Written by Bryan Watts
June 9, 2008

James Taylor in concert at Virginia Beach, May 2008. Photo by Bryan Watts.

James Taylor took the stage on May 22 at Virginia Beach ‘s Verizon Amphitheater to sing for the birds. Proceeds from the concert were donated to purchase habitat within the lower Delmarva Peninsula used by songbirds during fall migration. The site at the southern tip of the Eastern Shore of Virginia is one of the most significant migration bottlenecks along the Atlantic Coast . This rural landscape is increasingly threatened by residential development and has been the focus of an informal coalition of conservation partners for more than a decade.

Since the early 1990s, CCB biologists have designed, directed, and conducted more than 2 dozen research projects on the lower Delmarva Peninsula focused on the distribution and habitat requirements of migratory land birds. These studies have formed the foundation of what we know about the distribution and habitat requirements of these species on the peninsula and have allowed for the prioritization of land parcels for acquisition. CCB continues to play an active role in formulating conservation strategies within this critical stopover area.