birds – SIB

Registration “CLOSING” for June 26, 2024 Seabrook Island Birders: Half-Day summer camp for kids on feathers and their owners.

Registration for this event is closing on June 19, 2024

Time: 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM
Where: Oyster Catcher Community Center (2241 Oyster Catcher Ct, Johns Island, SC 29455)
Min Attendance: 6 Max Attendance: 12
Cost: Free per attendee registered by SIB Members, $10 per attendee registered by non-SIB Members

Program Description:

This summer Seabrook Island Birders (SIB) is offering something new! Will you have a child between the ages of 8-15 with you on Seabrook Island this summer who might like to learn more about feathers AND BIRDS?? Jane Settle, a retired marine biologist and teacher, avid naturalist, and SIB Shorebird Steward will be offering a fun and informative one-morning camp experience!

This fun time will be filled with activities, inside and outside. Participants will learn about both feathers ( structure and function) and the birds that “wear them”! Participants will investigate preserved feathers (collected with USFWS permit) with hand magnifiers, draw and color their own pictures of them, play word games, as well as take a walk about and make observations outside along our nearby boardwalks, weather permitting.

Minimum attendance to hold a camp day is 6 and maximum attendance is 12.

If you are not yet a 2024 SIB member, you can become a member for only $15 by following the instructions on our website: https://seabrookislandbirders.org/contact/join-sib/.

If you have any questions or comments please write us at:

seabrookislandbirders@gmail.com.

Registration NOW OPEN for June 26, July 17 and July 24, 2024 Seabrook Island Birders: Half-Day summer camp for kids on feathers and their owners.

Please note registration for June 26 is below our minimum of 6, let your friends know

Program Description:

Minimum attendance to hold a camp day is 6 and maximum attendance is 12.

If you are not yet a 2024 SIB member, you can become a member for only $15 by following the instructions on our website: https://seabrookislandbirders.org/contact/join-sib/.

If you have any questions or comments please write us at:

seabrookislandbirders@gmail.com.

Registration Open for June 26, 2024 Seabrook Island Birders: Half-Day summer camp for kids on feathers and their owners.

Registration for July 17 and 24 camps coming in early June.

When: Wednesday June 26, 2024 (Please note date correction from prior announcement)
Time: 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM
Where: Oyster Catcher Community Center (2241 Oyster Catcher Ct, Johns Island, SC 29455)
Max Attendance: 12
Cost: Free per attendee registered by SIB Members, $10 per attendee registered by non-SIB Members

Program Description:

Minimum attendance to hold a camp day is 6 and maximum attendance is 12.

If you are not yet a 2024 SIB member, you can become a member for only $15 by following the instructions on our website: https://seabrookislandbirders.org/contact/join-sib/.

If you have any questions or comments please write us at:

seabrookislandbirders@gmail.com.

UPDATE!!! Open Space Institute of South Carolina Presentation

Many members of Seabrook Island Birders are known for their great trips to far flung areas to experience great surroundings, wildlife, and of course, the birds we love. However, one of the great treasures we have here in the Lowcountry are the parks, wildlife management areas, preserves, and other protected natural areas which play a vital role in conserving biodiversity, providing habitats for wildlife, and offering opportunities for bird-watching and photography. Key benefits of these protected areas are habitat conservation, recreation and education, research and monitoring, promotion of ecotourism, wildlife photography and bird watching. For enthusiasts like us, parks and preserves offer excellent opportunities for capturing stunning images of wildlife and birds in their natural habitats.

None of this would be available without the work of organizations like the Open Space Institute. Please come join us on Thursday May 30, 2024 to hear more about this organization and the role they play in conservation in South Carolina. We are also pleased to announce that Nick Wallover will now be presenting. Nick is well-versed in SC Coastal Bird Programs and has spent significant time in our area. Please continue to read for more background.

Speaker: Nick Wallover
Parks and Stewardship Project Manager
Open Space Institute

Date: May 30, 2024, 7:00 pm
Location: Lake House Live Oak Hall

7:00 pm Registration & Refreshments
7:30 pm Program
8:45 pm Program ends

Program Summary

Nick Wallover will present on the history and current status, and future of conservation in South Carolina, and the role the Open Space Institute has played in protecting and opening more than 100,000 acres in South Carolina, Georgia, and North Carolina to the public. The presentation focus will be on existing, expanding, and new places for the public to get outside and see wildlife in the South Carolina Lowcountry, and the habitat restoration and research OSI is partnering with to improve opportunities for residents and wildlife alike.

