Your donation to CFO help
to fund studies and projects
for the conservation of
Colorado's birds and the
habitats on which they rely.
» DONATE TO CFO! «
2013 CFO ANNUAL CONVENTION
Announcing Colorado Field Ornithologists' 2013 Birding Convention: Adventures in Colorado's Southwest Corner
Online convention registration is now closed. Walk-in registration will be availble Thursday and Friday evenings during convention events in Cortez.
CONVENTION BUSINESS | |
| • Read Ted Floyd's 10 tips for a great CFO Convention: | |
 | |
| • Read the 2013 Convention Brochure: | |
| |
| • Find out who is on your field trips: | |
| |
| • Download the convention schedule with an area map: | |
| |
• Looking for SW county maps?
| |
| |
| • Read the Abstracts of the Paper Session: | |
| |
| • Do you have questions regarding online registration? | |
| |
2013 Convention Logo** The CFO 2013 Annual Convention Will Be Held May 16-19, 2013 **
Colorado Field Ornithologists is holding its annual convention in under-birded and off-the-beaten-path Montezuma County in southwestern Colorado.
Convention Headquarters: Our convention will be based in Cortez, the county seat. Convention headquarters will be at the Baymont Inn and Suites, 2321 East Main Street, Cortez, CO 81321, Telephone:(970)565-3400, with some events to be hosted elsewhere around the city. Convention registration will begin mid February after publication of our 2013 Convention Brochure. Further details will be forthcoming on this web site and on COBirds.
Trailside view of Mesa Verde National Park
About Montezuma County:
This county is the southwestern cornerstone of Colorado and contains well-known landmarks such as Mesa Verde National Park and the Four Corners, and lesser known national monuments like Hovenweep and Canyons of the Ancients. The city of Cortez is in a centralized location that allows easy access to adjacent Dolores, San Juan and La Plata counties. The Montezuma area provides a wide diversity of bird habitat types—desert scrubland, reservoirs, canyon creek riparian, piñion–juniper woodland, coniferous mountain forest—and we will be looking for birds associated with those habitats. Many experienced birders believe that this county would be a likely place to find Colorado's next first state record.
Field Trips:
Here is a sampling to whet your appetite:
Lucy's Warbler
- McElmo and Yellow Jacket canyons for the sought-after Lucy's Warbler, Black-throated Sparrow and Gambel's Quail; also Sage Sparrows at Hovenweep National Monument.
- Fabulous Mesa Verde National Park, where we will find Gray Flycatchers, Gray Vireos, and Pinyon Jays.
- Montezuma County high country to look for Gray Jays, Red Crossbills, Fox Sparrows.
- Montezuma County lakes for waterfowl and migrating shore birds.
- La Plata County high country for Three–toed Woodpeckers and White-tailed Ptarmigans, if roads are passable.
- Ponderosa pine forests for Grace's Warblers, Dusky and Hammond's Flycatchers.
- Aspen groves where Dusky Grouse and both sapsuckers lurk and Purple Martins are likely.
- Dolores River for Peregrine Falcons, Black Phoebes and maybe northern river otters.
- Popular "owl prowls" for Flammulated Owl, Northern Saw–whet Owl, and Western Screech–Owl.
Welcome Picnic:
Last year's Thursday night barbeque was so popular that the CFO has decided to repeat the event this year. We will be offering a FREE kickoff beef barbeque picnic dinner and social gathering Thursday evening at the Cortez Recreation Center outdoor pavillion.
Grace's Warbler
Convention Banquet:
This year's convention banquet will be held on Saturday May 18 at the Elk's Lodge, 2100 N. Dolores Road (SR-145) in Cortez. The banquet will be served cafeteria style this year. As always, the CFO convention will feature a great speaker and program! This year we look forward to a fun and inspiring talk from top 2011 Big Year Birder John Vanderpoel. Please see the box below to find out more information on this talk.
Paper Sessions and Bird ID Challenge:
Colorado Birds Editor Nathan Pieplow will again be organizing our scientific paper session on Saturday afternoon. Paper presenters will offer the latest field ornithological research about Colorado birds. Nathan will also be the Master of Ceremonies for the annual Bird ID challenge on Friday evening.
Convention Art:
Our 2013 convention artwork has been created by talented bird artist Jen Brumfield. Jen is a Naturalist/Artist for Cleveland Metroparks, bird illustrator and author of several natural history field guides. Jen's art has appeared in field guides, on the cover of Birding magazine, and in many other venues. She has created a beautiful logo that highlights Lucy's Warbler. Her painting also graces the back of our 2013 convention T-shirt which also has the CFO logo on the front. T-shirts will be available for order on the convention registration form. Jen's original art will be sold at the Saturday night banquet through silent auction. You can view more of Jen's work on her website at www.jenbrumfield.com
To get the most out of the CFO convention arrive Thursday evening for the Welcome Picnic and depart late Sunday or early Monday after enjoying the full-day field trips on Friday and Sunday. The 2013 convention in Cortez will offer exciting birding adventures and you'll love our many field trips in Colorado's southwest corner. Catch up with old birding friends, meet new birders, and enjoy a wonderful weekend of birding in Montezuma County. See you all there!
More Info: For full convention details, please read our 2013 Convention Brochure.
About Our Keynote Speaker:
John Vanderpoel - Full Chase Mode
In 2011 John Vanderpoel, an avid and experienced birdwatcher, decided to push his boundaries and do a birding "Big Year". Vanderpoel's Big Year began January 1, 2011 with the House Sparrow being an inauspicious bird species No. 1. He got 56 other bird species that day near his Colorado home. The rest of the year was a "mad dash" as Vanderpoel chased birds across the United States and Canada. His travels took him all across the United States and into Canada as well. He was on the road birdwatching two out of three days all that year. He ended the year with an amazing 744 species, the second largest total ever recorded for a Big Year. John's careful documentation via his www.bigyear2011 blog has set new standards for Big Year accounting.
Vanderpoel, who had 708 bird species on his life list before beginning his Big Year, got into birding in 1966 with the spring warbler migration near Chicago. He later lived in Mexico and became enthralled with hummingbirds. Vanderpoel retired from the Ball Corporation in Colorado and now runs his own company, Peregrine Video Production of Niwot, Colorado, which produces birding videos.
John Vanderpoel is the creator and producer of the critically acclaimed identification videos, the Advanced Birding Video Series with Jon Dunn. He writes about his Big Year experience in his upcoming book Full Chase Mode. John's CFO Banquet presentation— Full Chase Mode —will be a highlight of our 2013 Convention.