Bird, Nest, Nature
2020-11-11 - 2021-02-07 | CA
Due to the rise in COVID-19 cases, county health orders have closed the Bedford Gallery for in-person visits.
You can still view and shop for artwork in the current exhibition, Bird, Nest, Nature, from the comfort of home! There are over 170 pieces of artwork in the show, and they make a perfect holiday gift for the bird lover in your life!
View & Shop the virtual exhibition: bgviewingroom.org

Presented by Bedford Gallery
October 13, 2020 – February 7, 2021 Bird, Nest, Nature is a juried and invitational exhibition featuring a roster of local, national and international artists. Birds have long captured the attention of humankind, the earliest evidence of which can be found in cave drawings that reflect all that we cherish in nature from flora to fauna.Each Visit: approx. 60 minutes
This exhibition was juried by Jeffrey De Blois, Assistant Curator, ICA Boston and Rebecca Lowery, Assistant Curator, MOCA Los Angeles, and includes over 150 artists inspired by the exquisite beauty of creatures of flight.

Virtual Talk: Monitoring nesting boxes for the California Wood Duck Program
2020-11-19 18:00 - 19:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Online
Join SPAWNERS for their first virtual talk. Doug Vaughan will talk about his experiences monitoring nesting boxes for the California Wood Duck Program at the San Pablo Reservoir.
Participants must RSVP to helen@thewatershedproject.org to receive the meeting link, which will be sent several days prior to the event.
SPAWNERS mission is to protect the San Pablo Creek Watershed and inspire community appreciation and stewardship through advocacy, education, and habitat restoration.

The Return of the Pine Canyon Peregrines, a film by Joan Hamilton
2020-11-20 16:00 - 17:30 | Online
THANKSGIVING FILM PREMIERE: Audible Mount Diablo’s Newest Film
The Return of the Pine Canyon Peregrines, a film by Joan Hamilton
Watch the film: Friday, 11/20 at 4:00 PM on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFqtvJhx-5U&feature=youtu.be
Live Q&A panel discussion after the film on Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/97609709144
Once extinct in the Bay Area, these masters of the sky have made a dramatic comeback. How did they do it? With help from a remarkable team of bold biologists and determined volunteers.
Mount Diablo Interpretive Association and Save Mount Diablo will premiere the newest film in the Audible Mount Diablo series, The Return of the Pine Canyon Peregrines, in a special Thanksgiving presentation on Friday, November 20, 2020, at 4:00 PM via YouTube, with a live Q&A panel discussion following immediately on Zoom.
Join in to see this uplifting story, spanning more than 100 years, of the falcon’s fall and rise. By 1950, DDT had wiped out peregrines in the Bay Area, including in Pine Canyon, and had nearly driven the species extinct in the US as a whole.
Just-in-time restoration efforts brought this fastest-critter-in-the-world back from the brink. In Pine Canyon, it took four years of hard work, 1989 to 1993, to turn the corner. Today’s Peregrine Team in Pine Canyon, a natural history education group made up of Diablo volunteers and founded in 2015, has its roots in that time.

Monthly Program: December 2020
2020-12-03 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom, CA, United States
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 California he has lived and worked from Monterey to Arcata, ventured to the east coast and eventually finding his way to Sacramento. His work with Audubon focuses on habitat restoration and enhancement through multi-benefit management of Central Valley wetlands, agricultural operations, and groundwater recharge projects to benefit birds and people.
Current conservation work Xeronimo will present on this evening are 1) the protection of at-risk Tricolored Blackbird colonies, 2) development of multi-benefit groundwater recharge projects in target regions to benefit birds and communities, and 3) on-farm habitat enhancement using cover crops and through riparian restoration. Away from work, Xeronimo spends time backpacking, riding bikes, cooking, and of course birding.

