STEINER "MERLIN YOUTH BIRDING TEAM WINS, STEINER "NORTHWOOD NIGHTJARS" CAPE ISLAND TEAM TAKES SECOND IN 2008 WORLD SERIES OF BIRDING

CAPE MAY, NJ --- Division A, WSB Youth Birding Team Competition, 2008 was won by the Steiner Merlins, Grades 1-5. Shannon Pignataro, Tabitha Lansinger and Chuckie Lasinger IV, are team members with James Wilson, Coach and Mentor. The Merlins won with 121 species, which easily placed them in the Division lead for bird species identified.

The Steiner CMBO Northwood Nightjars competed in the Cape Island Cup and logged 144 species on Cape May Island and finished 2nd in their respective class at the event.    The (adult) team was captained again by CMBO’s Jason Guerard.

This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the WSB, started initially by Pete Dunne, NJ Audubon and the late Roger Tory Peterson, famed author, artist and ornithologists. In order to compete, teams must enter, identify birds within the State of New Jersey or selected portions of the states. All members must record their findings within a 24 hour period starting at Twelve AM thru the following midnight.

The 2008 cumulative result of all teams findings were 271 species for the 24 hour period.

The teams post their results on an honor system, and the winners are announced at the WSB Brunch & Awards ceremony the following day, which usually falls on the second weekend in May.

All competitors use binoculars, spotting scopes and field guides to aid in identifying bird species. The team, with the most species for a given area, wins for that area.  

               For more information and the name of your nearest dealer, write: Steiner/Germany, Customer Service Dept., Pioneer-Research, 97 Foster Road, Moorestown, NJ 08057, and Tel: 800-257-7742 or visit www.steiner-birding.com