April showers brought May birding activities. Join us for opportunities to get out and enjoy nature before the summer heat sets in.
May Movie
“Hummingbirds”
Tuesday, May 10, 2022 from 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Location: Zoom & TBD in-person
David Attenborough takes us into the remarkable lives of hummingbirds via stunning slow motion photography. Everything about these tiny birds is superb and extreme. They have the highest metabolism, fastest heart beat and most rapid wing beat in the avian world. They evolved to feed on flowering plants but are now a crucial part of wider ecosystems. How do they mate, raise their young, and live?
Global Big Day – Learning Together
When: Saturday, May 14, 2022, 8:00 am – 5:30 pm
Location:
8:00 am – 10:30 am Camp St. Christopher
11:00 am – 12:00 pm BobCat Trail/Six Ladies Trail
1:30 pm – 2:30 pm Jenkins Point
3:00 pm – 3:30 pm Equestrian Center
4:00 pm – 5:30 pm Palmetto Lake
Max: 12 for each location
Cost: None for members; $5 donation for guests
On May 14, Cornell Lab and eBird will sponsor Global Big Day. Will you join more than 30,000 others and become a part of Global Big Day? You don’t have to commit to birding for 24 hours—an hour or even 10 minutes of watching birds makes you part of the team. Visit your favorite spot or search out someplace new; enjoy a solo walk or get some friends to join in the Global Big Day fun. As part of this day, Seabrook Island Birders will conduct Learning Together activities at various locations plus offer you an opportunity to request someone to bird with you at your favorite location. You can select which locations you wish to bird.
The morning will start at 8:00 am with a Learning Together at Camp St. Christopher. Explore the lakes, lagoons, paths and slough at St. Christopher. This event will have 1 – 2 miles of walking over uneven terrain. Spring should be in full swing, so we should see all the usual suspects, but will also hopefully get looks at some of our more elusive resident breeding songbirds…Yellow-throated Warbler, Pine Warbler, Northern Parula, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and Painted Bunting. We may be lucky to see a few migrant warblers (Louisiana Waterthrush, Prothonotary Warbler, Common Yellowthroat), Scarlet Tanagers and Blue Grosbeaks. For this portion of the day, we ask people to make a voluntary contribution to Camp St. Christopher.
At 11:00 am we will continue our day at BobCat Trail with an extension to Six Ladies Trail. Along this trail we should see our local favorite Painted Bunting who likes to hang out at the end of BobCat Trail. Great Crested Flycatchers, Eastern Towhee and Gulls and Egrets should also be seen. We are still hoping to see some migratory warblers.
At 1:30 pm we will traverse (on bike or car) down Jenkins Point to hopefully see more Egrets, Herons and Anhingas. Low tide is 1:16 pm so hopefully we’ll have some shorebirds in the mud flats. Since this activity can be done primarily by car, it is a good opportunity for people with mobility issues.
At 3:00 pm we will visit the Equestrian Center where we can expect to see European Starlings, Eastern Bluebirds and likely a few of our resident hawks. We have scheduled only a brief time here as we likely won’t move far beyond the parking areas next to the pastures.
At 4:00 pm we will conclude our day with a walk around Palmetto Lake. This is less than one mile of flat, paved walk around the lake. Historically, in May at this location, we see Great Crested Flycatchers, Orchard Orioles and Mississippi Kites in addition to the “normal” Great Egrets, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Chickadees, etc.
As always, bring binocular/camera, hat, sunscreen, snacks and water.
Please register no later than Thursday, May 12, 2022. All registrants will receive a confirmation letter on Friday, May 13.
If you have additional questions about the program, please contact us by sending an email to: SeabrookIslandBirders@gmail.com.
Register Here
Backyard Birding at the Haulover Rookery
When: Monday, May 16, 2022 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Location: 2445 The Haulover
Max: 20
Cost: Free for members; $5 donation for guests
We are heading back to the Rookery to see the babies this time. Come join us in Annalee Regenburg’s backyard. Her house backs up to the Great Egret Rookery. The females sit on their nests all day and the males come into the nests in the evenings. We visited in April to see this wonder and now we have babies to watch. We plan on observing this wonderful, sometimes noisy event. We are sure we will see some Snowy Egrets and Green Herons, plus some night herons and Wood Storks, all tucked in there too. As always, be sure to bring your water, binoculars, hats and sunscreen.
Register no later than Friday, May 13. All registrants will receive a confirmation letter on Sunday, May 15.
