Point Reyes Birding & Nature Festival: Tickets available soon!
Owls, raptors, otters, and butterflies are all part of the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin (EAC) 14th Annual Point Reyes Birding & Nature Festival on April 21st-23rd, 2023.
This annual fundraising event celebrates spring bird and wildlife migrations along the Pacific Flyway in Marin and Sonoma counties with proceeds benefiting EAC’s nonprofit mission to protect and sustain the unique lands, waters, and biodiversity of West Marin (coastal Marin County). The festival offers guided nature walks, classes, guest speakers, and other activities in the Point Reyes National Seashore, Marin County, and a few events further afield. The guides are outstanding naturalists and you will learn so much. Some events are held virtually.
Become a friend of the festival
Consider volunteering for this event or become a sponsor. I did both last year. I volunteered to assist Joe Mueller’s class on owls. His owl calls alone are worth the price of admission! The class had the opportunity to see owls at night. It was truly memorable. Being a Friend of the Festival sponsor gave me the opportunity to attend virtual meet & greets with guest speakers before their talks. Volunteers, guides and sponsors are all eligible to attend these special events. With just a handful of people attending, I was able to ask questions and engage deeply with some really interesting people — including the other attendees. At the end of the meet & greets, a raffle giveaway is held. Who doesn’t love a giveaway? I have been fortunate enough to win earrings, postcards and even a beautiful bird print by local artist and author Keith Hansen which I treasure.
Engaging field classes
Last year, I attended Paul Da Silva’s Dunes of Abbotts Lagoon field class featuring the insects and flora in the diverse sandy dune environment. Paul was a phenomenal instructor. He made an insect guide printed in color for each member attending and used pieces of cardboard with binder clips to fashion lightweight clipboards - very creative. He has surveyed the insects of these dunes for the National Seashore so was familiar with the most likely spots to find them. He posed us the question of how many species of insects are in the dunes, and how would you survey them? I imagined tiny webcams outside burrows or more realistically, staking out plots to search. Depending on conditions, you may see more or fewer on a given day or time of year. The answer was there are about 500 insect species in the dunes. My favorite insects in the Abbott Lagoon dunes are the Tiger Beetle, the Point Reyes Silverspot butterfly, the Coyote Brush Leaf Beetle, and bees.
Some of the events sell out fast, however, EAC Members get early bird access one week prior to the public.
The schedule at a glance will be up in late January, and tickets go on sale in mid-February. Save the dates now!
I hope to see you there!