Hi all:
Just a quick note to let you know that the following SAS classes still have
space available. Information can also be found on the website at
www.seattleaudubon.org. To register, please contact the Nature Shop at
206.523.4483 (with the exception of the joint offering with ELWAS).

Introduction to Shorebird ID: A Beginner's Course on Washington's Coastal
Shorebirds
Seattle and East Lake Washington Audubon--Joint Program
with Jim Flynn, Master Birder
Do you confuse plovers with peeps or despair at sorting out all of those
long-legged and long-billed brown shorebirds? This class will teach you how
to navigate the muddle of mud-probing shorebirds. Slides and fact sheets on
habitat, season of occurrence, size, and overall shape will help you narrow
the choices to the one or two most likely species. From there the final ID
is within reach! At Grays Harbor and Tokeland, we will see most of the
common coastal shorebirds in their colorful breeding plumages.
Register through ELWAS: 425-576-8805
Monday-Saturday, 10:00AM-2:00PM
Class: Tuesday, April 29 and Thursday, May 1
Time: 7:00-9:00PM
Location: Sanctuary, Northlake Unitarian Church, 308 4th Avenue South,
Kirkland
Field Trip: Sunday, May 18
Cost: $65 members, $80 nonmembers
Limit: 15

Birds and Botany of Washington's Shrub-Steppe
With Brenda Senturia, Master Birder

This class will focus on the birds and plant communities of selected areas
in the Columbia Basin of Eastern Washington. Learn to appreciate Sage
Sparrows, Sage Thrashers, Brewer's Sparrows and other shrub-steppe species.
Major habitat types will be presented. The emphasis will be on relationships
between birds and their habitats. Spring wildflowers are spectacular!

Class: Tuesday, April 29 and Wednesday, April 30, 7 - 9:00 P.M.
Location: Fireside Room, Wedgewood Presbyterian Church
Field Trip: Saturday, May 3 or Sunday, May 4.
Cost: $60 SAS members, $75 nonmembers.
Limit: 24


Ornithology for the Birder Series
Breeding Bird Behavior
With John Wingfield, PhD, University of Washington

The life cycle of birds involves major changes in body structure, physiology
and behavior. In these two classes we will take a close look at behaviors
associated with breeding. For example, why do birds sing and why does
singing rate change with time of year? Why do some birds flock and others
defend exclusive territories? Finally we will explore types of parental
behavior and the nests that birds construct to raise their young.

Class: Monday, May 5 and Wednesday, May 7, 7-9:00PM
Location: Douglas Classroom, CUH
Cost: $40 SAS members, $55 non-members
Limit: 40


The Effect of High Latitude Climate Change On Arctic and Antarctic Seabirds
With George Divoky, PhD, Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska

Polar regions and the species that occupy them will be among the first to
experience the effects of global temperature increases. Both the Arctic
and Antarctic support large and diverse seabird populations and changes in
these populations are already being observed as rising air temperatures
affect the sensitive snow and ice habitats that characterize both regions.
We will discuss current research documenting changes in high latitude
seabird populations and the physical and ecosystem processes driving these
changes. In addition, we will examine potential future changes in various
climate change scenarios.

George has conducted research in the Arctic for over three decades and has
an ongoing study of Black Guillemots in northern Alaska. A summary of his
research is online at http://cooperisland.org

Class: Tuesday, May 6, 7-9:00PM
Location: Fireside Room, Wedgewood Presbyterian Church
Cost: $40 SAS members, $55 non-members
Limit: 40


The Art of Nature Series
Illustrated Journaling
With Frances Wood, Master Birder

Quick sketches, diagrams and colorful drawings add a delightful visual
element to field notes and journals. This three-session course will give
techniques and ideas for saving a thousand words by including a picture. We
will explore several media including ink and colored pencil. No "talent" or
experience necessary.
Before becoming a writer and editor Frances Wood taught art for many years.
She has undergraduate and graduate degrees in art and teaching. Frances has
painted and illustrated birds for sale and publication.

Class: Wednesdays, May 7, 14, and 21, 7-9:00 PM.
Location: Classroom B-1, Wedgewood Presbyterian Church
Cost: $60 SAS members, $75 nonmembers
Limit: 12



Birds and Botany of Washington's Ponderosa Pine Zone
With Brenda Senturia, Master Birder

In this class we will explore the diverse avifauna of the Ponderosa Pine
zone of Eastern Washington. We will also cover the major plant species and
habitat characteristics as well as the many bird species that inhabit
Ponderosa Pine forests, including White-headed Woodpeckers, White-breasted
Nuthatches, Gray Flycatchers, and Western Bluebirds. We will also discuss
fire ecology.

Class: Monday, May 12 and Wednesday, May 14, 7 - 9:00 PM
Location: Douglas Classroom, CUH
Field Trip: Saturday, May 17 or Sunday May 18
Cost: $60 SAS members, $75 nonmembers
Limit: 24


Wild Plants of Greater Seattle
With Arthur Lee Jacobson, author of Trees of Seattle etc; a lifelong
Seattleite with 20+ years of plant-study. To learn more go to
www.arthurleej.com.

A lively way to learn the ID and attributes of urban and suburban wild
plants. Get acquainted with native and non-native trees, shrubs, weeds,
wildflowers, and grasses. Whether you know much or not, you will enhance
your understanding and appreciation of greenery in the city. The class
consists of two slide-illustrated evening lectures to serve as a broad
overview and introduction, and a weekend field trip to see, touch, sniff and
sometimes taste living plants. Optional text is the instructor's book Wild
Plants of Greater Seattle.

Class: Tuesday, May 27 and Thursday, May 29, 7-9:00PM
Location: Issacson Boardroom, CUH
Field Trip: Saturday, May 31, 9-12:00 Noon
Cost: $50 for SAS members, $65 for non-members
Limit: 15


Ornithology for the Birder Series
Birding by Number
with Todd Hass, PhD, Research Scientist and Lecturer, School of Aquatic and
Fishery Sciences, University of Washington
With a pinch of practicality and a dash of statistics, birding can inform
ornithology. Join us for a review of the scientific method and its
application to avian conservation. Learn how to count again and to make your
lists count!
Class: Monday, June 2, 7-9:00PM
Location: Wedgwood Presbyterian, Fireside Rm.
Cost: $25 members, $40 nonmembers
Limit: 25

An Introduction to the Flycatchers and Warblers of Washington
with Kevin Aanerud, Chairperson of the Washington Bird Records Committee
This course will feature identification by sight and sound of the regularly
occurring species found in the state, including the notoriously
difficult-to-identify flycatchers of the empidonax genus. Learn where and
when to find our visiting flycatchers and warblers during their migrations
and in their breeding habitats.
The full-day field trip will explore the east slope of the Cascades and all
of the various habitats along the I-90 corridor.
Class: Monday, June 9 and Wednesday, June 18
Time: 7:00-9:00PM
Location: Wedgwood Presbyterian, Fireside Rm.
Field Trip: Saturday, June 21
Cost: $65 members, $80 nonmembers
Limit: 25


Marissa J. Benavente
Classes Committee Chairperson
Seattle Audubon Society
junebugrocks at attbi.com
206.522.5273