Join us at The Loft Cinema for the 2025 documentary film, Listers: A Glimpse Into Extreme Birdwatching, created by brothers Owen and Quentin Reiser and published on YouTube. The film will be introduced by Tucson Bird Alliance’s Alex Patia, who had a small “starring” role in the film! Tickets to be purchased here later in June. Limited to 90 participants.
Difficulty: Easy. Flat walking trails in the city park. Bathroom on-site.
Take a bird walk in the field with experienced “I-birders” and learn how to use your technology to enhance your birding. Bring a pair of binoculars, your smart phone (with Merlin, E-bird App, and a field guide (i.e., Sibley) pre-loaded), and a Bluetooth/Wi-Fi enabled camera (if you have one), and learn how to FIND birds more easily, ID them more accurately, and SHARE information more quickly. Specific meeting instructions emailed beforehand. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is less than 5 minutes. Limited to 10 participants.
Verdin, Mick Thompson
Difficulty: Easy. A few mild slopes but mostly flat ground and good walking surfaces. Bathroom and water on-site.
For visitors and those new to the Sonoran Desert, Tohono Chul’s easy-walking trails and gardens provide close-up looks at many of the desert specialties. Of the more than 500 bird species that spend time in Arizona during the year, 140 are known to have visited Tohono Chul, and on any given morning you might see up to 15 species here. All year long you can watch our state bird, the Cactus Wren, flit from cactus to tree and back again, chattering as he goes. Observe the Curved-billed Thrasher, with its saucy two-part whistle, scrabbling on the ground or nesting in cholla cactus. Enjoy our two year-round resident hummingbird species, Anna’s and Costa’s, as they dart about, feeding among the many colorful flowers. And be sure to look upward for a glance of our majestic Cooper’s Hawks, a pair of which has nested in the gardens for each of the last four years. Meet at the Tohono Chul Admission Window. Limited to 10 participants.
Cooper’s Hawk, Michele Wiesz
Difficulty: Easy. Walking on excellent surfaces at a city park. Bathrooms on-site.
Calling all birders, AND Pokemon trainers! We’ll search midtown Tucson’s largest park for Pokemon and birds! Join artist and birder Christina Baal of Drawing 10,000 Birds on this epic search of our two favorite things at Reid Park. Pokemon was created by an individual who became fascinated with observing the insects and creatures living in his backyard. If you think about it, birding is just like Pokemon- but in real life! We will see just how many Pokemon are based on living (and non-living thing) things all around us, particularly birds, and see how many entries we can add to our group Pokedex while exploring the natural world. A fun activity to test your Pokemon AND birding skills and knowledge, and earn your very own Birder Gym Badge! Limited to 15 participants.
Difficulty: Easy. Just over a mile walking on excellent surfaces. Bathroom and water on-site.
Join Rich Bailowitz, author of the Field Guide to the Damselflies and Dragonflies of Arizona and Sonora at this artificial wetland perfectly situated for a wide variety of dragonflies and damselflies. We’ll also come across some great birds too! Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.
Are you a birder and would like to learn more about your camera and how to capture your own photos? Join professional Nature Photographer Krisztina with KS Nature Photography for a casual session of birding with the added bonus of photography. This program is open to all ages, birders, photographers, and anyone who would like to learn more about the birds and about basic camera techniques for bird photography. Bring your binoculars and any camera, if you like (point and shoot, DSLR, Mirrorless – and any lens). Specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. To read more about Krisztina, please visit www.KSNaturePhotography.com. Limited to 12 participants.
American Kestrel, Krisztina Scheeff
Difficulty: Easy. Mostly flat, groomed trails at a large city park. Bathrooms on-site.
This beautiful park in northeast Tucson includes a large lake (with a few smaller ponds), grassy park area with palm trees, and is surrounded by Sonoran desert. This mix of habitats creates opportunities for many birds including Anna’s, Costa’s, and Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Brown-crested Flycatcher, the Hesperia subspecies of Purple Martin, Phainopepla, and Hooded Oriole. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 30 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.
Black-chinned Hummingbird, Hemant Kishan
Difficulty: Easy. Flat walking around city park trails for about a mile. Bathrooms on-site.
Less than 15 minutes from the festival venue, this is one of the best spots in Tucson to find Vermilion Flycatchers and the city park habitat (along with pond) offers a good variety of species. We’ll walk the grounds hoping to find Broad-billed Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Cassin’s Kingbird, Lark Sparrows, and Lucy’s Warblers. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 10 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.
Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Shawn Cooper
Difficulty: Easy. Walking on excellent surfaces at a city park. No bathroom on-site.
Join local leader, Marie Davis, for a walk around the beautiful gardens of Desert Meadows Park in Green Valley. Birds to look for include Costa’s Hummingbird, Vermilion Flycatcher, Rufous-winged Sparrow, and Abert’s Towhee. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 35 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.
Costa’s Hummingbird, Francis Morgan
Difficulty: Easy. About one mile walking on easy dirt (and some concrete) walking paths. Bathroom and water on-site.
This artificial wetland is the premier birding hotspot in the Tucson Valley, offering a stunning variety of species that can be found here at any time during the season. Green Heron, Common Gallinule, Tropical Kingbird, Common Yellowthroat, and Abert’s Towhees are some of our prime targets. Join Vernie Aikins of Naturalist Journeys for a fun and diverse bird walk! Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.
Common Gallinule, Scott Olmstead