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Birds aim to optimize resources for feeding young and self-maintenance by timing reproduction to coincide with peak food availability. When reproduction is mistimed, birds could incur costs that affect their survival. We studied whether nesting phenology correlated with the apparent survival of American kestrels (Falco sparverius) from two distinct populations and examined trends in clutch-initiation dates. We estimated apparent survival using multi-state mark-recapture models with nesting timing, nesting success, sex, age, and weather covariates. Nesting timing predicted the apparent survival of successful adults; however, the effect differed between populations. Early nesting kestrels had higher apparent survival than later nesters in the western population, where kestrels have a relatively long nesting season. At the eastern site, where kestrels have a relatively short nesting season, the pattern was reversed—later nesters had higher apparent survival than earlier nesters. Nesting timing did not affect the apparent survival of adults with failed nests suggesting that the energetic cost of producing fledglings contributed to the timing effect. Finally, clutch-initiation dates advanced in the western population and remained static in the eastern population. Given that both populations have seasonal declines in productivity, population-specific survival patterns provide insight into seasonal trade-offs. Specifically, nesting timing effects on survival paralleled productivity declines in the western population and inverse patterns of survival and reproduction in the eastern population suggest a condition-dependent trade-off. Concomitant seasonal declines in reproduction and survival may facilitate population-level responses to earlier springs, whereas seasonal trade-offs may constrain phenology shifts and increase vulnerability to mismatch.

The American kestrel ( Falco sparverius , hereafter referred to as kestrel) has declined across much of its North American range since at least the mid‐1960s. Kestrel population dynamics have been explored through a multitude of local studies and two broad reviews of available data. Across large geographic extents, however, the demographic cause(s) of kestrel population declines remain(s) largely unknown. As part of a collaborative effort to elucidate the drivers of kestrel population declines, we developed a continental‐scale integrated population model using band‐recovery data, productivity data, and Breeding Bird Survey indices from 1986 to 2019 to estimate indices of annual population sizes, survival, and productivity rates across the continental United States. We detected a decline in population size of ~1%–2% per year. Overall estimates of population growth from 1986 to 2019 suggest a 29% decline in population size (95% CI = −34% to −23%). There was little evidence of a trend in brood size. However, survival of juvenile birds (mean = −0.015, SD = 0.008 and mean = −0.024, SD = 0.010 for females and males, respectively) and adult males (mean = −0.016, SD = 0.010) in the summer declined, suggesting that these vital rates could be contributing to declines in populations over time. Winter adult survival rates (mean = −0.004, SD = 0.009 and mean = −0.009, SD = 0.010 for females and males, respectively) also declined but to a lesser extent than summer survival. For juvenile birds, winter survival increased (mean = 0.006, SD = 0.008 and mean = 0.002, SD = 0.009 for females and males, respectively); however, this was not enough to offset declines in summer survival and annual survival rates declined over the time series. Annual adult survival was also low relative to previous research on kestrel survival rates. Given the importance of survival to population trends, our findings provide support for several previously proposed broad classes of factors potentially contributing to observed population declines: declines in arthropod prey, second‐generation rodenticides, neonicotinoid insecticides, and predation.

In addition to Salve Regina University, which hosted the meeting, the Norman Bird Sanctuary, the Audubon Society of Rhode Island, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service served as local sponsors. Emily J. Williams, Kansas State University, ' 'Grasshopper Sparrows on the move: what drives within-season dispersal in Grasshopper Sparrows?'' ' David Zonana, University of Colorado, Boulder, \"How do sexual signals mediate social interactions?

COMMENDATION WHEREAS THE WILSON ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY held its Annual Meeting in Fort Myers, Florida, on the beautiful campus of Florida Gulf Coast University, and RECOGNIZING that the Committee on the Scientific Program, under the astute direction of Jameson F. Chace, arranged and executed an exemplary exposition of oral and poster presentations, which included a workshop on banding birds, conducted by the North American Banding Council, and a symposium on the conservation of Florida birds, and RECOGNIZING that the Committee on Local Arrangements, through the efforts of Jerome A. Jackson, Bette J. S. Jackson, Kara Lefevre, and their able assistants provided a comfortable venue with warm hospitality, excellent meeting facilities, numerous opportunities for the conferees to interact both professionally and socially, outstanding field trips to view the South Florida bird life, and really nice weather, and WHEREAS the conferees found this meeting both informative and enjoyable, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that The Wilson Ornithological Society commends the Committee on the Scientific Program, the Committee on Local Arrangements, and Florida Gulf Coast University for a most successful and rewarding meeting in Fort Myers.COMMENDATION WHEREAS during the past two years Sara R. Morris has served The Wilson Ornithological Society in the role of President, and RECOGNIZING that her presidency was preceded by her service to the Society as an elected councilor, as chair of several committees, and as secretary, and RECOGNIZING that guided by her leadership The Wilson Ornithological Society has undergone significant administrative transformations to function effectively in the 21st Century, and that these transformations included selecting and migrating our membership and database functions to a new interactive program and adopting an online platform for manuscript submission and management for The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, and RECOGNIZING that despite the enormous workload she undertook she still maintained her characteristic sense of humor, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that The Wilson Ornithological Society offers its sincere gratitude to Sara Morris, and looks forward to her contributions as she continues to serve the Society in her new role as Past President.COMMENDATION WHEREAS John Smallwood has served The Wilson Ornithological Society in the role of Secretary for an astounding 16 years, and RECOGNIZING that as Secretary, he has faithfully recorded the minutes of council meetings and has served as an active member of the Executive Committee, and WHEREAS he has composed many commendations with an uncanny ability to insert Beatles lyrics, and RECOGNIZING that as Secretary and an additional year as acting secretary, he has authored 17 Proceedings of our Annual Meeting, so that there are places we'll remember, all these places have their moments, with colleagues and friends we can still recall, some are dead and some are living, in our Society we've welcomed them all, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that The Wilson Ornithological Society offers its sincere gratitude to John Smallwood for his many years of dedicated service, and looks forward to his future contributions to our Society.Having completed the agenda of the Business Meeting, President Morris inquired if anyone present had further items of business.Because no one did, Timothy J. O'Connell moved and Lindsey Walters seconded that the Business Meeting come to an end.

