The Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge will host the 13th Annual International Migratory Bird Day Celebration on Saturday, May 12. The event will take place both inside and outside of the Herbert H. Bateman Educational and Administrative Center.

This year's celebration will focus on the bald eagle that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are proposing to have delisted from the Endangered Species Act. Refuge staff is planning some awesome programs and activities to celebrate the success story of the bald eagle. Additionally, the official trademark for the event will be a bald eagle that will embrace all of the event-related materials including: the program, flyers, t-shirts, and other items.

Jim Clark Nature Photographer/Writer and a retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee will present a program at 11:00 am in the auditorium on the coastal landscapes of the Eastern Shore. Jim's wife Jamie Rappaport Clark was the former Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Jim is a contributing editor for Outdoor Photographer magazine and is the author/photographer for three books, including his most recent one: "The Land between Ocean and Bay: A Natural Celebration of the Eastern Shore."

At 1 pm, join staff from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources for a live raptor presentation of "Scales & Tales, Wings & Things."

Throughout Saturday, stop in under the tent outside the Herbert H. Bateman Educational and Administrative Center and inside the Center for refreshments and participate in family activities including eagle cookie decorating, craft eagle masks, design eagle postcards, bird feeders, face painting, eagle tattoos, bird house building, and a wildlife art show featuring local wildlife artists and decoy carvers.

For more information or to volunteer for the event, contact Sally Bowden at 757-336-6122.

Sally Bowden
Lead Pork Ranger