Almanack Contributor Alexandra Roalsvig

Enjoy a weekend of birding events this Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 29-30 in Long Lake.  Participants will look for winter irruptive species – Red Crossbills have already irrupted – along with Winter Finches, White-winged Crossbills, Pine Siskins, Purple Finches, and American Goldfinches. These species have been found gritting (eating sand and salt off the road to help with seed digestion), and foraging on cones.

Trip Leader and Birding expert, Joan Collins, will lead field trips on both days.  Both Saturday and Sunday morning, participants will meet outside the Adirondack Hotel at 1245 Main St., Long Lake at 7 a.m. Located near the bridge over Long Lake on Route 30. Participants must take their own vehicles for this event.

Trip Leader Joan Collins, President of Adirondack Avian Expeditions & Workshops, LLC, leads birding trips year-round, is a New York State licensed guide, an Adirondack 46er, and has climbed all the Adirondack fire tower peaks. She is a past President of the New York State Ornithological Association and current Editor of New York Birders. She is a past Board of Directors member of the Audubon Council of New York State, and past President of Northern New York Audubon Society. Joan has published several journal, magazine, and newspaper articles on wildlife and conservation topics in various publications. She authored several warbler species accounts, in addition to serving as a peer reviewer for The Second Atlas of Breeding Birds in New York State. Joan is a frequent keynote speaker and teaches classes on ornithology topics.

Registration is required to attend the field trips and the field trips are free.  Call the Long Lake Parks and Recreation Department at 518-624-3077 to pre-register.  There is a maximum of 25 participants for each field trip.

The Winter Birding Weekend is sponsored by the Long Lake Parks and Recreation Department. For more info visit mylonglake.com