Upcoming Birding and Nature Trips

Below is a list of upcoming nature trips by local birding/conservation groups for the weekend of Saturday, August 15, 2015 to Sunday, August 16, 2015:

Audubon Center in Prospect Park
Saturday, August 15, 2015, 12–1 pm
Introduction to Bird Watching
Look! Up in the sky, it’s a bird! But what kind of bird is it? Join the Prospect Park Alliance to learn about the magnificent array of birds that call Prospect Park home. Led by the Brooklyn Bird Club

Sunday, August 16, 2015, 10 am – 11 am
Family Bird Watching
Looking for a fun way to spend time with your family outdoors? Join the Prospect Park Alliance for its monthly family bird watching tours. After learning how to use binoculars, join our naturalists to identify some of the 250 species of birds that call Prospect Park home. Please note this tour leaves promptly at 10 am.

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Brooklyn Bird Club
Sunday, August 16, 2015
Jamaica Bay Refuge
Leader: Rafael Campos
Focus: Peak of shorebird migration
Car fee: $10.00
Registrar: Donna Evans, email devansny@earthlink.net
Registration Period: August 4th - August 13th

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Fresh Kills Park Alliance (Staten Island)
Saturday, August 15, 2015, 1:00pm
Naturalist-Led Hike
Join us for an August hike lead by a naturalist working alongside the FkP Development team! The name of the naturalist and the flora and fauna expected will be updated closer to the event date. This program includes moderate to steep elevations. Water, bug spray, and comfortable shoes recommended. Space is limited, ages 10+. Free.
Meet shuttle into the park at Schmul Park (Wild Ave and Melvin Ave)
Sign Up at EventBrite

Sunday, August 16, 2015, 12:00pm
Kayak the Creeks
Join the Freshkills Park Team and Kayak Staten Island for a kayaking experience like no other! Kayak along the Fresh Kill and see the site from a different perspective. This three hour excursion will take you into the William T. Davis Wildlife Refuge and up close to some of the varied wildlife that calls Freshkills Park home.
Kayaks, life vests, and brief safety training will be provided. Kayak events are currently limited to participants ages 16 and over, in good health and with basic swimming skills. Be prepared to get wet! Space is very limited. Email freshkillspark@parks.nyc.gov if you own a kayak and wish to participate in this program with your personal kayak.
Sign up at EventBrite

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Linnaean Society of New York
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Jamaica Bay 22ND Annual Tom Davis Memorial Shorebird Walk
Leader: Sean Sime — seansime@seansime.com or 917-324-2735
Registration opens: August 3
Public transportation

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New York Botanical Garden (Bronx)
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Debbie Becker leads a free bird walk at the Garden every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. beginning at the Reflecting Pool in the Leon Levy Visitor Center
Trips return on September 5, 2015

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New York City Audubon Society
Saturday, August 15, 2015, 8:00am – 9:30am
Van Cortlandt Bird Walks, The Bronx
Guides: NYC Audubon, Van Cortlandt Park Conservancy
With the Van Cortlandt Park Conservancy
Meet at Van Cortlandt Nature Center. The history of birding and Van Cortlandt Park are inseparable. Influential birders such as Roger Tory Peterson and Allan D. Cruickshank got their starts on Van Cortlandt’s ecologically diverse grounds. These walks celebrate the tradition set forth by these great ornithologists. Participants will look for various species of residents and migrants and discuss a wide range of avian topics. For more information, please call 212-691-7483. No registration necessary. No limit. Free.

Saturday, August 15, 2015, 9:30am – 2:00pm
Shorebird Walk in Jamaica Bay, Queens
Guide: Andrew Baksh
Meet at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. We'll search the mudflats and ponds for breeding herons and egrets, Forster's and Common Terns, Clapper Rail, and American Oystercatcher, as well as migratory plovers and sandpipers that will already be headed south. Limited to 15. $40 (28)
Click here to register

Sunday, August 16, 2015, 10am – 1pm
Shorebird Identification Workshop
Guide: Joe Giunta, Happy Warblers LLC
Shorebirds are one of the most challenging groups of birds to identify, yet beautiful and fascinating once they can be distinguished. Learn to identify plovers and sandpipers (including "peeps") by learning behavior, field marks, and calls - then take a field trip to Jamaica Bay to practice your new skills. Limited to 12. $65 (45)
Click here to register

Sunday, August 16, 2015, 7pm – 9pm
Sunset EcoCruise to the Harbor Heron Islands: Hoffman and Swinburne Islands
Guide: Gabriel Willow with New York Water Taxi
Meet at South Street Seaport's Pier 16. We're excited about this summer's ecocruises; we’ve expanded our explorations of the City's island rookeries to three different locations! Depending on which weekend you choose, cruises may visit the fascinating Brother Islands, the large egret and cormorant colonies on Hoffman and Swinburne Islands, or the great expanses of Jamaica Bay. Whichever your destination, you'll experience the wonders of New York's famous harbor at sunset and see some of the three thousand herons, egrets, and ibis nesting on these urban island treasures. To learn about specific cruise dates and register, visit New York Water Taxi online or by phone at 212-742-1969. Limited to 140. Pricing varies by destination.

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Queens County Bird Club
Sunday, August 16, 2015, 8:30am – 1:00pm
Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Leader: Corey Finger 518-445-5829
Meet: 8:30am at visitors center

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Urban Park Rangers
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Bird Walks at Van Cortlandt Park at Van Cortlandt Nature Center (in Van Cortlandt Park), Bronx
8:00 a.m.–9:30 a.m.
The history of birding and Van Cortlandt Park are inseparable. Influential birders such as Roger Tory Peterson got their starts on Van Cortlandt’s ecologically diverse grounds.
Free!

Introduction to Bird Watching at Audubon Center at the Boathouse (in Prospect Park), Brooklyn
12:00 p.m.–1:00 p.m.
Look! Up in the sky, it’s a bird! But what kind of bird is it? Join the Prospect Park Alliance to learn about the magnificent array of birds that call Prospect Park home.
Free!


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Young Birders Club (New York State)
Sunday August 16, 2015
Montezuma NWR
Sponsoring NYSYBC Partner: Rochester Birding Association
Montezuma NWR is one of New York State's top birding destinations. Shallow pools and cattail marshes are maintained for waterfowl. Pools are often drawn down for shorebirds in the fall. Upland and bottomland hardwood forests attract nesting birds and passerine migrants. Migrants of all types, especially shorebirds, ducks, eagles, osprey, and herons, will be seen. Our RBA guide is very familiar with the refuge and promises to show us her secret birding spots. We will have lunch at a wonderful local diner and after that, more birding for those that wish to continue. MNWR covers a vast area of varied habitat.

Visit www.rochesterbirding.com (go to Hotspots Montezuma- NWR for complete details on this birding mecca.
Note from Rochester Birding Association: No fee; donation to MNWR appreciated

Permission form due by 8/6/15. If you have not yet submitted a 2015 medical form (page 2 of the permission form) please submit it with your permission form.