East Cascades Bird Alliance

Birding Bio Blitz at Hatfield Ponds
2026-04-25 07:00 - 09:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Hatfield Ponds, 22395 McGrath Rd, Bend, OR, 97701, United States
Join the second day of City Nature Challenge with community bird watching bioblitz event!
Hatfield Ponds
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2026-bend

2026 Earth Day Fair
2026-04-25 11:00 - 15:00 | Alpenglow Park, 61049 SE 15th St,, Bend, OR, 97702, United States
Visit the ECBA booth at the 2026 Earth Day Fair at Alpenglow Park in Bend.
https://envirocenter.org/tec-events/earth-day-fair/

Birding by Ear
2026-04-28 08:00 - 09:30, 2026-05-05 08:00 - 09:30, 2026-05-12 08:00 - 09:30, 2026-05-19 08:00 - 09:30, 2026-05-26 08:00 - 09:30, 2026-06-02 08:00 - 09:30 | Sawyer Park, 62999 O. B. Riley Road, Bend, Oregon
Birding by Ear is a weekly bird walk led by ECBA volunteer Dave Tracy and will take place every Tuesday through early June.
Meet at Sawyer Park at 8 a.m. Bird walks typically last 1-1.5 hours depending on bird activity. We usually cover about 1-1.5 miles over mostly flat trails.
Depending on the weather, be prepared to dress for cool, breezy conditions. Wear suitable clothing and footwear in case of snow and muddy trails.
New as well as seasoned birders are welcome! Learn to identifiy the birds you hear, hone the skills you have, or share your talent with others!
If you haven’t already, please fill out the ECBA General Activity Waiver. Waivers are required for all ECBA trips. The online waiver takes one minute and you only need to fill one out once per year. Thank you!
General Activity Waiver

Wednesday Birders
2026-04-29 08:00
Wednesday Birders is a group of birders, birding, but not a traditional field trip with a named leader who always provides a guided field experience. Everyone helps everyone else, shares, learns and enjoys birding together. Usually some advanced birders are there and are so helpful. All are welcomed. We carpool when possible.
As times vary from week to week, please watch COBOL for details and times which are usually announced a few days prior to Wednesday.
All the locations are listed on our website. From the home page, select Birding Resources, and from the drop-down menu, you can choose Birding by County where you will get a list of favorite birding places including directions to the spots and what birds you might hope to find.
One of the goals of Wednesday Birders is to encourage everyone to use the ECBA birding site guides and get used to using those directions and the “how to bird it” tips for the locations. Simply select the county and the hotspots are listed alphabetically.
Important Notes:

Please remember to read COBOL by Tuesday mornings for last minute details and changes to plans in case of adverse weather, road conditions or detours, bird news or better birding opportunities. Watch COBOL for meeting and carpooling times and places or for changes in the plan.
COBOL is Central Oregon Birders Online. It’s free to join.
Remember to dress for the weather. Be prepared with food, sunscreen, etc. and bring a pair of binoculars. Spotting scopes are helpful on many trips.

For questions and for more information contact: dukedt@gmail OR brian.macdonald9@gmail.com or brianmacdonald0458 in Discord

Crooked River Wetlands Guided Bird Walk
2026-05-02 07:45 - 10:00, 2026-05-16 07:45 - 10:00, 2026-06-06 07:45 - 10:00, 2026-06-20 07:45 - 10:00, 2026-07-04 07:45 - 10:00, 2026-07-18 07:45 - 10:00 | Crooked River Wetlands Complex, 4035 NW Rimrock Acres Loop in Prineville, OR, 4035 NW Rimrock Acres Loop, Prineville, OR, 97754, United States
In 2026, Wetlands Walks will be held on the first and third Saturdays of the month starting in April and running through September. The first walk will be April 4, 2026 and the last walk of the year will be September 19, 2026. No walks October through March.
Walks will begin at 8:00AM and conclude at 10:00AM. We gather at 7:45AM at the Crooked River Wetlands
Pavillion at 4035 NW Rimrock Acres Loop in Prineville. Walks will be about 2 miles.
There is no drinkable water at this facility so bring water and dress for Central Oregon
weather. A 4-person golf cart is available to carry those who can’t walk the distance.
For more information (including reserving space on the golf cart), contact Chuck Gates at 541-280-4957 or send email to CRWCTOURS@cityofprineville.com
Sponsored by Prineville Bird Club and Crooked River Volunteers

ECBA Board Meeting
2026-05-05 16:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-07 16:00 - 18:00, 2026-08-04 16:00 - 18:00, 2026-09-01 16:00 - 18:00, 2026-10-06 16:00 - 18:00, 2026-11-03 16:00 - 18:00
East Cascades Bird Alliance Board of Directors meets monthly, on the first Tuesday.

