Hello Vermont Birders! This morning at the North Branch Nature Center, the fields and riverside were alive with American Redstarts, Yellow Warblers, Veery, and Indigo Bunting, all tuning up their singing voices to greet visitors for this Saturday's BirdFest! The Chestnut-sided Warblers were particularly excited for the event, saying that they would be "Pleased, pleased, pleased to meet you!" BirdFest will run from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., kicking off with an early morning birding by ear walk led by Nona Estrin. The rest of the day will be filled with activities perfect for people of all ages and experience levels. With bird banding demos, bird walks and workshops, live raptor presentations, art exhibits, wood carving demonstrations, storytelling and a children's activity tent, we have everyone covered! At noon, a keynote presentation will be delivered by Margaret Fowle, of Vermont Audubon, on the iconic Peregrine Falcon and its current status in Vermont. Her talk will be followed by a presentation with Vermont naturalist and author of the award-winning book "Naturally Curious", Mary Holland. Moretown Elementary School will be grilling hot dogs and serving up watermelon for lunch as way to raise funds for next schol year's E.C.O. program at their school. BirdFest is free for children and $10 for adults. Here is a link to our BirdFest homepage: http://www.northbranchnaturecenter.org/birdfest.html Hope to see you there! Ken Benton -- Ken Benton AmeriCorps Environmental Educator North Branch Nature Center 713 Elm Street Montpelier, VT 05602 work: 802-229-6206 cell: 513-505-7484 “We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." ~Aldo Leopold