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| (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Learn all about the world of migratory and resident birds at the Wings over Weston event Saturday, May 12 at Weston Bend State Park near Weston. The event, a birding festival for the entire family, is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
Activities
will focus on birds, their ecosystems and bird watching. There will be
guided bird hikes and programs on building bird houses and feeders, how
to use binoculars and making bird masks and hats. Other activities will
include face painting, mural painting, touch tables, story time, a
migration obstacle course and more. Prizes, raffles, and refreshments
will be offered throughout the day.
Special
guests will include Operation Wildlife with live rescued birds and the
Missouri River Bird Observatory in Marshall, who will band birds and
allow children to release them into the wild. The Bluegrass Tornadoes
with provide live entertainment, and Missouri Wildflowers Nursery will
sell Missouri native plants for the benefit of Wings over Weston.
Wings
over Weston is sponsored by Burroughs Audubon Society of Greater Kansas
City, Missouri State Parks, Kansas City Power and Light, City of
Weston, Platte County Parks and Recreation, and the Missouri Department
of Conservation. Volunteers will be on hand from the Missouri Master
Naturalists Loess Hills and Osage Trails Chapters, The Wildlife Society
from Missouri Western State University, Squaw Creek National Wildlife
Refuge and Friends of Squaw Creek.
Saturday’s
event is part of a two-day program to celebrate the world of birds. On
Friday, fourth grade students from the surrounding areas have been
invited to visit the park for a hands-on experience about birds. The
students will rotate among five educational stations staffed by trained
volunteers.
This
is the third year for Wings over Weston, which showcases the kind of
landscape birds depend on to survive and thrive. Weston Bend State Park
is part of an Important Bird Area or IBA. The IBA program is a global
effort to identify and conserve areas that are vital to birds. The IBA
that includes Weston Bend State Park is known as the Iatan/Weston River
Corridor IBA and contains one of the largest surviving tracts of
old-growth bottomland forest along the entire length of the Missouri
River.
Weston
Bend State Park is located south of Weston at 16600 Highway 45 North.
For more information about the event, contact Weston Bend State Park at 816-640-5443. For information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
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