PRESENTED BY THE BIRMINGHAM ZOO Join us at the Birmingham Zoo during this state-wide, 24-hour competitive birding event, youth teams ranging from pre-kindergarten through high school will compete against other teams in their age division for most species identified, among other categories, for prizes and recognition. Let’s share our love of birds with the next generation!

A HIDDEN GEM Expect to see warblers, vireos, flycatchers, woodpeckers, pigeons, swifts, hummingbirds, hawks, crows, jays, nuthatches, gnatcatchers, wrens, thrashers, thrushes, sparrows, finches, cardinals, and other songbirds.

Join Alabama Audubon on the coast for a special Audubon Outing guided by Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard. The goal for this ‘Big Morning’ will be to identify and count as many bird species as possible before lunch as we caravan from hotspot to hotspot in search of new birds for the list.

Alabama Audubon is thrilled to announce two guided bird walks during Coastal Bird Banding in the third week of April. These walks, led by our esteemed team—Executive Director Dr. Scot Duncan, Coastal Programs Manager Cortney Weatherby, and Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard—offer a unique opportunity to explore the rich avian diversity of Alabama's Gulf Coast during the peak of spring migration. Participants can sign up for one or both walks for a special guided bird walk at one of the best locations for spring migration in the state! 

Alabama Audubon is thrilled to announce two guided bird walks during Coastal Bird Banding in the third week of April. These walks, led by our esteemed team—Executive Director Dr. Scot Duncan, Coastal Programs Manager Cortney Weatherby, and Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard—offer a unique opportunity to explore the rich avian diversity of Alabama's Gulf Coast during the peak of spring migration.

SPECIAL OUTING Participants can choose one of two mornings to attend a private banding session in the heart of northwestern—an exclusive tour of the banding station to witness avian conservation and research in action. We will travel to the station by UTV for a presentation and banding demonstration, where we'll observe the delicate process of banding and gain insights into the scientific methods used to track and study birds.

BIRD WALK Join us for our April Nature@Noon walk will be at Red Mountain Park in Birmingham. We will explore portions of this 1,500-acre urban park that is not only rich in biodiversity but also steeped in history.

SPECIAL OUTING Participants can choose one of two mornings to attend a private banding session in the heart of northwestern—an exclusive tour of the banding station to witness avian conservation and research in action. We will travel to the station by UTV for a presentation and banding demonstration, where we'll observe the delicate process of banding and gain insights into the scientific methods used to track and study birds.

Join us as we celebrate the birds that depend on the unique and vital habitats only found in Baldwin County. From the sparrows in your backyards to the gulls on our beautiful beaches, birds are dependent on the health of area ecosystems for survival, including that of native plants and pollinators. The birds need the insects, and the insects need native plants—and we need you!

FIELD TRIP Many southern breeding warblers and neotropical migrant songbirds tend to be early spring migrants, and for this reason, we are heading south to Perry Lakes Park, a longtime favorite birding site, for this early April field trip.

A FIELD TRIP IN BULLOCK COUNTY
Wehle Tract offers excellent bird diversity with over 170 species currently documented on the property. A driving tour, there will be multiple stops at various locations and habitats including fire-maintained open pine-grassland savanna, a forested pond, and expansive bottomland hardwood forest corridors along a creek floodplain. We hope is to locate Bachman’s Sparrows along with the Northern Bobwhite, Common Ground-Dove, Red-headed Woodpecker, Acadian Flycatcher, Brown-headed Nuthatch, and early migrants.

BIRD WALK Join us for our March Nature@Noon walk will be at Ruffner Mountain in Birmingham. Brown Creepers are commonly seen here in the forest—and it is also about time for our first Northern Parulas and Black-and-White Warblers to be singing, so we'll be on the lookout for the early migrants!

SPECIAL OUTING A self-driven, full-day field outing to the State Cattle Ranch, now known as the Barnett Lawley Forever Wild Field Trial Area, in Hale County, Alabama to celebrate the first days of spring! We will caravan through restored prairies, farmland, wetlands, and forests that smatter the area, and participants will have the chance to experience the fascinating birds and ecology of Alabama's historic Black Belt Region.

