Among the wealth of birding festivals, the Celebration of Swans continues throughout the month of April at the Swan Haven Interpretive Center on Marsh Lake, McClintock, Yukon (Trumpeter Swans photographed by Paul Konrad).
|
April is the official start of the prime birding festival season, with a wealth of birding opportunities and a variety of events and programs to choose from across North America. One of the grand old events for April is Godwit Days, an annual Spring Migration Festival in Arcada, California, which takes birders from the famous Humboldt Bay and the rocky Pacific coast to the grand redwood forests, all adjacent to Arcada. Other festivals will break out in Maryland, Oregon, Alberta, Virginia, Louisiana, Yukon, Kansas, Wisconsin, Washington, and of course Texas. For information about each event, refer to the links provided below:
April 1 – Maryland – Maryland Osprey & Nature Festival, Chesapeake Bay, Patuxent, Maryland; see MARYLAND OSPREY & NATURE FESTIVAL – Education.Conservation.Celebration. (marylandospreyfestival.org)
April 1 – Texas – High Island Bird Sanctuaries Day, Houston Audubon, High Island, Texas; see Home | Houston Audubon
April 1 to 30 – Yukon – A Celebration of Swans, Swan Haven Interpretive Center, Marsh Lake, McClintock, Yukon; see A Celebration of Swans | Government of Yukon
April 1 to 30 – Texas – Wings Over Surfside, Surfside, Texas; see Wings Over Surfside | Facebook
April 8 to May 7 – Texas – Quintana Neotropic Bird Sanctuary, Quintana, Texas; see Spring Fling - Gulf Coast Bird Observatory (gcbo.org)
April 13 to 16 – California – Godwit Days, Spring Migration Festival, Arcada, California; see Home - Welcome to Godwit Days
April 13 to 16 – Washington – Olympic Birdfest, Olympic, Washington; see Olympic Birdfest
April 13 to 16 – Oregon – Harney County Migratory Bird Festival, Harney County, southeast Oregon; see Guided tours of Migratory Birds in Harney County, Oregon (migratorybirdfestival.com)
April 13 to 16 – Kansas – Kansas LekTreks Prairie Chicken Festival, Hays, Kansas; see Kansas Lek Treks
April 14 to 15 – Louisiana – Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival, Grand Isle, Louisiana; see Migratory Bird Festival - Grand Isle (townofgrandisle.com)
April 15 – Virginia – Virginia Osprey Festival, Colonial Beach, Virginia; see Virginia Osprey Festival | Colonial Beach Virginia | Osprey Festival in Virginia
April 16 – Wisconsin – Wisconsin Prairie Chicken Festival, Stevens Point, Wisconsin; see WI Prairie Chicken Festival | Facebook
April 19 to 22 – Texas – Spring Chirp, Valley Nature Center, Weslaco, Texas; see Home - Spring Chirp Festival - Weslaco Texas
April 20 to 23 – Texas – Galveston FeatherFest Birding and Nature Photography Festival, Galveston, Texas; see Galveston Featherfest Birding & Nature Photography Festival
April 20 to 23 – California – Point Reyes Birding & Nature Festival, Point Reyes Station, California; see Point Reyes Birding & Nature Festival (pointreyesbirdingfestival.org)
April 21 to 23 – Texas – Balcones Songbird Festival, Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge, near Austin, Texas; see Friends of Balcones Canyonlands NWR - Balcones Songbird Festival 2023
April 22 to 23 – Alberta – Snow Goose Festival, Tofield, Alberta; see Snow Goose Festival – Town of Tofield (tofieldalberta.ca)
Watch for the late April birding festivals in an upcoming issue, and enjoy this exciting festival season!