Beginning Bird Walk @ Lettuce Lake Park
2024-08-10 09:00 - 12:00, 2024-09-14 09:00 - 12:00, 2024-10-12 09:00 - 12:00, 2024-11-09 09:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Lettuce Lake Conservation Park, 6920 East Fletcher Avenue, Tampa, FL, 33637, United States
Important! Pre-registration is required and participation is limited to the first 10 people who sign up. Please do not attend this or any Tampa Audubon Society events if you have flu, cold, or covid symptoms. Tampa Audubon is committed to reducing the spread of illnesses. The health and safety of our members is of the highest priority.
Entrance fee for park $2. Meet in the parking lot by the Visitor’s Center in Lettuce Lake Park at 9 am. We’ll walk the boardwalk or trails, depending on where the best birds are. We have binoculars to loan, and someone will have a spotting scope so you can get up really close and personal! Bring water and a snack.
RSVP to trip leader Jim Hengelbrok at jim.hengelbrok@tampaaudubon.org

Bird Feather Identification
2024-08-10 13:00 - 14:30 | Boyd Hill Nature Preserve Classroom, 1101 COUNTRY CLUB WY S, St. Petersburg, FL, 33705, United States
Have you ever found a bird feather and wondered from which bird it came? Learn the basics about bird feather identification and common feathers you might find in our area. Participants will sketch feather patterns and make a mini-identification booklet.
Ages 7 yrs+ Preregistration required.
>>> RESERVE A SPOT <<<

Black Terns at Gandy Beach
2024-08-24 07:00 - 09:00 | Gandy Beach, Saint Petersburg, FL, 33716, United States
August is the best time to see Black Terns on the south side of Gandy Blvd. at Gandy Beach. There are also Least Terns and Black Skimmers. It’s a great place to practice shorebird identification. We hope to avoid the heat and people and their unleashed dogs by starting at 7:00 am. If you’re driving from Tampa, the beach is on your left after you cross Gandy Bridge. If you’re coming from Pinellas County, the beach is on your right just before the bridge. There are no bathroom facilities.
Advance registration is required. Please contact the Trip Leader for further coordination. Be sure to plan accordingly: bring water, snacks (lunch is appropriate), hat, sunscreen, binoculars, and dress for the weather (see the current forecast for Tampa below on this page). Keep emergency contact information on your person (for example, in your chest pocket or on your phone). Contact trip leader Lilian Saul at: lily.saul@tampaaudubon.org to join.

Avian Ambassador Meet and Greet
2024-09-04 10:00 - 10:30, 2024-09-06 13:30 - 14:00 | Seaside Seabird Sanctuary, 18328 Gulf Blvd, Indian Shores, FL, 33785, United States
Come and meet one of our Avian Ambassadors up close and personal! Learn about their species, individual injury, natural history, and impact on our local ecosystems!

Science Rocks!
2024-09-05 10:30 - 11:30, 2024-10-03 10:30 - 11:30 | Moccasin Lake Environmental Education Center, 2750 Park Trail Lane, Clearwater, FL, United States
This free event at Moccasin Lake Nature Park is hosted by the Clearwater Community Women’s Club, and it covers a range of science topics through hands-on activities, discussion and crafts. Registration is required by emailing ScienceRocksMoccasin@gmail.com.
Sept. 7: 5 Senses
Oct.5: Water
Nov. 2. Bees
Jan. 4: Push/Pull
Feb. 1: Flight
Mar. 7: Frogs and Toads
April 4: The Sun
May 2: 3 States of Matter

Sunset Beach Cleanup
2024-09-06 18:00 - 20:00 | Seaside Seabird Sanctuary, 18328 Gulf Blvd, Indian Shores, FL, 33785, United States
Join us as we clean up our beaches, have some fun, learn something new, and release some birds!

Bird Walk at Boyd Hill
2024-09-07 08:00 - 09:30 | Boyd Hill Nature Preserve Classroom, 1101 COUNTRY CLUB WY S, St. Petersburg, FL, 33705, United States
Join the St. Petersburg Audubon Society for a birdwatching hike at Boyd Hill, where you’ll spot a variety of native species while learning about their habits and habitats.
Perfect for bird enthusiasts of all levels! Binoculars are available for loan.
All ages welcome with a registered adult.

