Hancock County Naturalists To Host Program On Birds And People

(From Hancock County Naturalists)

The Hancock County Naturalists will hold their next meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, at Brugeman Lodge, 16618 Township Road 208. The featured presentation, Birds and People: A Powerful Connection, will be led by Kimberly Kaufman, executive director of the Black Swamp Bird Observatory. The program will explore why birds captivate people through their colors, songs, nesting behaviors, and remarkable migrations, and why natural areas play a critical role in quality of life. The event is free and open to those aged 15 and older.

Kaufman became the education director of Black Swamp Bird Observatory in 2005 and the executive director in 2009. She helped develop the organization’s school programs and the Ohio Young Birders Club, which has become a model for youth birding programs nationwide. She is also co-founder of The Biggest Week in American Birding, the largest birding festival in the United States.

She is a contributing editor for Birds & Blooms magazine and a co-author of the Kaufman Field Guides to Nature of New England and Nature of the Midwest. Her honors include the Chandler Robbins Award from the American Birding Association and a Milestone Award from the Toledo Area YWCA. Kaufman resides in Oak Harbor, Ohio.

Hancock County Naturalists’ membership and events are open to those aged 15 and older. Annual membership fees are $15 per adult, $20 per couple, and $10 for youth. For more information, contact Jane Riker at 419-306-3697 or [email protected]. The group’s website is hancockcountynaturalists.org.