Birding Information: Live Birds with Native Bird Connections Join Jenny Papka to meet a mystery pair of Native Bird Connections' new birds. You do not want to miss this! Main Program: Home to the world’s largest albatross nesting colony, Midway Atoll also hosts a team of volunteer “bird counters” each winter who determine just how […]

Birding Info: Cassie Tzur, active MDAS member, has put together a slide show of nature/wildlife through the seasons in nearby Rossmoor.  It is based on her photo book, “The Nature of Rossmoor”.  She will have the book available for sale after her presentation. Main Program: Double-crested Cormorants with Meredith Elliott and Mark Rauzon Double-crested Cormorants […]

Birding info: Kendall Oei will introduce you to the iNaturalist app and website, with a brief overview of what iNaturalist can do for you and a demonstration of how to create an entry. Main Program: Hummingbirds with Kristiina Hurme and Alejandro Rico-Guevara "To Feed or To Fight: Energetics and Weapons" Energetically constrained animals have evolved adaptations to […]

Birding info: Gorillas on the Mountain Jill Hedgecock with gorilla Did you know that gorillas share over 99% of their DNA with humans? Learn about these knuckle-walking great apes as Jill Hedgecock shares her amazing experiences while visiting with the mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Main Program: Kenya - A Birding and Wildlife Frontier with Jill […]

Birding info: Mt. Diablo Audubon Society Vice-President Jerry Britten will report highlights of the 2019 Christmas Bird Counts. Main Program: Feathers and Flight: A Journey to the New World Tropics Masked Trogon. Photo by Benjamin Jacobs-Schwartz International bird guide, naturalist and wildlife photographer, Benny Jacobs-Schwartz will share his dazzling bird photos, captivating videos, and animated […]

Birding info: The Peregrine Team in Pine Canyon, an all-volunteer natural history education team, has just begun its sixth season helping to monitor this beautiful apex predator nesting on the western edge of Mount Diablo State Park. You’ll hear an update of last season from a core team member, Wally De Young, and see his […]

Main Program: Birds of the American West with Norman Kikuchi Birding info: Microplastics: The ‘Almost’ Invisible Threat Microplastics are tiny fragments of plastic that are less than five millimeters (about the size of a grain of rice) or smaller.  These fragments of plastics are everywhere—in table sea salt, in fish and shellfish, in detergent, and […]

Birding Info: Rosalie Howarth and Krista Vossekuil will show us the winning photos from Mt. Diablo Audubon's first ever photo contest! See who won the top prize and make plans to enter next year.       Main Program: Big Year 2019 with Eric Schroeder Eric Schroeder will share stories from his big year 2019.  […]

Birding Info: David Robinson, from our sister chapter Golden Gate Audubon, will share information about Auk the Vote! Partnering with groups such as the League of Conservation Voters, Sierra Club Independent Action, Environmental Voter Project, 350 Bay Area, Dayenu: A Jewish Call to Climate Action, and others, Auk the Vote! helps birders do all we […]

Birding Info: Join Paul Detjens of Contra Costa County Flood Control District and Krista Vossekuil of John Muir Land Trust to learn about the Lower Walnut Creek / Pacheco Marsh Restoration and Public Access Project. The Project will restore and enhance more than 232 acres of salt marsh habitat and become a favorite destination for […]

Birding Info: Do you love Northern Saw-whet Owls? Julie Woodruff will provide an update on her Northern Saw-whet Owl banding project, a local program supported by Mt. Diablo Audubon Society.           Main Program: Tricolored Blackbirds with Xerónimo Castañeda Xeronimo Castañeda is a Conservation Project Manager with Audubon California. A native of […]

Karla Banding Owlet, photo by Chris Sargent Birding Info: Mt. Diablo Audubon Society President Jerry Britten will report highlights of the 2020 Christmas Bird Counts. Photo by Brian Plath Main Program: Real Life Great Horned Owl Soap Opera with Karla Bloem A real-life soap opera has played itself out over the past 15 years between […]

Verdin photo by Eddie Bartley Birding Info: Frank Ruiz, Salton Sea Program Director for Audubon California, will provide an update on some recent breakthroughs for conserving the Salton Sea. The Salton Sea is a perfect example of the water crisis in the west, affecting thousands of birds and exacerbating the already existing health crisis in the […]

California Poppies photo by Stephen Smith Birding Info: We are trying something new this month! Instead of a birding info speaker, we are going to spend 15 minutes socializing with other Mt. Diablo Audubon members in Zoom breakout rooms. Meet some new people, or reconnect with old birding buddies! Globe Lily, photo by Stephen Smith […]

Adélie penguin photo by Annie Schmidt Birding Info: Beginning with a brief introduction to the Female Bird Day effort (established 2019), Joanna Wu, GIS Analyst and Biologist with the National Audubon Society, will explain the consequences of overlooking female birds, both in birding and the sciences. Then she will cover some tips for female identification based on […]

Photo by Ivan Phillipsen Picture from one of the YES Nature Day Outings at a local Regional Park. Photo credit to YES N2N Birding Info: In partnership with nature, YES Nature to Neighborhoods nurtures leaders who champion the wellbeing of our community. Eric Aaholm, Executive Director, and Luis Pacheco, YLP Program Manager for YES will discuss its role […]

Photo by Lauren Schmaltz Birding Info: Krista Vossekuil and Rosalie Howarth will show us the winning photos from the Second Annual MDAS Photo Contest. See the top five finalists in each of eight categories, and learn what the judges had to say about the top pictures. Admire the work of some of our chapter's finest […]

Main Program: Twenty Seasons of Nest Box Monitoring Lee Pauser As a volunteer, Lee Pauser has been building, installing, and monitoring nest boxes (a nest box is an artificial cavity) for twenty nesting seasons. The presentation includes photos and videos of the eighteen species of cavity nesting birds that have graced his nest boxes. His […]

Birding Info: Cabin Lake Bird Blinds Photos Jerry Britten, MDAS President MDAS President Jerry Britten will share some photos he has taken at the Cabin Lake Bird Blinds in Central Oregon. Main Program: Owls Through the Ages Karla Bloem, Executive Director of the International Owl Center Owls are omens of death. Owls are creator beings. Owl eggs can […]