Nick’s Bio

Nick Wallover is the Parks and Stewardship Project Manager with Open Space Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting land and habitats for conservation and recreation. His role is focused on planning and building public access, as well as habitat restoration and management.

Prior to joining OSI, Nick was Stewardship Manager at the ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve, and a biologist with SC Dept of Natural Resources, primarily with the SC Coastal Bird Program. He has spent time on Kiawah, Seabrook Island, Botany, and Deveaux Bank working with the numerous imperiled species in our state.

(*Join SIB or renew membership for 2024 : https://seabrookislandbirders.org/join-sib/ )

Seabrook Photography Club Invites SIB Members at reduced Guest Fee

The Seabrook Photography Club would like to invite SIB Members to attend a special presentation by Colin Hocking on May 16, 2924 at 6:30 PM. Although the event is focused on wildlife photography, Colin specializes in Bird Photography.

SIPOA Lake House, Live Oak Room. Guest Fee reduced to $5 for SIB Members

About Colin and the Program:

Colin Hocking – “Snap Shot to Pro Shot: Steps to Raise Your Wildlife Photography Game!”

Join professional wildlife photographer and photo tour leader Colin Hocking as he shares the steps, settings, and techniques it takes to capture those “once in a lifetime” moments that we might otherwise miss!

Colin is a Licentiate of the UK Royal Photographic Society, a Coastal Master Naturalist, and a member of the Professional Photographers of America and the Carolinas Nature Photography Association. He has been a freelance photographer for over 20 years and leads successful photo tours all over the Lowcountry. His combination of technical photography skills and his naturalist training allows him to approach nature photography with a hybrid of artistic and scientific perspectives.

South Carolina’s Critical Role in the Survival of Arctic Nesting Shorebirds with a focus on Red Knots

LESS THEN 20 SPACES LEFT

If you previously signed up and can not attend, please cancel.

Request to be added to wait list now!

Add my name

You will be added to the Waitlist. Please request a separate ticket for each person attending. Each day tickets will be released to the waitlist. If they are still available you will receive an email from Eventbrite to complete the registration process within 24 hours. A final email will be sent to confirm your ticket(s).

Donations to support Shorebird Research can be made at this event, either via PayPal, a check or cash. Details will be presented at the event.

Speaker: Felicia Sanders
Supervisor Coastal Bird Conservation Project
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources

Date: February 22, 2024, 7:00 pm
Location: Lake House Live Oak Hall

Cost: Free for SIB Members, $10/person for Guests

(*Join SIB or renew membership for 2024 :
https://seabrookislandbirders.org/join-sib/ )

7:00 pm Registration & Refreshments
7:30 pm Program
8:45 pm Program ends

Program Description:

Recent research on the federally threatened Red Knot estimated over 17,000 knots utilize Seabrook and Kiawah Islands, making this area a critical spring stopover site for this migratory shorebird that has declined over 85% in recent decades. Red Knots undertake astounding migrations every year, some flying nearly 19,000 miles from their wintering grounds, as far south as Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of South America, to their breeding grounds above the Arctic circle. On Seabrook and Kiawah Islands, knots rest at high tide and at low tide feed on the abundant coquina clams that live at the surf zone. On our beaches they transition into breeding plumage and build muscle and fat reserves that fuel their next flight. In May 2023, biologists deployed satellite transmitters on knots. These tags are glued to the bird’s back and have a solar panel energy source. Join us to learn about SCDNR’s Red Knot tagging project, that allows us to track knots’ local movements and to follow them to their nest sites in the Arctic. These projects and partnerships are making tangible conservation achievements in the protection of knots!

Speaker Bio:

Felicia Sanders has been working 30 years on conservation efforts for a wide diversity of bird species and joined South Carolina Department of Natural Resources in 2001 and leads South Carolina’s Seabird and Shorebird Projects. Her primary tasks are promoting conservation of important sites for nesting and migrating coastal birds, surveying seabirds and shorebirds, and partnering with universities to research their life histories. She is a coauthor on numerous scientific publications and has traveled to the Arctic 5 times to participate in shorebird research projects. Felicia Sanders went to graduate school at Clemson University, majoring in biology. In 2020 she was awarded the Biologist of the Year by the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, whose members include 15 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Also, it is not too late to join or learn more about the Seabrook Island Shorebird Steward Program! We invite you to visit the Seabrook Island Birders webpage (www.seabrookislandbirders.org) and visit the Shorebird Stewards tab. Sign up with your spouse or a friend, or meet new friends during the upcoming training sessions. Send an email to SIBStewards@gmail.com to join the group or ask for more information. It is a rewarding experience that you will surely come to cherish.