David Tilson

Tanager Treats: Misunderstood Wasps and Their Role in Our World Happy World Wasp Day!

Happy World Wasp Day! Visit the ORAS blog to learn more about these misunderstood insects and their importance to ecosystems and birds.

Fashion face-off: Red-femured Spotted Orbweaver (Neoscona domiciliorum) bringing the sparkle with red leggings, vs. Hentz’s Spotted Orbweaver (N. crucifera) keeping things classy in subtle woodland chic. Same genus, different vibe!

Feathers & Flora: Why Native Plants Matter for Birds September is Georgia Native Plants Month!

September is Georgia Native Plants Month! Support birds by planting natives that provide food, shelter & nesting sites. Check out the ORAS blog to learn more.
#NativePlants #PlantsforBirds

Despite the rain, I’ve been enjoying the cooler weather while conducting vegetation surveys in central Georgia. Yesterday, we explored three beautiful sites.

Soaring Spectacle: Kite Congregations in the Piedmont Early August marks one of the most exciting times for Georgia birders: the arrival of kite flocks in the Piedmont region. These elegant raptors—Mississippi and Swallow-tailed Kites—are typically found...

In early August, flocks of Mississippi and Swallow-tailed Kites appear in Georgia’s Piedmont. These graceful raptors feed on insects in open fields as they prepare for migration, offering a stunning aerial display for birdwatchers.

Summer vegetation surveys began this week—key for assessing management effectiveness. Though it’s hot, most grasses and forbs are mature and identifiable now. Despite the heat, Northern Bobwhites, Field Sparrows, and a county-record Bachman’s Sparrow were still singing in NW Georgia!

Longhorn Bee on Downy Sunflower. Its scopae (pollen carrying structures on the hind legs) are loaded!

Watson Springs, Greene Co., GA | June 2025

One of my favorite things about this site is the blending of wetlands and grasslands and how plants and animals from each occur in such close juxtaposition.

Happy #NationalPollinatorWeek! 40% of all insects are in decline globally. However, insects are one of the first groups to react to conservation efforts, even on a scale as small as your own backyard! Gardening with native plants and limiting the use of pesticides creates a noticeable difference.

Lovely visit to Clybel WMA in Jasper Co., GA, yesterday.

Happy #EarthDay!
Tree Swallows are one of my all-time favorite birds. Such handsome aerialists! Clarke Co, GA | April 2025

I had the distinct pleasure of co-leading a 3-day intensive training for our outcomes assessment team. Outcomes assessments are an important part of adaptive management. Adaptive management aims to continuously improve management practice efficacy through learning and adjustment.

Rocky glades are a type of grassland that forms in the thin soils surrounding exposed bedrock. They tend to be wet in the winter and spring but bone dry in the summer and fall. These harsh conditions mean the vegetation is dominated by highly specialized plant species, many of which are rare.

Happy #WorldWaterDay!
#Wetlands are diverse systems that help enhance water quality, control erosion, and mitigate the impacts of both floods and droughts. The National Elk Refuge, WY | Oct. 2017

Song Sparrow eating seeds from Sugarcane Plumegrass. Clarke County, GA | Dec. 2024

Singing Grasshopper Sparrow perched on a fence post. Oconee County, GA | Aug. 2024

Chipping Sparrow perched on a Great Mullein seedhead. Greene County, GA | Feb. 2025

Savannah Sparrow perched on a wire fence in front of a purple field of blooming Henbit Deadnettle. Clarke County, GA | Feb. 2024

Happy #WorldSparrowDay and the #FirstDayOfSpring!
No taxa are more iconic of brushy, grassy, and weedy areas than sparrows.

White Oaks were left unlogged while other mature trees, predominantly Scarlet Oaks, were removed. This site could likely benefit from a growing-season burn to promote higher forb diversity and to limit encroachment from sapling Eastern White Pines.

Broomsedge Bluestem turns a gorgeous golden-orange color in the fall. Native bunching grasses provide habitat structure all winter long because they aren’t as easily flattened by snow as non-native grasses.