World Migratory Bird Day
2026-05-09 00:00

Birders' Night: Visions of Desert Life with Alan Contreras
2026-05-14 18:00 - 19:30 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Visions of Desert Life with Alan Contreras
Long-time Oregon birder and writer Alan Contreras will present an unusual program of poems, stories and images related to birds, wildlife and the human experience of eastern Oregon. He will read from his own work and the work of other writers including Ursula K. Le Guin, Ada Hastings Hedges, Ellen Waterston, C.E.S. Wood and others. These readings will be accented with images by visual artists and photographers working in eastern Oregon and perhaps excerpts from music inspired by eastern Oregon.
Alan L. Contreras, a fourth-generation Oregonian, has published several books about the natural world as well as professional work in higher education, poetry and essays. His recent work includes A History of Oregon Ornithology (senior editor, OSU Press 2022), Edge of Awe: Experiences of the Malheur-Steens Country (editor, OSU Press 2019), and Collected Poems of Ada Hastings Hedges (ed. with Ulrich Hardt, OSU Press 2020). He is currently working on a book on the Oregon desert as a source of creative inspiration. He will have books for sale at the meeting.
The program will start at 6pm. Feel free to come early for dinner and a beverage. There is typically a nice group there by 5:00pm or so. And Worthy Brewing offers a nice Happy Hour Menu from 3-6pm.

Summer Lake Shorebird Survey
2026-05-30 - 2026-05-31 | Summer Lake, 53447 OR-31, Summer Lake, OR, 97640, United States
Where: Summer Lake Wildlife Area
What: Volunteers conduct counts of all shorebirds and other waterbirds (excluding waterfowl and American coots) across the entire Summer Lake Wildlife Area.
When: Saturday & Sunday, May 30 and 31, 2026
Why: The survey was established in 2009 to monitor breeding shorebird and other waterbird populations and to document bird responses to habitat enhancement and management actions in each of Summer Lake Wildlife Area’s habitat management units. The Summer Lake Shorebird Survey has been conducted annually (except in 2020) since 2009.
On average, over 3,100 shorebirds representing the 9 breeding species have been counted. In addition, about 5 non-breeding shorebird species have been found each year.
Since 2009, a total of 22 different shorebird species have been recorded including uncommon or rare species such as red knot, wandering tattler and whimbrel.
Other waterbirds such as waders, gulls & terns, grebes, pelicans & cormorants, sandhill cranes and rails are also counted and average over 1,300 individuals and over 20 species.
How: Volunteers count from vehicles along roads, and/or by foot hiking along dikes and levees, cross country and/or wading through marsh and shallow ponds to survey all types of wetland habitat. Volunteers willing to survey by wading/hiking (for 3 or 4 hours) into distant (1 to 2 miles from dikes/roads) are especially needed.
In the past, bicycles, canoes and kayaks have been used in some areas.
Binoculars are essential and the use of spotting scopes in many areas is encouraged.
Volunteers meet at River Campground on Summer Lake Wildlife Area at 7:30 am and are assigned specific areas to survey.
Historically, some volunteers have camped one of the Wildlife Area’s four primitive sites. Others have chosen commercial lodging at the Lodge at Summer Lake.
In the past, the group found about 120 species of birds throughout the weekend of counting and birding.
Please contact Marty St. Louis for additional details and information.
PO Box 68, Summer Lake, OR 97640
Cell phone: (541)-219-0879 or email: stlouismartin541@gmail.com

Dean Hale Woodpecker Weekend
2026-06-05 - 2026-06-07
Join ECBA for a free guided birding outings on June 5-7. Details and link to register forthcoming.

