Birders Attend Convention from Safety of Their Nests

Arkansas Audubon Society to convene virtually May 8

Safely engage with fellow birders across the state at the 2021 Arkansas

Audubon Society (AAS) Spring convention, which will meet virtually

Saturday, May 8 via the Zoom video conferencing application. The convention

will feature independent birding field trips and special presentations.

Additionally, participants may win small prizes for notable bird observations

and will enjoy opportunities to engage with other wildlife enthusiasts.

Attendees will need to register ahead of time to receive a link to the Zoom

meetings; registration information will be available on our website

(www.arbirds.org).

Saturday morning will begin with independent birding field trips. We

encourage you to bird your favorite local spots wherever you live in the state!

Birding can begin as early as sunrise, but we ask that birders complete their

outings by 2 PM to return home for the afternoon symposium in time. A few

small prizes will be awarded to birders who observed the most species, most

individuals, and the “best” bird.

The afternoon presentations will occur from 4–5:30 PM. These will include a

seminar on the status of bobwhite quail in Arkansas by Marcus Asher from

the AR Game and Fish Commission as well as student research presentations.

After dinner on your own, Saturday evening’s highlight at 7 PM is “101 Ways

to Help Birds” by guest speaker Laura Erickson, who was the 2014 recipient

of the American Birding Association’s Roger Tory Peterson Award. Laura is

also an author, photographer, educator, blogger, and wildlife rehabilitator.

After this keynote presentation, birders will have time to share bird

observations from this event and the prior week’s CAW event (see our

website for more info about this event).

Registration is now open online through the end of the day Friday, May 7.

Participation in the meeting is free of charge and open to members and nonmembers alike, but registration is required. Further information and a complete meeting agenda are available at www.arbirds.org.

If you have questions about the convention, please contact AAS vice-president

Megan Foll at auntm13@gmail.com.

Find us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ArkansasAudubonSociety), Twitter

(@ArAudubon), and Instagram (@araudubonsociety).