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Every Thursday Morning Exton Park, Exton, PA

For: Seasonal birds

Place: Exton Park, 8:30 a.m.

Leader: Various leaders in conjunction with Friends of Exton Park

Note: Formerly known as Church Farm Pond and now a part of Exton Park, this pond and surrounding wetland had been a popular birding spot for years.

Directions: From the intersection of Routes 30 and 202, drive west along Route 30 and turn right on Valley Creek Blvd. At the end of the road, make a left on Swedesford Road and park in the gravel parking lot on your left where the perimeter trail starts. This is a 1.5 mile walk and will take between 1.5 and 2 hours.

Exton Park

Brigantine Beach Bird Hike, Brigantine Is., NJ-CANCELED due to high winds & coastal flooding

For: Shorebirds and gulls

Place: Wawa, W. Brigantine Ave. and 8th St, 11:00 a.m.

Leader:  Bruce Piecukonis (610-247-2205, Pterodroma@comcast.net)

Note: A 5-mile beach hike in the North Brigantine Natural Area, with close views of shorebirds and gulls. The hike is a flat hike on sand. There is a port-a-potty at the Natural Area parking area.

Directions: We will meet at Wawa (813 W. Brigantine Ave., Brigantine, NJ 082030). Note: This Wawa does NOT have restrooms.

 

Chester County Parks Birding Series: Wolf’s Hollow

For:  Migrants and resident birds

Place: 1399 Schoff Rd, Atglen, PA 19310, 8:00 a.m. Meet at the parking lot.

Leader: John Mercer (484-459-2062, mercer1135@aol.com), Patty & John Werth (pattyww@comcast.net)

Note: The Chester County Parks system has seven wonderful parks which provide excellent birdwatching opportunities.  Join us as we explore all seven of the parks, one per month, in 2024.

Paths are both earthen and paved and gently rolling. We will travel 1-2 miles over 2-3 hours. There is a portable restroom on site. This field trip is a collaboration between WCBC and Valley Forge Audubon Society.

Directions: Go west on Strasburg Rd to Parkesburg, then south on 10 to Highland Drive. Turn right and go 3.4 miles to the intersection with Schoff Rd, then turn right on Schoff and go 1 mile to the park entrance on the right.

Wolf's Hollow Park 

The Great Marsh

For: Summer Residents & Early Migrants

Place: 28 Moores Road, Elverson, PA, 8:00 a.m.

Leader: Mike Coulter. If you plan to attend please email the Great Marsh Institute at lori@greatmarshinstitute.org to let them know to expect you. This will help them to organize and keep groups small. This event is free but donations are always welcome via PaypalVenmo, or cash donations at the door.

Note: Join local birding expert Mike Coulter as he guides us through the Great Marsh, an ancient periglacial marsh and the largest marsh in Southeastern Pennsylvania.

This event is hosted by the Great Marsh Institute, a non-profit with the mission of supporting scientific studies and educational opportunities for all! This event is free, but donations of any amount are welcome to support the Institute! For full trip details see here. This will be about a 3 hour walk. Conditions could be muddy and very wet so wear appropriate footwear.

Please note that the property is private but you can always visit during our planned trips.

Directions: The marsh is off of Rt. 401 four miles northwest of Rt. 100 at Ludwig's Corner. Lat/Long = 40.127651, -75.767697 or use 28 Moores Road for GPS directions. Meet at the grassy parking area at the top of the hill near 28 Moores Road. Once you turn off of Rt. 401 on to Moore's Road proceed 1/4 mile along the gravel road. You will cross a bridge and at the 1/4 mile mark make a right up the hill on the paved part of the drive. This is the first right after the bridge. At the top of the hill you should see other cars parked in the meeting area.

Shaw’s Bridge Park, West Chester, PA

For: Seasonal Birds

Place: Shaw's Bridge Park at 274 S. Creek Road, West Chester, PA.

Leaders: Mary Bryant (mbryantvmd@gmail.com)

Note: We will explore the trail looking for seasonal birds. This walk is about 1.5 miles and should take around 2 hours.

Directions: Park at lot; there is a port-a-potty there.

Shaw's Bridge Park

Every Thursday Morning Exton Park, Exton, PA

For: Seasonal birds

Place: Exton Park, 8:30 a.m.

Leader: Various leaders in conjunction with Friends of Exton Park

Note: Formerly known as Church Farm Pond and now a part of Exton Park, this pond and surrounding wetland had been a popular birding spot for years.

Directions: From the intersection of Routes 30 and 202, drive west along Route 30 and turn right on Valley Creek Blvd. At the end of the road, make a left on Swedesford Road and park in the gravel parking lot on your left where the perimeter trail starts. This is a 1.5 mile walk and will take between 1.5 and 2 hours.

Exton Park

Every Thursday Morning Exton Park, Exton, PA

For: Seasonal birds

Place: Exton Park, 8:30 a.m.

Leader: Various leaders in conjunction with Friends of Exton Park

Note: Formerly known as Church Farm Pond and now a part of Exton Park, this pond and surrounding wetland had been a popular birding spot for years.

