Author Archives: Bill

Intro to Foraging – with Dan Gardoqui – Saturday afternoon, September 23rd

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Are you curious about wild foods and foraging during this season of abundance? Does uncertainty and concern stop you from sampling healthy, wild foods? Join us at the Wells Reserve with forager and expert naturalist Dan Gardoqui of Lead with Nature. We’ll stroll the fields, forests and shorelines, all the while connecting with the wild plants, trees, fungi and more with all of our senses. Participants should be prepared to walk a few miles, dress for the weather, and bring along a water bottle. Please note that foraging is NOT permitted at the Wells Reserve outside of this program. We … Continue reading →

The Birds of Guatemala – with Doug Hitchcox – at the Wells Reserve and via Zoom – on Tuesday, September 19th

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Guatemala is a wonderful birding destination with many avian specialties, beautiful scenery, a colorful culture (including the proud Mayan, perhaps the richest indigenous culture remaining in the New World), and some of the best coffee in the world. In March of this year, Doug Hitchcox was a leader of a spectacular trip to view the birds of Guatemala.  The areas that they visited were varied, from the cool pine-oak forests near Antigua and Tecpan (think Pink-headed Warbler) to humid tropical lowland forests in the Petén (the Caribbean slope). The tour started in the Petén with a visit to the Classic … Continue reading →

Wildlife Track and Sign by the Sea – with Dan Gardoqui – Sunday, July 23rd

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The sands of Laudholm Beach reveal the stories of a diverse array of birds, mammals and invertebrates. Join Certified Wildlife Tracker and Maine Guide Dan Gardoqui for an enlightening morning of decoding stories in the sand. Participants will need to walk about 3 miles and spend time on uneven surfaces. Please bring your own water and snacks. About the Presenter Dan Gardoqui has been studying naturalist skills, wildlife tracking, bird language, and mentoring for nearly 30 years. Dan has a M.S. in Natural Resources, is a Certified Wildlife Tracker, Registered Maine Guide, and served as Science Faculty at Granite State … Continue reading →

Birds of Prey: Our Talon-ted Friends – with the Center for Wildlife and their Wildlife Ambassadors – Tuesday, June 20th – at the Wells Reserve, in-person only

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What is the difference between a hawk and a falcon?  Do we have vultures in Maine?  What is our smallest owl?  What is our largest hawk?  Where do they live?  Using our amazing live non-releasable bird ambassadors, posters, and hands-on materials, we will discuss the kinds of birds of prey found in Maine, their habitats, habits, place in the food chain, and why we need to protect them.  This program will connect the audience with these beautiful ambassadors of their species as well as provide their natural and personal histories and empower audience members to help to steward the environment … Continue reading →

Annual Election of Officers and Directors

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The Nominating Committee has presented a slate of Officers and Directors to the YCA Board, and that slate has been approved by the Directors:  Bill Grabin, President, Laurie Pocher, Vice President, Kathy Donahue, Treasurer, and Monica Grabin, Secretary, as well as the following slate of Directors: Britney Fox, Dan Gardoqui, David Doubleday, Doug Hitchcox, Heather Rutledge, Joyce Toth, Marian Zimmerman, Marion Sprague, Mary Bateman, Rebekah Lowell, Seth Davis. This slate will be presented and proposed to our members for their approval at our June 20th annual meeting, which will precede our June 20th program.

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Revision of YCA Bylaws

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Over the last six months, YCA’s Board of Directors took on the task of reviewing our current Bylaws which had been drafted in 2004 (with a minor amendment in 2013) . Many changes were required to enable them to accurately reflect our current operations and our thoughts for the organization’s future. On April 18th, the Board unanimously approved the new version. Our June 20th annual meeting will precede our program that evening. At that time, we’ll be seeking our members approval of these revised Bylaws. You can use the links below to review both the 2004 Bylaws and the proposed … Continue reading →

Beach Plum Farm Eco-fest in Ogunquit on Saturday, May 20th

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Please join York County Audubon and many other great organizations at the Beach Plum Farm Eco-fest from 10 – 2 on Saturday, May 20th. Beach Plum Farm is a wonderful spot right on Route 1 in Ogunquit. It’s the last remaining salt water farm in Ogunquit, home to community gardens, and the office of Great Works Regional Land Trust, who acquired and permanently protected it. FMI: https://gwrlt.org/beach-plum-farm-preserve/

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Our 2023 Birding Challenge — to Support the Maine Young Birders Club

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York County Audubon needs your support! YCA was founded in 1968, and for the past 55 years, has promoted a wide variety of conservation activities and initiatives to benefit thousands of people. A few years back, we realized that there was an unmet need: a program that specifically focused on young birders.  So, in 2016, we launched the Maine Young Birders Club (MYBC). Since then, many young birders aged 11 to 18 have actively participated and gained a greater understanding of the natural world, while connecting with and being inspired by like-minded young people. While MYBC members do pay a … Continue reading →

