Number 8 – Shorebird ecology and conservation in the Western Hemisphere

The opportunity to attend a symposium on
‘Shorebird ecology and conservation in the Western
Hemisphere’ was an interesting experience in itself,
but to have this same meeting as part of the IV
Neotropical Ornithology Congress, with its varied
membership, and in the beautiful city of Quito in
Ecuador, made for a most memorable experience. I
shall remember tbose days in Quito very warmly;
the fascinating conversations with my South
American colleagues (with and without the
assistance of Spanish interpreters/translators…) will
vividly remain with me for a long time. These
proceedings present you with only part of this
experience, but, as you will see, the papers herein
make for a most important contribution to our
knowledge of shorebirds, north and south of the
equator.
You will note that some papers are presented in
full, whereas others are presented only as expanded
abstracts. This is because, at the time of the
presentation of these papers, some were either
already in press or soon due to be submitted for
publication. Hence, those specific papers are
published herein as expanded abstracts.
You will also note that many references are shown
in the References sections as being in press, while in
reality they have been published since this
symposium was held. There are a number of
reasons for this: first of all, at the time I write this
(September 1995), it has been over three and a half
years since this meeting was held. The need for
translations (Spanish/English) as well as other
work duties slowed down the process, but I hope
that, like me, you will find that it was worth the
wait. Also, when the presentations were made, the
papers were indeed not yet in print, and to seek
them all out now, so long after the symposium was
held, simply was not possible. However, you will
note that some references published after 1991 were
added by the authors as the symposium papers
went through numerous reviews and drafts.
Each year, many species of shorebirds migrate
across the Western Hemisphere. Those of us who
study them do not often have the same opportunity
to meet with colleagues who study the same
populations in different, distant reaches of this
hemisphere. For me, and many others who
attended this meeting, Quito gave us the
opportunity to flex our wings, cross the flyways
and exchange views that had, for too long, been in
storage.