This weekend, I was involved in two events to celebrate and educate people on the need to protect habitat for our many species of migratory birds, both here and in other parts of their range. The event is called International Migratory Bird Day.
The first event was at a local, suburban lake and I represented OpticsPlanet.net in a booth with scores of other local birding related businesses. I set up a few spotting scopes and showed people some of the birds up and down the breadth of the lake, but most of the fun centered around two very occupied and very busy Purple Martin houses. These birds are not only lovely, they are also very interesting. Great subjects for such an event, too.
The next day, I helped a local nature preserve and set my scope at various stations along the nature trial. The variety of birds was much greater and the surrounding more typical of my usual haunts. It was a beautiful day and each and every visitor loved the idea that someone would take the time to share the amazing sights of a bird seen up close through a quality spotting scope. Saw lots of great birds, but better yet, met lots of nice people.
