[mou] Birding books in Spanish -- you can help

[Jim Williams]

Kenn Kaufman's guide to North American birds has been published in 
Spanish. Below is an account of another bird book being translated to 
Spanish. Making these books available to Spanish-speaking people is 
important for two reasons: To serve U.S. citizens and residents who 
communicate best in Spanish and have an interest in birds, and, second, 
to aid researchers and environmentalists in Central and South America, 
who lack ID and bird-biology books in that language (it is more 
difficult for them to work to help preserve "our" birds when they lack 
these tools). You can help by contributing money to Birders' Exchange 
(the note following was written by Dick Payne, former president of 
ABA).

====

The American Birding Association's Birders' Exchange has taken on the 
enormous and important task of translating John Kricher's book, A 
Neotropical Companion, An Introduction to the Animals, Plants and 
Ecosystems of the New World Tropics, into a
Spanish-language version. Thus far, A Neotropical Companion has been 
printed
only in English and Japanese.

We are pleased to report that the project is progressing very well. 
Alvaro
Jaramillo, the project's editor, has created a special website in order 
for
the twenty-nine volunteer translators to communicate and work with each
other, and BEX volunteer, Susie Vancura, is coordinating all of the 
efforts
of the translation team. The translators began their work in early May 
and
already the entire 400+ page book has been translated!

This is a huge undertaking for BEX, and it is hoped that the book will 
be
available by the end of 2005. BEX will donate and distribute copies of 
the
Spanish version to our colleagues working in conservation and education
throughout the Neotropics."

====

To learn more about Birders' Exchange and/or to make a contribution, go 
to the web site www.americanbirding.org or call 800-850-2473.

Birders' Exchange also will take your used binoculars and spotting 
scopes and see that they are put to valuable use in Central and South 
America. Again, it is difficult to do important research on "our" birds 
without the proper tools.

Please help. Work in the wintering habitat of many of our nesting 
visitors is as important as the conservation work we support here.

Jim Williams
Wayzata