>>> REGISTER HERE <<<

Bird Walk by Clearwater Audubon Society
2024-09-07 08:00 - 10:00 | Moccasin Lake Environmental Education Center, 2750 Park Trail Lane, Clearwater, FL, United States
Join members of the Clearwater Audubon Society for a bird walk through the park. Bring your binoculars, field guide, and questions!
Meet in the parking lot by 8am. The walk starts promptly at 8am.
>>> REGISTER HERE <<<

Morning Nature Walk Starkey Park
2024-09-07 08:00 - 17:00 | J. B. Starkey Wilderness Park Education Center, 10500 Wilderness Road, New Port Richey, FL, 34655, United States
Meet 7:30 AM
Meet in Corral
1 to 4 mile walk
For more info email Christine Rowland

INTERNATIONAL VULTURE AWARENESS DAY
2024-09-07 10:00 - 15:00 | Boyd Hill Nature Preserve Classroom, 1101 COUNTRY CLUB WY S, St. Petersburg, FL, 33705, United States
Vultures are an important group of birds that help our environment, but they face a range of challenges and threats. Join us as we celebrate these unique birds that help keep our community clean!
We will have special aviary tours throughout the day.
Cost: Included with Admission | All ages
Location: Education Center Lobby

Birding by Bike- Pinellas Trail
2024-09-08 08:00 - 09:00 | Brooker Creek Preserve, 3940 Keystone Road, Tarpon Springs, FL, United States
Meet 8:00 AM
Meet at Brooker Creek Preserve Parking lot, 3940 Keystone Road, Tarpon Springs, FL 34688 Contact Contact Robertburkard9@gmail.com

Common Bird Species of Pasco County
2024-09-10 19:00 - 20:30 | Land O’ Lakes Community Center, 5401 Land O' Lakes Blvd., Land O' Lakes, FL, United States
The Nature Coast Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society will present “Common Bird Species of Pasco County” on Tues., Sept. 10, at 7pm at the Land O’ Lakes Heritage Park Community Center, 5401 Land O’ Lakes Blvd in Land O’ Lakes,
All Chapter meetings are free and open to the public. Any questions contact us at naturecoastfnps@gmail.com.
Website: PascoNativePlants.org
Facebook: facebook.com/groups/PascoNativePlants

Field Trip to John Chestnut Park
2024-09-14 08:00 - 10:00 | John Chestnut Park, 2200 East Lake Road South, Palm Harbor, FL, 34685, United States
Field Trip Leader: Ron Smith
Meet at the first parking lot on the left after passing the initial 3-way stop sign.

What to Bring:
Hat
Binoculars
Water
Insect repellent
Sunscreen

Clean Up the Tampa Audubon Sanctuary
2024-09-14 09:00 - 11:00 | FL
The Tampa Audubon Society, the Sierra Club, and Port Tampa Bay are jointly responsible for a small natural area bordering Old Tampa Bay. Mangroves, mudflats, oyster bars, and open bay provide bird and wildlife habitat here, one of the few natural shorelines remaining. Once or twice a year, we meet to remove the trash that washes in on high tide and other debris from the Sanctuary. Wear long sleeves and pants, closed toe/walk in the water and mud shoes. Sierra Club’s Todd Randolph is organizing the event 815/347-2421. Questions? Call Ann Paul 813/624-3149.

Directions to Site: From 1-275, take Westshore Blvd. exit and head south on Westshore. Turn right at W. San Jose Street. Follow San Jose until you reach an S-shaped curve. The Sanctuary is located on the right. Park on the street being considerate not to block mailboxes or drive ways.

Falcon Fascination
2024-09-14 10:30 - 12:00 | Brooker Creek Environmental Education Center, 3940 Keystone Road, Tarpon Springs, FL, 34688, United States
Join us for a journey through time representing man’s long term relationship with peregrine falcons!
This program is a journey through time representing man’s long term relationship with peregrine falcons. The importance of coastal areas, climate, water, bird friendly communities and migratory stop overs is discussed. Peregrine falcons are extreme predators that ended up on the endangered species list. Several organizations, as well as falconers, were instrumental in bringing the peregrine falcons back to their nesting grounds and into the 21st century. Peregrines have adapted well in urban environments and counts at Hawk Watches have been very high. The program features live falcons! Moccasin Lake Nature Park in Clearwater serves as a sanctuary to these educational ambassadors.
Join Barbara Walker of the Tampa Bay Raptor Rescue for this enlightening program and meet a live falcon!
>>> REGISTER HERE <<<

Field Trip to A. L. Anderson Park
2024-09-21 08:30 - 10:30 | A.L. Anderson Park, 39699 US Highway 19N, Tarpon Springs, FL, United States
Field Trip Leader: Carl Shavers
Meet at shelter 4.

