Newsletter - September 2026

San Diego Wild Birds Unlimited Upcoming Events


In Store Presentation:  Coming, Going & Passing Through: Fall Migration in San Diego - Saturday, September 19th at 11:00am

Join us for a fascinating look at fall bird migration in San Diego and discover who's arriving, who's leaving, and who's simply passing through on an incredible journey. We'll explore familiar backyard visitors, surprising migration facts, how our year-round birds change with the seasons, and simple ways you can help make your yard a welcoming rest stop for birds on the move.



Quote of the Month:
 
Then from a neighboring thicket the mockingbird, wildest of singers, shook from his little throat such floods of delirious music, that the whole air and the woods and the waves seemed silent to listen - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


Spotlight: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance - Protecting California’s Wild Birds


When many people hear “San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance,” they naturally think of the animals they can see at the San Diego Zoo or Safari Park. Behind those familiar parks is something much larger: an international conservation organization working to protect wildlife in the wild—and some of that work is happening right here in California.

San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) combines wildlife care, science, and education to develop conservation solutions. Its work includes wildlife health, conservation breeding, habitat restoration, population monitoring, reproductive science, genetics, conservation technology, and partnerships with government agencies, universities, and other conservation organizations. Its Southwest Conservation Hub focuses on species and ecosystems in Southern California and the surrounding region.

For San Diego bird lovers, this means the organization is doing much more than caring for animals in human care. Its scientists are studying wild birds, restoring habitat, monitoring populations, developing new conservation technologies, and working with partners to give threatened species a better chance of surviving in the places where they naturally belong.

The California Condor: A Conservation Story That Changed Everything

It is impossible to talk about San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and wild California birds without mentioning the California Condor.

California Condors are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning because they are scavengers, feeding almost entirely on the carcasses of dead animals. When condors consume remains of animals shot with lead ammunition, they can unknowingly ingest tiny bullet fragments scattered throughout the tissue. Even very small amounts of lead can cause severe neurological and digestive problems, and because condors are long-lived, slow to reproduce, and may repeatedly encounter contaminated carcasses, lead poisoning has been one of the greatest obstacles for the species.

As discussed in our May 2026 newsletter, only 22 California Condors remained in 1982 when San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance began working on the first zoological propagation program for the species. Working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, National Audubon Society, Los Angeles Zoo, and other partners, SDZWA developed techniques for incubating, hatching, and raising condors and eventually releasing them into the wild. The population has since grown to more than 560 birds, with more than half free-flying, according to SDZWA's current materials.

The condor program goes well beyond producing more birds. SDZWA scientists have worked extensively on condor health, including studying lead poisoning, conducting blood tests and medical examinations, and pioneering CT imaging to monitor condor chicks while they are still inside their eggs. Its researchers have also helped investigate vaccination approaches for highly pathogenic avian influenza. Research into lead poisoning contributed to California's efforts to reduce the threat of lead ammunition in condor habitat.

The California Condor illustrates an important principle of modern conservation: rebuilding a population is only part of the job. Scientists must also identify and reduce the threats that caused the population to decline in the first place.

Burrowing Owls: Saving a Bird in Our Own Backyard

Perhaps no SDZWA bird conservation project is more directly connected to San Diego County than its work with the Western Burrowing Owl. These small owls are unusual because they spend much of their time on the ground and depend on underground burrows. Development and habitat changes have reduced the grasslands they need, while the loss of burrowing mammals can also mean the loss of the underground homes the owls depend on. SDZWA considers the remaining San Diego County breeding population at risk of local extinction.

SDZWA and its partners are addressing the decline of Western Burrowing Owls through a combination of habitat management, relocation, and conservation breeding. When development threatens existing owls, conservation teams can relocate them to suitable protected habitats. At the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, a conservation breeding program also produces young owls that can eventually be released into appropriate wild habitat to help strengthen local populations. These efforts are complemented by work to protect and restore the grassland habitat and burrow resources the owls need to survive. At one early release site, relocated owls established themselves, reproduced over multiple years, and attracted additional wild owls. Multiple generations have subsequently paired and raised their own young.

The goal isn't simply to move an individual owl somewhere safer. The larger objective is to establish self-sustaining wild populations.

