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Tucson Audubon Society
April 26, 2024
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OktoBIRDfest - You're Invited!
When: October 18, 5:30—7:30 pm
La Cocina, 201 N Court Ave, downtown historic Presidio
A party inspired by birds, hosted by birders, amidst German-inspired food and fun games for all!
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Live owls in attendance! (presented by Wildlife Rehab of NW Tucson)
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Bird calls contest (You know you want to!)
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Chicken dance contest
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German bird I.D. quiz
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Brats, beer, and big pretzels along with La Cocina’s full menu*
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10% of proceeds from purchases made between 5:00—10:00 pm will be donated to the Tucson Audubon Society!
RSVP Requested but not required: Online, 520-209-1802, or our Facebook event.
Tucson Meet Your Birds at Sweetwater Wetlands!
Saturday, October 22 | 7 AM to 1 PM
Tucson Water and the Tucson Audubon Society present Tucson Meet Your Birds, a free, fun and family-friendly event at the Sweetwater Wetlands.
We will make it easy for you---NO BINOCULARS NEEDED TO PARTICIPATE! Stroll 20 acres of tree-lined paths and ponds with experts pointing out the birds for you.
All new members who join at this event (and current members who recruit) will be entered to win a pair of Swarovski binoculars!
Here are some of the many activities that will be available:
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Birding experts around the wetlands, with spotting scopes to help people see birds
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Up-close looks at live birds brought by Tucson-area wildlife rehabilitation groups
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Birding activities for families and kids
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Information on how to create bird habitat in your own back yard
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Tucson Water experts presenting info on water conservation and Sweetwater Wetlands operations
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Native plant sale, food trucks including Purple Tree Acai, Big Bad Wolf and Pin-Up Pastries, and partner vendors including REI and The Tucson Herpetological Society
VOLUNTEERS! You can sign up as a volunteer for this event. See the list of opportunities.
See tucsonaudubon.org/TucsonMeetYourBirds for more info or our Facebook event.
Current Volunteer Needs
Contact Volunteer Coordinator Luke Safford for info on all these events.
Home and Garden Show: We need 2 more people for Sunday, October 2nd from 9:30--12:30 to help staff our booth. Volunteering gets you free tickets, plus you get to advocate for native plants, healthy backyards, and Tucson Audubon! We also need help setting up on Thursday afternoon and take down on Sunday. Thank you to our 17 volunteers already helping!
Tucson Meet Yourself: On October 7--9th Tucson Audubon will have a booth at this amazing folk-life festival and we need your help staffing it. Pick a shift (12--2:30pm or 2:30--5pm) and share with your neighbors how they can join us in conserving and enjoying the birdlife around us.
Tucson Meet Your Birds on Oct. 22, 7am--1pm: Were you one of the hundreds of people who attended the last Tucson Meet Your Birds at Sweetwater Wetlands in February? Have you ever joined our weekly Sweetwater walk on Wednesday mornings? If so, we need your help! We have 10 of our 49 volunteer spots filled, please check out our openings here, and let me know how you can fill a slot. Thank you!
Other volunteer opportunities coming up:
Make Habitat at Your Home
Fall is a great time to plant bird-friendly native plants in your yard. Tucson Audubon’s Habitat at Home program has lots of advice about how to do this and many other things to provide habitat for birds. Sign up for Habitat at Home and we will delve into this together! The lush yard pictured above, on Tucson’s west side, belongs to new Habitat at Home member David Stevenson!
Watershed Management Group Homescape Harvest Tour: October 1
You can see David Stevenson’s yard on this tour. Get tickets for the tour at watershedmg.org. Take the tour and see some fantastic water harvesting and habitat-filled yards. Also on the tour is Watershed Management Group’s headquarters, the “Living Lab,” that has fantastic vegetation and many of the other characteristics of a Habitat at Home yard. Tucson Audubon’s Habitat at Home Program will have a table here.
SAHBA Home and Garden Show: September 30--October 2
Tucson Audubon’s Habitat at Home Program will be at the SAHBA Home and Garden Show at the Tucson Convention Center. Come to the Home and Garden Show, peruse the amazing booths and visit Habitat at Home to see what we can do for your home and garden!
Habitat at Home Class
October 8&9 | 11 a.m., at Agua Caliente Park
Jump-start your knowledge about how to create habitat in your own back yard by taking this two-hour class at beautiful Agua Caliente Park. After the class join the instructor to look at some of the native plants at the park that can be used in your back yard.
Register here.
