2025 Minnesota Ornithologists' Union Paper Session

2025 Minnesota Ornithologists' Union Paper Session

The 2025 MOU Paper Session will take place on Saturday, December 6, in the North Star Ballroom of the St. Paul Student Center (2017 Buford Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota).

This year’s theme — Focus on Technology — highlights the many ways tools and techniques, both classic and modern, shape how we study, monitor, and connect with birds. Presenters will share how technologies ranging from long-established field methods to advanced imaging, mapping, and modeling approaches are helping us better understand bird behavior, physiology, and habitats — and inform ongoing efforts in bird conservation across Minnesota and beyond.

The session will feature talks from researchers across Minnesota, including long-term monitoring projects, species of conservation concern, and emerging student research that highlights the next generation of avian scientists.

Between presentations, attendees can enjoy the book sale, visit vendors and poster presenters, and network with fellow birders, researchers, and conservationists.

Pre-registration will close at 10 PM on December 2. If you do not wish to pre-register online, you can still register on the morning of the event for $16.00, but catered lunch is only available to those who pre-register.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Notes on the book sale:

As in previous years, the MOU will hold a book sale fundraiser at the paper session! All proceeds go to the MOU's Savaloja grants program, helping to sponsor research we can all look forward to learning about at future paper sessions.

If you have any bird books that you are willing to donate, please email president@moumn.org with your approximate book count and address to learn about the nearest drop-off point or to arrange a pickup by one of the paper session volunteers if possible for your location.

We will accept book donations on the day of the event, so be sure to bring those great books with you! Those who have attended know that the books on sale at the event include fantastic editions of field guides, literature, science, children's books, and other general interest birding books.

*Please note, we only accept books about birds. We cannot accept journals or magazines.

Speakers:

Scott Weidensaul, Co-Founder of Project SNOWstorm, Co-Director of Project Owlnet

• Overview and Update on Project SNOWstorm (Remote Presentation)

Dale Gentry, Director of Conservation, Audubon Upper Mississippi

• Voices of the Floodplain: Habitat Preferences and Management of Mississippi River Bottomland Forest Birds

Jen Vieth, Executive Director, Carpenter Nature Center

• Monitoring wildlife in the St. Croix River Valley with Motus: What we’ve learned in the first 6 years and where we’re heading

Josh Kolasch, Graduate Student, University of Minnesota, Duluth

• An Ecological Framework: Combining high-density LiDAR and ecological surveys to characterize structural complexity in black spruce peatlands

Amanda Tveite, Graduate Student, University of Minnesota, Duluth

• Lifecycle Modeling as a Tool for Conservation

Alison Cariveau, State Wildlife Action Plan Coordinator, MN DNR

• What to Know about Minnesota's Newly Revised State Wildlife Action Plan

Kara G. Snow, Avian Ecology Lab, Natural Resources Research Institute

• Innovation in Action: Using Technology for Conservation

Simone Maddox, PhD Candidate, Barker Lab, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

• Visualizing the Urban Brain: How Cities are Affecting our Birds

Tim Mitchell, Loon Program Coordinator, MN DNR

• Restoration of Common Loons (Gavia immer) in Minnesota

Stay Tuned for Presentation Details and Full Event Agenda!

Table Exhibitors:

• Audubon Upper Mississippi River, Contact: Dale Gentry (dale.gentry@audubon.org)
• Red-headed Woodpecker Recovery Project, Contact: Siah Sinclair (stclairs@comcast.net)
• Carrol Henderson, Contact: Carrol Henderson (carrolhenderson@prodigy.net)
• BirdingWithGregg.com, Contact: Gregg Severson (gregg.severson@gmail.com)
• Friends of Sax-Zim Bog, Contact: Sparky Stensaas (sparkystensaas@hotmail.com)
• Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory, Contact: Margie Menzies (mmenzies@hawkridge.org)
• Kollath-Stensaas Publishing and Stone Ridge Press, Contact: Sparky Stensaas (sparkystensaas@hotmail.com)
• "Fam: The Remarkable Story of a Canada Goose Adopted by Sandhill Cranes.", Contact: Marty Harding (martyharding1@gmail.com)
• MOU Books Sales, Contact: Andy Forbes (aforbes74@gmail.com)
• MYBirdClub, Contact: Amy Simso Dean (asimsodean@gmail.com)
• Urban Bird Collective, Contact: Monica Bryand (mjbryand@gmail.com)
• Breeding Birds of Minnesota, Contact: Dr. Gerald Niemi (gniemi@d.umn.edu)

Refreshments provided by MRVAC

Looking to renew your MOU membership or make a donation? Click here.