Listening for Owls With Technology

SDZWA is also using technology to learn more about where Burrowing Owls are living. Its Conservation Technology Lab has deployed small acoustic sensors known as “scrubmics” at Burrowing Owl field sites in San Diego County. The devices listen for owl vocalizations and use sound-classification technology to identify them. The information can be transmitted remotely, allowing researchers to monitor owl presence without having someone physically visit every location. SDZWA has described the possibility of eventually deploying this technology across large areas of San Diego and Imperial counties.

This is particularly useful for a small, secretive species that can be difficult to find. Instead of relying entirely on occasional field surveys, researchers can leave an electronic set of ears in the habitat. The technology can also help scientists understand how owl populations change over time and how they respond to habitat management.

California Least Terns: Protecting a Bird That Depends on the Coast and the Ocean

The California Least Tern presents a very different conservation challenge. These endangered seabirds arrive along the Southern California coast each spring and summer to breed. They nest on open, relatively undisturbed beaches, laying their eggs directly on the sand. Their chicks depend on nearby supplies of small fish, including anchovies and sardines.

SDZWA scientists work with the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps to monitor two of Southern California's largest Least Tern colonies. During the breeding season, researchers observe nesting colonies and collect information that helps determine what factors contribute to successful reproduction. Their findings can then inform broader recovery efforts for the species. The work is remarkably hands-on. Researchers search for and monitor nests, document breeding activity, and study the behavior of adults and chicks. At the height of the nesting season, researchers may encounter hundreds of nests in a colony. Because the birds nest in dense colonies, adults can also work together to defend their nests by aggressively mobbing potential threats.

SDZWA's research also looks beyond the beach. Least Terns need fish to feed their chicks, so scientists are interested in the connection between ocean conditions, fish availability, and nesting success. Changes in ocean productivity can influence when and where prey fish are available, which can ultimately affect whether parents can successfully raise their young. This makes Least Tern conservation an ecosystem-wide effort. The researchers aren't simply asking whether a particular colony produced chicks; they are examining the environmental conditions that determine whether those chicks can survive.

Western Snowy Plovers: More Than Just Giving Them Space

The Western Snowy Plover provides another excellent example of SDZWA's hands-on conservation work in San Diego. These tiny shorebirds nest directly on or near the sand and are remarkably difficult to spot. Their pale brown coloring and tiny, well-camouflaged nests make them difficult for both predators and researchers to find.

At Naval Base Coronado, SDZWA researchers have worked with Navy wildlife biologists to monitor the birds and their habitat during nesting season. Researchers search for chicks regularly, then carefully capture, weigh, measure, and place identification bands on them before releasing them back into their habitat. Tracking these individually marked birds allows researchers to learn more about survival and movement.

The work doesn't stop with monitoring. During the non-breeding season, when the birds are no longer defending nests and raising chicks, SDZWA researchers and site managers have an opportunity to improve the habitat itself. Projects have included beach cleanups, invasive-plant removal, and restoration of native dunes. In one project at Naval Air Station North Island, a San Diego Zoo Safari Park Conservation Corps group worked with SDZWA and the Navy to remove invasive ice plant that had covered more than half of the dunes in a nesting area. Removing the dense vegetation opened space for native plants and dune grasses that provide more suitable habitat for nesting plovers and terns.

SDZWA researchers have also developed careful ways to observe these secretive birds without unnecessarily disturbing them. Field biologists may observe adult behavior from a distance or use a vehicle as a temporary blind rather than walking directly toward a nesting area. Giving nesting plovers plenty of space is something beachgoers can do. SDZWA's role goes considerably further: monitoring the population, tracking individual birds, studying nesting success, and helping improve the habitat where the birds breed.

The San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike: Saving a Bird Found Nowhere Else

Farther off the Southern California coast, SDZWA is involved in the recovery of another remarkable California bird: the San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike. This subspecies is endemic to San Clemente Island, meaning it is found nowhere else in the world. Its population dropped to as few as 14 birds in the 1990s, making it one of the most endangered birds associated with California. Habitat changes resulting from more than a century of ranching and overgrazing contributed to its decline.