Register Here
Learning Together – Bike and Bird to Mingo Point, Kiawah
When: Wednesday, May 18, 2022 8:00 am – 11:00 am
Location: Meet at The Lakehouse parking lot
Max: 12
Cost: None for members; $5 donation for guests
Meet at 8:00 am at The Lakehouse to bike from Seabrook Island’s Lake House through Freshfields to Mingo Point on Kiawah. Those not wishing to bike can choose to meet the bikers about an hour later at Mingo Point. The path is paved and borders wooded areas, marsh and fields. Along the way, we pass the Equestrian Center where we can expect to see European Starlings, Eastern Bluebirds and possibly Cattle Egrets. Further along, we will see and hear various songbirds. Of course, as we bike through Freshfields, we will see the resident Black Vultures and Boattail Grackles. Beyond Freshfields, we may see Roseate Spoonbills and other wading and shorebirds.
At Mingo Point, we’ll meet at the Kiawah parking lot to bird by the Kayak Ramp. There are many bird feeders placed to see feeder birds and we are also at the ramp right on the Kiawah River to enjoy shorebirds too. There are plenty of places to sit and bird or we can go for a stroll in the area for even more birds. Painted Buntings, House Finch and Carolina Chickadees are almost a sure thing!! Sometimes the Naturalist, that mans the Hut, is free to help us search.
Be sure to bring binoculars, camera, hats, sunscreen, bug repellant, snacks and water.
Please register no later than Monday, May 16, 2022. All registrants will receive a confirmation letter the day prior to the event.
If you have additional questions about the program, please contact us by sending an email to: SeabrookIslandBirders@seabrookislandblog
Learning Together – Crooked Oaks Golf Course
When: Monday, May 23, 2022 8:30 am – 10:30 am
Location: Meet at The Island House (golf course parking lot next to Spinnaker Beach Houses) for ride along the golf course in golf carts
Max: 24 (If all seats in golf carts are used)
Cost: Free for members; $5 donation for guests – Priority will be given to prior waitlisted & members
The Seabrook Island Club closes one course a day each week and allows Seabrook Island Birders to use golf carts to travel the course with our members to bird. Join us for a morning of birding by riding in golf carts for at least 9 – holes on Crooked Oaks golf course. We expect to see a large variety of birds including Egrets, Herons and birds of prey. We will also see and hear some of the smaller birds like Tufted Titmice, Eastern Bluebirds, Northern Cardinals, Carolina Wrens and some of the many warbler species.
Since it is spring, we can also expect to see Eastern Kingbirds, Great-crested Flycatchers, Orchard Orioles, Summer Tanagers, Mississippi Kites and more!
As always, be sure to bring your binoculars/cameras, hats and sunscreen. Water will be provided. We ask that all participants wear a mask when unable to social distance if they are not vaccinated.
Please register no later than May 21. All registrants will receive a confirmation letter on Sunday, the day prior to the trip. If you need to cancel, please let us know so we can invite people on the waitlist to attend.
Register Here
Beyond Our Backyard – Caw Caw County Park
When: May 26, 2022 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Location: Caw Caw Interpretive Center, 5200 Savannah Hwy., Ravenel
Carpool: Meet at Seabrook Island Real Estate Office at 8:15 am. The drive is approximately 40 minutes.
Cost: Free to members, $5 for non- members (Park entrance fee is $2 per adult, or a gold pass)
Join SIB at Caw Caw county park as we search for late spring migrants and discover the resident nesting birds. The park comprises three colonial era rice fields, fresh, brackish, saltwater marshes, cypress-tupelo swamps, bottomland, and beech-holly forests. All told, these varied habitats comprise a total of 654 acres with six miles of trails. Over 250 bird species have been observed within the boundaries of Caw Caw.
Some of the bird species we may find during this time of the year include Painted Bunting, Indigo Bunting, Blue Grosbeak, Prothonotary Warbler, Yellow Throated Warbler, Yellow Billed Cuckoo, Prairie Warbler, Pine Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Orchard Oriole, Northern Paula, Hooded Warbler, Black-Throated Blue Warbler, Yellow Throated Vireo, White-Eyed Vireo, Summer Tanager, Mississippi Kite, Swallow-Tailed Kite, American Bittern, Least Bittern, Osprey, Bald Eagle, and the wide variety of wading birds present in the park year round.
Appropriate footwear is recommended, as a likely walking distance of two to three miles is expected, and even during dry spells, wet trail conditions may be encountered. Participants should also consider these other items to maximize their comfort and enjoyment: binoculars, bug spray, sunscreen, hats, layered clothing to adjust to the morning’s weather, field guides if print is your preference, eyeglass – lens cleaner, water, snacks, camera, and a pack or shoulder bag for your needs.
Please register by May 23, 2022. You will receive a confirmation letter the day prior to the event.
Register Here
-Submitted by SIB
(Image credit: SIB)