Upcoming Field Trips and Birdwalks

Grab your loved ones and experience nature together

The Chesapeake Audubon Society works in the Maryland region to promote the stewardship of natural ecosystems through conservation, restoration, education, and advocacy. We schedule hikes, canoe trips, and educational events throughout the year to help members and guests learn about birds, plants, and the natural world around them. Beginners are welcome!

For up to the minute program information on upcoming Birdwalks, visit https://www.meetup.com/Chesapeake-Audubon-Society/ and click on Join Us.
Programs at and/or with Pickering Creek Audubon Center in Easton Maryland can be found here.
Programs with Patterson Park Audubon Center in Baltimore City can be found here.
CAS Field Trip – Spring Wildflower Walk- Patapsco Valley State Park
Leader: Bryan MacKay
Saturday, April 20, 2024, 9:30 AM – 12:00 noon
Join naturalist Bryan MacKay for a 3 mile hike through a narrow stream valley filled with native wildflowers. The Soapstone Trail is rocky in places, has several streams to cross on rocks, and will likely be muddy. Park at the Southwest Area Park-n-Ride at the intersection of I-195 and South Rolling Road in Catonsville. Then walk across Rolling Road to the well-marked trailhead. Free (no fee). The leader appreciates an email with your intent to attend in the event circumstances require a last-minute change. To register please contact Bryan at mackay@umbc.edu, at least a day in advance.

Audubon Maryland – DC – Birdwatching Tour of Druid Hill Park
Saturday, April 20th, 2024, 8:00 – 9:30 AM
Free, but Registration is Required
Meet at 3001 East Drive, Baltimore

Druid Hill Park is Baltimore’s oldest large park and is home to 745 acres of forests, fields, and a large lake. 189 species of birds have been documented here, including nesting Baltimore orioles and yellow-crowned night herons. Audubon experts will lead us in search of avian friends! No experience necessary. If you would like to borrow binoculars, please email us at baltimore@audubon.org; we will need at least 72 hours notice for binocular lending. All ages and abilities welcome! Click here for more information and to REGISTER

Audubon Maryland – DC- Birdwatching Tour of Patterson Park
Saturday, April 27, 2024, 8:00 – 9:30 AM
Meet at the fountain, closest to East Lombard Street and South Patterson Park Avenue
Free, but Registration is Required

Over 200 bird species have visited Patterson Park, an important migratory stopover in Baltimore City! Audubon experts will lead us in search of avian friends! No experience necessary. If you would like to borrow binoculars, please email us at baltimore@audubon.org; we will need at least 72 hours notice for binocular lending. Click here for more information and to REGISTER
Audubon Maryland – DC WEBINAR  – Habitat Gardening for Birds and Communities
Wednesday, May 1st, 2024 7:00- 8:30PM

Spring is on its way! Audubon is looking forward to longer days, flowers blooming, and migratory birds arriving. Join us for Audubon’s popular Habitat Gardening webinars to explore why and how to cultivate your outdoor spaces for birds and butterflies. Audubon experts will share practical tips and scientific support  for gardening with native plants, and transforming your space into a bird and butterfly paradise! The Intro webinar is a prerequisite for the Advanced webinar – coming May 15th. Click here for more information and to REGISTER. 
Weaving the Landscape (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Thursday, May 2, 2024
4:00-6:00pm
$10 per person
Almost any growing thing can be used to weave! Take a walk through Pickering Creek’s diverse ecosystems. As we walk, we will gather vines and other weaving materials.  Learn about the ethics of wild plant gathering as we identify and assess our possible materials. Leave with your own wildcrafted weaving, a wreath, a basket, a vining flower crown? Open to ages 8 and up.  REGISTER HERE
Chesapeake Audubon’s 40th Annual Spring Dinner
“Great Places to See Nature and Birds in Maryland”|
Speaker: Bryan MacKay
Saturday, May 4th, 2024, 6PM
$
12 per person, or $15 if you would like to include a glass of wine or a bottle of beer
St. Bartholomew’s Church Parish Hall, 4711 Edmondson Ave., Baltimore, MD 21229

