LEWISTON — The Stanton Bird Club of Lewiston and Auburn will host seven events in June. Four events will take place at Thorncrag. They are the annual Larry Nadeau Memorial Walk and the second annual Wildlife Festival on Sunday, June 2, and a moss and lichen identification walk on Sunday, June 9. The Geology Walk takes place on Sunday, June 23.
Other walks are Wednesday, June 5, at the Whitman Spring Road; Wednesday, June 12, at the Woodbury Nature Sanctuary; Saturday, June 15, at St. Peter’s Cemetery; and Wednesday, June 26 at Sherwood Forest. All events are free and open to the public.
The Larry Nadeau Memorial Walk will take place from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, June 2. The walk joins the Nadeau family to highlight the birds, wildflowers and trails that Larry loved so well. The leaders will be Jeri and Gary Maurer, who can be reached at 207-524-2060. Meet at the Thorncrag parking lot off Montello Street.
The second annual Wildlife Festival also takes place at Thorncrag at the same time as the Nadeau Walk. It will be led by a master naturalist and will include an art class and wildflower-themed items for sale along with plants. There will be a scavenger hunt for children and their parents.
Lichens and mosses are the subject of the Thorncrag walk from 1 to 2 p.m. Sunday, June 9. Master Naturalist Alan Seamans will lead the walk. It is an opportunity to learn about bracken, sensitive fern, cinnamon fern, interrupted fern and Christmas fern, as well as how to identify club mosses and horsetails.
The Geology Walk at Thorncrag will be held from 1 to 2 p.m. Sunday, June 23. Master Naturalist Denise Bluhm, will be the walk leader. This is another walk celebrating the centennial of the Stanton Bird Club. For more information, contact Penny Jessop at 207-782-5467 or missrumphius@roadrunner.com.
On Saturday June 15, walkers will meet at 8 a.m. at St. Peter’s Cemetery to look for summer residents. The cemetery covers 150 acres and is a great place to see the birds. The meeting place for the trip will be the Promenade Mall parking lot near Staples, 855 Lisbon St. Stan and Joan DeOrsey will lead the walk.
The Wednesday Walks offer a variety of interesting and diverse habitats. The June 5 walk at Whitman Spring Road will begin at the trail that offers parking on Holbrook Road in North Auburn. On June 12 participants in the Woodbury Sanctuary Walk will meet at the parking area on Carver Road off Route 126, South Monmouth. The June 26 walk at Sherwood Forest will meet near the school on Sherwood Drive at 19th St. in Auburn.
All the walks begin at 8 a.m. and end by 11 a.m. They usually cover about two miles on a generally even and basically dry surface. The walk leaders, Stan and Joan DeOrsey, identify and comment on birds seen and heard. Bring binoculars and dress for the weather. For any questions, call Stan or Joan at 207-406-4741.
A cedar waxwing is often found in small flocks in the early summer before they nest. Cedar waxwings eat primarily fruit and berries. They are often seen on Stanton Bird Club walks. (Photo by Dan Marquis)
The Stanton Bird Club manages the Thorncrag Nature Sanctuary as well as the Woodbury Nature Sanctuary in Monmouth and Litchfield. More information can be found at www.StantonBirdClub.org. The results of the various trips are posted there, often with photos. The club also has a Facebook page.
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