ART SERIES In the second installment of the Visual Ecology Art Series, participants will gain useful knowledge of creating inks and pigments from local plant sources as well as myriad drawing and calligraphy techniques useful for illustration, drawing, and journaling

BIRD WALK We will be joined by Meaher State Park’s Naturalist Chloe Drexel. The neighboring habitat of pine woodland and Mobile Delta marsh and shrub habitat provides cover for a variety of species, you never know what might be hanging about this hotspot. And we will be scouting for the trio of Limpkins that have been frequenting the park!

WINDOW COLLISION MONITORING / Volunteer Training
Led by Lianne Koczur, our Science & Conservation Director, this fall you will have the opportunity to become part of a team that collects important data on bird-window strikes, which will be used to help us direct conservation actions. Standalone Session 2

PRESENTATION & BIRD WALK Join us for a unique experience as Battleship Memorial Park hosts Alabama Audubon Coastal Outreach Manager, Cortney Weatherby, as she takes attendees on a journey through the skies unraveling the fascinating world of birds and their significance in nature conservation in the region.

SPECIAL OUTING This unique outing will take you through a variety of landscapes in northwestern Alabama, each offering a chance to observe a rich array of bird species and other wildlife.

WINDOW COLLISION MONITORING / Volunteer Training
Led by Lianne Koczur, our Science & Conservation Director, this fall you will have the opportunity to become part of a team that collects important data on bird-window strikes, which will be used to help us direct conservation actions. Standalone Session 1

BIRD WALK Join us at Feather Fest 2024 for a special guided afternoon walk as we explore the trails of the park. We will walk through a variety of habitats, stopping to view birds we encounter along the way.

BIRD WALK & VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY Join us as we prepare for the upcoming shorebird nesting season—we need some helping hands to get our supplies ready! This is also a great opportunity to learn more about our coastal work get connected with our awesome volunteer community.

FIELD TRIP Join us as we return to Alabama’s Black Belt—our destination will be the site of the former State Prison System’s Cattle Ranch, near Greensboro in Hale County. The property is now managed by the State Lands Division, and is only accessible with permission from the state. The land itself consists of soft rolling prairie grasslands, adorned with multiple lakes and numerous scattered copses of shade trees.

BIRD WALK Join us for our February Nature@Noon walk will be at Turkey Creek Nature Preserve, a 466-acre sanctuary that boasts a rich history dating back to prehistoric Native American inhabitants and the birth of industry in Alabama. The preserve is an important habitat for seven federally protected species, making it a critical conservation area in the country, and is one of the pristine gems in the Appalachian Highland Birding Trail.

ALABAMA’S AMAZING BIRDLIFE: CRAFTING A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR BIRDS & PEOPLE
Did you know that Alabama has more species than any state east of the Mississippi River, and that it ranks #4 among US states? During this public talk, author and Executive Director of Alabama Audubon, Dr. Scot Duncan will explain why Alabama is a biodiversity leader, and why birds are essential to the state’s economy and quality of life.

ANYONE CAN DO IT You can contribute to the science and conservation of the birds near you and across the globe with thousands of other birdwatchers. Join ALABAMA AUDUBON as we participate in this year’s Great Backyard Bird Count at the Birmingham Zoo. We typically observe no less than 30 species, including hawks, woodpeckers, winter warblers, wrens, blackbirds, finches, and many other songbirds.

BIRD WALK Join Alabama Audubon Coastal staff for a free lunchtime walk as we stroll Bayfront Park in Daphne. February brings the change to see waterfowl species that will soon be on their way, an interesting variety of gull and tern species, and some of our favorite winter regulars like Ruby-Crowned Kinglets, Eastern Phoebes, or Cedar Waxwings.

A GUIDED BUS TOUR
Join us this as we travel once more to the Black Belt region of western Alabama to see the winter birds and waterfowl that spend the cooler months in this area. Few in the state experience birding in this hallowed area during the cooler months. The pristine grass and scrubland ecosystems in the area are found nowhere else in the world and offer opportunities to see Eastern Meadowlarks, Vesper and Grasshopper Sparrows, and Loggerhead Shrikes while agricultural areas with cattle and catfish ponds host hundreds of ducks like Redheads, Northern Pintails, and both Green and Blue-winged Teal!