It’s that time again! Time for our famous and fabulous spring dinner, featuring your choice of five scrumptious soups, a salad, and rolls. Excellent homemade desserts available for purchase at nominal prices. A glass of wine or bottle of beer is optional for a small extra ticket cost.
This year’s speaker will be well-known Maryland naturalist, Bryan MacKay.  If you want to see some beautiful nature photography and know where, when, and how to travel about our state in search of birds and natural beauty, you won’t want to miss this program! Bryan is the author of ” A Year Across Maryland: A Year Across Maryland: A Week-by-week Guide to Discovery Nature in the Chesapeake Region.”

Cost is $12 per person, or $15 if you would like to include a glass of wine or a bottle of beer – pay at the door.Tickets should be reserved in advance (so we can prepare enough food) by phoning CAS at 443-423-1847, or by email at info@chesapeakeaudubon.org


Birdwatch & Walk 
(Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
8:00-10:00AM
Have fun bird watching for science at Pickering Creek. Bird watchers of all skill levels are encouraged to assist volunteer leaders with bird monitoring along the Center’s trails during this monthly bird survey. Help us collect data that allow us to track long-term trends on how birds use the Center. Currently we have spotted and identified over 230 species at Pickering Creek!  REGISTER HERE

CAS Field Trip Warbler Migrant Trap  Milford Mill (Villa Nova Park)
Leader: Brad Phoebus
Saturday, May 4th, 2024, 8AM 
Location / Directions: (I-695, then right on Liberty Road, right on Washington Ave., right on Milford Mill Rd, right into parking area immediately after going under I-695) Join Brad at this excellent warbler migrant trap along a creek and woods; an easy mile loop. Often during the first half of May this spot is popping with warblers and other songbirds. To register— and ask questions about location or anything else — contact Brad at bradphoebus@gmail.com or 443-415-9776.

CAS Field Trip – Birding – North Point State Park (Edgemere, MD)
Leader: Fred Brundick
Sunday May 5,2024, 8:30 AM 
North Point is a 1,310 acre park on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay.  We’ll be searching for spring migrants and resident birds on the Marsh Trail and bay front. Park entrance fee is $3/vehicle (have exact change). Bring your camera as well as binoculars. To register, contact Fred at gpferd@gmail.com or 443-752-5607. All levels of birders welcome, scope helpful if you have one.

Birdwatch & Walk (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
8:00-10:00AM

Have fun bird watching for science at Pickering Creek. Bird watchers of all skill levels are encouraged to assist volunteer leaders with bird monitoring along the Center’s trails during this monthly bird survey. Help us collect data that allow us to track long-term trends on how birds use the Center. Currently we have spotted and identified over 230 species at Pickering Creek!  REGISTER HERE
Garden and Grounds Day (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Thursday, May 9, 2024
9:30-11:30 AM

Volunteer with Pickering Creek Audubon Center! Come out during the week for our Gardens and Grounds days, group volunteer days where we take care of a variety of needs at the Center including trail care, invasive plant management, gardening with native plants, and other maintenance activities. REGSITER HERE
Family Field Trip: Magnificent Meadows and Wonderful Wetlands (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Friday, May 10, 2024
4:30-6:00PM
$5 per person

Join Pickering Creek staff as we explore our wetlands and learn about the unique plants and animals that make up these ecosystems. Families will join educators to catch frogs as we learn about aquatic life in our ponds, or to catch butterflies in our bug nets as we learn about pollinators in our meadows.  REGISTER HERE
Birding the Pocomoke-Nassawango with Wayne Bell (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Wednesday, May 15, 2024 (Raindate May 16)
6:30AM-1:30PM
$25 per person

