BRADES, Montserrat (July 29, 2013) – Director of Environment Gerard Gray is presently attending the 19th regional meeting on bird conservation for the Caribbean in Grenada.

Accompanying him are James “Scriber” Daley, a Forestry Officer in the Department of Environment who is also Montserrat’s foremost expert on indigenous birds and Stephen Mendes, Vice President of the Montserrat National Trust.

Over 150 delegates from around the region are gathered at St George’s University for the five-day conference organised by the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds (SCSCB).

The theme of the 2013 conference, held every two years, is “Bird Conservation in a Changing Climate”. In launching this year’s meeting, Dr Howard Nelson President of the SCSCB, described the conference “as an invaluable opportunity share a growing body of knowledge that showed that climate change has broad far-reaching environmental impacts with both conservationists and the public at large.”

Dr Sorenson, Executive Director, notes that more than 560 species of birds call the Caribbean region home. Sorenson further stated that an astounding 72% of the approximately 208 resident island birds are endemic to the Caribbean islands—that is, found nowhere else on the planet. She also said that the islands also provide a critical habitat for hundreds of long-distance migratory bird that spend the winter in our forests and wetlands, or use them as a “refueling” stop en route to their final destinations in Latin America, especially during times of poor weather.

Tyrone Buckmire, chair of the Grenadian organizing committee said he was thrilled that Grenada was hosting this year’s meeting, and expects that, “the conference would provide a powerful interchange about habitat conservation, environmental advocacy, and facing the challenge that climate change presented to the regions already threatened wild places.”

Buckmire noted that the Grenada conference has confirmed sessions, among others, that will focus on:

•          Human dimensions of climate change: tools to raise awareness and empower communities to influence decision-making.

•          Invasive alien species in the Caribbean: Recent advances and best practices.

•          Birding and nature tourism: with a focus on the development of the “Caribbean Birding Trail,” an unprecedented effort lead by the Society to connect many countries, islands and languages in a seamless interpretive trail.

•          Other priority regional conservation challenges: species extinction, habitat restoration, endangered species as pests of commercial crops. The society’s many Working Groups will meet to network and share information to advance conservation efforts throughout the region.

Everyone at the conference will have the opportunity to see Grenada’s spectacular birds, local ecosystems, national parks and gardens after the intensive 5-day meeting. Fieldtrips will also include a visit to the largest remaining forest habitat of the Grenada Dove that is currently in peril due to a proposed large international luxury hotel development plan.