Verde Valley Birding and Nature Festival: Pre-Event talk with Jennie MacFarland & Tice Supplee celebrating IBA’s

The Verde Valley has breathtaking natural beauty and is home to hundreds of bird species. Arizona is part of an international program recognizing places that are special to birds and the Verde Valley has four such places! This event is a fun celebration of the Verde Valley’s bird habitat that will feature photos and information about many beautiful bird species. The designated Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of the Verde Valley range from the vast expanses of the Sonoran desert to community parks like Watson and Willow Lakes in Prescott. These sites achieved their designations with the efforts of local volunteer birders that documented the unique value of these areas for birds. The Verde Valley Birding Festival has field trips to visit these areas in the local communities that have a strong connection to the Verde River. We will celebrate partners of the IBA program such as AZGFD, Friends of the Verde River and Northern Arizona Audubon, and bird species such as Common Black Hawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, beautiful warblers, towhees and many more.       Part of the Verde Valley Birding and Nature Festival Join us 100 miles North of Phoenix in North Central Arizona’s Verde Valley for the Verde Valley Birding and Nature Festival. Experience birding during the peak Spring migration season at Dead Horse Ranch State Park on the banks of the Verde River. Close proximity to the Verde, Oak Creek, Sycamore Creek, and other perennial waters offers a wide selection of guided tours, hikes, and workshops in one of Arizona’s richest birding habitats. Our experienced guides have extensive knowledge of birds and the unique habitat that makes this region special. The festival, presented each April by Friends of the Verde River, is a purpose-driven community benefit organization and 501© 3 non-profit working to preserve one of the last perennial flowing rivers in the American Southwest.