| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
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| Field Trip to River West Madera 8:00 am Field Trip to River West Madera @ River West Madera Dec 4 @ 8:00 am – 12:30 pm  Field Trip to River West Madera Wednesday December 4, 2024 REGISTRATION Link All participants must agree to the FAS Liability Waiver Form when they register. Use the QR code below or the form can also be found here River West Madera December 4, 2024 ... | Saturday Field Trip – Merced Grasslands & Merced NWR 6:45 am Saturday Field Trip – Merced Grasslands & Merced NWR Dec 7 @ 6:45 am – 5:45 pm Saturday Field Trip – Merced Grasslands & Merced NWR Registration required for all FAS field trips. All participants must agree to the FAS Liability Waiver Form when they register. Use the QR code below or the form can also be found here Registration for this... | |||||
| Merced Wildlife Refuge (off Sandy Mush Rd) Location Change 10:00 am Merced Wildlife Refuge (off Sandy Mush Rd) Location Change @ Merced Wildlife Refuge Dec 11 @ 10:00 am – 3:30 pm Audubon Field Trip to Merced Wildlife Refuge Location changed from Eastman OR Hensley (TBD) due to lack of birds in this location. All participants must agree to the FAS Liability Waiver Form when they register. Use the QR code below or the form can also... | ||||||
| Field Trip to River West Open Space 8:00 am Field Trip to River West Open Space @ River West Open Space Dec 28 @ 8:00 am – 12:30 pm Field Trip to River West Open Space Saturday, December 28, 2024 Event Details Subject to Change All participants must agree to the FAS Liability Waiver Form when they register. Use the QR code below or the form can also be found here Register here! Join... | ||||||
| FAS Board Meeting 11:00 am FAS Board Meeting @ Zoom meeting Dec 29 @ 11:00 am – 1:00 pm Contact admin@fresnoaudubon.org for login credentials |
Field Trip to River West Madera
Wednesday
October 11, 2023
We will meet at 8:00 a.m. just outside the Valley Golf Center (which is south and down the hill from Valley Children’s Hospital in Madera County). The walk will mostly follow along the San Joaquin River downstream toward Sycamore Island. Although the river is also accessible from Wildwood Native Park, we will start from the Golf Center as the status of the Park is uncertain at this time.
We plan to take Palm Avenue south toward the river from the golf course, past the pipe gate, then following the river downstream, first on the service road to Sycamore Island, then along the Riverfront Trail, ultimately emerging at a grouping of several ponds and a large lagoon just north of the river channel. The Riverfront Trail follows a berm next to the river and is somewhat narrow and uneven. For anyone not comfortable with it, the Sycamore Island road can be followed instead. Total distance is about 3.5 miles.
Although this is directly across the river from River West Open Space, be prepared for some different birds on the Madera County side. We will be looking especially for our some of our early returning winter friends, including common merganser, white-crowned sparrows, black-crowned night heron, white-throated swift, northern flickers, phainopepla, Say’s phoebes, ruby-crowned kinglets, yellow-rumped warblers, and black-throated gray warblers.
Bring suitable clothing (layers) and walking shoes, snacks, water, head covering, sunscreen, and binoculars. The ponds and lagoon will be quite amenable to spotting scopes, although they are more than a mile and a half from the assembly area.
Directions: Take Highway 41 north from Fresno, to the first exit north of the San Joaquin River (Exit 138A). Turn right at the intersection and follow Cobb Ranch Road back toward Fresno until you get to the first intersection. Turn right and proceed under the Highway 41 bridges to the parking area just outside the golf course where we will assemble.
Leader: John McDaniel
Phone: (559) 779-7186
Email: mandomac@comcast.net
The Raptor Trail on The Kings River at Pine Flat Dam
Registration is required for this event.
UPDATED MEETING TIME & PLACE
We will be meeting at 7:45 for an 8:00 departure at the Walmart parking lot at the SE corner of Blackstone and Ashlan for preliminary carpooling.
Join FAS for birding along the Kings River. The trail begins across from the parking lot on the south side of the bridge just below Pine Flat Dam. The trail is basically an easy walk of approximately a mile and a quarter each way, but there is some uneven terrain and river rocks create a cobblestone surface in parts. Some of the expected target species include Bald eagles, golden eagles, osprey, nuthatches, woodpeckers and oak titmice.
Participants should bring snacks, lunch (if desired), water, hat, sunscreen, and binoculars, and should dress in layers. Registration is required for this event. If you have any questions, please reach out to either trip leader.
Contact:
Wednesday Bird Walk at Sycamore Island
Registration is required for this event.
