Festival will welcome migrating birds back to the St. Croix Valley

Tropical Wings’ annual celebration of birds that winter in the tropics will include events for families throughout the lower St. Croix Valley.

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3 minute read

Via Tropical Wings:

Learn more about the waves of migratory birds that pass through the St. Croix River Valley each spring by joining in our hands-on, family friendly St. Croix Flyway Bird Migration Celebration.

Our celebration is always the second weekend of May to coincide with International Migratory Bird Day. Activities are planned in communities on both sides of the St. Croix National Wild and Scenic Riverway. This festival echoes our Sister Parks festival which takes place on the first Saturday of March on the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica, where participants there bid farewell to the birds that are beginning the long journey back to the St. Croix River Valley.

Events

Youth Art Exhibition at Hudson Hospital
405 Stageline Rd, Hudson
Saturday, May 11—Sunday, June 30

Enjoy student artwork developed around neotropical migratory birds that are shared between the St. Croix Watershed and the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. Students from both ends of this migration route have participated in creating artworks that represents a variety of bird species. This collection will be on display across from the hospital café beginning on May 11 during the Bird Migration Celebration.

Migration Celebration Reception
The Phipps Center for the Arts
109 Locust St, Hudson
Friday, May 10, 6:30 – 7:00 pm

Refreshments, silent auction, opportunities to interact with local education and conservation organizations, and live raptor meet & greet. Keynote presentation by the President of the Gaylord Nelson Audubon Society, Steve Betchkal. Presentation of habitat grant awards, and performance of an original song by RiverCrest Elementary students.

Great River Road Visitor & Learning Center
200 Monroe St, Prescott
Saturday, May 11, 8:00 am

Join birder Neil Skoog for a morning bird walk around the bluff tops of Prescott, WI. Learn about the importance of healthy local habitats for birds and wildlife, and how you can help our neotropical migratory birds. Meet at St. Joseph Cemetery on Monroe St. Enjoy hands-on Art + Nature activities all day!

Carpenter Nature Center, Wisconsin Campus
300 East Cove Rd, Hudson
Saturday, May 11

8:00 am – Early Morning Bird Walk led by the St. Croix Valley Bird Club (BYO binoculars)
8:00 – 11:00 am – Bird Banding Demos
9:00 – 11:00 am – Self-guided nature hikes, children’s activities, and welcome tent with information on birds and habitat.

MN Interstate Park
307 Milltown Rd, Taylors Falls
Saturday, May 11, 10:00 am

What was that bird!? Where did it go!? This family-friendly program will explore the world of birds through games, a craft, and a short 1/4-mile hike. You’ll even get simple cardboard binoculars to take home and use on your own backyard birds. Meet at the stone picnic shelter at the south entrance of the park.

Belwin Conservancy
1553 Stagecoach Trail S., Afton
Sunday, May 12

6:45-9:00 am – Mother’s Day Hike. Join us for a delightful guided hike at Belwin Conservancy’s Education Property. Walk along wetlands, streams, prairies and an oak savanna restoration in progress. There are stunning vistas and of course a plethora of birds! Questions? Call 651-808-1381