Event Descriptions by topic (this is for 2009 - new information coming soon...
Details of events, activities, and field trips
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Morley Nelson Movie Night
When: 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary School Gym
Cost: Free
Details: A live falconry demonstration will begin the evening festivities. Then, Join Tyler and Norman Nelson (Morley Nelson’s sons) for a glimpse at Morley Nelson’s fascinating life, along with the special raptors that were used in Disney movies. Slim, Morley’s golden eagle, will make a live appearance during the evening. A Mexican dinner is available for purchase outside in Reed Elementary School ’s parking lot.
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Registration Booth Open
When: 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary School - map
Cost: Festival fee is $5.00 per person; children under 12 years free with paying adult.
Details: Staffed by volunteers, the registration booth is open during each day of the festival.
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Banquet & Keynote Address
When: 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary School cafeteria - map
Cost: $25.00 per person
Details: Barbeque banquet featuring keynote speaker Trish Nixon from The Peregrine Fund. The banquet begins with a live falconry demonstration outside of Reed Elementary School. Then join Trish Nixon, Raptor Specialist for the Peregrine Fund’s World Center for Birds of Prey, for her presentation entitled “Secret Lives of Raptors.”
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Bird Banding - Celebration Park
When: 6:00 am- 11:00 am
Where: Celebration Park - map
Cost: $20.00 Adult, $10.00 for children under 12
Details: Join Jim Holcomb as he takes you to Celebration Park, Idaho's only archaeological park, located on the Snake River at the western boundary of the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area. Upon arrival, you will bird some of the park’s hotspots including a look at a nesting golden eagle. Idaho Bird Observatory will be banding songbirds in the morning during your visit. The tour will then conclude with a guided petroglyph tour and a hands‐on demonstration and discussion of lithic technology and survival strategies of indigenous peoples. Transportation provided; Max 40 people.
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Bird Banding (Owls or hawks in NCA) *Trip Cancelled*
When: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Where: Various locations in the NCA - meet in front of Reed Elementary School
Cost: $25.00 Adult, $15.00 students 12-17 years
Details: This will be an all day activity and due to safety issues, the field trip is geared toward students 12 and older and adults. Help band nestling western screech owls or ferruginous hawks. Learn about the productivity, food habits, movements, fidelity to nest site and mate, and annual weight cycle of western screech owls. Nestling ferruginous hawks are banded to study nest productivity. Transportation and Sack lunch provided; Max 15 people.
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Birding Tour - NCA and Snake River Canyon
When: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Where: Meet in front of Reed Elementary School
Cost: $70.00 Adult, $35.00 children under 12 years
Details: This will be a half day activity; back to town by 3pm. Tour the western portion of the NCA and practice your identification skills in the field. Join guide Steve Guinn with Birds of Prey Expeditions (www.birdsofpreyexpeditions.com) to tour the western portion of the NCA via bus and practice your identification skills in the field. Then board a boat and experience the Snake River canyon up close while learning about geology, history, and nesting birds of prey. Transportation and Sack lunch provided; Max 50 people.
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Burrowing Owls - Lecture and Tour
When: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary
Cost: $15.00 Adult, $10.00 children under 12
Details: Burrowing owls are a declining species across the west and a species of greatest conservation need in Idaho. Learn about these little diurnal owls with Boise State University’s Raptor Biology graduate student, Matt Stuber. He will then lead a short field trip to visit a burrowing owl nesting area. Please, do not follow the buses to the locations of the owls. This will allow all to enjoy the wildlife resources of the area while maintaining personal safety and the welfare of the birds as the highest priority. Transportation provided; Max 20 people.
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Education booths, Exhibits, and Children's activities
When: 10:00am - 5:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary School Gym
Cost: free
Details: Festival attendees will have the opportunity to view wildlife, birding, and NCA related informational exhibits and commercial displays. Also, learning is fun and this year’s children’s programs are no exception. Children will enjoy origami, a variety of crafts, other creative projects, and much, much more! These events are all free to children, with adult paid admission, attending the Birds of Prey Festival.
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*This trip has been cancelled* Hike - Birding & History - Wees Bar Petroglyphs
When: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Where: Swan Falls Dam - map
Cost: $15.00
Details: This will be an all day hike. The total distance covered will be approximately 10 miles. Wees Bar has a rich cultural and natural history. Join Sean Finn as you investigate remnants of the old Priest Ranch, view ancient petroglyphs and the old Wees house. You may see various birds of prey hunting or simply soaring on the canyon winds. Bring your own luch and water. Max 10 people; Transportation not provided. *Note - drive time from Reed Elementary School to Swan Falls Dam is about 45 minutes.
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History Tour - Oregon Trail/SW Idaho
When: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: $30.00
Details: This tour will take you to some of the best scenic and historical viewing areas in the southwestern part of the state. Dedication Point provides an outstanding view of the Snake River Canyon. Swan Falls Dam, built in 1901 (the first hydroelectric dam on the Snake River), was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. Celebration Park, Idaho's only archaeological park, boasts petroglyphs carved on boulders by Native Americans and early settlers. Hands‐on demonstration and discussion of lithic technology and survival strategies of indigenous peoples, as well as atlatl (ancient spear throwing device) demonstration, coaching and practice will be given. A stop at the Owyhee County Historical Museum will teach you about the Oregon Trail. With nearly 3,000 cultural and historic sites, Owyhee County contains the richest concentration of archeological sites in Idaho. Transportation and Sack lunch provided.
