The Biggest Week in American Birding – NSAS Monthly Speaker Series Returns Sept. 11
Napa Solano Audubon’s monthly speaker series returns on Thursday, September 11, 7:00 PM, at the Napa Valley Lutheran Church. We hope that you join us to kick off another season on birding adventures with NSAS.
The Biggest Week is one of the largest birding festivals in the U.S. Held in
early May just east of Toledo on the shores of Lake Erie, the Biggest Week
draws upwards of 3,000 birders from around the world. Northern Ohio is
considered by some to be the “warbler capital of the world” as thousands of
migrating warblers land on the shores of Lake Erie to refuel, before
crossing this great expanse of water and continuing on their journey north.
The heart of the festival happens at Black Swamp Bird Observatory’s
Magee Marsh Board Walk, a 2.5 mile path through the marsh. Magee is
unique in that the high water table keeps most trees at shortened heights,
providing more accessible views of birds. This, coupled with the fact that
early May is when most trees are just beginning to bud, before leaves
make viewing more difficult is why the Biggest Week is so exciting. During
this year’s 9 day festival at the Boardwalk, along with a number of local
area hotspots, helped birders to observe 243 species including 36 North
American Warblers.
About the Presenter:
Mark has been the President of Napa-Solano Audubon for the past 5 years.
He began birding in the 4th grade and his birding knowledge expanded
dramatically when his family moved to Ithaca, NY where he birded regularly
with his mentor, Dr. Arthur Allen, founder of Cornell’s Laboratory of
Ornithology and other leading experts from the Lab. During college he
worked summers at Sapsucker Wood’s and for the Massachusetts
Audubon Society before heading west and directing Environmental
Education Programs at Foresta Institute in Washoe Valley, Nevada. After a
career of more than 30 years in public education in Benicia and Napa
schools, he is enjoying retirement. When Mark’s son, Lucas, caught the
“Birding Bug,” Mark turned from his passion for portrait and landscape
photography to focus on birds. With Lucas, he has traveled to every corner
of California, Arizona, Texas, Ohio, Florida, and Costa Rica observing and
photographing birds. This Spring, after last attending the Biggest Week 8
years ago with Lucas, Mark returned to the festival with his brother Tom
and our very own Tom Slyker and took hundreds of photos of Ohio’s
migrants and resident birds. He is excited to share his experiences with our
community and his friends from Napa-Solano Audubon.