Directions: From the intersection of Routes 30 and 202, drive west along Route 30 and turn right on Valley Creek Blvd. At the end of the road, make a left on Swedesford Road and park in the gravel parking lot on your left where the perimeter trail starts. This is a 1.5 mile walk and will take between 1.5 and 2 hours.

Exton Park

Chambers Lake Big Sit, Hibernia Park, Coatesville, PA

For: Fall migrants

Place: The South side of Chambers Lake, 8:00 a.m.

Leader: Larry Lewis - Early Bird Tours (484-340-7672, earlybirdtours@comcast.net)

Note: A Big Sit is an all-day affair, but everyone is welcome to come and go as they please. It is usually a fun time to see how many birds can be spotted while not moving out of a 15 foot circle. Great fun, with plenty of food and camaraderie, like tailgating.

Directions: From Coatesville, PA (in western Chester County): From the Rt. 30 By-pass north of Coatesville, take Rt. 82 exit north. Turn left at the 4-way stop sign (Rt.340) and go 1.3 miles to Wagontown Rd. Turn right on Wagontown Rd. and continue on this winding hill for 1.5 miles (you will pass the Hibernia Park entrance on your right). Continue up the hill and the lake will become visible on the right. If attending the "Big Sit", continue a couple of tenths of a mile further along Wagontown Rd. past the lake parking lot and to the western dike of the lake. Carefully pull off the road and park in the grass near the dike. You will see us sitting on the dike near the road.

Chambers Lake

Smithsonian’s Feather Identification Lab

Faridah Dahlan & Ingred Rochon

Did you know that molecular and microscopic identification of feathers plays a key role in aviation safety? The Smithsonian’s Feather Identification Lab processes over 11,000 wildlife strike cases each year to determine which species of birds are involved in collisions with aircraft – the first step to implementing preventative measures to keep both birds and people safe. Learn how the lab identifies both whole feathers and fragmentary bird remains (aka “snarge”) using the Smithsonian’s collection of 600,000 bird specimens, as well as the resources of the museum’s Laboratories of Analytical Biology.

 

Presenter Faridah Dahlan is a molecular specialist who has worked for the Feather Lab since 2008. Ingrid Rochon began working at the Smithsonian in 2016 as a museum technician, joining the Feather Lab in 2023 as an apprentice microscopist under Dr. Carla Dove.

 

Note: This meeting will be held in person at the meeting house and via Zoom. Zoom signon will start at 7:15 to enable the meeting to begin at 7:30.

 

Every Thursday Morning Exton Park, Exton, PA

For: Seasonal birds

Place: Exton Park, 8:30 a.m.

Leader: Various leaders in conjunction with Friends of Exton Park

Note: Formerly known as Church Farm Pond and now a part of Exton Park, this pond and surrounding wetland had been a popular birding spot for years.

Directions: From the intersection of Routes 30 and 202, drive west along Route 30 and turn right on Valley Creek Blvd. At the end of the road, make a left on Swedesford Road and park in the gravel parking lot on your left where the perimeter trail starts. This is a 1.5 mile walk and will take between 1.5 and 2 hours.

Exton Park

Chester County Parks Birding Series: Hibernia Park

For:  Fall migrants and resident birds

Place: : 1 Park Rd. Coatesville, PA

Leader: John Mercer (484-459-2062, mercer1135@aol.com), Patty & John Werth (pattyww@comcast.net)

Note: The Chester County Parks system has seven wonderful parks which provide excellent birdwatching opportunities.  Join us as we explore all seven of the parks, one per month, in 2024 & 2025.

This outing will cover about 2 miles and will last approximately 2-3 hours. There is a modern restroom at the park office, where we will meet. This field trip is a collaboration between WCBC and Valley Forge Audubon Society.

Directions: We will meet at the park office near the mansion off of Park Rd.

Hibernia Park 

The Great Marsh

For: Fall Migrants

Place: 28 Moores Road, Elverson, PA, 8:00 a.m.

Leader: Mike Coulter. If you plan to attend please email the Great Marsh Institute at lori@greatmarshinstitute.org to let them know to expect you. This will help them to organize and keep groups small. This event is free but donations are always welcome via PaypalVenmo, or cash donations at the door.

Note: Join local birding expert Mike Coulter as he guides us through the Great Marsh, an ancient periglacial marsh and the largest marsh in Southeastern Pennsylvania.

This event is hosted by the Great Marsh Institute, a non-profit with the mission of supporting scientific studies and educational opportunities for all! This event is free, but donations of any amount are welcome to support the Institute! For full trip details see here. This will be about a 3 hour walk. Conditions could be muddy and very wet so wear appropriate footwear.

Please note that the property is private but you can always visit during our planned trips.

Directions: The marsh is off of Rt. 401 four miles northwest of Rt. 100 at Ludwig's Corner. Lat/Long = 40.127651, -75.767697 or use 28 Moores Road for GPS directions. Meet at the grassy parking area at the top of the hill near 28 Moores Road. Once you turn off of Rt. 401 on to Moore's Road proceed 1/4 mile along the gravel road. You will cross a bridge and at the 1/4 mile mark make a right up the hill on the paved part of the drive. This is the first right after the bridge. At the top of the hill you should see other cars parked in the meeting area.