SDZWA is part of a larger recovery effort involving multiple agencies and organizations. Its conservation breeding program serves several purposes: producing birds that can be released to strengthen the wild population, maintaining an assurance population that preserves genetic diversity, and caring for salvaged or injured eggs and birds. The ultimate goal is to help ensure that this unique California bird continues to exist in the wild on San Clemente Island.

A Conservation Reserve in San Diego County

Some of SDZWA's most important California bird habitat is located right here in San Diego County. Beyond the developed areas of the San Diego Zoo Safari Park is a Biodiversity Reserve containing more than 1,000 acres of native coastal sage scrub and chaparral. SDZWA describes the reserve as an important part of two wildlife corridors and one of the larger remaining expanses of this type of habitat in the region.

The reserve provides habitat for more than 179 bird species, including both resident and migratory birds. Scientists can study how birds use the landscape and how wildlife responds to changes in habitat. For San Diego bird lovers, this is an important reminder that conservation doesn't always require traveling to a distant wilderness. Some of the region's most valuable wildlife habitat exists surprisingly close to home.

Conservation Takes Many Partners

The projects above also demonstrate why SDZWA works with so many other organizations. No single organization can solve these problems alone. SDZWA's conservation model emphasizes partnerships with government, nonprofit, academic, corporate, and community organizations. That approach is especially important for birds because their lives rarely stay within one property or jurisdiction. A bird may nest in one location, forage somewhere else, migrate hundreds of miles, and depend on an entirely different habitat during another season.

How San Diego Bird Lovers Can Get Involved

There are some very specific ways readers can connect with SDZWA's conservation work.

One is Wildwatch Burrowing Owl, SDZWA's community science project. Anyone with a computer or smartphone can help researchers by viewing images from remote trail cameras and identifying and counting Burrowing Owls and other wildlife. It is a simple way to contribute useful information without needing to be a trained field biologist.

SDZWA also offers community science, conservation education, and  volunteer opportunities. Its volunteers have supported conservation science and field research as well as education and outreach. Availability varies, so interested readers should check the Alliance's current opportunities. Supporting SDZWA's conservation programs through membership or donations is another way to help fund the science and fieldwork behind these projects.

You can also get involved right in your own back yard. We've covered many of these subjects in previous Wild Birds Unlimited newsletters, so rather than repeating the same information here, we've gathered a few resources where you can find more detailed guidance: A Future for California's Birds

California's wild birds face serious challenges. Habitat continues to change, climate conditions are shifting, disease can threaten populations, and human development puts increasing pressure on wildlife, but California also has some remarkable conservation success stories.

A California Condor population that once numbered only 22 birds now numbers more than 560. Burrowing Owls are being relocated, bred, and released with the goal of establishing wild populations. Scientists are using acoustic technology to listen for owls across the San Diego landscape. Least Tern researchers are connecting nesting success with conditions both on the beach and in the ocean. Snowy Plover researchers are tracking individual chicks and restoring the dunes where they nest. The San Clemente Loggerhead Shrike, once reduced to only a handful of birds, continues to receive intensive conservation attention.

None of these accomplishments happened because of one organization or one solution. They are the result of years of research, partnerships, persistence, and people deciding that these birds are worth saving. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance isn't simply trying to save individual birds. It is working with partners to understand what California's birds need to survive—and then putting that knowledge into action.

For those of us who love birds, that gives us something worth watching for the next time we step outside: not only the birds that are here today, but the possibility that, with enough effort, some of the birds that are struggling today will still be here for generations to come.


Bird of the Month: Northern Mockingbird


Adult Northern Mockingbird: Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Visitor Center, Borrego Springs, California
 
Fun Facts about the Northern Mockingbird
The backyard bird that can sound like an entire neighborhood

The Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) is one of the most familiar birds in San Diego—and one of the most remarkable. Its understated gray-and-white appearance gives little hint of the extraordinary talent hidden inside that small body. A single mockingbird can fill a neighborhood with an astonishing stream of songs, imitations, whistles, and calls, sometimes continuing long after most other birds have gone quiet.

