Birds of Whidbey Island Course

2010 - 2011

First Class is September 2

One more time, local birding experts will offer Whidbey Audubon's popular course on the Birds of Whidbey Island. The organizers and instructors are volunteers, so if you have ever thought about taking the course, do it while the volunteers are still willing to instruct. Among others, instructors include Steve and Martha Ellis, Frances Wood, and Joe Sheldon.

Each class is taught around the season there is a good chance of seeing the birds being studied. One Saturday each month may have a field trip to find that month's birds.

The course is each first and third Thursday of each month, from September 2, 2010 through May 2011, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church in Freeland. The course includes 18 classes and 10 or 11 field trips. The cost is $150 for Whidbey Audubon members, and may be paid in two installments. Non-members pay $160 and receive the Shorelines newsletter for the 2010-2011 Whidbey Audubon year (9 issues). A limited number of scholarships are available.

Contact Miriam Nack at 360-321-3968 or by online letter and send your check (payable to Whidbey Audubon Society) to her at 2760 Salal Lane, Langley WA 98260. Space is limited to 24 and you are not enrolled until the check is received.

Here is the course outline:

Sept. 2: Birding Basics, Bird Identification

Sept. 16: Chickadees, Wrens, Thrushes

Sept. 18: Field Trip - Steve and Martha Ellis

Oct. 7: Dabbling Ducks

Oct. 21: Diving Ducks

Oct. 30: Field Trip - Phyllis Kind

Nov. 4: Sparrows and Finches

Nov. 6: Field Trip - Linda Bainbridge

Nov. 18: Loons and Grebes

Dec. 2: Cormorants, Alcids and allies

Dec. 4: Field Trip - Frances Wood

Dec. 16: Raptors

Jan. 6: Geese, Swans, Quail and allies

Jan. 15: All day Field Trip - Joe Sheldon & Pat Cozine

Jan. 20: Bird Physiology

Feb. 3: Bittern, Heron, Rails, Corvids

Feb. 17: Gulls

Feb 19: Field Trip - Gary Piazzon & Sarah Schmidt

Mar. 3: Owls

Mar 5: Field Trip - Gary Piazzon

Mar. 17: Swifts, Hummers, Woodpeckers, Swallows

Mar. 19: Field Trip - Steve and Martha Ellis

Apr. 7: Shorebirds of marsh and mudflats

Apr. 21: Shorebirds of sandy and rocky shores

Apr. 23 Field Trip

May 5: Blackbirds & Flycatchers

May 19: Vireos and Warblers

May 21: Field Trip and Pot Luck - Steve and Martha Ellis and Sarah Schmidt