Birding
Information on birding events associated with Ohlone Audubon Society and resources for birding around the Bay Area.
Upcoming OAS Membership Meetings and Field Trips
Other Birding Events
Christmas Bird Count
Bird-A-Thon
Return of the Swallows Festival
Accessible Birding
Birding Resources
The Christmas Bird Count is an annual nationwide volunteer-based bird survey effort coordinated by the Audubon Society to promote bird conservation and assess long-term trends in winter bird populations. In the largest citizen science effort in the world, tens of thousands of volunteer birders and scientists armed with binoculars, bird guides and checklists will take part in Christmas bird counts throughout the Americas from mid-December through early January. Audubon and other organizations use data collected in this longest-running wildlife census to assess the health of bird populations and to help guide conservation actions.
The Ohlone Audubon Society has been completing the Hayward-Fremont CBC since 1967. The count area is very rich in avian diversity from the salt marsh habitats of the Hayward hills, Fremont's wetlands to the south, and all the parks and canyons in between.
This year, Rich Cimino and Jeff Miller organized the first ever Eastern Alameda County CBC. The count area is in the vicinity of Sunol, Pleasanton and Livermore, and includes five East Bay Regional Parks, significant San Francisco watershed lands, and birding hotspots such as lower Mines Road, Sunol Wilderness, Del Valle Reservoir, and the Springtown area in Livermore.
Each count day culminates with a festive dinner where final counts are tallied and stories exchanged about rare bird sightings and locations. Local CBC data, sent to the National Audubon Society, are a crucial part of this country's natural history monitoring database provide valuable insight into the past and present status and health of continental bird populations and the general health of our environment. Recent and historical CBC results are available on the National Audubon Society's website.
The 2009 CBC is over. Please check back late this year to volunteer for the 2010 count!
Media Coverage of Ohlone Audubon 2009 CBC's:
Hayward-Fremont CBC Published in Oakland Tribune: More Birds This Year in Southern Alameda County
Eastern Alameda County CBC Coverage in Pleasanton Weekly: Audubon's annual national bird count now under way
OAS Bird-A-Thon
2010 Bird-A-Thon Date to be announced soon!
Celebrbrating John J. Audubon's Birthday & Earth Week
OAS EDUCATION & CONSERVATION FUNDRAISER
A birdathon provides a means of raising money for an organization while at the same time enjoying the outdoors, finding and viewing birds, and competing with others. Teams are organized, members solicit pledges (a flat amount or a certain monetary amount per species, for example), the team birds together on an appointed day, record their findings and gather pledges from the pledgers. Some birdathons specify rules that all teams must follow—geographical limits, rules on the number of team members, and the like. Well known local birdathons include those of PRBO and SFBBO, which attract birders from the region and net those organizations tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Ohlone Audubon Society has more modest, but high expectations. Sponsors will be supporting the projects and good work of the Education and Conservation Committees (for specifics, contact Phil Gordon, Education Chair and Rich Cimino, Conservation Chair).
Celebrate the Return of the Swallows
8th "Return of the Swallows to Chabot Festival
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 - Earth Week
10:30 am to 2:30 pm
Chabot Community College, Cezar C. Chavez Plaza (Near Cafeteria/Bookstore)
25555 Hesperian Boulevard
Hayward, California
In Spring of 2010 at Chabot College the cliff swallows will be returning to new and old nesting eaves. Please join us at the Chabot College for one of the two swallow festivals in North America - celebrating these neo-tropical visitors who spend most of their lives in South America. Awards will be presented for best of nature art featuring birds and/or poems or other liturature submissions. Festival questions for additional prizes will be offered.
Primary activities will be at noon: events of the day include Music; Poem Readings; Meet the Artists; Swallow Talk & Questions; Recognition of the 20 Organization Exhibitors.
Show & Tell Exhibits planned for include: Local Fossils of Southern Alameda County (Math/Science Nucleus); Local Critters of our Wild Lands (Sulfur Creek Junior Museum & Hayward Shoreline Interpretive Center, Hayward Area Recreation District); Good and Bad Insects w/ the "Giant Mosquito" (Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District); Bird Feeders and Houses, etc. (Wild Birds Unlimited, Dublin); Serving Wildlife and Nature Enthusiasts Display (Ohlone Audubon Society, Southern Aameda County); Retiles in Town (Reptile Room), New exhibit for Swallows and Festival in the Campus Library. Film Show: 10.30 - 11:30 am. - venue to be announced. Campus walk to Find Campus Swallows to See and Photograph.
Fee: None; Parking: $2.00 (exact change)
Field Trips:
Saturday, April 17th Swallows at Multiple Fremont Locations
Sunday, April 18th Tree Swallows at Koopmann Ranch
For more information contact Phil Gordon a (510) 538-3550 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Finding and seeing some birds is reserved for the vigorous and fit. The rest of us can enjoy bird watching in easier circumstances.
The rich variety of accessible trails around the San Francisco Bay and nearby coast are listed and described in the publication A Wheelchair Rider's Guide San Francisco Bay and the Nearby Coast, published by The Coastal Conservancy in 2006, is available for free download at http://www.coastalconservancy.ca.gov/Publications/wheel.htm