Mockingbirds are intelligent, energetic, territorial, adaptable, and surprisingly fearless. They thrive in the very places where people live, which means one may be singing from a rooftop, telephone wire, fence, or backyard tree right outside your window, and if you have ever wondered why that "one bird" seems to be singing the songs of ten different species, there is a very good chance you have met San Diego's own musical impersonator.

Appearance & Identification
  • Northern Mockingbirds are slender, medium-sized songbirds measuring approximately 8–10 inches long, with a wingspan of about 12–14 inches—roughly the size of an American Robin but noticeably slimmer.
  • Adults are primarily gray above and whitish below, with darker gray wings and tail. Their relatively plain coloring makes their dramatic behavior and vocal abilities even more surprising.
  • Their most distinctive visual feature is the pair of large white patches on their wings. When the wings are folded, these patches can appear as small white marks, but when the bird flies or deliberately spreads its wings, they suddenly become conspicuous flashes of white.
  • White outer tail feathers provide another flash of white when the bird takes flight or fans its tail.
  • Young mockingbirds look noticeably different from adults. Juveniles have streaked or spotted gray-brown breasts and darker-looking eyes, gradually developing the clean adult plumage as they mature.

Range, Habitat & San Diego Presence
  • Northern Mockingbirds occur across much of the United States, Mexico, and parts of the Caribbean. They are especially successful in human-dominated landscapes, including towns, suburbs, parks, farms, and residential neighborhoods.
  • In San Diego County, Northern Mockingbirds are year-round residents. San Diego Bird Alliance's Christmas Bird Count records show the species has been recorded on every San Diego Christmas Bird Count since the first count in 1922.
  • They are particularly comfortable in places that combine open ground for feeding with shrubs or trees for cover and nesting. That makes lawns bordered by hedges, parks, gardens, golf courses, and suburban landscapes especially attractive.
  • In San Diego, they can be encountered from urban neighborhoods and coastal communities to inland valleys and lower-elevation natural areas. The San Diego National Wildlife Refuge, for example, lists the Northern Mockingbird among its common winter birds.

What Northern Mockingbirds Eat
  • Northern Mockingbirds have a remarkably flexible diet that changes with the seasons. Overall, their diet is approximately half insects and other arthropods and half fruits and berries.
  • During spring and summer, insects become particularly important. Their prey can include beetles, grasshoppers, caterpillars, ants, bees, wasps, moths, butterflies, spiders, earthworms, snails, and other small invertebrates.
  • They usually hunt from the ground, walking or running across lawns and other open areas and grabbing prey as they encounter it. They may also perch nearby and make short flights down to capture something on the ground.
  • When autumn and winter arrive and insects become less abundant, mockingbirds turn increasingly to berries and other fruits.
  • They eat fruit from many native and ornamental plants and have even been observed drinking sap from freshly pruned trees.
  • Their varied diet is one reason they have been so successful in suburban environments: a neighborhood can provide insects in lawns and gardens as well as berries from landscaping plants.

Nesting & Family Life
  • Northern Mockingbirds can begin nesting surprisingly early. In southern portions of their range, nesting may begin as early as late winter.
  • They generally place their nests in shrubs or trees, often about 3–10 feet above the ground, although nests can occasionally be much higher.
  • A mockingbird's nest is an open cup constructed primarily from twigs, grasses, leaves, roots, and other plant material. The male usually builds most of the twig foundation while the female contributes more of the fine lining.
  • Mockingbirds don't necessarily build just one nest and call it finished. A male may begin constructing several potential nests, giving the female a choice of sites.
  • Females typically lay 2–6 eggs, with three or four being common. The eggs are pale blue or greenish with reddish-brown markings.
  • Incubation lasts only about 12–13 days, and the young leave the nest roughly 12–13 days after hatching. They are still not particularly accomplished fliers at that point and depend on their parents while they continue developing their skills.
  • A pair may raise two or three broods in a year, making a successful breeding territory a very busy place.

