Slated for January 16-20, 2025, the Morro Bay Bird Festival promotes an understanding and appreciation of the birds and wildlife along the Central California Coast. And the good news is, many of the offerings at this annual event are wheelchair-accessible.

The Main Events

The festival features two welcome receptions, one on Friday and one on Saturday. They will be held at the Morro Bay Community Center, which is wheelchair-accessible. The welcome receptions will run from 4-6:30 PM each day. During that time attendees can enjoy some wine and cheese, chat with fellow birders and browse through the Bird Festival Bazaar. The bazaar, which will be open throughout the weekend, includes vendor booths and educational exhibits of interest to birders. A detailed list of the vendors can be found at morrobaybirdfestival.org/bazaar/.

There will also be keynote addresses on Friday and Saturday evenings, from 7:00 to 9:00 PM, in the Cuesta College Performing Arts Center. Celebrated birder, David Lindo will take folks around the urban world of birds in his address on Friday January 16, and will be available to sign his books afterwards. On Saturday January 18 Kenn Kaufman will describe the misadventures of early shorebird watchers, and explain how those events are reflected in todays birding experiences. He will also be available for book signings afterwards.

Field Trips, Presentations and Master Classes

Additionally, there will be number of field trips. presentations and Master Classes at the 2025 Morro Bay Bird Festival. Here are the wheelchair-accessible offerings. For a complete catalogue, which includes the description of each event, visit morrobaybirdfestival.org/print-versions

Field Trips

• Easy Birding
• Shore Birds of the Morro Bay Marina
• Birds of the Elfin Forest
• Women’s Morro Bay Marina Excursion
• Wintering Birds at Cal Poly Pier
• Meander Morro Bay Marina
• Birding Elfin Forest and Sweet Spring
• The Elfin Forest Wonderland

Presentations & Master Classes

• Smart Phone Bird Recording
• How to Help the Birds Workshops
• Columbia: South America Birding Mecca
• Bird Banding: Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship
• A Splash of Color: Expressive Bird Art in Watercolor
• Condor Recovery

Birding for Beginners Workshop

• Feathers – A Wondrously Complex and Versatile Structure
• Optics Demystified
• Critter Cams for Monitoring Wildlife
• Digiscoping with a Smartphone
• Bats – California’s Amazing Flying Mammals
• The Long Billed Curlew
• An Identification Study of Birds of Prey
• Rookery Wonders in Windy Cove
• Ducks and Geese of the Morro Bay Region
• Peregrine Falcons of Morro Rock
• How to Shoot High Quality Engaging Videos
• Avian Respiratory System Adaptations
• Principles and Pitfalls of Bird Identification
• Birding by Ear Workshop
• Shorebird Carving Class
• Meet the Raptors – Pacific Wildlife Care
• Sister Species – A Conservation Story
• Wild Stories from the History of Bird Migration Research
• California Condors: Back from the Brink
• Shorebirds Made Easy
• The Topography of Bird Sounds
• Grebes Walk on Water to Find a Mate
• From Anatomy to Function/Flight
• An Identification Study of Birds of Prey
• Gulls of SLO Identified
• Surprising Secrets of Bird Biology

Master Classes

• Introduction to Bird Photography
• The Magic of Bird Sounds
• Birding by Careful Observation
• Feathers in Focus
• Bird Biology Basics
• Intro to Journaling; Focus on Birds

So make plans to attend this fun and educational event, and learn a bit more about our feathered friends. For more information about the 2025 Morro Bay Bird Festival, visit morrobaybirdfestival.org or e-mail support@morrobaybirdfestival.org.