Intermediate Birdwatching Class – Spring 2012

Offered by Mesilla Valley Audubon Society in partnership with Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park.

Interested in improving your identification skills or learning more about the physical and behavioral adaptations that help birds survive?  Through classroom sessions and field trips, we’ll help you to improve your birding skills and to develop a deeper appreciation for these amazing creatures.

This course will focus on vocalizations, form and function, and bird behavior.  On our field trips, we’ll explore some of the diverse habitats that are found in our region, from wetlands to desert foothills.

Classroom Sessions:  Tuesdays, April 10, 17 and 24
Time:  6:30 – 8:30 pm

Field Trips:  Saturdays, April 14, 21 and 28
(half-day to 3/4-day trips)

Cost:  $40.00
Registration Deadline:  March 27, 2012

Contact Nancy at 575-521-8087 for more information and registration.

FULFILLING OUR MISSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

One of the most important goals of any Audubon Society chapter is to foster environmental education.  Members of the Mesilla Valley Audubon Society are firmly committed to teaching children and adults the importance of appreciating nature, preserving our natural resources and protecting natural habitats.  Our MVAS board works very hard to fulfill this mission and are having a very positive effect on the growth of environmental awareness in the Las Cruces area.  Conservation and concern for wildlife are especially important in an environment as fragile as our Chihuahua Desert.  Through our education programs, Mesilla Valley Audubon Society feels that is building greater public awareness of our surroundings and of the value of preserving natural areas.  We are gratified to know that we are helping to increase our community’s respect for and apprecation of nature.  These are the highlights of MVAS’s ongoing educational projects.

Audubon Adventures:  Our most successful school program is Audubon Adventures which is currently made available through MVAS funding to 80+ fourth grade classrooms in the south central New Mexico area, including Las Cruces, White Sands, Alamogordo and Truth or Consequences.  Lorraine Schulte and her committee work diligently every year to supply this natural history curriculum to our school children.  MVAS also actively supports and contributes to the newly created New Mexico supplement, featuring birds and reptiles unique to our area.

Lorraine Schulte Excellence in Teaching Award:  Each spring, MVAS presents the Lorraine Schulte Excellence in Teaching Award to a local teacher, grades K-12, who exemplifies excellence in environmental education.

Beginning Bird Watching Course:  If you are new to the area or just want to get acquainted with local birds and where to find them, this is the class for you!  You will learn to identify birds by their shapes, sizes, sounds, behaviors and habitat.  Classroom sessions will be led by expert birders who will also accompany the class on field trips.  Saturday field trips to local birding spots will reinforce concepts learned in classroom sessions.  Please check back to see the schedule for the Fall 2012 Bird ID Course.

Mesilla Valley Audubon Society Richard Bischoff Scholarship:  A scholarship awarded to an NMSU student studying biology or wildlife science.