The Extraordinary Song of the Mockingbird
  • The Northern Mockingbird's scientific name, Mimus polyglottos, essentially refers to a "many-tongued mimic." It is an exceptionally appropriate name for a bird capable of incorporating an enormous variety of sounds into its repertoire.
  • A mockingbird's song isn't one long melody. Instead, it is a constantly changing sequence of phrases. A particular phrase may be repeated several times before the bird abruptly switches to something completely different.
  • Mockingbirds can learn as many as 200 different songs or song phrases, and they continue learning new sounds throughout their lives.
  • Their repertoire can include imitations of other birds, frogs, and toads as well as sounds from the human environment. Documented examples include car alarms and other mechanical noises.
  • Here's something especially fascinating: individual mockingbirds don't necessarily share the same "vocabulary." One bird may know a collection of songs that another mockingbird has never learned.
  • Both male and female Northern Mockingbirds sing, although males are generally the more persistent performers.
  • Their songs can continue for 20 seconds or more without a break, and a single singing session can contain an extraordinary number of different phrases.

Why Do Mockingbirds Sing at Night?
  • A Northern Mockingbird singing after dark is not necessarily confused about the time. Mockingbirds are among the birds famous for singing at night, particularly during the breeding season.
  • Night singing is especially associated with unmated males, who may sing from exposed perches when the nighttime environment is quieter and their song can carry without competing daytime sounds.
  • This is one reason a mockingbird living near a bedroom window can become a very memorable neighbor during the breeding season!
  • Their extraordinary stamina means that a bird that seems to have been singing "all day" may actually continue its performance well into the night.

The Mysterious "Wing Flash"
  • If you've ever seen a mockingbird suddenly spread its wings and flash brilliant white patches, you've witnessed one of its most distinctive behaviors.
  • The display is particularly noticeable when the bird is walking or running across open ground. It may stop, partially spread its wings, expose the white patches, and then continue moving.
  • Scientists have proposed several possible explanations for wing flashing, including roles in foraging and interactions with predators or competitors. The exact function is still not completely settled, making this one of the more intriguing mysteries of mockingbird behavior.
  • Whatever its purpose, the behavior makes a normally understated gray bird suddenly impossible to miss.

Behavior, Intelligence & Personality
  • Northern Mockingbirds are fiercely territorial. A resident bird may chase away other mockingbirds as well as other birds, cats, dogs, or people that venture too close to a nest.
  • When two mockingbirds dispute a territory boundary, they may approach one another, face off, and hop silently near the boundary before one bird eventually retreats. If neither backs down, the confrontation can become physical, involving wing grappling and pecking.
  • A mockingbird defending a nest can be astonishingly bold. It may dive at much larger animals - including humans - if it believes its young are threatened.
  • Outside of the breeding season, mockingbirds are commonly seen alone or in pairs, rather than in large flocks.

Interesting & Unexpected Facts
  • Northern Mockingbirds were once heavily captured for the cage-bird trade. Their remarkable singing ability made them highly desirable as pets during the 18th and 19th centuries. After the trade was stopped, populations recovered and the species became common again.
  • The complexity of a male's song repertoire may play a role in attracting a mate. One hypothesis is that a large and varied repertoire can provide information about a male's age, experience, or ability to survive and defend a territory.
  • The Northern Mockingbird is not currently considered a species of high conservation concern, but that doesn't mean its population is completely unchanged. Cornell reports an estimated 30% cumulative population decline from 1966–2019, although the species remains common and widespread.
  • Their success in cities demonstrates an important lesson about urban wildlife: a landscape doesn't have to look wild to provide valuable habitat. A combination of shrubs, open ground, fruiting plants, and insects can support a surprisingly sophisticated predator and songbird community.

How to Attract Northern Mockingbirds to Your Yard
  • Northern Mockingbirds aren't typical feeder birds and usually don't visit seed feeders. Instead, the best way to invite them into your yard is to provide the foods and habitat they naturally seek.
  • Leave some open lawn or ground space where they can walk and hunt insects. A completely landscaped yard with no open areas is less useful to a ground-foraging mockingbird.
  • Add fruit-producing plants. Cornell specifically recommends fruiting trees and shrubs such as mulberries, hawthorns, and blackberry brambles.
  • Native San Diego plants that produce berries or fruit can also make a yard more attractive while providing habitat for insects and other wildlife.
  • Avoid unnecessary pesticide use. A yard with healthy insect populations provides a much more natural food supply for mockingbirds than one in which insects have been eliminated.
  • Providing dense shrubs gives mockingbirds places to perch, rest, and potentially nest while keeping nearby open ground available for feeding.

