July 2024

2024 Grants Summary

This year 7 grant proposals were fully funded, totaling $17,000 in research dollars! IOS has now funded 140 grants, awarding over $137,000 since the program’s inception.

One of IOS’s objectives is “To promote scientific research and education in order to improve knowledge and awareness of birds in Illinois”. The IOS Grants Program was initiated several years ago to support this objective with funding.

The 2024 IOS Grants Program received fourteen requests for funding, representing a notably diverse set of study goals. The IOS review team evaluated each proposal to determine this year’s recipients. In addition to money provided directly by IOS, donations by five organizations and many individuals made it possible for the 2024 grant recipient to receive full funding for their projects.

Sponsor Organizations:
Dupage Birding Club
Illinois Audubon Society
Lake-Cook Audubon Society
Chicago Ornithological Society
Evanston North Shore Bird Club

Thanks to all! Without the generosity of these organizations and IOS members and friends in the bird conservation community, IOS would not be able to support these projects. The support exemplified by this funding sends an important message to these students and researchers: We believe in your work, and we care about the future of our state’s bird life!

Thanks to Dustin Weidner, John Leonard and Matt Hayes for reviewing and evaluating all the requests.

Congratulations to the grant recipients! Watch for their project articles in future issues of Meadowlark. Following is a synopsis of the 2024 grants. Where noted, individuals and organizations targeted those grants for their donations.

Project LeadProjectFully Sponsored by
Mike Avara
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The stopover and wintering behavior of Northern Saw-whet Owls in IllinoisBob Fisher
Avi Berger
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
A Novel Approach to Investigating Developmental Changes in Eggshell ThicknessIllinois Audubon Society
Carlos Calzada
University of Chicago & 
Field Museum of Natural History
West Nile Virus Epizootic in the FMNH’s Bird Collection: Evidence for Pathogen-driven Selection?Dupage Birding Club
Mac Chamberlain
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Social and genetic monogamy in the Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater)Individuals &
Illinois Ornithological Society
Avery Dart
Illinois State University
Effects of extra-pair paternity on provisioning effort in male house wrens (Troglodytes aedon)Illinois Audubon Society
Ramona Pollard
The Nature Institute
Mapping Birds for Restoration: Use of Passive Bird Monitoring to Create Targeted Restoration EffortsIndividuals,
Chicago Ornithological Society
& Illinois Ornithological Society
Anastasia Rahlin
Illinois Natural History Survey,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Investigating Marsh and Sedge Wren diets with fecal metabarcoding across a wetland urbanization gradientLake-Cook Audubon Society

2024 Project Summary & Abstracts

IOS Annual Shorebirding Weekend

IOS will be hosting its annual August Shorebirding Weekend on August 24th and 25th, within the Emiquon and Chautauqua Wildlife Refuges. This is one of Illinois’ premier hotspots for migrant shorebirds and is host to numerous shorebirds each season. It’s not uncommon for us to see over 20 species of shorebirds on this trip! In addition to the numerous possibilities of shorebirds, the area also offers a nice assortment of passerines, herons, terns, and waterfowl. We look forward to sharing another weekend with all of you for some great birding! Lunch will be provided at the Dixon Mounds State Museum on Saturday, where we can cool off and relax before we continue birding for the afternoon.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE AND REGISTER

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