FREE Birding Fest At Heinz Refuge This Weekend

Heinz Refuge Annual “Cradle of Birding” Festival on Saturday, Sept. 17

The John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum will be hosting its annual “Cradle of Birding” Wildlife and Conservation Festival on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 7am to 3pm.  The festival is a great event for the entire family and terrific way for everyone to connect with nature.

There will be dozens of exhibitors showcasing just about everything imaginable having to do with nature, how to be eco-friendly, and how you can even create your own “refuge” right at home. Naturally there will be workshops on birding for every level of birder including advanced, birding for youngsters, and birding by ear. There will also be non-birding workshops on fly tying and nature photography, and live animal demonstrations including critters from the Philadelphia Zoo and the always popular “Raptor Show” featuring hawks, owls, and eagles.

Live music will be provided by Tinicum’s own “Environmental Troubadour, Glen Waldek and there will be free hot dogs and soft drinks for all present.  You can take a trackless trolley tour of the refuge and learn about the different habitats and wildlife or watch how retrieving dogs are trained.  Area carvers will be on hand creating amazing pieces of art and several of our own volunteer naturalists will lead 3 early morning birding walks starting a 7am.

Winners of the refuge’s annual nature photography contest will be announced during an awards ceremony at 1pm.

The keynote speaker for this year’s festival will be John Rogers of Bird Town Pennsylvania with a presentation of how to create bird and butterfly habitats in your own yard at 2pm.

The “Cradle of Birding” Festival is sponsored by the Friends of the Heinz Refuge and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and is a FREE event. 

For more information on the “Cradle of Birding” Festival visit us at www.fws.gov/heinz or give us a call at: 215-365-3118.

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