Despite the recent rapid decline of many grassland bird species, the relative importance of habitat configuration to population persistence is unclear. We used Southeastern American Kestrels Falco sparverius paulus in north-central Florida as a model system to explore the relative influence of landscape structure components on site occupancy patterns at two spatial scales, and for two different time periods. We focused on the dynamic processes of site-level population expansion or contraction. We modelled the occupancy of 131 American Kestrel nest boxes with Bayesian state-space dynamic occupancy models that considered both the partially observed process of true occupancy and the probability of detection of occupancy. We used reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo (RJMCMC) algorithms to identify variables that described the continued occupancy of nest boxes, or ϕ, and the probability of colonisation of nest boxes between time periods, or γ 3 . Changes in open habitat patch isolation at a fine scale, as estimated by the variability of nearest neighbour distance, predicted site colonisation between decades, and patch shape variability was related to ϕ during the early time period (1992–93). We found no strong effects of landscape structure on ϕ during the later time period (2008–2010). We also found no evidence for effects of loss of open habitat on box occupancy or colonization. Our results indicate that continued habitat fragmentation would be deleterious for this threatened subspecies. Additionally, certain land cover management practices recommended for the Florida sandhills, such as frequent low-intensity controlled burns, will likely help conservation attempts.

Mary Bomberger Brown, Director of the Tern and Plover Conservation Partnership, University of Nebraska, School of Natural Resources, chaired the Committee on Local Arrangements, which included Chris Thody, also of the Tern and Plover Conservation Partnership; T. J. Fontaine and Karie Decker, University of Nebraska, School of Natural Resources and USGS Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit; Joel Jorgensen, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission; Wayne Mollhoff, Nebraska Ornithologists' Union; Jacki Loomis, Elaine Connelly, Mark Mesarch, Gregg Hutchison, Sue Ellen Pegg, and Sarah Rehme, University of Nebraska, School of Natural Resources; Paul Johnsgard, University of Nebraska, School of Biological Sciences; Letitia Reichart, University of Nebraska at Kearney, Department of Biology; and Sarah Focke of the Kearney Visitors' Bureau. The local sponsors included the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union; Nebraska Bird Partnership; Nebraska Game and Parks Commission; University of Nebraska, School of Natural Resources; Rainwater Basin Joint Venture; USGS, Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit; Nebraska Birding Trails; and the Kearney Visitors' Bureau. In addition to the plenary lectures, the scientific program included a remarkable 271 presentations organized into 34 sessions, 75 posters, and four symposia on Cerulean Warbler (Dendroica cerulea) breeding biology and migratory behavior, research on North American prairie grouse, avian conservation and ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes, and Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) and Least Tern (Sterna antillarum) management on the Great Plains.

Longer trips during and after the conference included (1) a tour of the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center and Refuge, (2) an open house at the Bird Division of the National Museum of Natural History, (3) a half-day trip to Huntly Meadows Wetland Park in Fairfax County, Virginia, (4) a full-day trip to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge and nearby migrant shorebird habitats, (5) a full-day trip to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, and (6) a two-day trip to Chincoteague NWR and Saxix Marsh, the largest remaining saltmarsh on the Eastern Shore. JED BURTT MENTORING GRANT (research and travel funds for undergraduate students and their mentors) Kathryn Marshall, Saint Mary's College, ''Documenting regional variation in genetic diversity in boreal forest bird populations threatened by climate change.''

LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES GRANTS Carolyn Bauer, North Dakota State University, \"Do telomere lengths predict timing of breeding in Junco hyemalis?\" Sarah MacLean, University of California-Berkley, \"Interactive effects of climate and land use change on century-scale range shifts of Californian birds.\" Todd Jones, University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, \"Examining the post-fledging period of migratory birds: do carryover effects influence fledgling behavior and survival?\" Aurelia Kucera, North Dakota State University, \"Inheriting the consequences of stress: does sperm play a role?\" AFO/SCO-SOC/WOS STUDENT TRAVEL AWARDS Bobi Albrecht, University of Nebraska Kearney, \"Creatine kinase levels in migratory songbirds using southcentral Nebraska as a migratory stopove site.\"

The ninetieth annual meeting of the Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS) was held in joint session with the Association of Field Ornithologists (AFO) from Thursday, 9 April, through Sunday, 12 April 2009 at the Hilton Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at the invitation of the National Aviary and Powdermill Nature Reserve, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, in partnership with the Three Rivers Bird Club, Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, Duquesne University, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Game Commission, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, and the American Birding Association. [...] longer trips were scheduled for Sunday to: (1) Powdermill Nature Reserve, the biological research station of Carnegie Museum of Natural History with a trip to Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater; (2) the Pittsburgh Zoo and view of downtown Pittsburgh from an amphibious tour vehicle; (3) the University of Pittsburgh campus, home of a breeding pair of Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus), and a tour of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History; (4) the Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology in northwestern Pennsylvania; and (5) Moraine State Park and Lake Arthur.

In addition to the plenary lectures, the scientific program included 153 presentations organized into 14 general sessions, 2 symposia on birds and human health and on aspects of the history and future of American ornithology from the perspec- tive of The Wilson Ornithological Society on the occasion of its 125th anniversary, and 63 posters. [...]Brian Tabor led a fourth group to Hog Island Wildlife Management Area.