Argentina. Photo: Ambientalia 2024 Exchange
SPONSORED PROJECTS
We at the Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance are proud to be involved with a variety of local research projects, from local Wilson’s phalarope research to an international exchange program for high school students that supports Wilson’s phalarope on both ends of their migration.
Our newest support effort, the California Breeding Bird Atlas, is an exciting new multi-year project that involves numerous sponsors including other chapters across the state, aimed at compiling California’s first breeding bird atlas.
Continuing reading below to learn more about our sponsorship efforts.
If you have any questions or are interested in getting involved, please contact our Science and Conservation Committee chair, Katie Smith, at katie@easternsierrabirds.org.
MONO LAKE PHALAROPE PROJECT
Wilson’s Phalaropes are saline lake specialists, relying on these threatened ecosystems to support their migration across the Western Hemisphere. Nonprofit Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge is conducting cutting-edge work to learn more about Wilson’s Phalaropes, their journey between Americas’ saline lakes, and how we can combat declines in their populations. Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance has donated multiple nanotags to the Mono Lake phalarope project, resulting in first-ever tracking records of these small but mighty birds.
CALIFORNIA BIRD ATLAS
Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance is proud to announce that we are a Founding Partner of California Bird Atlas. This nonprofit was launched in 2025 and is spearheading the first-ever statewide effort to map California’s breeding birds. Forty-four other U.S. states have completed Breeding Bird Atlases, which are globally recognized tools that guide conservation and strengthen biodiversity. California is one of only six states without a statewide Atlas, but that’s about to change! ESBA’s Science and Conservation Committee will be leading the atlas efforts in the Eastern Sierra.
Please reach out to Committee Chair, Katie Smith (katiesmithlouise@gmail.com), to learn more and get involved!
EXPERIENCE AMBIENTALIA
Experience Ambientalia is an environmental education initiative co-organized by the Mono Lake Committee and Fundación Líderes de Ansenuza. This program links local high school students from saline lakes along the Wilson’s Phalarope migration route, teaching them about their backyard ecosystem and its ecological role along the migratory flyway. In both 2024 and 2025, Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance supported international exchanges between students in Mono Lake’s chapter of Experience Ambientalia and their counterparts at Laguna Mar Chiquita, Argentina.
WARM SPRINGS MONITORING PROJECT
Documenting Breeding Bird Population Recovery Following Habitat Restoration in an Alkali Wetland
Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance is leading a multi-year effort to monitor breeding bird populations and vegetation at Warm Springs on the eastern shore of Mono Lake. This unique mosaic of wetlands, springs, and alkali meadows supports a wide diversity of birdlife, including several species of conservation concern.
Beginning in 2026, trained observers will conduct standardized surveys to document how bird and plant communities respond to the federal round-up of the Montgomery Pass Wild Horse Herd. By collecting careful, long-term data, this project aims to deepen our understanding of Mono Lake’s eastern shore ecosystem and lend science-based insights into landscape stewardship.