A spectacular birding hotspot, with ducks, herons, egrets and a good chance at Purple Gallinules, among other species. Meet at the picnic tables at the Sarasota Audubon Nature Center, 6888 Palmer Blvd, Sarasota.
Host: Eileen Gerle, eileengerle@gmail.com
Participants will be required to sign a liability waiver before beginning the field trip.
Registration is appreciated but not required.
REGISTRATION OPENS ON September 1.
Children ages 3 to 5 years old and an accompanying adult are invited to learn about the natural world all around us by looking for clues in nature. Big Naturalist and environmental educator Eileen Gerle leads this hour-long program that includes story time, a nature walk, and a craft.
Please sign up for each month separately. The themes are:
Children are asked to wear sturdy, closed footwear and to bring a water bottle. Registration is limited to twelve to ensure a small group experience.
PLEASE NOTE: This year's program takes place at Shamrock Park Nature Center, 3900 Shamrock Dr., Venice, FL 34293.
There is no fee but donations are welcome.
If you have any questions, contact Eileen Gerle at eileengerle@gmail.com.
Download event flyer.
Registration is required.
CANCELLED due to park closure.
With 210 acres preserved along mangrove-lined Lemon Bay, the park is a nice place to learn about coastal habitats. The trail system extends through pine flatwoods with mature slash pines and mangrove forests, and circles and crosses wetlands where birds gather. Meet at the Nature Center at 8:00.
Host: Mike Weisensee, mike17554@gmail.com
All participants will be required to sign a waiver before beginning the field trip.
This year's Audubon Assembly Celebrating 125 Years of Audubon in Florida is now open for registration.
Learning sessions, keynote presentations, field trips, and opportunities to meet with other Audubon enthusiasts highlight the event. Please note that hotel accommodations at a special rate are limited so don't delay in making your reservation.
For information, registration, and hotel details: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2024-audubon-assembly-celebrating-125-years-of-audubon-in-florida-registration-918813625287?aff=oddtdtcreator
Volunteer Saturdays are scheduled from 9-11 AM. Whether you can volunteer just once or on a regular basis, please join us! Youth volunteers under age 18 are welcome with an adult.
This Saturday we'll continue to work outdoors on our Pollinator Garden clean up as well as preparing the Audubon Center for use this season. If you like to do things like trim a few plants, rake some leaves, push a broom, organize supplies, or move around some tables and chairs, your help is needed!
Projects will vary seasonally or by need. We suggest you bring water, sunscreen, bug spray, a hat, and closed toe shoes.
Contact Bailey Cleveland at baileycleveland@veniceaudubon.org if you need more information.
Registration is appreciated to help us prepare our projects, but not required.
The Wildflower Preserve is a former golf course that has been reclaimed and returned to its natural state by the Hurculean effort of the Lemon Bay Conservancy. Many bird species are present including wading birds, raptors and warblers.
Read the book and join the in-person Book Club discussion on the 2nd Monday of the month.
A Most Remarkable Creature by Jonathan Meiburg is November's selection. The book can be purchased online and in bookstores and may be available in your local library.
Throughout the book, Meiburg retells of Charles Darwin's first sighting of a strange and oddly social bird in South America while on his own pursuit of what is now known as the striated caracara. Interwoven in Meiburg's appreciation for the caracara is the work of William Henry Hudson, a prominent Victorian era naturalist and writer. Learn the origins of the many species of caracara with the author while traveling throughout the Americas from remote southern islands to North America.
Registration not necessary but appreciated.
NOTE: This is for in-person discussion. The Zoom discussion group will be listed as a separate, registration required event.
NOTE: This is an online Zoom discussion.
Registration required.
An excellent hike when migrating birds stop by this beautiful 154 acre preserve which is part of the Lemon Bay watershed. About two miles walking along level trails. Meet at 8:00 in the parking area at 2695 Bridge Street, Englewood.
Host: Tom & Linda Litteral, tlitteral@comcast.net
Gather the family for some outdoor time! Join us on a tour around Lake Jervey on the SCF campus, located just south of the Wellen Park retail area on U.S. 41. We'll our time on an "I spy" adventure walk looking for herons, anhinga, cormorants, ducks...and alligators! Meet at 9:00 a.m. in the main parking lot next to the lake. Please note: most of this walk takes place on a paved path around the lake, so it is a particularly good walk for those with some physical limitations.
