John Hannan
Board Member
Bylane Farm by Bob Rohr
Why I’m passionate about Bedford Audubon:
As much as the bird walks and monthly lectures are excellent reasons to be an active member of Bedford Audubon, it is our bird conservation and habitat management potential that really excites me. Our organization is one of the largest nonprofit landowners here in Westchester County, allowing us to make significant contributions to bird conservation via responsible habitat management and, through that work, be a demonstration site for other landowners who also want to protect birds and wildlife.
More about me:
I am an avid naturalist and amateur ornithologist who has spent my entire life traveling and experiencing nature’s beauty. Growing up, I lived in Ireland, England, Brazil, and Argentina which gave me a sense of just how wonderful a world we live in and how we should all strive to work across borders to protect it. For the last 24 years my wife and I have lived with our children in Somers.
Professionally, I am a 40-year veteran of the non-profit world, serving as development director, chief financial officer, executive director, and director of strategic planning. For more than two decades, I have been involved in the Audubon family at all levels. On staff, at National Audubon, working in the CT State Office, volunteering as Chair of the Audubon NY State Chapters’ Council and as a past President of the Bedford Audubon Board of Directors.
Now that I am retired, I am very excited to devote significant energy once again to our Chapter by rejoining the Board.
My favorite bird is the:
Perhaps the Bobolink. They nest in the larger hayfields of Westchester and Putnam County with males easily identified by their eclectic and frenetic song. But we share this bird with the rest of the Americas. They are truly migratory ambassadors whose survival depends upon us cooperating in a multi-national conservation plan that stretches from Canada all the way to Argentina. During their annual migratory travels, Bobolinks will go as far north as Canada to nest, migrate across the US and Caribbean and then pass though almost every Central and South American country before reaching their non-breeding wintering grounds in Argentina’s vast Pampas grasslands. These beautiful birds remind us of our interconnectivity and dependance upon each other.
Ask me about:
Just about any soccer league in the world, bird photography tips, and where are the best kayaking waters in the mid-Atlantic states.