Why We Love Northern Mockingbirds

The Northern Mockingbird is a wonderful reminder that you don't have to travel far to experience something extraordinary in nature. In San Diego, these birds are part of our everyday landscape, yet their abilities are anything but ordinary.

A gray bird perched on a telephone wire might suddenly burst into the song of a House Finch, followed by a Blue Jay, a frog, an alarm, and sounds you've never heard before. It may flash brilliant white wings, chase a hawk away from its territory, drop to the lawn to catch a grasshopper, and then continue singing as if nothing happened.

The next time you hear what sounds like an entire orchestra coming from one bird, stop and listen. It may be one of San Diego's most remarkable residents—the Northern Mockingbird.

 

What’s happening in San Diego:


Please note: This information is compiled by hand (not AI) and mistakes or changes are possible. Please be sure to confirm dates/times/locations on the pages linked before leaving for an event.

SoCal Bird Nerds (no outing this month)

San Diego Bird Alliance (formerly San Diego Audubon Society)

  • Find 30 Species for California Diversity Day
    • Dates: September 5-13, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM on the 5th through 5:00 PM on the 13th
    • Location: California
    • Event Link
  • Anstine Preserve Projects
    • Date: September 5, 2026
    • Time: 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM
    • Location: Anstine Nature Preserve, 2437 Hutchison St., Vista
    • Event Link
  • Bird Outing: Lakeside’s River Park
    • Date: September 12, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 10:30 AM
    • Location: Lakeside Riverpark Conservancy Field Station, 12108 Industry Road, Lakeside
    • Event Link
  • Latino Conservation Week: Wonder the Wetlands special event (Bilingual)
    • Date: September 12, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
    • Location: Kendall-Frost Mission Bay Marsh Reserve, 2055 Pacific Beach Drive, San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Latino Conservation Week: Journey through the Wetlands
    • Date: September 13, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM
    • Location: Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center, 301 Caspian Way, Imperial Beach
    • Event Link
  • Latino Conservation Week: Haagua FILM Screening & PANEL
    • Date: September 16, 2026
    • Time: 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
    • Location: see link -TBD
    • Event Link
  • Stewardship Thursday at Anstine
    • Date: September 17, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM
    • Location: Anstine Nature Preserve, 2437 Hutchison St., Vista
    • Event Link
  • SAVE THE DATE: Latino Conservation Week: Beach Fiesta
    • Date: September 17, 2026
    • Time: 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM
    • Location: TBD
    • Event Link
  • Birding for Beginners
    • Dates: September 24, 26, 27, Oct 1, 3, 4, 8, 10, 11, 15, 17, 18, 22, 25 , 2026
    • Time: See Link – all dates are for the same class
    • Location: See Link
    • Event Link
  • Rose Creek Habitat Restoration
    • Date: September 18, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
    • Location: Rose Creek Cottage 1900,2525 Garnet Ave, San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Latino Conservation Week: Reptile Walk
    • Date: September 18, 2026
    • Time: 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM
    • Location: See Link for info
    • Event Link
  • Birding Outing: Famosa Slough
    • Date: September 19, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM
    • Location: 4285 W. Pt. Loma Blvd, San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Lakeside’s River Park Conservancy:  25th Anniversary Celebration of Nature & Wildlife
    • Date: September 19, 2026
    • Time: 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM
    • Location: Lakeside Riverpark Conservancy,10218 Channel Road, Lakeside
    • Event Link
  • Latino Conservation Week: Celebration at J Street
    • Date: September 20, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM
    • Location: Chula Vista Bayfront,980 Marina Way, Chula Vista
    • Event Link
  • Birding by Trolley: San Diego River (Wheelchair accessible!)
    • Date: September 20, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM
    • Location: San Diego River,Fashion Valley Transit Station, San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Wingspan and Ecologies Game Time!
    • Date: September 20, 2026
    • Time: 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
    • Location: Grant Park,2310 Camino Del Rio N., San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Queer Hike: Cowles Mountain
    • Date: September 23, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 10:30 AM
    • Location: Cowles Mountain,7001 Golfcrest Dr., San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Famosa Slough Habitat Restoration and Maintenance
    • Date: September 25, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
    • Location: Famosa Slough,2551-2599 Famosa Blvd, San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Birding Outing: Tecolote Canyon with Anitra Kaye
    • Date: September 26, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM
    • Location: Tecolote Canyon, San Diego – see link for directions
    • Event Link
  • Planting Event at Sweetwater Park
    • Dates: September 26, 2026
    • Time: 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: Sweetwater Park,845 E St., Chula Vista
    • Event Link                
  • Wonder the Wetlands: Work Party
    • Date: September 26, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM
    • Location: Kendall-Frost Mission Bay Marsh Reserve, 2055 Pacific Beach Drive, San Diego
    • Event Link
  • Birding by Ear: Lake Murray
    • Date: September 30, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM
    • Location: Lake Murray - Boat Dock,5540 Kiowa Dr., La Mesa
    • Event Link

