Birding By Ear at Agapé Center for Environmental Education

Earlier this week, I spent some time down at Agapé Center for Environmental Education.  I have to admit... I am a pretty urban box turtle (more on where I am from soon!), and this great North Carolina EE Center was the most rural place I have been to date in my long life!  It is located near the border of Wake and Harnett counties, and just about 30 minutes from Raleigh.  It was so peaceful ....  I might retire here!

I came to Agapé for a Birding By Ear workshop.  There were a lot of birders there, and they were all so nice.  That is the one thing about southern humans - - they sure are kind, helpful, and like to tell stories!  I also met some more fabulous members of the Environmental Educators of North Carolina.  They reminded me that registration for the 2011 NAAEE Conference opens in just a few days... June 1st!  Made a note of it in my calendar so I can make sure I get the early-bird rate!

Speaking of birds, some birds and I have one thing in common... we both like to eat earthworms!  There were sure plenty of tasty earthworms at Agape!  There were also lots of birds to see and hear.  During the workshop, we learned to identify 40 different bird species by ear, and we actual saw 22 species, too!  I hang out with a lot of birds... especially ovenbirds.  Being ground nesters, my turtle cousins and I are pretty close with them.  So, I helped the group find the ovenbirds, and they helped me find the ones higher up in the tree canopy. 

Being ground nesters, it is easy for me to find ovenbirds.  Here, I help Jessica and
Kelli find one.  Ovenbirds are also easy to identify by ear, which is handy for me as binoculars are difficult for me to hold.

Kyra points out a great crested flycatcher for me.  They spend very little time on the
ground and prefer to fly from place to place rather than hopping on the ground.  I don't
know very many flycatchers.

I was very happy that Mike Campbell, NC Wildlife Resources Commission Education Specialist, seemed to know a lot about reptiles as well as birds.  It was a great day of birding, and Mir Youngquist-Thurow and Jessica Ball, the Environmental Education Directors, carried me around so I didn’t get too tired on this excursion.  We covered over a mile of territory!  Sure, I could do that on my own, but probably not in the same time frame.

There are many different habitats at Agapé..  with 624 acres there are bound to be
many great places for turtles like me!

My understanding is that Mir is known for her hats!  Look at this - - she has a hat AND
shirt just for my visit!!  She and Jessica were wonderful hosts and I can't wait to
see them again soon. Mir told me she is helping in the volunteer office during the
NAAEE conference, so you should stop by and say hello!

My adventure at Agapé continued on Wednesday when a whole busload of 8th grade boys from West Lake Middle School came to spend the day studying water quality at the pond and the stream.  I salute them!  Turtles, as well as everything else, depend on clean water to be healthy!  I’m very pleased to report that the water quality at Agapé is stellar!

I am approaching my western destination for the weekend: the North Carolina side of Great Smoky Mountain National Park!!  I will be meeting a bunch more EENC members, including board members Blair Ogburn and Keith Bamberger, who will be leading educational programs for the group. 

No wonder I felt at home at Agapé... hope to visit again soon and thank you for being such great hosts!