2020 East County Christmas Bird Count
2020-12-16 | CA
Hold the date for the 20th annual East Contra Costa County Christmas Bird Count! Species and total numbers of birds within this count circle will be censused. To participate in field trips led by experienced birders on this special occasion, or to tally birds at your yard/feeder if you live within the count circle, contact one of the organizers below. For more details please visit the MDAS CBC page.

Sand Dunes and Salt Flats
2020-12-17 19:00 - 20:30 | Online
Presented by Bob Lewis

Namibia is one of the least densely populated countries in the world, with 2.6 million residents. It has the largest sand dunes in the world, and it hasn’t rained for over 10 years in parts of the Namib Desert. But it hosts many birds and animals that have learned to survive in this arid place. Bob and GGAS friends spent some time in Cape Town, and then drove to Walvis Bay to meet the GGAS tour group. Bob will show you many of the desert creatures he saw on tour. Photo of Burchell’s Courser by Bob Lewis.

2020 Central County Christmas Bird Count
2020-12-19 | CA
Hold the date for the Central Contra Costa County Christmas Bird Count, a tradition going back to 1955! Species and total numbers of birds within this count circle will be censused. To participate in field trips led by experienced birders on this special occasion, or to tally birds at your yard/feeder if you live within the count circle, contact one of the organizers below. For more details please visit the MDAS CBC page.

Monthly Program: January 2021
2021-01-07 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom, CA, United States
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 over 25 captive and wild Great Horned Owls that have formed the basis of an in-depth vocal study on the species. You’ll experience owl dating, divorce, territorial defense, and more as you learn about their wide variety of vocalizations and what they mean. Ruby the Great Horned Owl will make a live appearance in this one-of-a-kind entertaining and educational program.
Karla Bloem is the founder and Executive Director of the International Owl Center. She acquired Alice the Great Horned Owl to use in educational programs in 1998 and began studying Great Horned Owl vocalizations in 2004. Karla is now the world authority on their vocalizations and has given presentations in The Netherlands, Germany, Argentina, Italy, Portugal and South Africa. Alice’s popularity led Karla to create the International Festival of Owls, the first full-weekend, all-owl event in North America that has served as the inspiration for similar festivals in Italy, Nepal and India. Karla and Alice testified before the Minnesota House and Senate environment committees to successfully gain protection for Great Horned Owls in 2005. She has assisted several authors and filmmakers and has appeared on Animal Planet and the CBC’s “The Secret Life of Owls.”

Introduction To The eBird Phone App
2021-01-14 19:00 - 20:30 | Online
Instructor: Steve Lombardi, HOTROCK175@GMAIL.COM
1 session on: Thursday, January 14, 7:00-8:30 pm via Zoom
We’ll use Zoom to learn the eBird phone app including how to post and edit a checklist, how to choose a location, and how it works with eBird on your browser. We’ll also discuss a few eBird best practices as we go.
Registration opens: January 1, 2020
Limited to 95 participants
Click HERE to register.

Bird Sounds Seminar with Nathan Pieplow - A Shared Vocabulary for Bird Sounds, Part I
2021-01-14 19:00 - 22:00 | Online
In an effort to promote bird knowledge and interest, OAS has partnered with author and bird sound expert Nathan Pieplow for a 5-part set of one-hour sessions from mid January to early February in 2021 starting at 7pm each night.
Tell your friends! This is a rare opportunity to have the caliber of Nathan Pieplow for an in-depth discussion on how to listen to and decipher bird sounds, using the latest vocabulary and methods described in his recent books: Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Western North America and Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North America.
Jan 14 — A Shared Vocabulary for Bird Sounds, Part I
Jan 21 — A Shared Vocabulary for Bird Sounds, Part II
Jan 28 — Beyond Beginning Ear Birding, Part I
Feb 04 — Beyond Beginning Ear Birding, Part II (group presentations)
Feb 11 — How to Record Bird Sounds (With Your Phone)
TO PAY VIA CHECK:
The cost is $30 for the seminar (OAS members), $45 (non -members). If interested, please send a check of $30 or $45, including your email address for follow up to:
Ohlone Audubon Society (Bird Sounds Seminar) 1922 Hillsdale St, Hayward, CA 94541
In the event that the seminar is canceled due to lack of interest, your check will be voided. If you would like it returned please let us know.
TO PAY VIA PAYPAL
https://www.ohloneaudubon.org/index.php/join/donate
The cost is $30.07 (OAS members), $45.07 (non-members). Additional fees cover transaction costs.
For extra measure, but not mandatory, you can send an email to programs AT ohloneaudubon.org after your payment.

