Grays Harbor Shorebird and Nature Festival
Start planning to attend the next festival: April 25 - 27, 2025
Grays Harbor Shorebird and Nature Festival
2024 Grays Harbor Shorebird and Nature Festival
Sessions at Hoquiam Middle School
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Saturday, May 4
Shorebird Identification Basics (Free) 8:30 am – 9:30 am (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Scott Morrison Shorebird identification can be tricky. With the help of experienced birders, you will become familiar with the more common shorebirds so you can identify them in the field. You are encouraged to follow up this program and join Scott Morrison on the “Shorebirds for Beginners” guided walk on the Sandpiper Trail at Grays Harbor NWR, scheduled after this presentation. Orchard Mason Bees (Free) 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Carrie Morlang, Knox Cellars Orchard Mason Bees Learn about the life cycle of the native Orchard Mason Bee including their unique development and behavior that makes them the super spring pollinator. Carrie will share the three reasons to host Orchard Mason Bees in your backyard, what blossoms they are attracted to, and their care and maintenance. Adaptive Strategies of Shorebirds (Free) 2:45 pm – 3:45 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: David Slater Shorebirds are a fun and fascinating group of birds that have adapted physically, behaviorally, and physiologically to their environment. Dave will discuss some of these adaptations and how they increase shorebird’s chances of survival. Dave and his wife Yvonne love birds and they participated in 3 Christmas Bird Counts in 2023, including Gray's Harbor. Photographing Birds in Motion (Free) 2:45 pm – 3:45 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Diana McPherson https://friendsinnature.com/ Join wildlife and conservation photographer, Diana McPherson, as she shares images of birds in motion, from fights to flight to foraging. She’ll share camera settings and techniques to help you capture birds in motion, too. Keeping a Field Notebook (Free) 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Madison Mayfield Looking for a fun way to document your birding adventures? Join natural history artist Madison Mayfield and learn the basics of keeping a field journal! In this workshop you’ll flex your art skills, learn tips & tricks for sketching birds in the field, and walk away feeling inspired to incorporate art into your birding experience! Open to artists of all levels. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own art supplies and journal/paper, but some supplies will also be provided. Seabirds (Free) 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Peter Hodum Peter Hodum’s research is in the areas of avian ecology and conservation biology. He is particularly interested in conservation-based research, including the impacts of anthropogenic threats such as marine plastic debris, habitat alteration and loss, introduced species, and fisheries interactions on bird populations and island ecosystems. In the Pacific Northwest, he is studying the ecology, population dynamics, and conservation status of burrowing seabirds, principally Rhinoceros Auklets and Tufted Puffins. He collaborates with the Puget Sound Museum of Natural History to study the effects of marine plastic debris on marine food webs by using seabirds, forage and bottom-dwelling fish, and filter-feeding species, such as mussels, as biological indicators. Sunday, May 5, 2024 Shorebird Poster Contest Awards Ceremony 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Come and help honor the 2024 Shorebird Poster Contest winners during the awards ceremony. The shorebird poster contest is open to Grays Harbor County students, grades 1-6. Winning posters are displayed during the festival at Hoquiam Middle School. You will be amazed with the talents of these young artists. The Art of Photographing Birds (Free) 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Karen Ulvestad Want to take great pictures of birds? This mini workshop covers tips and techniques for capturing amazing bird photographs. It starts with learning to observe bird behavior, anticipate the bird’s actions, and ultimately taking the photograph. The presentation covers equipment, exposure, and good birding locations. Discussion includes journaling, documenting locations / bird identification, and birding / bird photography ethics. Questions are welcome throughout the workshop. Family Drawing Workshop (Free) 2:15 pm – 3:15 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Hannah Kirsekorn, Guild of Natural Science Illustrators Northwest. Hannah is an artist, teacher and tattooer living in Seattle, WA. She has been drawing and observing natural wonder her entire life. She believes that drawing and tattooing flora and fauna connects us to our natural world and is a form of educational conservation Come make wacky, mismatched birds with a shorebird special edition of the Surrealist drawing game, Exquisite Corpse! Workshop participants will use their creativity and intuition to collectively assemble surprising bird amalgamations! Washington’s Contaminated Site Cleanup Law and Contaminated Sites in Grays Harbor (Free) 2:15 pm – 3:15 pm (Hoquiam Middle School) Presenter: Lee First, Twin Harbors Waterkeeper Within the city limits of Aberdeen and Hoquiam, there are over 150 Model Toxic Control Act (MTCA) contaminated sites, most of which have not been cleaned up, nor have cleanup processes started. Many of the sites are at abandoned industrial sites, and in some cases, are at industrial areas that are operating with new owners. Some sites were listed because of leaking underground storage tanks or leaking heating oil tanks. The WA State Department of Ecology oversees the cleanup of contaminated sites, and in some cases, Ecology allows the least complicated sites to be cleaned up under a voluntary cleanup process (VCP). But any sites with complex contamination are cleaned up under MTCA. The most contaminated sites are rated for environmental and human health risk, with a rating from 1 to 5, with 1 having the most human and environmental risk. There are about 10 sites in the Grays Harbor area with a rating of 1, but few of these sites have entered the cleanup process. As part of this talk, Lee will describe some of the MTCA sites in the Harbor, and explain what practices lead to contamination, and what the cleanup remedies might entail. |
Diana McPherson, Photographer and Presenter
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