Birders' Night: Harry Fuller on Birding Harney County
2026-06-11 18:00 - 19:30 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Photo: Sora at Page Springs, taken by Wendy Temko
BIRDING HARNEY COUNTY
Where and when are always crucial elements when seeking that special bird. And Harney County has many birds not found where most birders live. From Bobolink to Common Nighthawk. From Ferruginous Hawk to Franklin’s Gull. From White Pelican to Wilson’s Phalarope this area is a birder’s challenge. Timing, habitat, amount of water in the basin–the variables are many and crucial to understand. Although Malheur NWR is the largest refuge in the 48 states, it is a small parcel of what huge Harney County has to offer–a county large than Rhode Island, Delaware and Connecticutt combined, with fewer than 8000 human residents.
Harry Fuller is a veteran birding guide. He currently leads field trips for the Malheur Field Station in eastern Oregon as well as for Salem Audubon and Polk County Soil Conservation. Baskett Slough and Cornerstone Preserve are favorite birding locations near Salem. He also leads GGOwl trips to Ashland area.
He writes occasional bird essays for Salem Reporter website.
Harry has authored four natural history books: San Francisco’s Natural History: Sand Dunes to Streetcars; Great Gray Owls of CA-OR-WA; Freeway Birding, freewaybirding.com; and most recently Birding Harney County.
His bird blog: ecowise.wordpress.com
He also contributes to “Salem Turkey Tracker” group on Facebook.
The program will start at 6pm. Feel free to come early for dinner and a beverage. There is typically a nice group there by 5:00pm or so. And Worthy Brewing offers a nice Happy Hour Menu from 3-6pm.

Birders' Night: Tracking Lewis’s Woodpecker Migration Using Motus Technology with Kaly Adkins
2026-07-09 18:00 - 19:30 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Birders’ Night: Tracking Lewis’s Woodpecker Migration Using Motus Technology with Kaly Adkins
Come learn about how wildlife biologists from the state, a variety of NGOs and Cal Poly Humboldt have collaborated to learn about migratory pathways of Lewis’s Woodpeckers throughout the PNW using Motus wildlife tracking technology. This technology can be expanded to a variety of small-bodied wildlife and is helping to unravel the mystery of migration for many of these species. Kaly Adkins is a Regional Wildlife Diversity Biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in Bend that specializes in species of greatest conservation need east of the crest of the Cascades in Oregon.
If you want to learn more about MOTUS towers before the Birders’ Night, you can listen to a podcast that Kaly did with Northwest Nature Matters on this topic. Here is the link to the podcast episode: http://nwnaturematters.libsyn.com/motus-a-collaborative-research-network-tracking-wildlife-movement
The program will start at 6pm. Feel free to come early for dinner and a beverage. There is typically a nice group there by 5:00pm or so. And Worthy Brewing offers a nice Happy Hour Menu from 3-6pm.

Birders' Night: Ducks Unlimited Wetland Restoration for Wetland Habitat with Ashley Tunstall
2026-08-13 18:00 - 19:30 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Ducks Unlimited Wetland Restoration for Wetland Habitat

Join Ashley Tunstall, Ducks Unlimited Southeast Oregon biologist, to learn more about DU’s wetland restoration work for waterfowl and wetlands in the Oregon SONEC. From stream restoration to dam replacement, Ashley’s work runs the gambit to improve watershed conditions for wetland dependent species in this critical migratory stopover habitat. Learn about the active restoration work going on in your backyard in eastern Oregon on both public and private lands!”

The program will start at 6pm. Feel free to come early for dinner and a beverage. There is typically a nice group there by 5:00pm or so. And Worthy Brewing offers a nice Happy Hour Menu from 3-6pm.

Birders' Night: Jeff Fleischer on the Winter Raptor Surveys.
2026-09-10 18:00 - 19:30 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Birders’ Night: Jeff Fleischer on the Winter Raptor Surveys.
More details will be posted when available.
The program will start at 6pm. Feel free to come early for dinner and a beverage. There is typically a nice group there by 5:00pm or so. And Worthy Brewing offers a nice Happy Hour Menu from 3-6pm.

Birders' Night: Stu Garrett on Oregon’s Sagebrush Steppe and the birds that live there.
2026-10-08 18:00 - 19:30 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Birders’ Night: Stu Garrett on Oregon’s Sagebrush Steppe and the birds that live there. More details will be posted when available.
The program will start at 6pm. Feel free to come early for dinner and a beverage. There is typically a nice group there by 5:00pm or so. And Worthy Brewing offers a nice Happy Hour Menu from 3-6pm.
