Lakeside Chautauqua Ohio
Website Design ©2024
Website Design ©2024
Birding Week Lectures
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This May, birders from across the country will return to Northwest Ohio, the Warbler Capital of the World, to celebrate The Biggest Week in American Birding. To welcome birding enthusiasts and families to the Marblehead Peninsula, Lakeside Chautauqua will host free birding lectures from May 6-10.
While you visit Lakeside, walk the nature trails and lakefront path for scenic views of Lake Erie, pack a picnic and enjoy the many parks and playgrounds, shop and dine in the downtown business district and Village of Marblehead, and explore nearby birding hotspots like the Marblehead Lighthouse, Meadowbrook Marsh and Magee Marsh Wildlife Area.
View the schedule of events and plan your getaway to Lakeside. Discount lodging is available. See details below.
Discounted Lodging
If you’re traveling to the shores of Lake Erie for The Biggest Week in American Birding or Lakeside’s birding lectures, take advantage of our discounted hotel rooms at the Fountain Inn. From May 6-11, Lakeside is offering Economy, Basic and Standard rooms starting at $119/night (+tax); plus, if you buy two nights, get the third night half off.
To make a reservation, call (419) 798-4461, ext. 230 and ask for the “Spring Special.”
Schedule of Events
LECTURE: WARBLER WARM-UP WITH MATT VALENCIC & KELLY STANEK
7 p.m., May 6 | Orchestra Hall | Free
Some of the prettiest birds on the planet are in Northern Ohio from April-October. Most are just passing through on their way north, but some stay here to have their babies.
Because we only see them for a short time every year, we forget how to quickly identify them. This presentation uses the authors’ photographs to help group birds by appearance and preferred habitat.
See all the warblers with eye rings on one slide. Learn about behaviors like tail wagging, skulking on the ground and walking along branches to help narrow down choices.
You’ll learn to appreciate trilling, buzzy and high-pitched songs to narrow down birds you hear but can’t see.
Matt Valencic started chasing birds in 1974 while he was a student at the College of Environmental Science & Forestry. He has a bachelor’s degree in forest biology and spent his career in science-based technical sales, all related to the biological system of animals and people.
Valencic retired in 2015 and immediately joined an Audubon chapter where he started creating bird programs from his catalog of pictures.
The most important message he wishes to share is that all of nature, plants, animals and water are inextricably tied together. It’s our responsibility to be good stewards and protect what is whole and repair what is damaged.
Kelly Stanek has been a birder for more than 30 years. Her interest began in her teens and her passion took off while earning her master’s degree in biology.
Stanek enjoys the challenge of identifying birds not only by sight but by sound. Most of all, she enjoys the camaraderie of her friends who share the same passion and help each other find the birds.
LECTURE: OWLS OF OHIO WITH JIM TOMKO
7 p.m., May 7 | Orchestra Hall | Free
Twelve species of owls have been spotted in Ohio. Several are residents, some are migrants and a few are accidental visitors.
In this lecture, interesting owl trivia will be revealed and some tips on how, when and where to spot owls will be shared.
Jim Tomko’s interest in birds and wildlife began as a child. While his friends were assembling model airplanes and cars, he was painting and putting together models of a robin, bluebird or goldfinch.
His friends were often playing football and baseball while he was in the wooded ravines turning over rocks and logs searching for frogs and salamanders.
Tomko began birding scientifically since his ornithology class back in 1979 at Miami University where he majored in zoology. He earned a master’s degree in environmental biology and doctorate in optometry from Ohio State University, which helped support his “habit” of immersion in nature.
LECTURE: THE LAKE ERIE LANDSCAPE & THE FLIGHT BEHAVIOR OF MIGRATORY BIRDS WITH VERNER P. BINGHAM
7 p.m., May 8 | Orchestra Hall | Free
Although modest in size, the crossing of Lake Erie is a potential threat to nocturnally migrating songbirds.
Over the past several years, Bingham and his students have used different technologies to record the flight directions of migratory birds as they approach the Ohio coast of Lake Erie, as well as when they fly over the island archipelago of the western basin.
The flight directions recorded suggest that migrants can actively and adaptively change their flight directions, especially during spring migration, indicating a sensitivity to the landscape below them and cost-benefit interactions with wind direction.
The picture that emerges is that nocturnally migrating songbirds integrate directional guidance from their compasses, based on the stars and earth’s magnetic field, with information from the land and sea topography being flown over in shaping their response to the risks and benefits of any flight path.
LECTURE: ORNITHERAPY: THE POWER OF BIRDWATCHING WITH HOLLY MERKER
7 p.m., May 9 | Orchestra Hall | Free
With long to-do lists and digital demands life can be busy. If we allow birds and nature to slow us down, we’re practicing “selfcare.”
Research shows that connecting with nature actively reduces stress, depression and anxiety, while helping build a stronger heart and immune system. Wild birds offer the perfect gateway into deeper experiences with nature, magnifying these benefits.
