For the birding enthusiast there are numerous events available locally and around the State. The Montgomery County Bird Club is providing guided tours on April 20th at Pennyfield Lock from 8-11 am, and at the Croydon Creek Nature Center on April 30th from 7:30 – 10 am. Space is limited, and all participants must be registered and (except for small children) fully vaccinated against Covid 19. Check out the club’s website for information and registration and to sign up for their newsletter!
If you are up for a little travel, Maryland’s Eastern Shore and the region’s famed estuary, the Chesapeake Bay, are renowned for many things, not the least of which is birding.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Dorchester County is world-renowned as hosting one of the largest Bald Eagle populations on the East Coast. Its tidal marshes are so vast they have been called “the Everglades of Maryland.” Blackwater is one of the chief wintering areas for migrating ducks and Canada geese using the Atlantic Flyway, a kind of superhighway for migrating birds. The refuge, also the birthplace of Harriet Tubman, hosts guided birding tours in the spring and the fall. On April 24, the Refuge is hosting a 3 – 4 hour guided birding tour, departing from the visitors’ center at 8 am. There is a park entrance fee of $3/vehicle. Bring your binoculars and dress for the weather! Next up is a free Juneteenth Celebration! On June 19th, all park admissions and driving tours are free for the day, beginning at 7 am and departing from the visitors’ center.
If you are looking for something a bit more exotic, the crown jewel of the bay area birdwatching events is the 2022 Smith Island Pelican Tour! The tour, hosted by the private company DelmarvaBirding.com, is available on June 15, June 16, June 17, June 22, June 23, and June 24. The cost is $250/person. The tour starts at 8am aboard a 45-foot cabin boat that will ferry you 12 miles west to Smith Island. After a bit of land birdwatching, you will lunch in Tylerton, after which you will board small skiffs in search of brown pelican nesting sites in the Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge on Smith, Martins and Watts Islands. 
The brown pelican commonly nests in warmer climates in the south, the Gulf Coast, and California. With climate change, the birds are finding the Spring climate in the Chesapeake Bay favorable to their nesting requirements. In addition to the warming temperatures, the area offers an abundance of food sources for the pelican parents and their chicks, including menhaden, herring, and other oily fish. The birds begin arriving in late April. By mid-May most birds have arrived and are nesting. Eggs hatch 35 days after being laid, making June and early July prime pelican season. The chicks are ready to fledge after 75 days and soon after will begin their journey south.
No foot traffic is allowed on the island, but the 6 passenger skiffs allow for great viewing and photography. Birders will also find nesting cormorants mixed in with the pelicans, as the two species nest symbiotically. They protect each other’s nests from predator birds.
If this sounds like your kind of weekend, take advantage of this opportunity to see the pelicans! Then spend some time on Smith Island and learn about the pleasures and beauty of Somerset County Maryland.