NSAS October Speaker Series Presents: California's Purple Martin - Status and Conservation with Dan Ariola - Oct. 9th at 7:00 p.m.
2025-10-09 19:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Benicia Public Library, 150 East L Street, Benicia, CA, 94510
Biologist and ornithologist Dan Ariola will discuss the unique life history of this largest North American swallow,
differences between the eastern and western subspecies, current threats they face. He’ll present an overview of the status and conservation issues facing the species in California. He will also provide preliminary results of the 2025 statewide Purple Martin breeding population survey.
About the Presentation: The well-documented and drastic decline in the Purple Martin nesting population in Sacramento has contributed to concerns about the species’ status throughout California. The species has been recognized as a state Species of Special Concern for nearly 50 years. Dan Airola is co-leading a comprehensive statewide Purple Martin status assessment 2025. Dan will discuss the unique life history of this largest North American swallow, differences between the eastern and western subspecies, current threats they face. He’ll present an overview of the status and conservation issues facing the species in California. He will also provide preliminary results of the 2025 statewide Purple Martin breeding population survey
About the Presenter: Dan Airola is a Sacramento Wildlife Biologist and Ornithologist who has worked for over 45 years in research and conservation of at-risk species birds in Northern California. Dan has conducted research and a conservation program for the Sacramento Purple Martin population for over 30 years. He also has conducted several status assessments of the species in California and is co-leading the 2025 statewide status. Dan also has also led studies in Northern California for the Tricolored Blackbird, Yellow-billed Magpie, Osprey, Bald Eagle, Swainson’s Hawk, Turkey Vulture, fire-adapted forest species, migrant songbirds, and diving ducks. Dan also serves the Central Valley Bird Club as a Director, Conservation Chair, and editor of the journal Central Valley Birds and is a Conservation Committee member for Sacramento Audubon
Join us on Thursday, October 9 at the Benicia Public Library, 150 East L Street, Benicia, at 7:00 PM. The event is free and open to the public.
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Beginners Bird Walk at American Canyon Wetlands - 9 AM
2025-10-19 09:00 - 12:00 | American Canyon Wetlands, 2 Eucalyptus Drive, American Canyon
Beginner bird walks are fun ways to explore birding or sharpen your skills. The group meets at 9:00 AM at the American Canyon Wetlands parking lot and follows a path along the water. You can expect to see both local and migratory birds. Binoculars are available to borrow. Heavy rain cancels. Free and open to the public. Families are welcome.

Beginners' Bird Walk - American Canyon Wetlands Edge Park
2025-11-02 09:00 | Wetlands Edge Park, 2 Eucalyptus Drive, American Canyon, CA, United States
Are you dipping a toe into birding, or dusting off a pair of binoculars for the first time in a while? If you want company as you learn about birding, we’d be delighted to have you join us for the next Beginners Bird Walk of the Fall Season on Sunday, November 2, 2025, at the American Canyon Wetlands Edge Park. No reservations are necessary, just plan to show up and enjoy being outdoors for a little while. What you’ll see are ducks, shorebirds, sparrows and warblers that have completed their nesting season in Canada and Alaska and are returning south to over winter in our area or are just stopping over as they continue their journey southward. We haven’t spotted any Northern Flickers yet, but they should show up soon. It’s a great time to be birding at the wetlands as the locations is filling up with a wide variety of wintering birds. Heavy rain cancels.

NSAS November Speaker Series Presents: A Bird's Rainbow with Bob Lewis - Nov. 13th at 7:00 p.m.
2025-11-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Napa Valley Lutheran Church, 1796 Elm St., Napa, CA 94558, 94558
About the Presentation: Many birds are brightly colored, others use patterned feathers for camouflage. How do these colors originate? What’s the difference between colors from pigments and physical colors? From Yellow Warblers to Anna’s Hummingbirds, from Snow Geese to Brewer’s Blackbirds, each species makes unique use of the feather colors it possesses. What do the colors indicate to other birds? And do birds see the same colors we do? Bob will unravel some of the mysteries of color in birds with a little chemistry, a bit of physics, and a lot of brightly colored slides.
About the Presenter: Bob trained as a chemist and worked in the energy field for 33 years. He’s taught birding classes in the Bay Area for over 25 years and served as the chair of Golden Gate Audubon’s Adult Education Committee. He’s a frequent speaker on birds at libraries and bird groups. Bob was honored with American Birding Association’s Chandler Robbins Award for Education and Conservation in 2016, and Golden Gate Audubon’s Paul Covel Education Award in 2010 and 2017. He was one of the founders of the Master Birding Class held at the SF Academy of Science. He loves to travel and photograph birds and has chased birds in over 60 countries. His life list is over 5500 species.

