Birding

Category

Choctawhatchee Audubon Society teaches ornithology to Destin Middle School students

When Destin Middle School Science Teacher Dawn Pack sought volunteers to teach her gifted 5th graders about ornithology, Margaret Benner and Gary Parsons of the local Choctawhatchee Audubon Chapter stepped up to the plate. Pack was inspired to do an ornithology project by her former principal, Dr. Diane Kelley and encouraged by Principal Charlie Marello, who assisted in writing a grant request that included funding for a bird cam. The new cam overlooks an osprey nest above the school’s stadium...

Audubon Florida seeking shorebird stewards for area State Parks

It is beach bird nesting season with birds and chicks out on the beaches with lots of beach goers. Bird stewards are needed to help with their survival. By helping to educate the public and heading off disturbances by volunteering with Audubon Florida. “If you can spare a few hours a week, month or season, your help would be greatly appreciated. We need help every weekend thru summer, but especially on holiday weekends. Memorial Day weekend is just around the...

Walton naturalist nurtures bluebird breeding progam at Hammock Bay

At Hammock Bay in Freeport, there is much aflutter this spring as beautiful bluebirds can be spotted everywhere. As part of a bluebird breeding program maintained by naturalist Joe Wyatt, Hammock Bay has 65 bluebird boxes scattered across their neighborhoods. This spring, the boxes have a 98 percent occupancy rate. This is the eighth year Wyatt has been running the bluebird breeding program.  The success has been quite good with close to 300 fledglings each year. Cool Facts about bluebirds: • It...

Audubon Florida seeking shorebird stewards

  Do you like the beach? Do you want to help our coastal wildlife survive? Become a part of the statewide efforts to help protect Florida’s beach-nesting shorebirds. It’s that time of year again when Florida’s rare shorebirds are nesting on our beaches and bird stewards are needed.  Did you know beach-nesting birds like Snowy Plovers, Black Skimmers, American Oystercatchers and Least Terns lay their eggs on top of the sand and raise their young on our local beaches? Chicks...

Choctawhatchee Audubon events for May 2014

May 1: Monthly Meeting and Program: “Caught on Camera: Butterflies and Moths,” MaryAnn Friedman, Butterfly Enthusiast. MaryAnn will present an amazing photographic collection of butterflies and moths with an emphasis on the many varieties of Florida Lepidoptera. Conservation issues, identification pointers, and some outstanding nearby butterfly locations will also be discussed. The meeting will be held in Room 130 on the ground floor of the Student Services Center at the Niceville campus of Northwest Florida State College, and will begin...