A guardian must attend with any participant under age 18. Bring binoculars if you have some and we will also have binoculars to lend. Participants are encouraged to wear closed toe shoes and appropriate sun/bug protection, and to bring water.
All participants will be required to sign a release form.
What birds are here and where can I find them? Mike Weisensee is one of Sarasota County's top birders so get ready to bust out those smart-phones and take your birding to the next level! With Mike's help, attendees will learn how to develop lists of “likely” birds in any area of the world, at any time of year AND find out the best places to find those target birds.
This will be a hands-on workshop. We will be using both Merlin Bird ID and eBird, FREE apps from Cornell University’s Lab of Ornithology. Please download these free apps to your smart-phone prior to the event. Please note that Mike will be using his iPhone for demonstration purposes (Android users beware!). But never fear! Even the most tech-challenged among us will gain important information and insights to improve your birding this coming season.
6:00 - Socializing and light refreshments
6:15 - Brief announcements/chapter business as needed
6:30 - Program begins
NEW DATE!
We will meet at the Butler Park parking lot just off Price Blvd. on the east corner of the park property. We will take an easy walk on the green and mostly shady path along the Myakkahatchee Creek looking for birds. The path is half paved and half boardwalk. The bird walk length is about 2.5 miles round trip.
Host: Bill Fairbank, wgfairbank@gmail.com
Today is the LAST DAY to register as a volunteer for Venice Area Audubon's annual Christmas Bird Count. The event takes place on SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15.
The Audubon Christmas Bird Count is the oldest community science project in the United States with the first count taking place on December 25, 1900. The history of this event has grown tremendously since then and occurs annual between December 14 and January 5, utilizing thousands of volunteers throughout the country.
Venice Area Audubon Society, a long-time participant in this project, adds to the national bird count by surveying the local Venice-Englewood area annually on one designated morning. Over 100 volunteers survey a 15-mile circumference circle extending from downtown Venice to I-75 to Manasota Key. Volunteers proceed to specific locations to observe and record the species and number of birds sighted, then report the information to the VAAS Christmas Bird Count coordinator for submission to National Audubon.
New volunteers and new birders are always welcome!
Please register to receive further details about the event. NOTE: Last day to register is November 30.
Walk about 2 miles in this gorgeous reserve in search of woodpeckers, warblers and other species. Bring binoculars, water and wear sturdy shoes. Meet in the main parking lot at 8:00 a.m., 1800 Mabry Carlton Parkway, Venice.
Host: Patti Haynes, patti.haynes@gmail.com
An exceptional location for spotting a wide variety of species, including owls, hawks, woodpeckers, warblers, vireos and possibly ducks. Sharon Wilcox, resident birder extraordinaire, will be our guide. We will bird in two nearby locations: at the Myakka River Bridge and later at the Crowley Museum. Meet at the bridge 1/4 mile past Crowley Museum.
Host: Bill Fairbank, wgfairbank@gmail.com; Guide: Sharon Wilcox
All participants will be required to sign a liability waiver before beginning the walk.
The Arbornaut: A Life Discovering the Eighth Continent in the Trees Above Us by Meg Lowman is a memoir of her journey into the tree canopy. She is a biologist and one of the first tree canopy scientists while continuing to be a fierce advocate for the preservation of global forests. An educator and a mentor, she was also inspired to create the Canopy Walkway at Myakka River State Park in Sarasota, Florida.
Join leaders Patti Haynes and Bob Clark on a tour around Lake Jervey and the surrounding SCF campus, located just south of the Wellen Park retail area on U.S. 41. Enjoy herons, egrets, ducks and more, highlighted by colorful Purple Gallinules.
Meet at 8:00 a.m. in the main parking lot next to the lake. Please note: most of this walk takes place on a paved path around the lake, so it is a particularly good walk for those with some physical limitations, including those requiring walkers or wheelchairs.
