Quiz Bowl
In this exciting Jeopardy-style quiz bowl—always one of the most popular events at the meeting—teams of 3 will compete to answer general knowledge questions on a variety of topics that somehow relate to birds, ranging from categories like Taxonomy to Avian Anagrams. Student teams will participate in a timed match against 2 other teams where up to 25 questions will be asked. The winning teams from each first-round match will then play in the championship round for great prizes. Don't miss the exhibition faculty match as well!
Past Quiz Bowls
2010: 5th Annual Quiz Bowl
The 2010 Student Quiz Bowl attracted the largest audience yet with the familiar friendly-competitive environment for participants. The winning teams (Angry Towhees, Los de Abajo, and The Bearded Manakinis) held off their opponents with amazing skill and strategy in the final Jeopardy round.
Highlight categories included identification of birds seen on the field trips, more avian anagrams, pop-songs that contain the word "bird", and colors then end in "-urple".
This year also featured the inaugural faculty exhibition round which included the teams: Gray Jays, Older Ornis, and Ancient DNA. Shockingly the Gray Jays won the faculty Jeopardy with an amazing 18,800 points!
Prizes were generously donated by:
- Advanced Telemetry Systems
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Cornell University Press
- Nikon
- University of California Press
- University of Chicago Press
- Wild Republic
- Volunteer Donations
We also thank the student and professional volunteer teams that participated!!
2009: 4th Annual Quiz Bowl
Quiz bowl + free zoo entrance = an amazing time!
Before the quiz bowl began, attendees were given a few hours to roam around the zoo's exhibits, including the newly constructed McNeil Avian Center, and were also provided a full dinner. The McNeil Avian Center houses rare and endangered birds from around the world including hornbills and crowned pigeons.
Prizes for the winning teams (1st, 2nd, and 3rd place) were generously donated by:
- American Birding Association
- American Ornithologists' Union
- Birder’s World
- Birdorable
- Nick Block
- Burning Hawk Wines
- Buteo Books
- Columbia Sportswear
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Cornell University Press
- Forestry Suppliers
- Harvard University Press
- Holohil
- Sara Morris
- Nikon Sport Optics
- Princeton University Press
- Bridget Stutchbury
- Texas A&M University Press
- Wild Republic/K&M Toys
- Yale University Press
2008: 3rd Annual Quiz Bowl
2007: 2nd Annual Quiz Bowl
The 2nd annual AOU student quiz bowl somehow managed to top the success of it’s launch in 2006! Approximately 300 conference attendees and guests cheered on their favorite teams and challenged their own knowledge in the jeopardy-style competition of ornithological knowledge.
Prizes for the 1 st, 2 nd, and 3 rd place teams were generously provided by Blackwell Publishing, Eagle Optics, Forestry Suppliers, Harvard University Press, and Princeton University Press.
The members of the winning team were Shawn Billerman and Nicholas Sly from Cornell University, and Scott Haber from the American Museum of Natural History; each received a pair of Eagle Optics 10x25 Triumph binoculars.
2006: The First Quiz Bowl
It was this very first quiz bowl that started it all!
The 1st annual AOU student quiz bowl was a huge success! Approximately 250 audience members were glued to their seats as they watched nine teams compete for over $1000 in prizes provided by Eagle Optics, Forestry Suppliers, Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, University of California Press , and Princeton University Press.
The winning team hailed from Arizona State University and was comprised of Matthew Toomey, Melissa Meadows, and Bobby Fokidis; each member of the winning team received a pair of Audubon 8x42 Equinox binoculars.