The Yolo Basin Foundation

Beginning and Intermediate Birding Classes with John Sterling

Where: Explorit Center at 3141 5th Street in Davis, California (note change of address)

Beginning Birding

6 week course: 15 February to 29 March (no class on 22 February), Mondays 7-9 p.m.; $125 ($25 of which goes to the YBF).

Intended for the birding novice, this course offers an introduction to birding basics, including discussion of optical equipment, books and online sources of information, identification of backyard and other common birds, and an overview of basic habitats in the region and common wintering birds that inhabit them.  We will focus on developing identification skills, including learning how to use field guides and binoculars effectively.  Lectures will be illustrated with photographs and enhanced with workshop activities. 

Optional Saturday field trips will be offered weekly @ $40 per field trip; minimum is 5 and maximum is 10 participants per trip; transportation by carpooling.  Sign up for field trips during classes.

To register for the class send a check for $125 made payable to John Sterling to me at: 26 Palm Ave, Woodland, CA 95695.  Be sure to indicate the class you want to take.  For answers to your questions you can email John at jsterling@wavecable.com or call him at 503 908-3836. 

 
immature Cooper's Hawk

basic-plumaged Red Phalarope

Intermediate Birding

6 week course: 16 February to 30 March (no class on 23 February), Tuesdays 7-9 p.m.; $125 ($25 of which goes to the YBF). 

A course for experienced birders who seek to refine their birding skills to tackle harder to identify groups of wintering birds, such as raptors, female ducks, sparrows, Snow and Ross Goose, and others.  This is not a course for beginners but for those who have well-developed field skills and are familiar with the common birds in the area.  We will review the current literature, including field guides and identification articles.   Going beyond field marks, we will also review status, distribution and habitat preferences, as well as behavioral cues that provide a better understanding of these birds.   Lectures will be illustrated with photographs. 

Optional Sunday field trips will be offered weekly @ $40 per field trip; minimum is 5 and maximum is 10 participants per trip; transportation by carpooling.  Field trips will focus on species discussed during previous lectures.  Sign up for field trips during classes.

To register for a class send a check for $125 made payable to John Sterling to me at: 26 Palm Ave, Woodland, CA 95695.  Be sure to indicate the class you want to take.  For answers to your questions you can email John at jsterling@wavecable.com or call him at 503 908-3836. 

John Sterling is a lifelong birder and professional ornithologist who lives in Woodland.  He possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of California birds, developed over nearly four decades worth of extensive travel and study throughout the state.  John is currently writing a book on the status and distribution of the birds of California.  He serves as the President of the Central Valley Bird Club and is a past member of the California Bird Records Committee.

His website for California Birding is www.sterlingbirds.com and his wildlife photographs are on www.sterlingbirds.smugmug.com.
           John in Antarctica, January 2010
To register for a class send a check for $125 made payable to John Sterling to me at:  26 Palm Ave, Woodland, CA 95695.  Be sure to indicate the class you want to take.  For answers to your questions you can email John at jsterling@wavecable.com or call him at 503 908-3836. 

Black-bellied Plover, American Avocet, Willet and Ruff at Madera Sewage Ponds, late May 2009