Host: Patti Haynes and Bob Clark, rlwclark@gmail.com
Participants will be required to sign a waiver before beginning the field trip.
Gardening and outdoor projects will be a priority, weather permitting. Indoor projects may include preparing the Center and/or materials for upcoming events and activities. Projects will vary seasonally or by need. We suggest you bring water, sunscreen, bug spray, a hat, and sturdy shoes.
Plan to join us for the CBC After Social at the Venice Audubon Center at 4 PM. Snacks and beverages provided. BYOB if you choose. Share your count experience, any rare bird sightings, and general good cheer as we toast to our participation in this 125th annual event!
Jim will also lead a Scrub Jay bird walk at Oscar Scherer State Park on Tuesday, January 14 at 8:30 AM. Details on the Calendar.
Walk around the Grand Lake at Wellen Park. to see wading birds, ducks, fly-overs and possibly least bitterns. The path is easy to walk because it is packed shell or paved. Meet out in front of Foxtail Coffee House in downtown Wellen Park at 8:00 AM. After the walk, grab a cup of coffee and enjoy getting to know fellow birders.
Hosts: Pattie Haynes, Bob Clark, and Tom Litteral. Contact: Bob Clark, rlwclark@gmail.com
All participants will be required to sign a liability waiver before beginning the bird walk.
Jim Rogers, a local scrub jay expert and Venice Area Audubon Chapter member, will guide us through the park to the areas that scrub jays have been seen. He will tell us about the unique family life of the scrub jays and explain how they are adapted to the scrub habitat. Jim volunteers for Audubon Florida's Jay Watch program and the Oscar Scherer scrub-jay census program. During our walk, Jim will share how the scrub jay census works, why banding is important, and much more.
There is a Park entry fee of $5 per car. Meet at the park Nature Center. The trails are sandy. Walks cover about 2 miles and take about 2 hours.
Host: Bill Fairbank, wgfairbank@gmail.com, Guide: Jim Rogers
The Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, established in 1970 to study the wild dolphins of Sarasota Bay, is now the longest running study of a wild dolphin population in the world. Join us as we learn about this unique research program and what insights researchers have gathered in over 50 years of data in a changing environment. In addition to the dolphins, all marine species and birds that utilize Sarasota Bay and its connected waterways are facing challenges to their ecosystems. How can we respond to ensure the survival of species in Sarasota Bay?
Sarasota Dolphin Research Program's website: https://sarasotadolphin.org/
Among the oldest species in the world and unchanged for millions of years, sea turtles nest on our local beaches amidst dangers both natural and human caused. Successfully growing from hatchling to maturity is a massive challenge for the five sea turtle species that nest along Florida's coastline.
Eileen Gerle, a Coastal Wildlife Club sea turtle nest monitor, takes us on the journey through Florida's sea turtles' natural history. Current data on local nest counts and changing trends will be presented, along with actions we as birders and environmentally concerned citizens can take to increase sea turtles' odds of living a healthy, safe lifespan.
Mark your calendar for Rookery Day, a fun, family-friendly morning at the Venice Audubon Center and Audubon Rookery Park.
WAITLIST ONLY. For additional information and to be added to the waitlist, email Eileen Gerle at info@veniceaudubon.org.
Join Venice Area Audubon's Eileen Gerle in Costa Rica for an 11 day adventure, hosted by Holbrook Travel. Birding locations inclue Savegre, Sarapiqui, Arenal, and Carara to visit Caribbean lowlands, premontane forest, tropical dry forest, mangroves, páramo, and more during hikes, boat rides, and an elevated tree canopy trail tour.
The trip is limited to 12 participants. Cost is approximately $3,300 per person. Airfare not included.
Tonight we celebrate all the volunteers who shared their time, talents, and enthusiasm this year to bring the Venice Area Audubon programs, events, and activities to life.
This is a night for EVERYONE - volunteers and those who appreciate our volunteers! Come to celebrate and congratulate, and perhaps be inspired to volunteer in the future.
Additional details to come.
6:30 - Meeting begins
Email: info@veniceaudubon.org
Telephone: 941-496-8984
Sarasota County Call Center: 941-861-5000 (General information and directions)
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