Turn Your Taxes into Treasure for the Trekking Rattlers
The Trekking Rattlers are middle school students from Billy Lane Lauffer Middle
School in the Sunnyside School District who venture out into the wilds
of Arizona monthly in search of birds, bugs, trees, creeks, clouds and good times. The crew is headed up by Tucson Audubon volunteer
Deb Vath and the transportation is paid for
by your tax credit dollars.
What are charitable tax credit dollars?
If you owe Arizona state tax, you can designate $200 ($400 for couples filing jointly) to go directly to the charitable organization—or school—of your choice instead of to the IRS, at no extra cost to you. It’s about as close to free money as anyone will ever get—and in this case, your tax credit dollars can directly support the Trekking Rattlers of Billy Lane Lauffer Middle School.
If it’s that simple, why the heck didn’t you say so? Follow the 4 simple steps.
Cowboy Birding at the Circle Z Guest Ranch
Join us for four starry nights and three exciting days as we explore one of the best kept secrets in Arizona birding! The historic Circle Z Guest Ranch near Patagonia is situated on 6,500 wooded acres at 4,000 feet elevation and has entertained guests since 1926—the oldest continuously operating dude ranch in Arizona.
We will visit grasslands and oak-covered foothills as well as the riparian forest along the ever-flowing Sonoita Creek for birds, plants, and other wildlife. One horseback ride (optional) is included in addition to an offsite cook out, a morning nature walk and evening astronomy program with naturalist Vince Pinto, and an evening campfire with a cowboy singer. Space is limited, don't miss out!
Sunday, February 12--Thursday, February 16, 2017 or Sunday, May 7--Thursday, May 11, 2017
Trip Includes: 4 Nights lodging; 3 meals per day; guided tours on and off ranch (including winery!)
Not included: Transportation to and from Circle Z Ranch; personal expenses; alcoholic drinks
Prices:
Members: $1595
Non-members: $1630 (membership included!)
25% deposit due upon booking
To learn more about this trip, see our webpage or contact Keith Ashley at 520-209-1809 or kashley@tucsonaudubon.org
Arizona Field Ornithologist's 10th Annual Meeting
21--23 October in Yuma, AZ
 AZFO is going to the “coast” – Plan to join your fellow birders and ornithologists near the water on Arizona’s “West Coast” along the lower Colorado River. The weekend will start and end with mini-field expeditions to area birding spots on Friday and Sunday. Saturday, you’ll hear interesting presentations on Arizona’s birdlife. Try your eyes and ears at our photo and audio bird ID quizzes and peruse our used publication sale. We hope that you will join us for this informative and fun event! Youth Scholarships are also available. Find out more here.
So what is AZFO?
Arizona Field Ornithologists is an organization of birders and ornithologists dedicated to increasing the knowledge of the identification, status, and distribution of Arizona’s birdlife. They maintain a webpage that documents rare bird sightings in the state, organize fun birding expeditions with a goal of discovering something new in bird science and send out an informative newsletter.
Wild Wisdom of the Southwest
 Wild Wisdom: Animal Stories of the Southwest by Rae Ann Kumelos with Artwork by Jan Taylor
Wild Wisdom enchants readers with vivid and vibrant animal stories from Native American tradition in this delightful, poignant, and humorous book. Native American animal stories embody a living tradition based on a mutually beneficial relationship with the natural world - one that continues to resonate with many of us to this day. Animals add love, guidance, joy and wonder to our lives. These uplifting stories will entertain and inspire, while celebrating the beauty and importance of the animal/human relationship. With stories about Coyote telling us what not to do by doing it, to Hummingbird’s healing hum, and Turkey saving Thanksgiving for everyone but himself, Wild Wisdom captures the connection we all have, regardless of who we are or where we live, to Native animal wisdom of the Southwest.
Retail $14.95
OPTICS
Zeiss Conquest 8x42
 Many of us want a better pair of optics, but spending ~$2000 to get one of the top tier models just isn’t in the budget. Zeiss has produced an excellent binocular in their Conquest at less than half this price and you will be challenged to see the difference optically. With this binocular, you are going to see a lot more detail, and better color definition, as you try to sort out those confusing Kingbirds along the De Anza Trail. Are they Western or Tropical? Given its rugged construction, you’re not going to worry as you toss it about and the weather won’t concern you either. Worth taking a look at this model the next time you visit the Tucson Audubon Nature Shop, it will change your ideas about how much you have to pay to get what you want.
Retail $1077.77 Member Price $969.99
 Thank you, , for being a part of Tucson Audubon and helping to protect birds and the places they live in southeast Arizona.
—Tucson Audubon Staff
Connecting
people with birds & the places they live
   
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