Cornell Lab of Ornithology Seeking Executive Director and Tenure-Track Professor

After 25 years serving as the Executive Director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Dr. John Fitzpatrick has announced he is retiring at the end of the year. If you’ve attended one of our annual meetings, you’ve likely met Dr. Fitzpatrick (Fitz); many have worked closely with him on AOS Council and various committees, and no doubt everyone recognizes the tremendous impact of his leadership at the Lab.

What’s in a name? More than you might think…

AOS leaders, including the NACC and Diversity and Inclusion Committees are working together to develop Society-level policies in our nomenclature, and to be intentional in all our activities to ensure all individuals feel welcome in our Society. We will discuss these issues at our 2020 meetings of Council and make a statement at the end of the NAOC VII meeting.

Statement on the McCown’s Longspur Naming Issue

North American Classification Committee, American Ornithological Society (AOS) Prompted in part by a 2019 proposal to change the English name of McCown’s Longspur, the North American Classification Committee developed and published new guidelines for English bird names that specifically address the issue of potentially offensive eponyms or other names. While continuing to emphasize the fundamental …

2020 Coues Award Winner: Thomas Smith

The Elliott Coues Award recognizes outstanding and innovative contributions to ornithological research, regardless of the geographic location of the work.