinchcomb (Port Clinton News Herald, May 2021)
Birding While Black, J. Drew Lanham (Literary Hub, September 2016)
How to be a Welcoming and Inclusive Birder, (Ray Brown’s Talkin’ Birds)
Creating Safe Spaces: Promoting more-inclusive experiences for all (National Wildlife Federation, August 2021)
Organizations to check out and consider supporting:
March 26 Open to All Webinar: At Sea in the Humboldt Current – Ship Life, Pelagic Birds, and Deep Sea Creatures with Scott Weiman
Embark on an evening of discovery as marine geochemist Scott Wieman recounts a recent month-long research expedition aboard the R/V Falkor(too) from Valparaíso to Puerto Montt, Chile. Scott’s talk blends his experiences birding the highly [...]
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards
The BBC Conservation and Education Committee is pleased to announce our two annual Bill Drummond Young Birder Scholarship recipients, Sydney Beard of Cambridge and Jonas Johnson of Canaan, CT. These scholarships cover the full cost [...]
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How have corvids mastered city life, learned human faces and learned to use tools? What settings and experiments help humans understand some parallels between human and crow cognition? Corvids—the ubiquitous crows, ravens, magpies, jays, nutcrackers, [...]
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Please join us on April 25 for our Annual Members Meeting. The evening begins with a social hour at 6:30. The program starts at 7:30 with the BBC's annual business meeting and the election of [...]
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Mt Auburn Cemetery has announced changes to birder access starting this spring. In short the gates will open every day starting at 6:00 AM but the key program has been discontinued. Here is a portion [...]
eBird Tip – How to use eBird When Traveling
Thanks to Bob Ross for the following article, which started out as a MassBird listserv post: The eBird Alerts are an indispensable tool when traveling to a new city or region to go birding. I [...]
March 26 Open to All Webinar: At Sea in the Humboldt Current – Ship Life, Pelagic Birds, and Deep Sea Creatures with Scott Weiman
Embark on an evening of discovery as marine geochemist Scott Wieman recounts a recent month-long research expedition aboard the R/V Falkor(too) from Valparaíso to Puerto Montt, Chile. Scott’s talk blends his experiences birding the highly [...]
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards
The BBC Conservation and Education Committee is pleased to announce our two annual Bill Drummond Young Birder Scholarship recipients, Sydney Beard of Cambridge and Jonas Johnson of Canaan, CT. These scholarships cover the full cost [...]
April 9 Open to All Webinar: The Corvid’s World, with John Marzluff
How have corvids mastered city life, learned human faces and learned to use tools? What settings and experiments help humans understand some parallels between human and crow cognition? Corvids—the ubiquitous crows, ravens, magpies, jays, nutcrackers, [...]
April 25 Annual Members Meeting – All Welcome
Please join us on April 25 for our Annual Members Meeting. The evening begins with a social hour at 6:30. The program starts at 7:30 with the BBC's annual business meeting and the election of [...]
Changes Coming to Mt Auburn Cemetery This Spring
Mt Auburn Cemetery has announced changes to birder access starting this spring. In short the gates will open every day starting at 6:00 AM but the key program has been discontinued. Here is a portion [...]
eBird Tip – How to use eBird When Traveling
Thanks to Bob Ross for the following article, which started out as a MassBird listserv post: The eBird Alerts are an indispensable tool when traveling to a new city or region to go birding. I [...]
March 26 Open to All Webinar: At Sea in the Humboldt Current – Ship Life, Pelagic Birds, and Deep Sea Creatures with Scott Weiman
Embark on an evening of discovery as marine geochemist Scott Wieman recounts a recent month-long research expedition aboard the R/V Falkor(too) from Valparaíso to Puerto Montt, Chile. Scott’s talk blends his experiences birding the highly [...]
2025 BBC Teen Birder Scholarship Awards
The BBC Conservation and Education Committee is pleased to announce our two annual Bill Drummond Young Birder Scholarship recipients, Sydney Beard of Cambridge and Jonas Johnson of Canaan, CT. These scholarships cover the full cost [...]
April 9 Open to All Webinar: The Corvid’s World, with John Marzluff
How have corvids mastered city life, learned human faces and learned to use tools? What settings and experiments help humans understand some parallels between human and crow cognition? Corvids—the ubiquitous crows, ravens, magpies, jays, nutcrackers, [...]
April 25 Annual Members Meeting – All Welcome
Please join us on April 25 for our Annual Members Meeting. The evening begins with a social hour at 6:30. The program starts at 7:30 with the BBC's annual business meeting and the election of [...]
Changes Coming to Mt Auburn Cemetery This Spring
Mt Auburn Cemetery has announced changes to birder access starting this spring. In short the gates will open every day starting at 6:00 AM but the key program has been discontinued. Here is a portion [...]
eBird Tip – How to use eBird When Traveling
Thanks to Bob Ross for the following article, which started out as a MassBird listserv post: The eBird Alerts are an indispensable tool when traveling to a new city or region to go birding. I [...]
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Upcoming Field Trips
Horn Pond, Woburn
Woburn - Horn Pond - Sturgis St 98 Sturgis St, Woburn, MA, United StatesLet's look for early Spring migrants such as Eastern Phoebe, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and early warblers such as Palm, Pine, and Yellow-rumped. Co-sponsored with the Menotomy Bird Club.
Slow Birding at Revere Beach
Revere Beach 21 Revere Beach Blvd, Revere, MA, United StatesLed by DCR Park Staff. Come observe the beautiful details of birds and their behaviors and share observations with others in the group. Pose questions and memories that observations elicit. Birds we may see include Piping Plover, Manx Shearwater, resident gulls, with Common Tern arriving by May. Suitable for adults and children 8 years+. Children [...]
Horn Pond, Woburn
Woburn - Horn Pond - Lake St 93 Lake Ave, Woburn, MA, United StatesLet's look for early Spring migrants such as Eastern Phoebe, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Field Sparrow, and early warblers such as Palm, Pine, and Yellow-rumped. We will be hiking up the mountain so please wear appropriate footwear. Co-sponsored with the Menotomy Bird Club.
Crooked Pond
Boxford - Crooked Pond 208 Middleton Road, Boxford, MA, United StatesJoin us for the traditional BBC early spring walk at Crooked Pond--Bald Hill Reservation, for Winter Wren, Brown Creeper, and early spring migrants like Louisiana Waterthrush.. The trail is generally flat, muddy, and possibly icy. Dress warmly; walking sticks helpful.
Fruitlands Museum, Harvard
Harvard - Fruitlands Museum 102 Prospect Hill Rd., Harvard, MA, United StatesCo-sponsored with Boxborough Birders. We will look for resident species including Indigo Bunting, Savannah Sparrow, Hermit Thrush, Scarlet Tanager, Veery, Blue-headed Vireo, Wild Turkey, American Kestrel, and a variety of warblers. Expect to walk about two miles on trails through meadows and woods, with some steep sections. Prepare for ticks. We will bird at the [...]