ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS HERALD
New Jersey's 1st Official Electronic Newspaper
Atlantic Highlands - Fair Haven - Highlands -  Keansburg - Little Silver
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published Atlantic Highlands Herald 16 December 2004

RED BANK, NJ — Dr. Robert DeCandido, researcher and expert on hawk migration, will present a program entitled “Spring Migration and the Birds of Eilat, Israel” at the Monmouth County Audubon Society meeting on Wednesday, January 12, at 8:00 pm. The meeting will be held at the Trinity Episcopal Church on White Street. The public is welcome; admission is free.

Dr. DeCandido was born and raised in the Bronx. After hitchhiking around the country in the 1980s, he worked on a variety of raptor-related projects – studying nesting Bald Eagles in Arizona; the reintroduction of the Peregrine Falcon in California; and raptor migration studies at Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania. In 1987 he began the first season-long study of migrating birds of prey at Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx, and in 1990 he counted more than 18,000 raptors of 15 species in migration over the park. He has published scientific papers on the historical and extant flora of New York City, documenting over 2,000 species of plants from the five boroughs that were collected between 1850 and the present. He has also conducted studies of migrating birds of prey around the world. Today, his current research focuses on the night migration of birds, as seen from atop the Empire State Building. DeCandido also currently leads bird walks, wildflower walks and natural history forays in all five boroughs of New York City and works as an environmental consultant and photographer.

Dr. DeCandido’s program, “Birds of Eilat, Israel,” features photos taken by Bob in 2003 while he was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the International Bird Research Center there. The pictures show the diversity of birds that pass northward through Israel in the spring, and why Eilat is an important place, both for birds and birders.

The Monmouth County Audubon Society, a chapter of the National Audubon Society, is dedicated to the enjoyment and study of nature, wildlife conservation, habitat protection, and education. Meetings are held the second Wednesday of each month September through May at Trinity Episcopal Church, White Street; guest speakers address a wide variety of nature-related topics, and refreshments are provided. In addition, the group sponsors at least one field trip per month, and members receive The Osprey, the club’s bi-monthly newsletter. Further information and directions can be obtained by calling the organization’s hotline, (732) USA-BIRD, by visiting their Website at http://www.monmouthaudubon.org, or via e-mail at mcas01@bellatlantic.net.