Saving Birds With Maine’s Commercial Forest: the 30-Year Bird Project – with Anna Siegel – Tuesday, May 16th – at the Wells Reserve and via Zoom

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In 2019, an alarming article from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology reported that three billion North American birds have been lost since 1970 (about 30%). Maine’s nearly 10-million-acres of commercial forest form the heart of National Audubon’s largest Important Bird Area of Global Significance in the contiguous U.S.  What role does this enormous area play in national-scale land bird conservation?  This fertile breeding ground still supports a wide range of bird species of conservation concern. In 2021 and 2022, the “30-Year Bird Project” replicated a groundbreaking 1990s study to understand how bird populations have changed as a result of changes … Continue reading →

A Video of our April 2023 program: Native Plants: Good for What Ails Your Garden – with Shawn Jalbert

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This program was presented on April 18, 2023 in-person at the Wells Reserve at Laudholm and via Zoom. To watch it, please click on the image below to watch it on this page, or you can click on “Watch on Youtube” at the bottom of that image. (We also recommend clicking on the little white square in the bottom right corner of that viewing screen to convert the image to “full screen”). For a description of the program, you can scroll down to the original post for the program.

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Native Plants: Good for What Ails Your Garden – with Shawn Jalbert – Tuesday, April 18th – at the Wells Reserve and via Zoom

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It’s almost spring and we’ve all got a hankering to get back outside to do some landscaping and gardening. Instead of grabbing the same old plants off the garden center shelves, consider going the native route. Native trees, shrubs, and perennials are the glue that holds our ecosystems together and are directly tied to the health of our environment. All of our backyards could use some extra natives planted in them, but sometimes you don’t have to recreate the wheel; recognizing and preserving the natives we already have growing around us is important too. We will learn how the food … Continue reading →

Winter Seabirds in Maine – a workshop with Ed Jenkins – Saturday, March 11th

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THIS WORKSHOP HAS BEEN FULLY BOOKED.  IF YOU’D LIKE TO BE ADDED TO THE WAITING LIST, PLEASE SEND AN EMAIL TO ycas@yorkcountyaudubon.org WITH “WORKSHOP WAITING LIST” AS THE SUBJECT Seabirds are, by their very nature, enigmatic and difficult to observe closely. They are superbly adapted for life out at sea, specialized in a myriad of ways to fill every niche in an environment that may seem harsh and desolate to us. Even in Maine where seabirds are present in large numbers, getting close enough to begin to understand their fascinating lives can be tough, especially as they face growing conservation challenges. This … Continue reading →

A Video of our February 2023 program: All About Loons with Dr. James Paruk

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This program was presented on February 21, 2023 via Zoom. To watch it, please click on the image below to watch it on this page, or you can click on “Watch on Youtube” at the bottom of that image. (We also recommend clicking on the little white square in the bottom right corner of that viewing screen to convert the image to “full screen”). For a description of the program, you can scroll down to the original post for the program.

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“Ornitherapy: Watching birds is not only fun, it’s good for you!” via Zoom with Holly Merker on Tuesday, March 21st

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Learn why getting your daily dose of Ornitherapy is just what the doctor ordered! We’re pushed and pulled in many directions, no matter our age. If we allow birds and nature to slow us down, we are practicing “selfcare”. Research shows that exposure to nature actively reduces stress, depression, and anxiety, while helping build a stronger heart and immune system.  Birds are gateways into deeper experiences with nature, magnifying these benefits. Through observation, we can learn not only about birds, but gain insight into our own lives while exploring our connection to the world around us. This fosters stewardship and … Continue reading →

“All About Loons” with Dr. James Paruk via on Tuesday, Feb 21st

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The eerie call, the distinctive black and white speckled plumage, the red eyes. We are so fortunate in Maine that loons grace our lakes and ponds, but how much do you really know about them? Dr. James D. Paruk, professor of biology at Saint Joseph’s College, is considered one of the world’s experts on this species.  Understanding the breeding and non-breeding ecology of the Common Loon has been one of his life-long a passion of his for decades.  He has studied breeding loons in Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Saskatchewan and Maine and non-breeding loons in California, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Maine. … Continue reading →

Winter Wildlife Tracking with Dan Gardoqui – Sunday, Feb 5th

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Can you tell the tracks of a fox from a fisher? Ever trailed a porcupine to its den? Join Certified Wildlife Tracker and Registered Maine Guide Dan Gardoqui for an outdoor adventure. This workshop is open to all curious adults (& interested teens). We’ll spend half a day seeking out, interpreting and following the tracks, trails and signs of our wild neighbors living on the Wells Reserve. Bring your own food/snacks and dress warmly. Dan Gardoqui has been passionately connecting people to the more-than-human-world for over 30 years. He has a M.S. in Natural Resources and has served as faculty … Continue reading →