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Upcoming Programs
-Great Backyard Bird Count 2/16
Future Meetings
-Year-long schedule comes out in March!
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Blake Goll
Nature Education Coordinator
Phone: 610-353-2562 Ext. 20
Email: bhg@wctrust.org
WCT Headquarters
925 Providence Road
Newtown Square, PA 19073
610-353-2562
wctrust.orgRushton Farm & Rushton Woods Preserve
911 Delchester Rd.
Newtown Square, PA 19073
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Willistown Wild Wings Newswire
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Photo caption: Northern Mockingbird, a bird likely to be seen at Rushton during the GBBC. Photo by Adrian Binns.
Annual Great Backyard Bird Count
Monday, February 16th from 9am-Noon
Meet at Rushton Woods Preserve & FarmHere's an opportunity to get outside on your day off and enjoy some fresh air, even if it is a little crisp! The annual Great Backyard Bird Count is a continent-wide citizen science bird count that gives scientists at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon the largest-ever instantaneous snapshot of bird populations! Birders of all ages and experience levels are welcome to bring some friends out to search for birds at our Rushton Woods Preserve. Every year, the GBBC offers new surprises, and our data is submitted to help improve scientists' understanding of birds.
Register with Blake Goll at bhg@wctrust.org. Please let us know if you need to borrow binoculars.
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What You Missed in December |  
Photo Caption: Young Birder during the 2014 Winter Bird Count, and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker holes in a pine tree. A dozen brave attendees trekked around the chilly countryside just outside the WCT headquarters for the annual Winter Bird Count for Kids led by PA Young Birder leaders, Deb Beer and Adrian Binns. We found over 100 birds of 28 species in under two hours! It was an exciting winter morning filled with more birds than we expected including 25 Eastern Bluebirds feasting on native holly and winterberries, 6 mockingbirds, a spectacular Pileated Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker holes in a pine tree, a Great Blue Heron flying straight towards us and a Sharp-shinned Hawk whizzing past with a junco from the bird feeders. Never a dull moment when you're birding! All of our sightings were entered into e-Bird during our Tally Rally.  Photo Caption: Young Birders enjoying the e-Bird Tally Rally! Photo by Adrian Binns. |
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Thanks for your interest in Willistown Conservation Trust's Junior Birding Club, a chapter of PA Young Birders. Studies have shown that regular experience with nature makes kids healthier, happier and significantly improves their performance in all school subjects. Getting your child involved with PA Young Birders is a wise choice that makes positive waves in your child's future.
Our Mission is to develop a culture of caring
for the natural world and desire to conserve
land, by providing meaningful, thought provoking
experiences with nature, especially birds.
Our Objectives for Your Child:
- Connect intimately to nature in order to foster a lasting love of the natural world.
- Nurture a spirit of discovery and wonder.
- Refine birding abilities and cultivate a wholesome lifelong hobby.
- Develop science skills and understanding of the scope of science.
- Create a confident conservation ethic by demonstrating the importance of preserving open space.
- Recognize the interconnectedness of habitat, birds and other wildlife.
- Ensure an ultimate understanding of the positive role humans can play in the natural world
Programs are free unless otherwise noted (although donations are always appreciated), and kids are only expected to bring a desire to learn about birds and explore nature as well as hiking shoes and clothes they don't mind getting dirty! Binoculars are a plus, but we always have a few on hand to borrow. All programs are appropriate for kids ages 8-12, but most are adaptable for younger or older kids as well; just ask me if you are concerned about the age appropriateness of a program.
 
The Willistown Conservation Trust is a non-profit land trust working to protect the rural beauty of the 28,000 acres surrounding Willistown,Pennsylvania. We're dedicated to permanently protecting our countryside from development and inspiring in people a lifelong love of the land and the natural world. Please visit our website to learn more about us, and subscribe to our bird blog to learn about what's been going on at our bird banding station this year.
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