Through observation, we can learn not only about birds, but gain insight into our own lives while exploring our connection to the world around us. This fosters stewardship and bolsters conservation.
Within the program, Holly Merker will delve into our connections to birds, how to maximize the wellness benefits of birding and learn about the latest research surrounding the impact of birds on human well being.
Holly Merker is a professional birding guide, author and lecturer with a background in art therapy but today uses birds and nature toward the same goals to deliver nature-based wellness programs for people of all ages.
Merker shares her love of birds instructing for the American Birding Association, the National Audubon Society, Hillstar Nature and many other organizations. She holds a certificate in Wellness Counseling and is a Certified Nature & Forest Therapy Guide, weaving birds into both fields.
In 2022, Merker was honored to be the recipient of the ABA Conservation & Education Award given by the American Birding Association for her work in both those areas involving birds.
Merker is a global advocate for the practice of Mindful Birding, authoring two books which guide readers into optimizing the wellness benefits birds provide us, including the award-winning Ornitherapy: For Your Mind, Body, and Soul (along with Richard Crossley and Sophie Crossley, Crossley Books, 2021) and The Power of Birdwatching (Die Kraft Der Vogel Beobachtung, Freya verlag, 2023 – available in Europe only), coauthored with Dr. Angelika Nelson.
She is also co-host of “The Mindful Birding Podcast” and founder of the Mindful Birding Network.
In her free time, Merker spends every possible moment practicing Ornitherapy, which she credits in helping defeat breast cancer and restoring her health mentally and physically.
BIRD WALK: BIRDWATCHING ON THE LAKE ERIE SHORELINE WITH HOLLY MERKER
10:30 a.m., May 10 | Train Station Patio | Free – PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE
The Lake Erie shoreline is a renowned location for viewing all kinds of birds and attracting birdwatchers from around the country, especially during the spring and fall migrations.
Join birder Holly Merker to learn why the region is so important for birds. We will hike Lakeside’s trails and parks, help you find and identify birds, and learn interesting facts along the way.
Some of the species you may expect to see include Bald Eagles, Baltimore Orioles and Northern Cardinals. If we’re lucky, we may also find Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds, Purple Martins and any of the 40 species of neotropic warblers that migrate through the region.
Please bring a pair of binoculars (a small number will be available to borrow). Suitable footwear should be worn for this walk. Appropriate clothing should be selected based on weather conditions that day.
LECTURE: ROGER TORY PETERSON — LEGACY & INSPIRATION WITH ARTHUR PEARSON
7 p.m., May 10 | Orchestra Hall | Free
This year marks the 90th anniversary of the publication of the first Peterson Field Guide. Since then, across several subsequent editions, Peterson Guides have sold upwards of 15 million copies worldwide.
The 40th anniversary of the Roger Tory Peterson Institute (RTPI) is also in 2024. As the living embodiment of the Peterson Field Guide, RTPI honors Peterson’s legacy by exhibiting Art that Matters to the Planet and nurturing the next generation of nature artists.
Chicago native Arthur Pearson has a richly varied background in the arts, conservation, museum collections and philanthropy.
Throughout his career, he has focused on helping nonprofit organizations build the operational and financial capacity needed to achieve their mission goals.
Since becoming CEO of the RTPI in March 2020, he has guided the restructuring of the organization in pursuit of a revitalized and resilient strategic vision.
Pearson is the author of Force of Nature, the award-winning biography of George Fell, the driving force in the founding of The Nature Conservancy, and the nation’s first statewide program to protect the full breadth of our ecological heritage.
Nearby Birding Hotspots
- Marblehead Lighthouse: 110 Lighthouse Drive, Lakeside-Marblehead
- Meadowbrook Marsh: 8577 E Bayshore Road, Lakeside-Marblehead
- Lakeside Daisy State Nature Preserve: 309 Alexander Pike, Lakeside-Marblehead
- Great Egret Marsh Nature Preserve: 1000 N Buck Road, Lakeside-Marblehead
- East Harbor State Park: 1169 N Buck Road, Lakeside-Marblehead
- Magee Marsh Wildlife Area: OH-2, Oak Harbor
- Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve: 2715 Cleveland Road W, Huron
- Metzger Marsh Wildlife Area: Bono Road, Curtice
- Catawba Island Nature Preserve: 4158 NW Catawba Rd, Port Clinton
- Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge: 14000 OH-2, Oak Harbor
Shopping, Dining & Services in Lakeside
Fountain Inn Art Gallery- The Fine Print Bookstore
- Marilyn’s
- Marilyn’s Two
- Miss Mercedes
- Wise Woman Boutique
- Gifts that Give Back
- Coffee & Cream
- Ooh La La!
- Lakeside Pizzeria
- SmoothieSide
- Heritage Hall Museum & Gift Shop
- Lakeside Heritage Society Archives (by appointment)
- Lakeside Salon & Spa
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