On Tuesday October 12, starting at 11:30 a.m. and running until 8:00 p.m. Marshall County Conservation will host birder Kelly McKay who will give a presentation about the basics of raptor identification. Join him for part or all of the day.

The free event will begin at Grimes Farm west of Marshalltown and will also travel to Grammar Grove in Liscomb.

Pre-registration is required, register by calling 641-752-5490, email mccb@marshallcountyia.gov by October 8.

The ‘Building a Better Birder Workshops’ are a series of local community scientist programs designed to create better bird identification skills and to promote local participation with community science projects. Funding for this workshop was provided by the Resource Enhancement Protection-Conservation Education Program (REAP-CEP).

Schedule for the Day

11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Introduction to the Raptors of Iowa (Grimes Farm Shelter House)

Learn how to identify the different raptors that are native to Iowa.

1:30 – 2:00 p.m. – Travel to Grammar Grove

2:00 – 5:00 p.m. – Participate in the Grammar Grove Hawk Watch and/or Bird Hikes

5:00 – 6:00 p.m. – Travel back to the Grimes Farm and Supper on your own

6:00 – 8:00 p.m. – Midwestern Raptor Population Trends as Determined by Forty Years of Christmas Bird Count Data

During this presentation we will discuss the specifics of the Christmas Bird Count Program. We will examine and discuss how we utilized 40 years of CBC data to monitor the population trends of several raptor species throughout eastern Iowa and western Illinois. This program will be held in the Grimes Farm Shelter House.