Sat. November 15th NSAS Monthly Field Trip to Abbott's Lagoon with Larry Kent
2025-11-15 08:00 - 16:00 | Abbott’s Lagoon, Pierce Point Road, Point Ryes National Seashore, Inverness, CA, 94937
Abbott’s Lagoon is a beautiful walk with chances for observing many land, marsh, and shorebird species as well as views of the ocean birds including possible scope views of Sooty Shearwaters. Each Fall, Abbott’s Lagoon hosts a variety of shorebird species including Pectoral, Baird’s and Ruffs, Golden Plovers, Snowy Plovers as well as Longspurs and Horned Larks.
Registration information will be sent out in an upcoming eBlast. This field trip may be limited to 15-20 participants so be sure to register soon after receiving the eBlast information.

Beginners' Bird Walk on Sunday, November 16
2025-11-16 09:00 - 12:00 | Wetlands Edge Park, 2 Eucalyptus Drive, American Canyon, CA, United States
Our fall Beginner’s Bird Walks have been very rewarding so far. The weather has cooperated with sunny days, and the tides have been perfect for observing and identifying multiple species of ducks and many hundreds of shorebirds. We are hoping our good fortune will continue for our walk this Sunday. So, if you’d like some company as you learn about birding, we’d be delighted to have you join us for our next Beginners’ Bird Walk on Sunday, November 16, at the American Canyon Wetlands Edge Park. No reservations are necessary, just plan to show up and enjoy being outdoors for a while. Note that the long-term weather forecast for Sunday is constantly changing. If we have wet weather on Sunday morning the walk will be canceled.

What you’ll see are ducks, shorebirds, sparrows and warblers that have completed their nesting season and returned south to over winter in our area. Along with the visitors there are also a good number of the resident birds that live in our local area year-round. It’s a great time to be birding at the wetlands as the location offers an opportunity to observe a wide variety of wintering birds.

The walk is open to birders of all levels and ages. Napa Solano Audubon membership is encouraged but not required. It’s free, it’s fun, and loaner binoculars are on hand if you need them. If you have questions about this outing, please e-mail Tom Slyker at solanobirder@gmail.com.
Meeting time and location: We will meet at 9 AM on Sunday, November 16, at the parking lot for the Wetlands Edge Park, which is located at 2 Eucalyptus Drive in American Canyon. We expect that the walk will take between 2 – 3 hours and we should be finished by noon.

Sacramento Valley Wildlife Refuges Fri./Sat. December 5th/6th with Wendy Cole, Bruce Thomsen & Mark Stephenson
2025-11-18 08:00 - 17:00 | Colusa National Wildlife Area, 2180 Highway 20, Williams, CA, United States
We will meet at the Colusa Parking Lot at 8:00 a.m. This is always our popular winter trip to visit Colusa, Sacramento and Gray Lodge Wildlife Refuges. These are some of the best locations in the entire Sacramento Valley observe overwintering waterfowl. We will look for Ducks, Geese, Shorebirds as well as Raptors and woodland birds that we encounter on this special trip to the Valley. Be on the lookout for the eBlast and Registration Blast for this trip that will be limited to 20.

Bodega Bay Pelagic Trip with Lucas Stephenson and Captain Rick Powers - Sunday, November 23rd 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
2025-11-23 07:00 - 18:00 | Bodega Bay’s Porto Bodega, 1534 East Shore Road, Bodega Bay, CA, 94923, United States
This year’s Banner Bodega Pelagic Trips: We have had good luck this season finding 6 Storm-Petrels, including Leach’s and Tristram’s, 6 Shearwaters including Manx, Short-tailed, and Flesh-footed. Skuas, Jaegers, Tufted Puffins, Fulmars and Sabine’s Gulls have been appearing on most trips. Most recently, 3 Albatross including multiple Laysan and one Waved! The Waved is the first ABA Record and First Northern Pacific Record.
Given this streak of luck, we thought it would be wise to run a November trip. We’ve reserved a boat with Captain Rick Powers for Sunday, November 23rd out of Bodega Bay. We’ll be gunning it for the Cordell Bank and the Continental Shelf. Potential November targets are Short-Tailed Albatross, Parakeet Auklet, and Mottled Petrel.
Pricing: Captain Rick has asked us to take a maximum of 35 birders so this will require us to increase prices slightly in order to break even. The trip will be co-sponsored by Napa-Solano Audubon and Bodega Bay Sports Fishers and will cost $200. The reduced numbers of birders along the rail should make viewing any ranties easier.
This is a late Fall trip which may have rougher seas and fewer pelagic birds.

