Bird Walk with Joe Gyekis

Saturday, April 20, 2024 8:00 - 10:00 AM 

Join us for our first Bird Walk of the year at ChicoryLane. Walk leader Joe Gyekis is a Penn State faculty member and skilled birder. He is an expert in identifying birds by their calls and is intimately familiar with ChicoryLane. Walking on easy, mowed trails, we will visit streams, wet meadows, woodlands, grasslands, and an upland meadow.

Free event, no pre-registration required. Restroom available. Rain or shine except in a deluge.

If you can't make this date, Joe will be back on September 21 to lead a fall walk.

Birds we hope to see . . .

• A variety of migratory birds start arriving in Penns Valley mid-April. We'll look for a variety of Warblers, including the Pine and Yellow-rumped Warblers as well as the Common Yellowthroat. Other migrants we might find on this date include Cedar Waxwing, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Ruby-crowned Kinglet.
• We’ll expect to see early returning resident birds. Though some Robins choose to winter in Pennsylvania, many return in large numbers during the spring.
• Tree and Barn Swallows as well as Purple Martins can be seen darting over fields and near water.
• While they can be seen year-round, Osprey and Bald Eagle activity increases in April as they return to or become more active around their nesting sites.
• Spring migration will result in an increase in Raptors such as Red-tailed and Broad-winged Hawks moving through the area.
• By the end of April, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds start to make their appearance, depending on weather patterns.
• Bopping along on the ground in day or peening and flying at night, the American Woodcock is a joy to behold.

Pictured right, top to bottom: Cedar Waxwing, Tree Swallow, Red-tail Hawk, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, American Woodcock. All images courtesy of Debra Rittelmann. Many thanks!

"Walking Willow" at ChicoryLane in Summer

ChicoryLane is an ecological reserve near Spring Mills, protected by a Conservation Easement held by Clearwater Conservancy. It is 68 acres of very diverse lands that we are actively enhancing ecologically.

The landscape is natural, but scenic. It includes wetlands and meadows, several streams, remnant and successional forests, and a grassland. This diversity of habitats is especially inviting to birds and butterflies. A system of mowed trails makes most of it accessible to walkers.

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