Field Sparrows seek out open habitat with low perches. Look for them in abandoned fields and pastures, young woodland openings, and fencerows.

Nest from the previous breeding season. Field Sparrows often build multiple nests over a breeding season. Early spring nests are often on the ground, where they are less visible among the grasses, but later when shrubs and trees leaf out, they build their nests higher, where they are safer from snakes an other predators.

Woodland opening resulting from logging in 2022. Broomsedge Bluestem is often one of the first native warm-season grasses to come up in logged patches. Field Sparrows may start to breed in woodland openings 1-10 years in age and decline as succession progresses. Rockbridge Co, VA | Nov. 2024

The Cranberry Glades Botanical Area is the largest (750 acres) area of bogs in West Virginia. Bogs are acidic #wetlands with a spongy substrate known as peat. The glades serve as the southernmost home to many boreal plant species. Cranberry Glades, WV | July 2020

Happy #WorldWildlifeDay!
The Barn Swallow is the most abundant and widely distributed swallow species in the world. They are one of the most iconic birds of open areas like pastureland, meadows, and marshes. Walton Co., GA | Aug. 2024

The Meadow Ground is a 50-acre #meadow that receives periodic prescribed fire to keep it open. The native wildflowers and grasses are fire-adapted and benefit from regular controlled burns, while certain non-native plants are killed or reduced by fire. Goshen WMA, VA | Dec. 2023

This is a Yellow-rumped Warbler in nonbreeding plumage.

Small #wetlands are often overlooked on the landscape. However, all wetlands are important for improving water quality, reducing the impact of floods and droughts, and recharging groundwater. Take time to appreciate even the small wetlands! Moore’s Creek SF, VA | Aug. 2020

I conducted my graduate research under the USGS Georgia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. Outdoor enthusiasts, please reach out to your representatives.

These infographics were compiled and designed by several fish and wildlife graduate students at the University of Idaho.

Savannas are a type of treed #grassland with a canopy open enough to allow a rich understory to grow. Pine savannas were once a dominant habitat type in the southeast, covering more than 120 million acres, but less than 1% of the historical #savanna acreage remains. Caney Creek WMA, MS | April 2024

Resources for Grassland Bird Conservation Learn how to bring bird-friendly practices onto your landscape.

The Virginia Grassland Bird Initiative is innovating new ways to reverse the declines of grassland birds on working lands in Virginia. The resources on this page provide an excellent place to start if you are a landowner or producer looking to bring bird-friendly practices onto your landscape.

Flatwoods #wetlands occur in pine savannas in the southeastern coastal plain and are maintained by periodic, low-intensity fires. Among the many species that breed in them are the endangered Frosted and Reticulated Flatwoods Salamanders (Ambystoma cingulatum/bishop). Eglin AFB, FL | March 2019

@a-birder.bsky.social‬ Yes, Harrell Prairie Botanical Area is on public land, located within the Bienville National Forest / Caney Creek WMA.

Harrell Prairie is the largest (160 acres) and least disturbed prairie in Mississippi, but it is only a remnant of the historical Jackson Prairie Belt. Because of the favorable soil and climate, most of the region’s prairie was converted into farmland. Harrell Prairie, MS | April 2024

eBird in Action: Grassland Bird Survey on Conserved Working Farms in the Catawba Valley - eBird Your eBirding data helps create tools that can be used to further conservation, inspire support, and inform ecological management strategies. eBird in Action is a segment which shares the conservation...

Privately-owned land makes up 70% of the land in the contiguous U.S., but it is often overlooked in conservation efforts. It’s great to see others using bird monitoring to inform grassland conservation decisions on private lands!

Ephemeral pools are small depressions that fill with water in late winter and spring, but dry by late summer. These pools provide excellent breeding habitat for amphibians because many predators of amphibian eggs and larva require permanent bodies of water. Rockbridge Co., VA | April 2020