Support the Cape May Owl Project's 2024 Tracking Research

Rapid deployment of cutting-edge transmitters allowing us to map the full annual cycle of Northern Saw-whet Owls

TL;DR:

We have a very unique opportunity to study the full-annual-cycle of Northern Saw-whet Owls migrating through and stopping over in Cape May, New Jersey. CTT has offered to reduce the cost and rapidly produce a number of cutting-edge transmitters for our deployment over the next few weeks, IF we can raise the money to buy them. We need YOU to help us reach that goal, because normal grant opportunities take way too long and we will miss this big migration if we have to wait.

Full Proposal:

The Cape May Owl Project is a long-term research project focused on understanding how owls are doing, especially those that use the Cape May region of New Jersey for stopover and overwintering. One of those species is the small Northern Saw-whet Owl (NSWO). Each year, few to many NSWOs migrate through Cape May or settle into the Cape May region for a few days to several months. While banding records can provide some information on movement, if birds are recaught at different locations or during different seasons or years, telemetry devices can provide unprecedented information on the full life cycle of these tiny and cryptic owls in ways that analog systems simply cannot. This information is critical for strong conservation planning, especially for species as secretive as these birds.

Above is an example of one owl that overwintered in Cape May and which we transmittered in 2022 and tracked all the way up to the breeding grounds in Maine. The new transmitters will allow us to get a full 12 months instead of the previously available six-month battery limit.

This season is shaping up to be a big one for owl movement, and new advances in telemetry design mean that we can take advantage of this flight if we can act fast and secure funding for a requisite sample size of transmitters. Initially, we are seeking funding for 10 units to be deployed in Cape May in the winter of 2024. If we hit our goal, we will expand this to up to 20 more units for distributing to partners across the Eastern US. Unfortunately, time is not on our side, but the folks at Cellular Tracking Technologies are building these units in anticipation of our fundraising success—so now all we need is YOU to help us meet and exceed our goal. In return, we will provide updates on owl movement through emails to donors, so please consider giving a tax-deductible donation today to Conservation Science Global, our nonprofit partner in the Cape May Owl Project.

Above is an image of the CTT Flicker ULP (ultra-low-power) device, weighing less than 3 grams

Thank you, in advance, for your support.

The Cape May Owl Project Volunteers

David, Trish, Charlie, and Mike

Note: All banding and transmitter deployment is done by trained professionals with authorization and permits at the Federal, State and Local levels.



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