Benicia CBC Pre-Count Benicia Community Park at 8:30 a.m. with Tom Slyker & Robin Leong
2025-12-12 08:30 - 14:00 | Benicia Community Park, 540 Rose Drive, Benicia, 94510, United States
Location: Benicia Community Park
Time: 8:30 a.m.
This trip will highlight and scout out several locations for the upcoming Benicia Christmas Bird Count. We hope to continue from Benicia Community Park and visit the Benicia Pier and Benicia State Park … depending on time. Species observed can be recorded for the count week.

Christmas Bird Count for Kids Sunday, December 14th American Canyon Wetlands at 9:00 a.m.
2025-12-14 09:00 - 13:00 | American Canyon Wetlands, 2 Eucalyptus Drive, American Canyon
Children, bring your parents and a brown bag lunch, water bottle, and come join us to look for birds at American Canyon Wetlands on Sunday, December 14th. We will meet at 9:00 a.m. near the parking area, review birding strategies, have a quick binocular training, break into small groups, and bird throughout the wetlands. We will reconvene to share bird observations, and hear each teams’ highlights. This half-day CBC4Kids is designed as a fun activity for kids aged 7-16 and modeled after the traditional CBCs geared largely towards adults and birding clubs. We will introduce students to citizen science collection techniques and teach them how to use eBird, Cornell Universities’ International Database for bird observations. Parents and their children will join birding team leaders in a fun day of celebrating nature in this wonderful wildlife preserve. Remember to dress in layers and be prepared for the predicted weather.

Benicia Christmas Bird Count - Monday, December 15, 2025 - Join a Team!
2025-12-15 08:00 - 17:00
We’d be delighted if you could join us for a day of birding at this year’s Benicia Christmas Bird Count (BCBC). The Benicia Count was founded in 1930 (95 years ago!) and this year Tom Slyker and Robin Leong are organizing this FUN event. The BCBC count circle includes the communities of Benicia, East Vallejo, Cordelia, West Suisun City, as well as parts of Grizzly Island and all of Grizzly Bay. We will have many teams birding the area, with experienced team leaders and various levels of hiking & walking involved. To join this year’s CBC please sign up using our Google Form at https://bit.ly/3JGFrbF. You can find a link to this form along with additional CBC information on our website at https://napasolanobirds.org/. If you have any problems with accessing the form or you want more information about the CBC, Contact Tom Slyker or 707-771-1918 to let us know you are interested in joining our group of birders for this year’s event. Be sure to let Tom know the type of surface & the level of exercise that would be best for you and we will match you with a count team suited to your request. This year we will be serving Mexican food at our compilation dinner which will be held in the Community Center Room of the Church of Latter-day Saints at 1125 Southampton Road, Benicia, CA 94510. HAPPY BIRDING! Tom Slyker

Angwin Christmas Bird Count - Thursday, January 1st, 2026 - Join a Team
2026-01-01 08:00 - 17:00
Start the New Year off with a blast by participating in the Angwin CBC! Birding opportunities are available throughout the count circle including the Napa Valley, Pope Valley, Lakes Berryessa, Hennessey, and Angwin. We have an excellent crew of experienced area leaders so everyone is encouraged to take part. The count is an important measure of local birdlife, and has gained added importance as a tool to monitor changes in numbers & distribution of birds in the wildfire burn zone that impacted about forty percent of the count circle in 2020. Our compilation dinner begins at 5:00 p.m. at the Carnegie Building – 1360 Oak Ave. St. Helena, CA 94574 – situated at the corner of Oak Ave & Adams St., where we will share highlights of each count teams’ birding adventures. For details & how to participate: Contact Murray Berner