Join experienced birder Wayne Bell and Pickering staff as we tour the marshlands around the Pocomoke-Nassawango in Wicomico County.  The Pocomoke-Nassawango is the premier site for Forest-Interior Dwelling Species (FIDS) on the Delmarva peninsula, and it hosts significant populations of at-risk bird species because of its large size and varied habitats. We’ll hope to see Prothontary Warbler, American Redstart, Scarlet Tanager, Ovenbird, Northern Parula, Louisiana Waterthrush and other Warblers, Vireos and Flycatchers.  The best birds are up early and resting by midday.  We’ll leave the ACME in Easton at 6:30AM. Van transportation provided. REGISTER HERE
Family Field Trip: Fishing on Pickering Creek’s Pier (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Friday, May 17, 2024
5:30-7:00 PM
$7 per person

Join fishing enthusiast and seasonal educator, Logan, for a relaxing evening on Pickering Creek’s pier. Bring your family and friends for a chance to catch some tidal water fish. Pickering Creek will supply fishing poles and bait but feel free to bring your own lucky fishing supplies. This program is a great opportunity to try something new, practice an old skill, or help pass knowledge on to the next lucky fisher. If you are not much of a fisher the pier also offers a relaxing place to enjoy some amazing scenery and there are many other beautiful trails to explore.  REGISTER HERE
VOLUNTEER! Pollinator Garden Renovation (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Saturday, May 18, 2024
9:00 AM-12:00 PM

Help us complete renovation of our Pollinator Garden this spring! We’ll be tidying up the garden beds and adding more native plants.  The plantings and new signage to be added to the space will raise awareness and appreciation for native plants and the pollinators that depend on them.  You’ll help make this revitalized garden space an even more welcoming and engaging for visitors at Pickering Creek. REGISTER HERE
Tiny Explorers Expedition- Forest Magic (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
4:00-5:30PM
$5 per child

We all know that fairies love forests! Enjoy a story or two to learn more about areas fairies like most and why they can be so hard to find. Then we will try our own hands at building and decorating fairy homes for our elusive and magical friends to live in! We’ll then take a short walk and find the perfect spot for our small shelters for fairies and other creatures to enjoy. This program is geared for children ages 2-5 and their adult companion.  REGISTER HERE
Oyster Gardening 101 (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Thursday, May 30, 2024
4:30-6:00PM
$7 per person

Pickering Cree educators are excited to introduce you to our new crew of unsung heroes, the Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea viriginica). Oyster gardening provides import nursery habitat as well as filtering the waters of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries; oyster reefs are a vital part of conserving the Chesapeake Bay. We invite you to come learn about our new spat growing program, the challenges these bivalve face, and the research methods we use to analyze the success of our oyster nurseries.  REGISTER HERE
Nature at Night Hike (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Friday, May 31, 2024
8:30 – 10:30 PM
$7 per person

Explore Pickering Creek’s Farm-to-Bay Loop at night and use special UV flashlights to reveal nocturnal wildlife and unique plants and fungi not usually visible to the human eye. By the main parking lot, stop by a mothing station with the opportunity to see Luna moths and other impressive early summer species.   REGISTER HERE
Midsummer Moth Night (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Friday, July 12, 2024
8:00 – 10:30 PM
$10 per person

Moths are some of nature’s most misunderstood and often maligned creatures. Join Field Programs Manager Patrick Carney and learn about the life histories, ecology, and conservation of moths and other native insects, including how each of us can support native insect biodiversity at home. Then, mix homemade moth bait and observe & identify wild moths at two different moth light stations. Please come prepared with a flashlight or headlamp, and a camera if desired!  REGISTER HERE
Seasonal Nature Photography: Summer Insects Up Close (Pickering Creek Audubon Center)
Saturday July 13, 2024
3:00 – 5:00 PM
$7 per person

Join insect and photography enthusiast, Patrick Carney and explore Pickering Creek’s diversity of habitats and wildlife through your camera lens. This introductory nature photography class will cover wildlife, landscape, macrophotography, and more, with an emphasis on ethically photographing the outdoors. The program is suitable for beginners with any type of camera (including cellphones) and level of experience. Pickering Creek’s meadow habitats abound with pollinators and other interesting insects. Hone your macrophotography skills and focus on the small creatures that form the basis of the food web in Pickering Creek’s diverse habitats. REGISTER HERE
 
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