Birders United was established in 2004 as a 527 political action committee to oppose the reelection of George W. Bush as president of the United States.
At that time we had a single purpose: to widely publicize the severe and often irreparable damage the Bush administration was inflicting on bird habitats and populations.
Now we bring attention to elected public officials at the federal, state, and local level whose voting records or administrative policies are contributing to severe declines in bird species.
Particularly, we focus on practices where elected or public officials are selling their influence for campaign contributions to developers who are contriving to build on wetlands or other bird habitats.
In 2006 Birders United’s main target was GOP Representative Richard Pombo of Stockton, California. He was voted out of office by a resounding margin. Pombo had been the leader of a group of GOP legislators who introduced a number of measures designed to emasculate the Endangered Species Act.
In 2008 Birders United supported the presidential campaign of Barack Obama. We showed that John McCain falsely portrayed himself as a Republican environmentalist in the mold of Theodore Roosevelt. We demonstrated that McCain secured favorable property deals on federal lands for developers who were his campaign contributors. Some of the lands were in national forests and were important habitats for birds and other wildlife.
Birders United is an independent organization. We are not affiliated with any political party or candidate. We do not accept monetary donations from any source. However, we welcome input on issues of concern to birders and we look to our members to identify politicians who support or who oppose the well-being of birds and other wildlife.
We urge all visitors to our site to order free bumper stickers and window decals to help us spread the word about this important project.
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Theodore Cross, the founder of Birders United and the author of Birds of the Sea, Shore, and Tundra, has authored a new book which is available from W.W. Norton Company. Cross’ photographs include birds from four continents. From the tundra of eastern Siberia to the tropical islands of the South Pacific, Cross has captured elegant and unusual birds—from auklets and egrets to gannets and sanderlings—in peak action, be they courting, landing on a perch, plunge diving, or engaged in aerobatics.
The 179 color photographs in this 344-page book are accompanied by gracefully written field notes and fascinating accounts of the birds’ habits and habitat.
You can obtain more information or order the book by clicking here.
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