Meeting location: Sycamore Island (36.8590560, -119.8230324)
Meeting time: 8:45 AM
End time: Noon, or you may stay and have lunch with the group
Sycamore Island, part of the San Joaquin River Parkway, is along the San Joaquin River in Madera County downstream from River West open space. It offers a variety of habitats: river, ponds, riparian, grasslands, and wetlands. We can expect ducks, raptors, herons, egrets, owls. woodpeckers, finches, swallows, sparrows among many others.
This is a large property and we will do a combination of driving and walking. Walking distance will be 1 to 2 miles but those who don’t care to walk can drive to most of the areas. There are picnic shelters with tables for lunch and restrooms on the property.
Participants should bring snacks, lunch (if desired), water, hat, sunscreen, and binoculars, and should dress in layers.
Registration is required for this event. If you have any questions, please reach out to trip leader at 559-435-9374 or geofolsom@gmail.com
Contact admin@fresnoaudubon.org for login credentials
Yokohl Valley
November 4, 2023
Registration Required.
Link to Registration.
For more information, contact Larry Parmeter at lanpar362@gmail.com or at 559-288-3456.
Checklist: binoculars, scope, field guide, snacks, lunch, water, sunscreen, hat, radios
Registration Required.
Link to Registration.
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Opt Outside November 24, 2023
Thanksgiving this year is on Thursday, November 23, and the day after is Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year. Instead of heading to the stores and braving the hordes of shoppers on Friday November, 24, please join Fresno Audubon for our #OptOutside event in and around the Friant area! We will be meeting at 7:30 AM at Friant Cove at the intersection of Millerton Road and North Fork Road (36.991123, -119.711654).
We will bird at Friant Cove for approximately 30 minutes, and after that, we will head to the Friant Interactive Nature Site, just down the road. After spending approximately an hour at the Friant Interactive Nature Site, we will head to the Fresno County side of Millerton Lake State Recreation Area (36.986393, -119.684266) and explore some of the habitat near the boat launch, and a part of the nature trail that parallels the road.
At Millerton Lake State Recreation Area, there is a $10 entry fee per vehicle (up to 9 people per vehicle). The cost for seniors is $9 per vehicle. If you have a State Parks pass, definitely bring it along! To reduce costs, we would like to encourage carpooling. Parking vehicles outside the entrance and walking in is not allowed per park rules. Our target species will include Bewick’s Wren, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Rock Wren, Canyon Wren, California Towhee, California Quail, White-breasted Nuthatch, Spotted Towhee, Eared Grebe, Western Grebe, Bald Eagle, and many more! We will likely be wrapping up at Millerton Lake around 1:30 or 2:00. Please note that this itinerary is subject to change. We will keep registrants informed of any changes.
Participants should bring day packs, hats, sunscreen, sunglasses, plenty of water, snacks, lunch (if desired), and binoculars, and should dress in layers. Hiking shoes are recommended.
Registration is required for this event. Please register here.
Please reach out to trip leader Rachel Clark at tanagergirl@gmail.com or 515-357-0122 with any questions you might have.
Even if you’re not able to join us, we hope that you are able to Opt Outside on Friday following Thanksgiving!
Contact admin@fresnoaudubon.org for login credentials
Merced National Wildlife Refuge
Nov. 29, 2023
Registration required: Please register here.
With winter migrants filling local refuges and putting on a tremendous show, it is a wonderful time to bird Central Valley wetlands. Join Fresno Audubon on Wednesday, November 29 for a tour of the Merced National Wildlife Refuge. We will meet at the MacDonald’s parking lot in the Marketplace at El Paseo (6741 N Riverside Dr, Fresno, CA 93722, see map) at 11:45 for a noon start. Secondary meet up is at the first parking lot of the refuge, near the bathrooms and the first observation deck, at 1:00pm (see map).
Map to McDonald’s
Map to MNWR
After driving the auto tour, we will gather at the second observation deck at sundown for the spectacular crane fly-in, which should end around 5:30pm.
Target birds include lesser sandhill cranes, phoebes, various sparrows, American pipits, numerous species of ducks and geese, American white pelicans, wading birds and shore birds, egrets, American coots, red-tailed hawks, northern harriers and other hawks. Also possible are bald eagles, great-horned owls, and vermillion flycatchers.
Participants should bring day packs, hats, sunscreen, sunglasses, plenty of water, snacks, lunch (if desired), and binoculars, and should dress in layers. We probably will not be doing much hiking, but comfortable walking shoes are recommended. Please bring radios (walky-talkies) if you have them.
Registration required: Please register here.
Checklist: binoculars, spotting scopes, cameras, jackets, snacks, water, insect repellent, and radios.
Trip Leader: Judy Johnson (559)977-2787