Welcome to our website. We use it to inform a wider audience about our Bird Group activities so that people outside our immediate locality can see what we do and can access our current programme. It gives us an opportunity to “bring our activities to life” by providing background information about forthcoming indoor meetings and by publishing interesting reports of our field trips.
Of course the website has a wider role as a "window on the world of birding" which extends beyond our local activities. To this end it has a Forum to encourage discussion about various aspects of birds and birding. Postings in Forum have led to the development of Features about birds and their behaviour. If you want to make a posting, or perhaps just say hello, all you need is a valid e-mail address. Select Your Interests from the drop-down menu under Forum and post your comments in the box provided.
The audience which these topics are attracting extends way beyond our bird group membership to other parts of the UK and elsewhere in the world. For this reason the website is operated as a separate entity, supportive to but independent of our bird group. Further development of various Features is pursued in completely separate websites which can be accessed by those who are interested.
May I remind you that the topics on the green navigation bar have sub-topics below them in drop-down menus. Having read Welcome you can highlight and read each of the sub-topics below. If you need help please click on Navigating the website.
Are you interested in joining our website?
Our website is hosted by Wikidot and sponsored by Wilmslow Guild. The Public website has one member - the Website Administrator. This is a deliberate choice to preserve the security and integrity of the website.
The development of the structure and content of the Public website is carried out in the Private WG Birdwatching Group (Development) website which you can be invited to join. If you are interested please click on Join this website.
Bird Group Activities.
Friday 9th December was our last indoor meeting of 2011. Robert D gave a very interesting and informative talk about a birding trip in Nepal. As usual his photographs were excellent. This was followed by our Christmas buffet which was a very pleasant occasion. Thanks to the committee members for their hard work. Best wishes for a Happy Christmas and a New Year which brings plenty of good birding.
Many of our BG members have travelled widely in search of birds. A small group have recently returned from Kenya with an impressive list of birds seen. For the listers it meant many new “lifers”. Photographers got some great images. It was actually the third trip made by various members so, between us, we have a good selection of photographs.
Robert has kindly provided the following link: http://picasaweb.google.com/rgdmac. Select the album titled Eastern Kenya Birdwatching. This link contains many albums, some of which are from birding trips. They are well worth a visit. The Golden Breasted Starling (right) is one of many superb images. If you want to see more about Starlings they are the subject of a recent feature. Click on http://bbdg.wikidot.com/starlings-and-grackles.
Note for 2012 - At least 20 Bird Group members have supplied their email addresses so that they can receive Newsletters electronically. Hopefully they will join others and visit the website periodically. In December so far "New Features" has overtaken "Trip Reports" at the top of the list of pages viewed. Thanks for your continuing interest. Bob.
WEBSITES CAN BE A USEFUL COMMUNICATION TOOL.
When one of our BG members was taken ill during a birding trip on Sunday 11th December, one of the local birders who helped was concerned to know the outcome. He used Google to search for Wilmslow Birders, found our website and posted an enquiry in the Site Feedback module and my website monitoring system alerted me.
The next morning Brian confirmed that the person concerned was OK and he has now posted a reply to Anthony, an officer of the Artery of Life Nature Project, to thank him and his colleagues for their help and concern. Birders are helpful and caring people.
You can see how events unfolded by looking at the Site Feedback postings - select Site Feedback and click on update. Bob.
