The Florida Birding and Nature Festival is Back for 2024

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Since 2016 this festival has been a can’t-miss event! The Florida Birding & Nature Festival aims to promote appreciation and conservation of Florida’s birds, its wildlife and their habitats through responsible nature-based tourism and public awareness.

This year the festival will be held from October 17 through October 20 at the Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission (FWC) Suncoast Youth Conservation Center at 6650 Dickman Rd, Apollo Beach, FL.

Field trips and hikes will be held nearby at Cockroach Bay, Lower Green Swamp, Blackwater Creek, and Fred and Ida Shultz Nature Preserves as well as Upper Tampa Bay Conservation Park and many other wild locations throughout Hillsborough, Polk, Pinellas, Manatee, and Sarasota counties!


The festival is timed just right to coincide with the peak migration of more than 180 species of birds and features expert-led field and boating trips to the best wildlife sites in West Central Florida.

The festival will also offer two days of live seminars featuring talks on orcas, the Florida scrub jay, gopher tortoises, butterflies, sharks, dolphins, and more!

The Saturday keynote speaker, Tim Laman, will speak on his travels and experiences as a documentary photographer focusing on birds. “Tim will share his favorite bird photographs from over twenty-five years in the field, along with some of his most memorable adventures in pursuit of them. Covering a broad range of species from diverse habitats - from hornbills in the rainforest of Borneo to cranes in snowy Hokkaido, and from birds of paradise in the tree-tops of New Guinea to wandering albatross soaring over the Drake Passage, Tim's images of birds in their natural habitats are sure to inspire a greater appreciation for birds and the importance of protecting their environment, not just for the birds, but for all life on earth.”


The Nature Expo on Friday and Saturday, October 18 and 19, will feature booths and displays from numerous environmental organizations, nature-related businesses and artists. Exhibitors will offer for sale artwork, binoculars, bird boxes and other products for nature lovers. A silent auction will be held each day.

For information on registration, the schedule of events, and more, visit the Florida Birding and Nature Festivalwebsite or email info@fbnfestival.org.


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