A Birders’ Dozen - Winter edition: Neighborhood Bird ID and beyond
Two-part series: Online Presentation, Nov. 14, 6-8pm | Optional neighborhood walk on Nov. 16, 1-3pm
Registration will open to SoWBA members on September 1!
If you want to find out more about some of the common winter bird species you’re seeing where you live, this class is for you! Learn who they are, why they’re there, and what helps them survive Wisconsin's cold winters.
Instructors Maggie and Bob Honig will teach this two-part class — scroll down to learn more about Maggie and Bob and their love of birds! Part 1 (Nov. 14, 6-8pm) is an online presentation that shares information about 13 of the most common bird species you may see or hear in your neighborhood or at your bird feeders during the winter (many of which are also here in summer), and give you useful great info about how to identify them, what they sound like, what they eat, how they behave, and more. By the end of the class, you should have a little more comfort and familiarity with the birds you encounter often!
In Part 2 of the class (Nov. 16, 1-3pm), join Maggie and Bob for a neighborhood bird walk to put the new information into practice and see what birds we can find. The walk will be held in the Madison area.
Each registration includes Part 1: class (no participant limit). You will have the option to add on Part 2: field trip (free, limited to 12 people).
Another version of this class that focused on summer birds commonly found in Madison-area neighborhoods and feeders is held in summer. You do not need to have participated in that class to join this one. Registration will open to Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance members on September 1, and any remaining seats will open to the public on October 1.
Register here!
About the instructors: Maggie and Bob Honig
Course instructors Maggie and Bob Honig
Maggie and Bob Honig have been observing and studying natural history for most of their lives. While living in and near Houston, Texas for several decades, they led numerous field trips/tours in Texas, to Glacier National Park in Montana, and to the Asa Wright Nature Centre in Trinidad; and they have been part of Earthwatch expeditions to study caterpillars and their parasitoids in Costa Rica, and sustainable watershed management in California. Each has given many presentations to nature and conservation organizations. They moved to Wisconsin in mid-2021 and since then have been volunteering for Badgerland Bird Alliance and the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin.
Maggie has many years of experience teaching science to students of all ages, both in and out of the classroom. Bob was an environmental consultant and addressed such diverse issues as endangered species, wetlands, archaeology, recycling, and sustainability in addition to performing numerous bird surveys.
This class is part of Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance’s adult education series. Many of the classes offer early registration for Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance members, but most also open for public registration if there are spots left in the class. Learn more about joining Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance here!
Cover photo by USFWS Midwest
