As April fades into May, the land bird migration is in full swing. A fresh set of transient wildflowers—such as trilliums, spring beauties, violets, bluebells, and trout lilies—are blooming everywhere. Insects and worms are abundant, providing a feast for migrant birds on their way to their breeding grounds. Birders, insect enthusiasts, and wildflower aficionados will find no dearth of things to do in Bucks County this month, especially with so many guided bird walk opportunities available.

Here is the list of walks and trips for May available to Bucks Birders (Please check our events page for more information and registration links):

• May 8 (Friday) at 8:00 AM: A guided bird walk at Tyler State Park led by Barbara Stollsteimer and Vicky Mahmoud. The walk begins at the Boathouse parking area.

• May 9 (Saturday) from 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM: Springtime Family and Community Free Bird Walk at the Doylestown New Rec Center.

• May 16 (Saturday) at 8:00 AM: Bucks Birders trip to Garrett Mountain Reserve.

• May 17 (Sunday) at 7:15 AM: Annual Spring Bird Walk at Core Creek Park.

Recurring Weekly Walks:

• Every Saturday: Bird walks are held at Peace Valley, Churchville, and Silver Lake nature centers. (Please check the nature center websites for specific timings.)

• Select Fridays at 7:00 AM:Warrington Warbler Walks at Lower Nike Park.

Looking for more? There are plenty of other resources for birders—including self-guided walks, birding hotspots, and local bird clubs—available on our website.

Bird Talk — This month's speaker is Steve Mariconda, MPH, is a Delegate for the DarkSky New Jersey Chapter and Chair of the Saddle Brook Green Team. Steve has a Master of Public health degree from Rutgers School of Public Health and is passionate about raising public awareness of Light Pollution. Light Pollution disrupts ecosystems, obscures our view of the night sky, and is associated with various human health conditions. Learn about the basics of light pollution, responsible lighting practices, and policies that can help reduce light pollution in New Jersey and beyond. Mark your calendar for this exciting talk — May 26th, 6:45 pm.

PA Bird Atlas 3 - If you are an "atlaser," please check out the breeding code tool for appropriate breeding codes to use in PA. Lot of possible/confirmed codes opened up (ducks, swans, woodpeckers, owls, etc.). No warblers or any migrants yet (not even probable codes). For more information on breeding code please see: https://ebird.org/atlaspa/about/breeding-behaviors-codes.

If you are not an “atlaser” yet, please consider becoming one — it is a great way to bird and grow your birding brain (Read more here to participate in PBA3- https://ebird.org/atlaspa/home).

Any questions can be directed to the Bucks County Coordinators, Erich Boenzli or Barb Stollsteimer at PBA3.Bucks@gmail.com.

Conservation Corner Any conservation related questions can be directed to Vicky Mahmoud at bucksbirders@gmail.com.

Bird Collision We have started Season 3 of the Bird Safe Doylestown bird collision monitoring program. If you would like to participate, please visit our conservation page and register as a volunteer. Any questions on bird window collision directed to the Bird Safe Bucks coordinator, Vin Pannerselvam at bucksbirders@gmail.com.

Lights Out! Migration season is here. The simplest conservation act is turning off outdoor lighting during migration. So, please turn off your outdoor lighting when not in use, and keep it off from 9 pm to 6 am during migration nights — April 1st through June 15th. Read more about Lights out here.