Spring Skills of a Naturalist: Birding by Ear

We added this one as it definitely perked our interest. We’ve taken to bird photography lately but our ability to identify bird calls is, sadly, lacking. Perhaps this event could help!

Tickets for this event go on sale on Eventbrite on March 2.

The text and photo below is from the organizers of this event:

Spring is here and with the lengthening days, birds (including migrant birds) are singing their hearts out! We birders focus primarily on identifying birds by plumage, colors and field markings during our outdoor explorations. However, tuning your ear to bird’s songs and vocalizations is a next-level way to land your id, even when visibility for birds is poor. The trouble is, it can be tricky to learn as birds make a lot of vocalizations and many are similar to each other. That’s why we’re so glad to welcome IslandWood naturalist and docent, Mark Salvadalena, who will teach you how to listen for key features in bird chatter and song to arrive at a proper ID – even without seeing the bird.

In this class we will cover:

• How to identify common birds by the various sounds they make, including spring migrants only here for a season

• How to use apps such as Merlin Bird ID, and community-science databases such as ebird.org, and tips on the best educational websites to continue your ornithological study

• As always, we will explore the ways people approach deep nature study, reflection and have lots of time for questions and practice in the field

Anyone is a naturalist if they are a student of the natural world so newbies please join us! Been birding for awhile, but need a skills refresher? Field time is where it’s at. Bring your sense of wonder, questions, and knowledge to share with others. We’ll see you there!

Your instructors for this session will be Mark Salvadalena and Christina Conklin.

Mark is a recreation instructor with Bainbridge Island Parks. He has led bird walks for 15 years for organizations such as Olympic National Park, New York City Parks, and Seattle Audubon. We’re so honored that Mark is one of IslandWood’s docents, and a skillful ornithologist and naturalist.

Christina Conklin is IslandWood’s veteran staff naturalist who is serious about nature-study in a fun-loving way. Christina is a Master Birder (Seattle Audubon, 2011), WDFW Wetland Monitor (2014), Certified Beach Naturalist (2014), and Certified Interpretive Guide (National Association of Interpretation (2015), and has been joyfully teaching environmental education for over 20 years.