So, you always wanted to be a birdwatcher (birder)! Now you have no excuse! This course will teach you how to identify the common birds in our area in the winter and give you tips to maximize your chance of seeing them, what equipment to have, and which guidebooks and apps to use. We will have one classroom session highlighting those birds we are likely to see in four field trips that will follow soon thereafter. This will be done by showing photographs of these likely birds, indicating their defining characteristics. Then we will go out in the field to see them, traveling to four “hotspots” for birding. The classroom session will be on November 19, and the field trips will be on December 3, 10, 17, and January 7. The trips will be to four separate locations. At least two classes would span most of a full day, with the other two of shorter duration.

Weekly prep time varies.  You could use the recommended materials to study the birds expected in advance to enable you to get more out of the course.