Birders and activists throughout the world are celebrating International Migratory Bird Day and World Migratory Bird Day this weekend.
Although the two events are separate entities, the idea is the same: raise awareness and promote conservation during migration, which is a crucial time for birds.
The events take place the second weekend of every May, and birders around the world will be participating in various celebrations to encourage conservationism and appreciation of birds.
In the United States, which mostly acknowledges International Migratory Bird Day, birders are getting ready to head outdoors with binoculars. For example, in Wisconsin, Andy Paulios, a biologist at the Department of Natural Resources, is calling Saturday “our opening day.” Even though you can go birding any time of year, this is one of the days you can see the widest variety of migrating birds, including many species of warblers.
Every year, the International Migratory Bird Day establishes a theme, and this year, it’s “Go Wild, Go Birding.” The idea behind the theme is to focus on reaching out to youth and non-birders to get them interested in conservationism and birding.
If you don’t have any plans this weekend, I recommend you grabbing binoculars, finding a non-birding friend and taking him or her out to enjoy the wonders and adventure of birding.
