ECAS members have been asking for educational opportunities in birding, especially for people new to birding or new to birding in Central Oregon. Last year Lynda Paznokas offered a four-part Zoom class called Birding Basics. This year we are developing a series of sessions to encourage people to get out and learn those basics in the field on real birds in their environments. The series will be called “Birding Basics: Field Experiences.”
For at least January-June, we will have one Field Experience each month, each lasting roughly 2 hours. Each will be in a different Central Oregon birding location such as Drake Park, Old Mill, First Street Rapids, Hatfield Ponds, Crooked River Wetlands Complex, and Shevlin Park. The sessions will be led by different ECAS volunteers, focusing on a variety of birds, and incorporating a new skill or resource information with each session. We want ECAS members who are not new, to help lead these experiences, either the birding and/or the skills/resources. This will provide an opportunity for the longer-time ECAS members to share their expertise and for there to be a nice interaction between the old and new members.
For example, the first outing will be January 22 at Drake Park with a focus on waterfowl identification. The skill will be using binoculars and scopes. This session will be led by Gordon Wetzel. Look for details and Member Planet sign-up in the January newsletter, The Calliope. The maximum participant sign-up will be 20 but we anticipate some attrition, of course, providing for a smaller group. These field experiences are open to ECAS and non-ECAS members. No pets. Please spread the word to new birders you might know and those birders who may be new to Central Oregon. See the ECAS calendar for dates and details of each session. Also, if you are interested in learning more about this program and would consider leading the birding and/or the skills/resources, contact Gordon Wetzel (gordonwetzel@gmail.com) or Lynda Paznokas (lpaz@bendnet.com).
