The WFO Conference’s featured bird is the endangered Light-footed Ridgway’s Rail, a species you will be able to see during some conference field trips (photo by Paul Konrad).

San Diego will be hosting the Western Field Ornithologists Conference October 9 to 13 at the Dana Hotel on Mission Bay. Each year the Western Field Ornithologists (WFO) holds a multi-day conference for field researchers to present scientific papers, workshops, panels, a keynote address, the annual membership meeting, and other events, including an impressive list of field trips. With San Diego County’s bird list now numbering more than 500 species, the WFO Conference is an opportunity for some unforgettable birding from the Pacific Ocean to area mountains and desert habitats.

Learn about research projects that study a variety of birds, ranging from Least Terns to Golden Eagles and Red Crossbills. Registration for conference sessions and field trips are open, and full descriptions of these events can be found at the links found at Conference | Western Field Ornithologists The location of the WFO Conference varies each year as WFO attempts to span its region of coverage while also making its conferences accessible to the more of its members.

Western Field Ornithologists is an organization of amateur and professional field ornithologists that promotes the study of birds throughout western North America, Hawaii, western Mexico, and the northeast Pacific Ocean. The organization strives to increase knowledge, appreciation, and protection of birds and their habitats through annual meetings, field trips, and publications – primarily Western Birds, the quarterly peer-reviewed journal that focuses on field-oriented descriptive ornithology. All birders are welcome to become a member of the WFO, and to attend the upcoming WFO Conference in San Diego, California, October 9 to 13.