NSAS Speaker Series Presents: "Birding from Here to There" with Harry Fuller Thursday, January 8, 2026 at 7:00 p.m.
2026-01-08 19:00 - 21:00 | Napa Valley Lutheran Church, 1796 Elm St., Napa, CA 94558, 94558
About the Presentation: We will explore what San Francisco’a natural history was like BEFORE the missions and the Gold Rush. Which bird species became known to science because they were found in the Bay Area? Then we will digitally explore the best birding spots along I-5 heading north. Where is there a Lewis’s Woodpecker community near the freeway? When we get just inside the Oregon border, we’ll spend some time looking for Great Gray Owls.
About the Presenter: Harry Fuller has lived in Oregon since 2007. Before retirement he managed TV and Internet newsrooms in San Francisco and London. Harry has written four natural history books, including Birding Harney County; Great Gray Owl in California, Oregon and Washington; and San Francisco’s Natural History, Sand Dunes to Streetcars. Oregon State University Press published Edge of Awe in 2019. It is an anthology of essays about Malheur and the Steens. Fuller contributed the chapter on Common Nighthawks at Malheur. He has been leading bird trips and teaching birding classes since the 1990s. Currently he leads trips for the Malheur Field Station, Salem Audubon Society, and the Klamath Bird Observatory, and provides private guiding service. His birding journal is online: ecowise.wordpress.com.
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Beginners Bird Walk - January 11
2026-01-11 09:00 - 12:00 | American Canyon Wetlands, 2 Eucalyptus Drive, American Canyon
Start the new year off with a pleasant walk along the American Canyon Wetlands Preserve on Sunday, January 11 starting at 9:00 AM.
What you’ll see are ducks, shorebirds, sparrows and warblers that have completed their nesting season and returned south to over winter in our area. Along with the visitors there are also a good number of the resident birds that live in our local area year-round. It’s a great time to be birding at the wetlands as the location offers an opportunity to observe a wide variety of wintering birds.

The walk is open to birders of all levels and ages. Napa Solano Audubon membership is encouraged but not required. It’s free, it’s fun, and loaner binoculars are on hand if you need them. If you have questions about this outing, please e-mail Tom Slyker at solanobirder@gmail.com.

Meeting time and location: We will meet at 9 AM on Sunday, January 11, at the parking lot for the Wetlands Edge Park, which is located at 2 Eucalyptus Drive in American Canyon. We expect that the walk will take between 2 – 3 hours and we should be finished by noon.

Directions: From Vallejo, take Hwy 29 north towards Napa. Turn left off of Hwy 29 onto Rio Del Mar. There is a stop light at this location. Immediately after turning onto Rio Del Mar, turn right onto Eucalyptus Drive. Continue west on Eucalyptus until you reach the parking lot. From Napa, drive south on Highway 29 till you reach Rio Del Mar. Turn right onto Rio Del Mar and immediately turn right onto Eucalyptus Drive. Continue west on Eucalyptus until you reach the parking lot. From eastern Solano County take Hwy 80 to American Canyon Road. Go west on American Canyon Road until it ends at Wetlands Edge Road. Turn right on Wetlands Road and go north until you hit Eucalyptus Road. Turn left on Eucalyptus Road and you will be at the Wetlands Edge Park parking lot.

Leaders: Tom Slyker and Carol Boykin will be leading this walk. Both are citizen science volunteers who participate in the Napa Solano Audubon’s CA Birdseasons project at the wetlands location. NSAS has been monitoring birds at this site on a weekly basis since 2016. This monitoring has provided the participants with a wealth of knowledge about the birds you might see.
What to bring: Warm clothing in layers as it can get windy and cold at this location. We will be walking ~ 2 miles over paved trails so comfortable walking shoes will be needed. Bring binoculars if you have them. If not, we will have extra binoculars for you to use. Tom and Carol will have spotting scopes for better views of some of the more distant birds. Water and snacks are items you should plan to carry with you.

NSAS Field Trip to Consumnes River Preserve Saturday, January 17th with Bruce Thomsen & Mark Stephenson
2026-01-17 08:00 - 16:00 | Consumnes River Preserve, 13501 Franklin Blvd, Galt, CA, 95632, United States
The Cosumnes River Preserve protects one of California’s last remaining undammed rivers and its associated ecosystems: wetlands, riparian oak forest, grasslands, and sloughs. It is home to more than 250 species of birds, over 40 fish species and more than 230 plant species. We will walk nature trails observing woodland and riparian birds and boardwalks searching for close-up views of waterfowl. Next on the trip we will head over to the Woodbridge Ecological Preserve. This preserve provides California’s largest area of freshwater marsh wintering habitat. Featured here are the majestic sandhill crane, along with geese, swans and many other waterbirds. The trip will conclude at the Nature Conservancy’s Staten Island. Staten Island has been a wintering destination for sandhill cranes moving along the Pacific Flyway for more than 40 years. Situated in the heart of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, Staten Island’s 9,200 acres are located between the North and South Forks of the Mokelumne River, with thousands of acres of crops in production annually, that provide both foraging and roosting habitat for these beautiful cranes.

