The Nasketucket Bird Club Meeting will meet Wednesday, May 27 at 6:00 pm at the Mattapoisett Congregational Church, 27 Church Street with Guest Speaker Troy Blodgett speaking about Nature’s Secret Recipe for Tropical Bird Diversity. For his presentation, Troy will take us on a virtual tour of three avian hotspots in the tropical Americas to appreciate the colors, sounds, and wonder of these magical places. Troy will draw on his geographical knowledge to ponder why such bird diverse places even exist and explore the many connections to our birds in North America. First stop is the ecofriendly country of Costa Rica, where Troy led a small group of birders in March 2025 from the coastal rivers to the forested highlands. Next stop is the bird renown island nation of Trinidad and Tobago, which hosts an astounding density of bird species owing to its unique geographic location. Finally, climb up into the Colombian Andes to witness how the scarlet-colored Andean cock-of-the-rocks and fairy-like hummingbirds thrive among the clouds.
Troy’s lifelong interest in birds and geography has taken him all over the world, but he especially adores the tropics. Between high school and college, he spent nearly a year banding birds and helping with neotropical bird research in Puerto Rico. Troy received a PhD from the department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University which required many field seasons in the Bolivian Andes. He guided tours for nearly 20 years at the annual birding festival in Sedona, Arizona, before returning to the East Coast. Troy has led several bird-oriented trips to Central and South America for friends and family and continues to be actively involved with monitoring local nest boxes and supporting PBC club related activities.
All meetings are free and open to all.