Palomar Audubon Society

  • Robb Field/San Diego River Tidal Mud Flats Field Trip
    • Date: September 5, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
    • Location: Robb Field, 2525 Bacon St, San Diego
    • Event Link
Buena Vista Audubon Society
  • Whelan Lake Bird Sanctuary Walk
    • Date: September 5, 2026
    • Time: 7:45 AM – 9:00 AM
    • Location: 3850 N. River Rd., Oceanside
    • Event Link
  • El Corazon Garrison Creek
    • Date: September 9, 2026
    • Time: 7:30 AM – 8:30 AM
    • Location: El Corazon Garrison Creek, Oceanside
    • Event Link
  • Kids’ Nature Clubhouse
    • Date: September 13, 2026
    • Time: 11:00 AM  – 12:30 PM
    • Location: Buena Vista Audubon Nature Center, 2202 South Coast Hwy., Oceanside
    • Event Link
  • Birding with Barbara
    • Date: September 19, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM – 9:00 AM
    • Location: Buddy Todd Park, 2800 Mesa Dr., Oceanside
    • Event Link
  • Nature Journaling
    • Date: September 20, 2026
    • Time: 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: Lower San Dieguito County Park, 15951 El Camino Real, Solana Beach
    • Event Link
  • Coastal 101 Birding (Oceanside)
    • Date: September 26, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
    • Location: 2202 S. Coast Highway, Oceanside
    • Event Link
  • Preschool Nature Storytime
    • Date: September 28, 2026
    • Time: 10:00 AM  – 11:00 AM
    • Location: Buena Vista Audubon Nature Center, 2202 South Coast Hwy., Oceanside
    • Event Link

San Diego Botanical Gardens

  • Bird Walk
    • Date: September 9, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM
    • Location: San Diego Botanical Gardens, 300 Quail Gardens Dr., Encinitas
    • Event Link
  • Butterfly Walk