Beginners' Bird Walk Sunday, Jan. 25, American Canyon Wetlands, 9:00 AM
2026-01-25 09:00 - 12:00 | Wetlands Edge Park, 2 Eucalyptus Drive, American Canyon, CA, United States
Recently the weather has been cooperating with sunny days, and our Beginners walk on January 11 was delightful. We are anticipating that our good fortune will continue with enjoyable birding weather for our next Beginners Bird walk on Sunday, January 25. So, if you’d like some company as you learn about birding, we’d be delighted to have you join us for our next Beginners’ Bird Walk on Sunday, January 25, at the American Canyon Wetlands Edge Park. No reservations are necessary, just plan to show up and enjoy being outdoors for a while.

It’s a great time to bird at the wetlands as the location offers an opportunity to observe a wide variety of wintering birds. What you’ll see are ducks, shorebirds, songbirds, and raptors. You’ll see both the migrant species that call the local wetlands their home for the winter season and our resident birds that live in the area year-round. And if we are lucky, we’ll see an Allen’s Hummingbird which is an early spring migrant that will be coming from the south to look for nesting sites in our area.

The walk is open to birders of all levels and ages. Napa Solano Audubon membership is encouraged but not required. It’s free, it’s fun, and loaner binoculars are on hand if you need them. If you have questions about this outing, please e-mail Tom Slyker at solanobirder@gmail.com.

Meeting time and location: We will meet at 9 AM on Sunday, January 25, at the parking lot for the Wetlands Edge Park, which is located at 2 Eucalyptus Drive in American Canyon. We expect that the walk will take between 2 – 3 hours and we should be finished by noon.

Directions: From Vallejo, take Hwy 29 north towards Napa. Turn left off Hwy 29 onto Rio Del Mar. There is a stop light at this location. Immediately after turning onto Rio Del Mar, turn right onto Eucalyptus Drive. Continue west on Eucalyptus until you reach the parking lot. From Napa, drive south on Highway 29 till you reach Rio Del Mar. Turn right onto Rio Del Mar and immediately turn right onto Eucalyptus Drive. Continue west on Eucalyptus until you reach the parking lot. From eastern Solano County take Hwy 80 to American Canyon Road. Go west on American Canyon Road until it ends at Wetlands Edge Road. Turn right on Wetlands Road and go north until you hit Eucalyptus Road. Turn left on Eucalyptus Road and you will be at the Wetlands Edge Park parking lot.

Leaders: Tom Slyker and Carol Boykin will be leading this walk. Both are citizen science volunteers who participate in the Napa Solano Audubon’s CA Birdseasons project at the wetlands location. NSAS has been monitoring birds at this site on a weekly basis since 2016. This monitoring has provided the participants with a wealth of knowledge about the birds you might see.

What to bring: Warm clothing in layers as it can get windy and cold at this location. We will be walking ~ 2 miles over paved trails so comfortable walking shoes will be needed. Bring binoculars if you have them. If not, we will have extra binoculars for you to use. Tom and Carol will have spotting scopes for better views of some of the more distant birds. Water and snacks are items you should plan to carry with you.

Winged Migration Expo - Building 69 - January 31st - February 1st
2026-01-31 - 2026-02-01 | Winged Migration Expo, 1001 Waterfront Ave, Vallejo, CA, 94592, United States
Stay tuned for many events, including birding field trips, expert speakers, educational tabling, interactive kids activities, food and drink vendors, area hikes, and historic ship viewing are scheduled for this year’s Winged Migration Expo. Activities will be held at Building 69, Mare Island, Waterfront Avenue between Kansas and 4th Street, parallel to Nimitz Ave. Many Birding Field Trips will be held throughout the weekend led by experienced Birders. For more information, a complete schedule, and to see how you can support this year’s festival visit their website: wingedmigrationexpo.com
