harney county migratory bird festival speaker

I will be the featured speaker at the 2027 Harney County Migratory Bird Festival, celebrating the great flocks of snow geese, tundra swans, white-faced ibis, and sandhill cranes that depend on the flooded wetlands around Burns, Oregon. The festival covers the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, one of the great havens for migratory birds in the world. What do wetlands have to do with feathered forests? All is connected. From the great old cottonwoods sheltering owls and songbirds within the refuge to the adjacent Blue Mountains with old-growth ponderosas, the big trees and ancient groves are entwined. Water is the great connector in a dry landscape especially. Marina’s presentation will weave the birds of Malheur with the story of the feathered forests–taking people aloft with birds in ancient trees.

Below is a photo from my 2024 presentation at the same festival–featuring my book, Halcyon Journey: In Search of the Belted Kingfisher, right after the awards ceremony in New York City for the John Burroughs Medal.