Real Life Great Horned Owl Soap Opera: Learning their language
2021-01-17 11:00 - 13:00 | Online
Karla Bloem
2021 World Owl Hall of Fame Special Achievement Award winner
Executive Director, International Owl Center
Minnesota, USA
A 3-week old Great Horned Owl fell out of her nest in 1997 and injured her wing too severely to ever be able to fly. Alice was placed with Karla Bloem in Houston, Minnesota to be used as an ambassador to teach people about owls. Because she imprinted on humans, she eventually claimed Karla as her mate. Alice was upset that Karla didn’t know how to behave like a proper male Great Horned Owl, so in self-defense Karla began studying Great Horned Owl vocalizations in 2004. This long-term study expanded to include the vocal and behavioral interactions of more than two dozen captive and wild owls over the past 16 years. This is their story, as it unfolded, and it is juicier than most television soap operas while offering detailed insights into their vocalizations and behaviors.
Great Horned Owls vocalizations are innate and not learned, and the captive owls studied vocalized in the same ways the wild owls did. This intimate, long-term study has engaged many dedicated volunteer observers and has allowed a better understanding of their complete vocal repertoire and associated behaviors, individuality of territorial hoots, vocal development of young owls, regional variation in territorial hoots, and has given small insights into the heritability of territorial hoot characteristics.
(Because Alice is retired and highly territorial and jealous at home, she will appear only via video.)
​
Karla Bloem is the founder and Executive Director of the International Owl Center. Alice’s popularity led Karla to create the International Festival of Owls, the first full-weekend, all-owl event in North America that has served as the inspiration for similar festivals in Italy, Nepal and India. Karla and Alice testified before the Minnesota House and Senate environment committees to successfully gain protection for Great Horned Owls in 2005. She is part of a committee organizing the next World Owl Conference in October 2022 in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
​This presentation will also be livestreamed to the International Owl Center’s YouTube channel but will NOT be saved for later viewing after it concludes. Click HERE to register to watch it as a Zoom webinar and be able to ask questions.

Do Acorn Woodpeckers make granaries or do granaries make Acorn Woodpeckers?
2021-01-20 19:00 - 20:30 | Online
Speaker: Sahas Barve
We will plunge into the complicated social lives of acorn woodpeckers. How they build granaries and what they will do to win access to a big granary. Using cutting-edge radio tracking technology and over 45 years of demographic data, we will learn how these common backyard birds cooperate with close relatives to raise offspring and eavesdrop on neighbors to gain social information. Finally we will look briefly at how fire may be affecting the socio-biology of this enigmatic bird of the Californian oak savannah.
Bio: Sahas Barve is from Mumbai, India and is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. He is an avian ecologist, interested in understanding why some birds are social and what is the evolutionary benefit of social behavior to these birds. He is an avid birder and wants to see 6,000 species by the time he is 60.

Bird Sounds Seminar with Nathan Pieplow - A Shared Vocabulary for Bird Sounds, Part II
2021-01-21 19:00 - 22:00 | Online

Bird Sounds Seminar with Nathan Pieplow - Beyond Beginning Ear Birding, Part I
2021-01-28 19:00 - 22:00 | Online