San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy

  • SDRVC Creekside Critters Bugs! With Bugologist Francisco
    • Date: September 5, 2026
    • Time: 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
    • Location: Del Mar Library, 1309 Camino Del Mar, Del Mar
    • Event Link
  • SDRVC Art in Nature Workshop Series
    • Dates: September 6, 2026
    • Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
    • Location: Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead, 12655 Sunset Drive, Escondido
    • Event Link
  • SDRVC Slow Flow Outdoor Yoga with Anna at the Birdwing
    • Date: September 12, 2026
    • Time: 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
    • Location: San Dieguito Lagoon Staging Area, 15648 San Andres Drive, Del Mar
    • Event Link
  • SDRVC Outdoor Yoga with Susan at the Birdwing
    • Dates: September 20, 2026
    • Time: 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
    • Location: San Dieguito Lagoon Staging Area, 15648 San Andres Drive, Del Mar
    • Event Link
  • Exploring Our Sense of Place
    • Dates: September 22, 2026
    • Time: 5:00 PM – 8:30 PM
    • Location: Del Mar Powerhouse Community Center, 1658 Coast Boulevard, Del Mar
    • Event Link
  • SDRVC Monthly Walk N Talk @ Bernardo Mountain
    • Dates: September 25, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
    • Location: Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead, 12655 Sunset Drive, Escondido
    • Event Link
  • Gonzales Canyon Habitat Restoration
    • Dates: September 26, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
    • Location: 13655 Sword Way, 13655 Sword Way, San Diego
    • Event Link
 San Elijo Lagoon Nature Collective
  • Discovery Tour
    • Date: September 5, 2026
    • Time: 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: San Elijo Lagoon, Nature Center Loop Trail, 2710 Manchester Ave., Cardiff-by-the-Sea
    • Event Link
  • Volunteer Restoration Event
    • Date: September 9, 2026
    • Time: 8:30 AM – 11:30 PM
    • Location: Will be shared before the event
    • Event Link
  • Wildlife Tour
    • Date: September 12, 2026
    • Time: 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM
    • Location: San Elijo Lagoon (location will be emailed)
    • Event Link
  • Volunteer Restoration Event
    • Date: September 19, 2026
    • Time: 8:30 AM – 11:30 PM
    • Location: Will be shared before the event
    • Event Link
Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation
  • Trail Restoration – Hubbs Trail
    • Date: September 18, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    • Location: Hubbs Trail, 4200 Garfield Street, Carlsbad 
    • Event Link
  • Trail Restoration – Hubbs Trail
    • Date: September 19, 2026
    • Time: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    • Location: Hubbs Trail, 4200 Garfield Street, Carlsbad 
    • Event Link
  • Bird Walk
    • Date: September 27, 2026
    • Time: 8:00 AM
    • Location: Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Mammal Mornings
    • Date: Every Monday
    • Time: 11:00 AM - 11:30 AM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Marine Monday
    • Date: Every Monday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Terrific Bug Tuesday
    • Date: Every Tuesday
    • Time: 11:00 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Tales & Trails
    • Date: Every Tuesday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Wiiwish & More
    • Date: Every Wednesday
    • Time: 11:00 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Chicken Check-In
    • Date: Every Wednesday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Quail Encounters
    • Date: Every Thursday
    • Time: 11:00 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Little Owl Thursday
    • Date: Every Thursday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Friday Fairy Fables
    • Date: Every Friday
    • Time: 11:00 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Falcon Feeding Friday
    • Date: Every Friday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Snake Slither Sessions
    • Date: Every Saturday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link
  • Sensory Sunday
    • Date: Every Sunday
    • Time: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
    • Location: The Discovery Campus, 1580 Cannon Road, Carlsbad
    • Event Link

Living Coast Discovery Center

Tijuana Estuary

  • Nature Walk – An Eye-Opening Experience Without Sight
    • Date: September 5, 2026
    • Time:  11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
    • Location: Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center, 301 Caspian Wy, Imperial Beach
    • Event Link
  • Bird Walk
    • Dates: September 5, 12, 19 and 26, 2026
    • Time: 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM
    • Location: Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center, 301 Caspian Wy, Imperial Beach
    • Event Link
  • Nature Walk
    • Date: September 22, 2026
    • Time:  11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
    • Location: 5th St & Iris Ave, Imperial Beach
    • Event Link
  • LCW: Journey Through the Wetlands/Un Viaje por los Humedales
    • Date: September 13, 2026
    • Time:  9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
    • Location: See Link, no location stated, potentially at the Visitor Center
    • Event Link
  • Coastal Cleanup Day
    • Date: September 19, 2026
    • Time:  9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
    • Location: See Link, TBD
    • Event Link
  • Nature Book Club
    • Date: September 26, 2026
    • Time:  10:00 AM – 11:30 AM
    • Location: Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center, 301 Caspian Wy, Imperial Beach
    • Event Link


Additional Resources:

San Diego Bird Alliance
Buena Vista Audubon Society
Palomar Audubon Society
San Diego Natural History Museum Canyoneers Hikes
San Diego Natural History Museum Nat Talks
San Diego Natural History Museum Community Science
San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy
San Dieguito Lagoon
San Elijo Lagoon
Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation
Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve
Living Coast Discovery Center
California State Parks Foundation
San Diego County Parks and Recreation
California Native Plant Society San Diego Chapter
San Diego Canyonlands
Wildlife Research Organization
Ramona Barn Owls
Project Wildlife

Organizations we support:

San Diego Bird Alliance
Wildlife Research Organization
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Ramona Barn Owls
Project Wildlife