What to Bring:
Hat
Binoculars
Water
Insect repellent
Sunscreen

Field Trip to Fort De Soto
2024-09-28 08:00 - 10:00 | Fort DeSoto Park, 8250 Desoto Memorial Highway, Bradenton, FL, 34209, United States
Field Trip Leader: Peter Plaige
Meet at North Beach. After entering the park, turn right at the flagpole, continue west, then north on the main park road. Enter the large parking lot at North Beach and meet in the parking lot near the north-most restroom. The trip will entail walking a mile or more on sand.
What to Bring: Binoculars, Hat, Sunscreen, Insect Repellant, Water, and Footwear appropriate for wading.
Note: Ft. De Soto has an admission fee of $5:00 per vehicle.

Field Trip to John S. Taylor Park
2024-09-28 08:00 - 10:00 | John S. Taylor Park, 1100 8th Ave SW, Largo, FL, 33770, United States
Migrants, bittern, green herons and more.
Meet at the park’s Shelter 6 at 8:00am.
Leader – Steve Aversa 727-218-7938

Pollinator Pots
2024-09-28 14:00 - 15:30 | Boyd Hill Nature Preserve Classroom, 1101 COUNTRY CLUB WY S, St. Petersburg, FL, 33705, United States
Support local pollinators such as butterflies and birds by making a pollinator pot to put on your porch or balcony!
18 yrs +
Bring a 12″ – 18″ pot and we will provide the native plants and soil!
Register here

Birding by Bike
2024-10-12 | J. B. Starkey Wilderness Park Education Center, 10500 Wilderness Road, New Port Richey, FL, 34655, United States
Birding by Bike Jay B Starkey Wilderness Park
Meet 8:00 AM
Meet at Starkey Education Center
Contact Robertburkard9@gmail.com
Anyone interested in birding or nature in general is welcome to join us on field trips.
Almost all are free. Registration may be required, check the schedule for details.
Dress for the weather and prepare to be outdoors for about 4 hours.

Big Day Birding Event
2024-10-14 | FL
On 14 October, people in 191 countries around the world joined together to celebrate birds for October Big Day. More than 36,000 people contributed 83,735 checklists, setting three new records for the single biggest day in October birding history! Even more impressive, the global birding community reported 7,525 species—an incredible 72 more species than last October Big Day. This remarkable growth is a testament to the power of birds to unite people in a common effort.
For more information, go to An Uplifting October Big Day 2023 – eBird.

Florida Birding & Nature Festival
2024-10-17 - 2024-10-20 | FL
Early birds catch the worms — and the discounts!
We’ll be highlighting the trips that sold out first last year in a series of emails, but the entire schedule is online at https://www.floridabirdingandnaturefestival.org/schedule.html so you can take advantage of the early-bird pricing through July.
Pre-festival bus trip Join four of the state’s best birders — Dave Goodwin, Jim Eager, Bob Snow and Cole Frederick — on a day-long excursion to Saddle Creek Park and Circle B Bar Reserve, where you can expect to see dozens of species, (Visit https://www.floridabirdingandnaturefestival.org/schedule.html) for the full list.) This is definitely an early-bird excursion, with the bus boarding at 7 a.m. to take advantage of a full day of birding.
Coffeepot Bayou Bird Island Audubon’s Jeff Liechy takes the helm of Tampa Bay Watch’s Discovery Eco-Tour Boat for an evening trip and a close-up view of colonial waterbirds. (They won’t be nesting so we won’t disturb them.)
Outback Key and Lower Terra Ceia Bay Eric Plage and Holley Short will lead this boat trip to two of the region’s prime birding spots. An ephemeral barrier island, Outback Key isn’t easily accessible so the birds are extraordinarily comfortable with visitors. The Pinellas National Wildlife Refuge is a roosting site for Magnificent Frigatebirds.
Fort De Soto by land David Goodwin and Jim Eager are back again with trips for advanced birders on Saturday and Sunday morning. Fort De Soto is a 1,136-acre park covering five connected islands that is a haven for migrating neo-tropicals as well as diverse shorebirds.
Lower Green Swamp by wagon Once a working cattle ranch, the 12,800-acre preserve is being restored by Hillsborough County. You’ll get a behind-the-scenes view because the staff working on the restoration will lead the trip. You’ll cross grasslands, open wooded areas, pine forests and a large wetland area, so you’ll see an amazing diversity of birds, from Bald Eagles to Bachman Sparrows.
Check out https://www.floridabirdingandnaturefestival.org/schedule.html and grab those spots while you still can!
Seminars & Free Nature Expo!
While field trips get the most attention, we have an incredible lineup of presentations planned along with a free Nature Expo featuring local organizations and naturalists. You can attend as many seminars as you like for the cost of registering for one day — and they’ll all be on Zoom if you can’t make it to Apollo Beach or if you’re out on a field trip and then available afterward or if you’re out on a field trip.
Check out these highlights:

A worm’s eye view of Tampa Bay, what sediment invertebrates can tell us about the health of our bay. Dave Karlen and the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County have been studying these largely invisible creatures for 30 years.
Conserving Florida Scrub Jays. Once phosphate mining is complete, Mosaic reclaims land and then manages it with fire to provide optimum habitat for the endemic species.
Marc Minno literally wrote the books on Florida butterflies. Join him for this presentation and then a field trip through the Fred and Idah Schultz Preserve where diverse habitats make it THE place for a wide variety of butterflies.
Dan Huber at the University of Tampa is an expert on the biomechanics of sharks and how understanding their mechanical functions contribute to their position as an apex predator for millions of years.

Keynote speakers you won’t want to miss!
To be published in September, Audubon’s Birds of Florida is the latest from Clay Henderson, former president of Audubon Florida. Henderson followed Audubon’s footsteps and paddled in his wake to look for birds in the same places. His previous book, Forces of Nature, celebrates the people and organizations who made Florida a leader in state-funded conservation and land management.

Participants in last year’s birding festival logged a total of 145 species of birds, ranging from Wild Turkeys to Magnificant Frigatebirds. It’s not likely that one person saw all of them in the four days of the festival, but our schedule during peak migration season means that we’ll see birds that we otherwise would miss. Our expert field trip leaders will be scouting their locations in advance to make sure you get to see the most birds possible.
Click here for the full list.

Ales and Wild Tails - Audubon Florida
2024-11-13 18:00 - 19:00 | FL
Ales and Wild Tails is back! Join the Friends of the Tampa Bay National Wildlife Refuges and the Center for Biological Diversity in welcoming Kara Cook of Audubon Florida to learn about roof top nesting of bird species in Florida. The Audubon Florida rooftop-nesting program is vital to preserving bird populations that have suffered habitat loss due to human development, and need to find alternative habitat to successfully raise their young. Kara will discuss how Audubon monitors rooftop-nesting seabirds and shorebirds and how volunteers can get involved in community science efforts to help these imperiled birds. Hope to see you there!
When: Wednesday, Nov. 13, 6-7 p.m.
Where: The Ale and the Witch Tavern, 111 2nd Ave. NE, St. Petersburg, FL 33701
Cost: Free admission (craft beer and refreshments available)
Ales and Wild Tails is co-hosted by the Center for Biological Diversity and Friends of the Tampa Bay National Wildlife Refuges. It takes place on the second Wednesday evening of every month during the fall, winter, and spring.
Thank you all for supporting the Tampa Bay Refuges!

What's Happening to Florida's Birds?
2024-11-14 19:00 - 20:00 | Hammock Hall, 3010 31st Street South, St. Petersburg, FL, 33712, United States
NATURAL HISTORY SPEAKER SERIES
What’s Happening to Florida’s Birds?
Bird populations can surge or plummet depending on a variety of factors—everything from the quality of their habitats to the impact of pesticides, the encroachment of urban sprawl, prowling cats, and the sweeping effects of climate change. Soar into the dynamic world of Florida’s feathered residents and discover how they’re navigating these challenges and learn about the conservation efforts aimed at ensuring their ability to thrive. Join us to unravel the story of how Florida’s birds are facing these exciting challenges head-on!

Open to the public. | FREE ADMISSION

Click here for questions about the Natural History Speaker Series, or call Boyd Hill Nature Preserve at 727-893-7326.
Learn more

Wading Birds Photography Tour
2024-11-21 12:30 - 14:30 | Weedon Island Preserve Cultural and Natural History Center, 1800 Weedon Drive NE, St. Petersburg, FL, United States
This tour is for photographers and bird enthusiasts of all skill levels. A brief classroom session before the tour will teach participants about the wading birds found at the Preserve, as well as nature photography techniques specific to the wildlife and seasonal variations of Weedon Island.
This tour is for adults and youth ages 10+. Youth must be supervised by an adult.
The total hike length will be between 1 to 2 miles on natural paths and boardwalks so please dress and prepare accordingly.
>>> RESERVE A SPOT <<<