Raptors in Winter
2021-02-04 19:00 - 21:00, 2021-02-11 19:00 - 21:00, 2021-02-25 19:00 - 21:00 | Online
Feb 4, 11, 25, 2021
Instructor: Maureen Lahiff
Venue: Zoom
Raptors in Winter, 3 Zoom presentations, Thursdays Feb 4, 11, and 25, 7 to 9 pm, with detailed suggestions for individual field observations.
Year-round resident hawks, falcons, and eagles of the greater Bay Area and the Central Valley are joined by a number of wintering migrants (including Ferruginous and Rough-legged Hawks). We will explore the rhythm of their lives and discuss identifying juveniles and adult birds, including birds in flight. This class focuses on raptors that are diurnal (active during the day).
One of the nice things about raptors is that you don’t have to be on scene at daybreak to get good looks at these birds, so you can travel a bit further afield. It is rewarding to travel to eastern Alameda and Contra Costa, and Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties to look for diurnal raptors.
Maximum 75 participants
$75 GGAS members, $110 non-members

Registration opens: January 1, 2021

Limited to 75 participants

Monthly Program: February 2021
2021-02-04 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom, CA, United States
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 region. Water diversion and the ongoing drought has prompted the Salton Sea to recede at a faster pace calling for an expedite implementation of the Salton Sea Management Plan. How is Audubon and its partners helping to alleviate this crisis?
Phainopepla by Eddie Bartley
Main Program: Birding California’s Big Sink with Eddie Bartley
Join Eddie Bartley for a fast-paced spin around one of California’s most important birding areas: the Salton Sink.
Though much altered by humans in the past century, the endorheic (drain-less) Salton Sink holds magnificent bird diversity and abundance, especially in winter, which will be the seasonal focus of this presentation. Eddie will share photography and natural history stories about the unique biodiversity, regional specialty birds, and favorite wildlifing spots that he and his partner, Noreen Weeden, have discovered in their 25+ years visiting this natural phenomenon-prone region.
A conservation activist since his teens, Eddie is a volunteer researcher and instructor with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, California Academy of Sciences, and Golden Gate Audubon Society, and is currently the President of the Yerba Buena Chapter of the California Native Plant Society as well as the Farallon Islands Foundation. Eddie and Noreen lead natural history, bird watching, and photography tours for Nature Trip out of their home base in San Francisco.

Bird Sounds Seminar with Nathan Pieplow - Beyond Beginning Ear Birding, Part II
2021-02-04 19:00 - 22:00 | Online

Meet the Woodpeckers
2021-02-06 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
The Pileated Woodpecker is the American Birding Association’s 2021 Bird of the Year . In its honor, Sequoia Audubon Society of San Mateo county, with its partners MROSD and San Mateo County Parks, are featuring woodpeckers in the lead up to the Great Backyard Bird Count.
On Saturday, February 6, from 10 – 11 am, Alvaro Jaramillo will give a webinar “Meet the Woodpeckers”.
He will talk about the species of woodpecker to be found in San Mateo county including, of course, the Pileated Woodpecker.
Alvaro Jaramillo is a world-renowned ornithologist, author, and tour leader who also happens to be a local birder residing in our beautiful county. He also serves as Affiliated Senior Biologist for the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory.
He will be joined by Karine Tokatlian, biologist and bird specialist for MROSD.

Bird Sounds Seminar with Nathan Pieplow - How to Record Bird Sounds (With Your Phone)
2021-02-11 19:00 - 22:00 | Online

The Great Backyard Bird Count
2021-02-12 - 2021-02-15 | Online
The Great Backyard Bird Count is coming! On February 12–15th, birders all over the world will count birds for four days to provide an important snapshot of where birds are right before their migrations. We may not be able to bird together on MDAS field trips, but we can still contribute to science meaningfully from home or on our personal birding trips.
You can learn the background and importance of this community science activity that can be done right from your backyard by reading “The Great Backyard Bird Count Is Coming!” by Alan Bade, MDAS Community Science Coordinator. This article is from the February 2021 edition of The Quail.

