Birding Festival at Indiana Dunes SP, Oct. 2-4

Indiana DNR release:

The Indiana Audubon Society will hold its annual fall birding festival at Indiana Dunes State Park, Oct. 2-4.

Most programs occur at the state park's Nature Center, with exception of a dinner fundraiser at Hilton Garden Inn in Chesterton.

The weekend offers participants a variety of field hikes, demonstrations, presentations, and more on various birding topics relevant to Hoosier birders.

The required registration can be done at www.indianaaudubon.org or by visiting the Nature Center for a hard copy registration form. Registration fees are $45 for all activities, or $15 for everything but the Saturday night dinner program.

Activities start Friday, Oct. 2, at 7 p.m. CDT, with a special presentation by Valparaiso birder John Kendall. In 2008, Kendall broke the record for most species seen in Indiana in one year. His presentation, “Birding the Big Year,” showcases his journey through the state and highlights the many photos he took.

Saturday will start with early-morning birding field trips led by local and state birding experts, followed by special presentations on relevant birding topics. At 5 p.m. CDT, Dr. Kenneth Brock, author of "Birds of the Indiana Dunes," will give a special dinner program at the Hilton Garden Inn. Brock will highlight the unique birding opportunities in the dunes and discuss regional bird population changes that his research has noted in his 30-plus years of birding in Indiana.

After that, a second special program will occur back at the Nature Center at 8 p.m. CDT. Ross Brittain and state park interpreter Brad Bumgardner will introduce participants to owl banding. The state park debuts its northern saw-whet owl-banding station this year.

Sunday concludes with more field trips by local and state birding experts, general bird-banding demonstrations, bird-feeding activities for the kids, and a final presentation on the new birding opportunities at Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area by state expert Lee Sterrenberg.

For more information about these events or any other interpretive programs at the state park, call (219) 926-1390.