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Lecture - Snake River Birds of Prey NCA (live raptors)
When: 10:00 am - 11:00 am
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: The Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area was established by Congress in 1993 to protect a unique desert environment that supports one of the world's densest concentrations of nesting birds of prey. Learn about the falcons, eagles, hawks, and owls occur here in unique profusion and variety with Larry Ridenhour, BLM’s Outdoor Recreation Planner for the NCA. Larry will bring along a few feathered educational ambassadors to complete his lecture.
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Lecture - Raptors of southern Idaho
When: 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: The Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area was established by Congress in 1993 to protect a unique desert environment that supports North American’s highest density of nesting raptors. More than 800 pairs of raptors nest each spring with the NCA, including 150‐200 pairs of Prairie Falcons. Learn more about the raptors seen in the NCA during this one‐hour lecture with local biologist, Bruce Haak from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
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Lecture - Falconry (live raptors)
When: 12:00 am - 1:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: Join falconers and their birds from the Idaho Falconers Association to learn about the special adaptations of these spectacular hunters.
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Lecture - Wildlife Photography
When: 1:00 pm - 2:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: Taking good photos is about learning to recognize opportunities when they present themselves and then making the most of them. Local expert photographer, Michael Luque, has been photographing wildlife and wild places for over 40 years. Mike will talk about what to look for in the field while shooting and what to do when you get back home to help you improve your bird photography. Beginner or experienced shooter, film or digital, this is for everyone who wants to take better pictures.
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Lecture - History of the Oregon Trail
When: 2:00 pm - 3:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: The Oregon Trail passed through what is now the southern portion of Idaho. The Owyhee County Historical Society will share images and artifacts from the Historical Society’s museum. Learn about how homesteaders scratched out a living or went bust while Native Americans clashed with the westward push of settlement along the Oregon Trail.
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Lecture - Piute Ground Squirrel
When: 3:00 pm - 4:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: Piute ground squirrels are the most abundant burrowing species in the Snake River Birds of Prey NCA. These dense populations provide a reliable prey base for hunting birds of prey. Join College of Idaho Professor Eric Yensen to learn about these how these squirrels are adapted to desert life and why they are a favorite prey of prairie falcons.
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Registration Booth open
When: 5:00 am - 7:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary School main entrance
Cost: Festival fee is $5.00 per person; children under 12 years free with paying adult.
Details: Staffed by volunteers, the registration booth is open all day.
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Birding Tour - NCA and Snake River Canyon
When: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Where: Meet in front of Reed Elementary School
Cost: $70.00 Adult, $35.00 children under 12 years
Details: This will be a half day activity; back to town by 3pm. Tour the western portion of the NCA and practice your identification skills in the field. Join guide Steve Guinn with Birds of Prey Expeditions (www.birdsofpreyexpeditions.com) to tour the western portion of the NCA via bus and practice your identification skills in the field. Then board a boat and experience the Snake River canyon up close while learning about geology, history, and nesting birds of prey. Transportation and Sack lunch provided; Max 50 people.
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Birding Walk - Celebration Park
When: 7:00am - 9:00am
Where: Celebration Park (meet there- map )
Cost: $5.00
Details: Join local bird experts from SIBA, Southwestern Idaho Birders Association, and Golden Eagle Audubon as they lead a bird walk at Celebration Park. Nesting killdeer, Bullock’s oriole, and Lazuli bunting can be seen as well as flight displays of long‐billed curlew. Black‐chinned and rufous hummingbirds, rock and canyon wrens, loggerhead shrikes, and six species of swallows can be seen. Transportation not provided. *Note - Drive time to Celebration park from Reed Elementary School is about 45 minutes.
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Burrowing Owls - Lecture and Tour
When: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary
Cost: $15.00 Adult, $10.00 children under 12
Details: Burrowing owls are a declining species across the west and a species of greatest conservation need in Idaho. Learn about these little diurnal owls with Boise State University’s Raptor Biology graduate student, Katie McVey. She will then lead a short field trip to visit a burrowing owl nesting area. Please, do not follow the buses to the locations of the owls. This will allow all to enjoy the wildlife resources of the area while maintaining personal safety and the welfare of the birds as the highest priority. Transportation provided; Max 20 people.
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Lecture - History of the Oregon Trail
When: 12:00pm - 1:00 pm
Where: Reed Elementary School
Cost: free
Details: The Oregon Trail passed through what is now the southern portion of Idaho. The Owyhee County Historical Society will share images and artifacts from the Historical Society’s museum. Learn about how homesteaders scratched out a living or went bust while Native Americans clashed with the westward push of settlement along the Oregon Trail.
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Registration Booth open
When: 8:00am - 3:00pm
Where: Reed Elementary - main entrance
Cost: Festival fee is $5.00 per person; children under 12 years free with paying adult.
Details: Staffed by volunteers, the registration booth is until 3:00pm.
Note - Meet buses in front of Reed Elementary School. Buses will usually be available 10-15 minutes before the scheduled time to leave but please board your bus no later than 5 minutes prior to departure time.
Below is an alphabetical listing by topic of each event for each day during the festival with all details.
Friday - May 15, 2009
Saturday - May 16, 2009
Sunday - May 17, 2009