A Rainforest at our Feet: Local wetland restoration in the San Francisco Bay Area
2021-02-18 08:00 - 17:00 | Online
In this talk, acclaimed plant ecologist John Zentner will discuss how wetland health impacts the health of birds and wildlife. John will guide participants through understanding different types of local wetlands, from marshes, vernal pools, riparian wetlands, and more. He will then outline methods of wetland conservation and how these projects are crucial to maintaining holistic and healthy ecosystems that sustain all life.
About The Speaker:
John is a plant ecologist specializing in landscape restoration. He has an undergraduate degree from UCSB, and graduate degrees/certifications from U of O and the University of Oslo. John has been the wetland specialist for the California Coastal Commission, the program manager for the Coastal Conservancy’s enhancement program, the chair of the SF Bay Habitat Joint Venture’s Implementation Committee, and is currently the chair of the Arundo Removal and Restoration Team (ARRT) at the Walnut Creek Watershed Council. Over the past thirty years, he has restored vernal pool complexes, riparian systems, perennial and seasonal marshes and native grasslands. Presently, John is focused on working with community groups of local restoration projects, especially small creeks, and researching landscape restoration, especially the undiscovered historic links.

Birds Of Owens Lake: Changes & Trends
2021-02-19 18:30 - 20:00 | Online
Join us for an exclusive evening exploring the birds of Owens Lake
Friends of the Inyo is proud to present an exclusive virtual event featuring Rich Cimino, an international birding expert and professional guide with 50 years of experience, and local photographer and popular Owens Lake Bird Festival leader, Martin Powell.
Learn about the birds that stop at Owens Lake as they travel the globe. Rich will be sharing his knowledge and trends he’s seeing, with the help of beautiful photos taken by Martin who will offer commentary and backstory on his stunning images.

About Rich Cimino
Rich Cimino, a birder for over 50 years, was the keynote speaker at the Owens Lake Bird Festival in 2019. He is an expert birder, having led trips to Alaska for 20 years and first visited the Eastern Sierra over 50 years ago. Rich is an active member of the Marin Audubon Society and Alameda County Ohlone Audubon Society and travels the world guiding tours for his business, Yellowbilled Tours. Rich resides lives in Marin County, California.

About Martin Powell
Martin Powell grew up in Lone Pine, California, and still calls this special place home today. He is an avid hiker and bird photographer. Recently retired, he enjoys traveling the world looking for that perfect bird picture. Martin has made trips to Nome, St. Lawrence Island, Panama, Wisconsin, and Florida. Martin leads bird photography tours for the annual Owens Lake Bird Festival and is a board member for Friends of the Inyo.

Almaden Lake - Evolution of the Environment and How Birds Adapt
2021-02-25 17:00 - 18:30 | Online
Through SFBBO’s Colonial Waterbird Program, our biologists and community science volunteers have monitored populations of colony nesting waterbirds during the breeding season at more than 70 sites throughout the Bay Area. Join us to hear Larry Manning, who has been a colonial waterbird monitoring volunteer for nearly 20 years, as he discusses the history of Almaden Lake in San Jose and the birds that nest there.
Larry Manning was introduced to birding about 40 years ago by Lou Young, who was his boss at NASA Ames Research Center and an SFBBO board member. Lou and his wife Jean and Larry and his wife Judie participated in a lot of the SFBBO Fall Birding Challenges. As Larry started thinking about retirement, he decided that he wanted to be involved is environmental conservation activities and started doing easement monitoring and trail patrol for Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, invasive species eradication for Peninsula Open Space Trust, and Snowy Plover monitoring for San Mateo County Parks at Kelly Beach in Half Moon Bay. He started with SFBBO about 20 years ago doing nesting surveys in the tidal marshes behind Moffett Field and Snowy Plover surveys in the San Mateo Bridge area. About 18 years ago he moved his participation to monitoring the nesting site at Almaden Lake and then added monitoring at the Llagas Creek site in Morgan Hill and the Los Gatos Creek Park. He has also participated in the SFBBO Birds in your Neighborhood Program and given presentations to the national Well Connected Program.
This program is family-friendly. Please register – the Zoom meeting link will be sent in the confirmation. If you have trouble registering or have any questions, please contact Sirena Lao, Environmental Education and Outreach Specialist, at slao@sfbbo.org.

