Our Center participated in the Friends of Ballona Wetlands hosted Migration Celebration event in Ballona Discovery Park on Saturday, May 20, and had a fabulous time with over 600 visitors to the Park! This is the seventh year the Friends have celebrated Bird Migration through the Ballona Wetlands, offering bird walks, native plants, demonstrations, games, and information booths.
Dr. Eric Strauss, Lisa Fimiani, and CURes Intern Charles Karim showcased the work of CURes at our information table, and mingled with other guest presenters such as Robert Dorame and his wife Jan as they demonstrated and encouraged visitors to play the Tongva musical instruments in their booth.
Russ Stone, an avid long time birder of the LMU Campus came to see the live show of the raptors, along with Ian Kimbrey, who has built, installed, and monitored our Bluebird Nest Boxes on the LMU Campus. John Dorsey, LMU Professor Emeritus of Biology, brought his granddaughter.
Friends’ staff were everywhere, and Friends’ Board members were also there supporting and participating in the festivities. Neysa Frechette was offering native plants with our Garden Club volunteers and Friends’ Interns, while Patrick Tyrrell was educating folks about Ballona restoration plans with another Intern. There were all kinds of activities for kids to do, such as pretending to be pollinators to playing the coyote game. There was face painting, live marine animals to touch, a puppet show, and arts and crafts.
In between marvelous musically performances by the Dorames and Bob Baker Marionette Show, complementary live music was provided by a lovely duo who came back for a second year in a row to add to the festive mood.
Bird Migration is an important time of the year when wintering birds move up the coast of California to their summer breeding grounds. The Ballona Wetlands is in the Pacific Flyway, which means you never know what you’re going to see in the area bird-wise. Spring Migration is especially important, as birds have to get to their historical nest sites in time for the availability of insects and seeds, and the timing has to be just right.
We at the Center for Urban Resilience still marvel at the magic of it all. For those of you who want to dive deeper into the bird species of Ballona there are “hot spots” to visit on eBird, a wonderful tool for monitoring and recording bird species. Here are just a few in the area to explore: Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve Saltpan, Ballona Freshwater Marsh, Ballona Discovery Park, Loyola Marymount University.
To find out more about the Migration Event, please go to the Friends Facebook page
Happy Spring!