"If you take care of the birds, you take care of most of the environmental problems of the world." Thomas Lovejoy

Website

Facebook Page

~News and Upcoming Events~ Native Plant Sale: Orton's Botanical Garden May 25-27 Thursday (this week), May 25th Birding and Potluck Picnic: Balanced Rock Park - bring your binoculars and drink, potluck dish to share, and place setting! Thurs, June 1st Program: Mike Cothern will speak about his book, "Searching Salmon Falls - Tracing the Path of a High Desert Creek" Saturday, June 24th: Annual South Hills Big Day

Annual Plant Sale at the Orton Botanical Garden 867 Filer Ave W, Twin Falls, ID 83301, US May 25-27, 2023 You can help restore bird habitat by planting native plants in your landscape.  To survive, native birds need native plants and the insects that have co-evolved with them.  Bird-friendly landscaping provides food, saves water and fights climate change. Your garden is your outdoor sanctuary.  With some careful choices, it can be a haven for birds as well. Landscaped with native species, your yard, patio, or balcony becomes a vital recharge station for birds passing through, and a sanctuary for nesting and overwinter birds.  Sale hours are 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Potluck Picnic and Birding Balanced Rock Park Thursday Evening - May 25, 2023 6pm Join Prairie Falcon Audubon for a picnic and birding activities Thursday evening, May 25th. Please note that we will meet in the park along Salmon Falls Creek, not on the rim at the actual Balanced Rock. We will start out with a potluck dinner at the picnic area enjoying migrating warblers, Lazuli Buntings, Canyon Wrens, Yellow-breasted Chats, and Cliff Swallows. Please bring your own table settings, drinks, and favorite potluck dish to share! After dinner you may choose to continue birding from the grassy park area, or join a mile hike on a rough dirt trail up the canyon. Karl will also bring a canoe and two paddle boards, or bring your own kayak, SUP or canoe, if you want to paddle upstream! This is a beautiful riparian canyon that really comes alive with wildlife in the evening. This field trip is excellent for all ages and skill levels. Feel free to call or text Karl Ruprecht at 208-749-1395 for more information. Here is a link for directions. Google Maps link

Searching Salmon Falls Tracing the Path of a High Desert Creek with author and explorer Mike Cothern Thursday, June 1st 7:00 PM Room 201, Shields Bldg. College of Southern Idaho This will be an IN-PERSON program ZOOM link available: https://csi.zoom.us/j/2730389966

Have you ever spent time near a creek or river and considered what lies upstream? Have you gazed into the flow, contemplated its journey, and grown curious about what secrets the drainage might hold? Mike's book, Searching Salmon Falls tells the story about a sequence of treks that enabled him to witness a slice of the watershed-from the creek's finish in Idaho to its source in a remote Nevada wilderness. The excursions he describes pass through a variety of terrain shaped by events that range from ancient volcanoes, flood waters, and a recent landslide or two. The narrative is also a tale of humanity that includes the area's first inhabitants, Euro-American explorers and settlers, and a few current residents. Traveling mostly alone but sometimes in the company of his wife Beth, the outings consist of more than an inventory of the region's unique resources. They are a celebration of wild landscapes offering few trails and the chance to embrace solitude and build a connection with the natural world. Come join the author and explore Salmon Falls Creek! Buy his book from Amazon HERE

Mike Cothern, a resource conservationist and avid explorer and hiker from Buhl, first wrote about Salmon Falls Creek as a five-part series for the Twin Falls Times-News. During his fifteen-year span as an outdoor correspondent for the southern Idaho newspaper, he contributed more than one hundred feature articles and columns. His work has also appeared in Idaho Magazine.

Annual South Hills IBA Big Day     (OPTIONAL) Friday night, June 23rd Friday night birding begins at 6:00 PM Saturday, June 24th, 2023 Saturday birding ends at 6:00 PM Compilation/Potluck Picnic begins at 6:00 PM Call or email Karl Ruprecht to sign up: 208-749-1395 ruprechtjk@hotmail.com

Karl Ruprecht has been heading up the survey since 2008 so this will be our 15th census (we've missed a year due to nasty weather).   The weather this year will hopefully cooperate so that we can spend an entire day (or more if you owl the night before) in the South Hills searching out and counting birds. The odds of seeing something different from what you’ve been seeing at your feeder are very high. Currently I have only 14 species in my yard; fifteen if you count the Sharpie/Cooper’s that swoops through about once a week. At this time of year in the South Hills there are more than 175 regularly occurring species possibilities, including the Idaho endemic Cassia Crossbill! 194 species have been tallied altogether over the years.   Please give Karl a call and he will put you on a team. He tries his best to put novice birders with “experts” and to accommodate your wishes as to where, and for how long, you would like to bird.   We finish the day with a simple potluck at the Ruprecht cabin in the South Hills. Everyone is invited, even those who did not bird. Plan to bring your own drinks, dinner-ware, and something to share that can stay in a cooler in a car all day long (salad, dessert, veges, fruit, etc.). Audubon will provide fried chicken (a perennial birder’s favorite!). Call Karl for more information and to RSVP if you plan to bird or if you plan to attend the potluck picnic. He will provide directions to the Ruprecht cabin and set you up with a team.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Statement Prairie Falcon Audubon, Inc. fully supports National Audubon Society's statement on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (www.audubon.org/about/equity-diversity-and-inclusion-audubon). Prairie Falcon Audubon, Inc. believes that everyone has the right to enjoy birds, the outdoors, and a healthy and safe environment. In order to fulfill our mission to educate the general public about birds, bird watching, and preservation/improvement of the environment that birds and bird watchers share, we will work to include everyone, no matter their race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, political affiliation, age, or disability. We are committed to building an equitable, diverse, anti-racist, accessible, fun, and inclusive organization that supports birds, and the people who watch them, in our community.

CHECK THIS OUT! Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Academy An incredible resource for anyone (young to old) who wants to learn more about birds! "Whether you’re a bird lover, an educator, or a student, interactive courses and multimedia-rich resources will lead you into the fascinating lives of birds, from birding basics to comprehensive ornithology."

Courses Learn More About Birds with These Courses FREE - $130 Start at your level. Go at your own pace. There’s something for every bird enthusiast. Videos Watch a Short Video FREE A curated collection of educational videos from Cornell Lab Games Play games Powered by Birds FREE Birds are awesome. Play games that explore flight, song, dance, feathers, and so much more. Lectures Listen to a Lecture FREE Keep learning with this curated collection of videos from the Cornell Lab. Each is about an hour long.