NEWS FROM THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL
Vol. 38, No. 89
March 10, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information contact Dawn Webb, Dupont Nature Center, Division of Fish and Wildlife, 302-422-1329 or Melanie Rapp, Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.
Shorebird Identification Workshop Set for March 26 at DNREC’s DuPont Nature Center
DNREC's DuPont Nature Center will host an exciting new workshop, Shorebired Identification 101, designed to aquaint nature enthusiasts with the array of shorebirds that visit the Delaware Bay each spring. The workshop will be held 6:30 -8:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 26 at the DuPont Nature Center at Mispillion Harbor Reserve, 2992 Lighthouse Road near Slaughter Beach. The workshop is free, but pre-registration is required by contacting 302-422-1329.
Kevin Kalasz, shorebird biologist for the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife and coordinator of the Delaware Shorebird Project, will lead the workshop. Developed for the novice as well as more experienced birdwatcher, the workshop will explore the various species, migrations, and feeding patterns of shorebirds.
Each May and June hundreds of thousands of shorebirds converge on the shores of the Delaware Bay. This breathtaking display is not seen anywhere else on earth. As many as 30 species of shorebirds and up to a million birds may visit the Delaware Bay each year. The Delaware Bay is a major stop for the Red Knot, Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Sanderling, Dunlin and other shorebirds that travel thousands of miles from their wintering grounds in South America to breeding grounds in the Canadian Arctic. The birds stop here for food - primarily for protein-packed horseshoe crab eggs – that provide the fuel they need to continue their journeys.
The DuPont Nature Center is a state-of-the-art interpretive science center offering up-close encounters with the unique animals and plants of the Delaware Bay and Estuary. The distinctive red-roofed center serves as a science-based education facility and includes an observation deck with telescopes to view the harbor, bay and shoreline. Inside, the center is filled with exhibits on the Delaware Bay’s natural history and ecology. Operated by DNREC’s Division of Fish and Wildlife, the center is currently open from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Beginning April 1st the center will start be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. The nature center grounds will remain open each day until sundown.
For more information, contact Dawn Webb, Center Manager, at 302-422-1329 or visit www.dupontnaturecenter.org
