Education
School Programs
Presentations for classrooms or youth groups are offered by our educational staff with prior arrangement. Our program consists of 4 or more hour-long classes consisting of informational presentations and hands-on activities and games. Topics incorporate California State Education Standards and range from Bird Diversity, Adaptations, Bird Song, Migration, Breeding and Nesting, Feathers and Flight, to Habitat Conservation. Follow-up birding activities, games or art may can be integrated into the classroom curriculum by the teacher. The program includes a guided bird walk in the schoolyard or nearby park with binoculars provided from community grants. Learn more about our school programs Here, or contact Tammy Saunders via email at Tammy Saunders.
Junior Audubon
Napa-Solano Audubon Society coordinates a kid-friendly birding group called Junior Audubon! Younger birders tend to be highly motivated and learn quickly, but they can have difficulty finding ways to connect to each other and often get lost in adult-oriented bird outings. Junior Audubon hopes to remedy these issues by offering a free group exclusively for teens and pre-teens aged 8 – 18. The group meets twice each month for two hours. Parental attendance is optional. The outings are set in different habitats in Napa and Solano Counties and focus on improving birding skills and learning bird conservation. Check the Calendar page to see dates times, and descriptions of upcoming walks.
Monthly Speaker Series
Napa Solano Audubon holds regular Monthly Meetings on the 2nd Thursday of the Month from September to May with the exception of December which we take off to support family holiday activities. Our Monthly Meetings begin with announcements and short business items followed by a presentation from a nationally or locally known speaker to help us continue our chapter’s education about birds, wildlife, citizen science, conservation and preservation. Our Meetings for the 2024-25 year are held at either the Napa Valley Lutheran Church and the Benicia Public Library to support our members in Napa and Solano Counties. You may find more information on our Monthly Meetings here. Meetings are recorded and can be found online in our Speaker Archive.
Community Events
Educational exhibits and birding activities are offered at various community events through out the year, including the annual San Francisco Bay Flyway Festival, Vallejo’s Winged Migration Festival, Earth Day Clean-up and Community Events, California Native Plant Society Community Events and garden workshops. These activities focus on the importance of our mission including Birding, Education, Citizen Science, Conservation Advocacy and Habitat Preservation. Events may include bird walks, educational tabling, or hands-on activities for participants to become involved with birds and conservation..
Feeding Backyard Birds
One great way to introduce children to birds is to have backyard bird feeders. In our area seed feeders filled with black-oil sunflower seeds, peanuts, un-dyed mixed seed, safflower seeds, and cracked corn may attract some of the following birds: White-crowned, Golden-crowned, Song & Fox Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, California & Spotted Towhees, House Finches, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Oak Titmice, California Scrub-Jays, Mourning & Eurasian Collared Doves, and California Quail to name a few. Nyjar Seed feeders attract Lesser and American Goldfinches and Pine Siskin. (Caution: Nyjar seed feeders can become very expensive if you attract large flocks of Goldfinch and Siskins!) If you add suet feeders you may also support Nuttall’s, Downy, & Hairy Woodpeckers, Red-shafted Flickers and White-breasted Nuthatches. Beware, you may also attract birds that hunt other birds such as Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks! Once you start, be sure to clean out your feeders every week or two with warm soapy water to prevent any diseases from spreading. Here’s a link to a helpful pamphlet entitled Helping Backyard Birds in Winter, written by Bill Thompson, III and distributed by Bird Watcher’s Digest that is located in our Birding Notes Archive.
Young Birder’s Backyard Guide
There are nearly 10,000 different species of birds around the world and with over 900 found just in the U.S. Birds live all over the world in all types of habitats, from the coldest to the hottest and from the wettest to the driest areas. While all birds have wings, not all birds can fly. Birds vary greatly in size, ranging from very large ostriches to the tiniest of hummingbirds. If you study birds near your home and in your backyard, you can learn about the features and behaviors of these fascinating animals. Check out the Guide here!