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Beginner Birder Workshop

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Great Blue Heron on Heron Marsh at the Paul Smiths VIC (27 May 2013)

This site is no longer being updated with current information on birding activities at the VIC. For current information on the events planned for the 2017 Great Adirondack Birding Celebration, visit: http://www.paulsmiths.edu/vic/gabc/schedule/. For information on birding in the Adirondacks, visit: Adirondack Wildlife: Birds of the Adirondacks.

• Time: Saturday, 4 June, 7:00 AM and Sunday, 5 June, 7:00 AM
• Price: $30 per person. $27 for Friends of the VIC or Northern New York Audubon members. $15 for Friends of the VIC Warblers. Each field trip is limited to 15 participants. Please register early.
• Where to Meet: The Paul Smith's College VIC Great Room
• What to Bring: Gear for a short day trip: hat, binoculars, sunscreen, snack, water, rain gear, insect repellent

You probably feed the birds in your backyard and enjoy the beauty they bring, but lately you’ve been asking yourself about the other birds that visit the trees in your neighborhood during the spring and summer months. Well, now’s the chance to start learning those birds! Our Beginner Birder Workshop will take you step-by-step through the intricate lives of birds. Leaders will introduce field identification and song identification skills in a relaxed manner, so you can fully absorb the intricacies of the lives of birds.

The VIC is an ideal place to begin your birding journey. The 3,000-acre property includes varied Adirondack habitats, providing excellent opportunities to see and hear the many different birds that make the Adirondacks their seasonal or year-round home. As a result, the VIC has become a bird watching haven, attracting birders from throughout the northeast.

• Heron Marsh (accessible from the Barnum Brook Trail, the Heron Marsh Trail, the Logger's Loop Trail, the Woods and Waters Trail, and the Jenkins Mountain Trail) is home to a variety of water birds, including American Bittern, Great Blue Heron, Wood Duck, Ring-necked Duck, Common Merganser, Mallard, and American Black Duck.
• Birds which nest on Barnum Bog, including the Lincoln's Sparrow and the Palm Warbler, can be seen and heard from the Boreal Life Trail boardwalk. The Boreal Life Trail also has an overlook tower on Barnum Pond, where Common Loons are sometimes seen or heard.
• Common Loons usually nest on Black Pond and can also be seen on Little Black Pond. Both are accessible from the Black Pond Trail and the Woods and Waters Trail.
• The early successional forest on the north side of the Logger's Loop Trail offers opportunities to see the Scarlet Tanager, Chestnut-sided Warbler, and Black-and-white Warbler.
• Other notable sightings at the Paul Smiths VIC include Gray Jay, Boreal Chickadee, Brown Thrasher, and Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker.

One very convenient birding hot spot at the VIC is the VIC parking lot, where a large number of birds may be seen and heard, including a wide variety of warblers, as well as other species, such as Hermit Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, Ruffed Grouse, American Goldfinch, Blue-headed Vireo, Red-eyed VIreo, and Hairy Woodpecker.

For a list of birds seen on the trails at the Paul Smiths VIC, click here.

This trip will begin with a short presentation on birding basics in the VIC Great Room, including birding optics, field guides, and identification skills. Participants will then go outside for a field trip on the VIC nature trails.

This is a non-strenuous walk. The VIC interpretive trails are wide, surfaced walking paths. The walking is easy, with a few small hills. Hiking boots are recommended in wet weather, but are not normally necessary. The field trip will cover both Barnum Bog (accessed by the Boreal Life Trail boardwalk) and Heron Marsh (accessed by the Barnum Brook Trail and the Heron Marsh Trail). There will be a short stop at the VIC building in between the walks, for the convenience of birders who opt for a shorter walk.