Virtual Elephant Seal Tour at Año Nuevo
2021-02-27 10:00 - 12:00 | Online
Año Nuevo Reserve Director, Patrick W. Robinson will lead us on a virtual elephant seal tour at Año Nuevo. His tour will include an introduction to the site, a walk through the colony, some show-and-tell of the electronic tags used on the seals, and a summary of some of the research projects that are being done. We will follow this tour with a Q and A session. Because this park is currently closed to the public due to COVID-19 restrictions, this is quite an opportunity to view these animals without the presence of crowds.

Lindsay at Home: Hospital Behind the Scenes
2021-02-27 11:00 - 11:30 | Online
Get an exclusive behind the scenes look at our wildlife hospital as our expert veterinary staff treats a wildlife patient! Join us on Zoom for “Lindsay at Home: Hospital Behind The Scenes” and explore the fascinating world of wildlife rehabilitation. This half-hour online program is perfect for all ages and gives you unparalleled access to a working wildlife hospital. Be sure to bring your questions!

Monthly Program: March 2021
2021-03-04 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom, CA, United States
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
Main Program: Wildflowers of Mount Diablo with Stephen Smith
Local wildflower enthusiast Steve Smith will present Wildflowers of Mount Diablo: Flower Lore. Ever wonder why they are called Milk Maids or how Buttercups helped beggars garner more attention? What do lupine and poppies have to do with Cal Berkeley? This program presents a unique and quirky look at the origin of several of the common names of our wildflowers. Included are anecdotes about the historical lore behind the uses of these flowers whether it religious, medicinal, superstition or most often for love.

Steve Smith is President of the Mount Diablo Interpretive Association, a non-profit cooperative partner which aids Mount Diablo State Park. An avid hiker and amateur naturalist Steve most enjoys hitting the trails of the mountain in Spring in order to document the over 200 species that grow there. He helps to maintain a comprehensive bloom report each week during peak flower season and oversees the online wildflower guide on the organization’s wonderful website, mdia.org.

A Walk Through a Bay Area Birder’s Garden
2021-03-11 17:00 - 18:30 | Online
Join Barbara Coll as she walks through her garden live! As she walks around her yard, she will point out the feeders, plants, and water elements that attract the 63 species she has recorded in 30+ years of living in Menlo Park on the San Francisquito Creek. She will also discuss feeder/birdbath maintenance, the current Pine Siskin irruption and subsequent Salmonella outbreak, seed types, and which plants the birds love. Barbara will share many videos and photos of the birds that she sees from her home windows. She is also a fanatic eBird user and will introduce you to the Yard tracking feature.
Barbara Coll is a regular volunteer with SFBBO. She took her birding to a new level a few years ago by starting to photograph the birds she sees. When she retired from the insanity of Silicon Valley and the digital marketing world, she found birding a wonderful mix of nature, challenge and statistics. Barb’s website with all her photography can be found at www.barbsbirds.me.
This event will be fun, casual, and family-friendly! Please register – the Zoom meeting link will be sent in the confirmation. If you have trouble registering or have any questions, please contact Sirena Lao, Environmental Education and Outreach Specialist, at slao@sfbbo.org.

California Connections: Tracks, Scat and the Birds that Bind Us
2021-03-13 10:00 - 11:30 | Online
California Connections: Tracks, Scat and the Birds that Bind Us—with Aimee Murillo, Interpretive Park Ranger at Lava Beds National Monument
March 13, 2021
10:00 am PST
Lava Beds National Monument, a unit of the National Park Service in far northeastern California, is vastly different from the San Mateo Coast. Or is it? Join Aimee Murillo, interpretive park ranger at Lava Beds, for a presentation about these dynamic sites and what tracks, scat, and birds one might spot in both locations, and why.
