Guide: Karen Hussey, SOLC Land Steward and wildlife biologist

Focus: Birding & Swift roosting survey

Description: Come enjoy the birds and sunset on this exclusive after hours event at Eden Valley Orchards. Arrive at 5:30 if you would like to purchase an optional glass of wine or snacks before EdenVale Winery closes for the night. The Tasting Room is located on the north side of the building complex. The event will be located on the patio just south of the Voorhies Mansion, near the south parking lot. Meet here and we’ll walk the grounds to catch the late day bird activity. Finally we’ll take a seat on the patio for the grand finale. Expect to be awed by the swifts swirling overhead and challenged as we try to count how many enter the chimney of the historic Voorhies Mansion. Register early so you don’t miss this experience!

Limit: 40

Meeting Location: Eden Valley Orchards/EdenVale Winery

Difficulty: Easy, slow-paced walking on generally flat ground on orchard grounds.

Directions will be emailed upon registration. For more info or help with registration call 541.482.3069 or email info@landconserve.org.

Waiting List:
Folks on the waiting list often get invited to the hike, so please add your name if the hike is full.

Why count swifts?
The Vaux’s Swift (pronounced Vox’s) has been declining by about 2% each year and we aren’t sure why. We do know that their migratory roosting sites have been on the decline. The birds need either hollow old growth trees or old chimneys built before cement liners were added in the mid 40’s. A citizen science project called Vaux’s Happening has been developed to collect data on swift numbers and roosting sites. This is a dual purpose to help scientists understand better the decline and to raise public awareness of the importance of roosting sites. The side benefit is that these birds are an absolute delight to watch! For more information visit the project website (vauxhappening.org/) or contact Karen Hussey at karen@landconserve.org.

Banner photo: Pepper Trail. Body photo: http://audubonportland.org/about/events/nn-sept2014/?searchterm=None.