The Weminuche Audubon Society invites you to celebrate the beauty of birds with us in two February events.
First up is the Great Backyard Bird Count, four days in February when the world comes together for the love of birds, a global event organized by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, National Audubon Society and Birds Canada.
Beginning on Friday, Feb. 13, and extending through Monday, Feb. 16, you can participate by counting birds for as little as 15 minutes or for as long as you like wherever you are and then entering your observations on ebird.org.
On Wednesday, Feb. 18, to get us excited about the annual Crane Festival in Monte Vista, we have invited a local photographer and member of the Pagosa Springs Photography Club, Doug Coombs, to share his beautiful images of sandhill cranes.
Coombs is well-known to photographers regionally with a portfolio that includes images from around the world.
His program will include images from national wildlife refuges spanning Bosque del Apache in New Mexico to Monte Vista in the San Luis Valley of Colorado.
Bosque del Apache and the nearby Ladd S. Gordon wildlife areas in New Mexico are renowned for their opportunities to see and photograph many species of birds and other wildlife, but sandhill cranes and snow geese in particular.
These over-wintering species can put on a remarkable show when they lift off from the ponds at the refuges around sunrise.
Coombs has traveled to these areas for many years to photograph these amazing sights, and will share his knowledge of when to visit, where to photograph and other tips, along with many of his outstanding photos from these refuges.
Prior to moving to Pagosa Springs, Coombs worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory and was active with the Los Alamos Photography Club. You can learn more about his work on his website, dougsview.com.
The annual crane festival in Monte Vista celebrates the spring stopover there of sandhill cranes during their migratory journey. Take a trip over the hill to Monte Vista for the festival events between March 6 and 8 and be wowed by the thousands of cranes and other birds that stop at the national wildlife refuge before heading off to northern breeding grounds.
Be sure to catch the presentation “Crossing the Divide-Weminuche Audubon Society,” where our board members Herb Grover, Bob Endres and Keith Bruno will give an overview of Weminuche Audubon Society bird conservation projects and educational programs, including participation in shorebird surveys at the Monte Vista and Alamosa national wildlife refuges. Their talk is scheduled for March 8 at 11 a.m. Tickets and information on this and on all festival events can be found at mvcranefest.org.
The public is invited to join us at the Community United Methodist Church on Lewis Street on Feb. 18. We will meet at 6 p.m. to socialize with appetizers and snacks before the meeting starts at 6:30 p.m.
Please enter through the side door off the parking lot or let us know to open the main door for handicap entrance.
In appreciation for our meeting space, we welcome donations of nonperishable food for the church food bank.
For those unable to attend in person, a link to join the meeting on Zoom will be posted on our website, www.weminucheaudubon.org, prior to the meeting.
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