September 12, 2007
Cradle of Birdingâ€â€ÂWildlife and Conservation Festival
On September 15th, John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge will be hosting the “Cradle of Birding”"Wildlife and Conservation Festival”, a free event that has a whole slew of activities for all ages. The Cradle of Birding Festival takes it name from the legacy of American Ornithology and recreational bird watching that had its roots in the Philadelphia region. John James Audubon, William Bartram, Alexander Wilson and Whitmer Stone all lived, were born or were based in Philadelphia. The festival will have many bird related activities like: bird walks, live birds of prey, bird banding, birding workshops, and lectures etc.
The festival is not exclusively about birds, there will be other nature related activities and exhibits, like trolley tours of the refuge, live music, native plant walks, canoeing, kayaking, photography, fly tying and a taxidermy display. Many of the activities are geared towards children and you can expect the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Blue Goose and other mascots to be making the rounds. A free hotdog or veggie dog is lunch is also provided.
The Cradle of Birding festival coincides with the Delaware County’s Riverfront Ramble. John Heinz NWR’s lands are in both Philadelphia and Delaware counties. The Riverfront Ramble is a two day event (Sept 15th and 16th) and has music, tall ships, Vikings, pirates, food and fireworks from John Heinz NWR through Chester to Marcus Hook.
John Heinz NWR
86th and Lindbergh Blvd, Philadelphia, PA
John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge online
Info on the Riverfront Ramble
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September 12, 2007, 9:23 am
Arthur says:
Sounds like a great festival. We just visited a birding festival in our country, the Netherlands, a few weeks ago. It was really great, with lots of activities. We saw three White-tailed Eagles and two Common Kingfishers that day, which was a real treat.
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