Events & Programs
Browsing event topic: flora
- Thursday Morning Bird Walk
Please join us for our weekly bird walk at Gilsland Farm. In addition to our feathered friends, we’ll be on the lookout for other plants and animals. All ages and abilities are welcome. You only need your curiosity and a sense of adventure.
Learn more - Nature Time: Spring Session
Nature in spring is a wonderful, mysterious time as life begins to emerge from the cold. Parents with children ages 2 to 4, come to our springtime nature-based program with stories, movement, art projects and an outdoor adventure. Parents take part too. Prepare to venture outside and be nature detectives for a part of each program.
Learn more - Bird Walk at Hedgehog Mountain
Hedgehog Mountain is another gem owned by the town of Freeport. Since it’s May, we’ll be focusing on migrating songbirds – warblers, sparrows, grosbeaks, tanagers and more!
Directions: The trailhead is located on Hedgehog Mountain Road off Pownal Road. A gravel parking area is located on the left just before the Recycling Center gate. Trail map available at Freeport Conservation Trust.
- Saturdays in the Discovery Room
Join FPAC Environmental Educator, Cyndi Kuhn, for a morning of nature explorations. We’ll start in the Discovery Room then head outside for an amazing sensory experience! Suitable for the whole family.
- Grassland Birds of Kennebunk Plains
In heavily forested Maine, large grasslands are uncommon, and so are the birds for which they provide habitat. This ecologically significant area hosts several state endangered species, and provides habitat for some of the rarest breeding birds in Maine. On this morning walk we will look for some of these species, including Upland Sandpiper, Grasshopper Sparrow, Brown Thrasher, Prairie Warbler, and Vesper Sparrow.
Learn more - Paddle on the Little and Presumpscot Rivers
Join naturalists George Libby and Gary Roberts for a flat water paddle on the Little and Presumpscot Rivers. George and Gary will discuss the natural and human history of these rivers and the surrounding land as you enjoy the scenic beauty.
Learn more - Thursday Morning Bird Walk
Join us each Thursday for an easy stroll through Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm Sanctuary. We’ll walk the property looking for birds, and anything else that peaks our interest.
Bring your binoculars and a field guide if you have one. Please dress to be comfortable outside for 2 hours.
Guide: Mike Windsor is the staff naturalist at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm Center. An avid birder and outdoor enthusiast, Mike has worked as a field biologist, environmental educator and trip leader.
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- Black-throated Green Warbler © Pam Wells
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- Scarlet Tanager © Pam Wells
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- Ruby-throated Hummingbird © Pam Wells
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- Paddlebirding 1
Paddlebirding is back! If you missed these programs last summer, you have another chance to improve your birding skills and try the growing sport of Stand-Up Paddleboarding. This year, we’re going to explore Great Pond in Cape Elizabeth. The lake’s flat, calm waters are ideal for beginners to paddleboarding, and the surround habitats offer refuge for birds. We’ll also have the opportunity to jump off the boards and bird from firm land.
Learn more - Wildflower Walks – June
Although the official start to Summer is still a few weeks away, wildflowers are already blooming. This is our second in a series of Wildflower Walks offered at Gilsland Farm. Join us for just this one program, or attend them all to watch the flowers transition through the season.
- Tide Pool Exploration
Families of children ages 6 and up are invited to join Cathy Stivers for a close-up look at the amazing life within a tide pool. Trip will include a scavenger hunt and exploration of the tenacious and adaptive creatures that live among the rock crevices and seaweed found in the ever-changing tidal zone.
Learn more - Naturally Curious by Mary Holland
Mary Holland, naturalist, author, environmental educator and nature photographer, invites you to join her in a visual journey through the 12 months of the year, as she highlights the natural events that take place during the different seasons in New England.
Learn more - Fern Ecology and Identification
Ferns and their allies are ancient plants. Although abundant in the Northeast, the number of species is small compared with wildflowers, and the astute observer can readily learn to recognize these woodland dwellers. During this outing, we’ll learn about fern ecology and will focus on distinguishing characteristics. Please come prepared to spend the morning outside.
Learn more - Paddlebirding 2
Paddlebirding is back! If you missed these programs last summer, you have another chance to improve your birding skills and try the growing sport of Stand-Up Paddleboarding. This year, we’re going to explore Great Pond in Cape Elizabeth. The lake’s flat, calm waters are ideal for beginners to paddleboarding, and the surround habitats offer refuge for birds. We’ll also have the opportunity to jump off the boards and bird from firm land. - Borestone Mountain Naturalist Weekend
Borestone Mountain by Gary Roberts
Join Maine Audubon Naturalist Mike Windsor and Registered Maine Guide Gary Roberts on a trip to Borestone Mountain Sanctuary, located just 20 miles south of Moosehead Lake.
On this weekend retreat we will stay in the sanctuary’s historic Adirondack style lodges, which are accessible only by boat or on foot, lending an extra sense of remoteness and tranquility to this special place.
- Nature Time for Children: Summer Session
The summertime is made for getting out into nature! Parents with children ages 2 to 4 come to a nature-based program with movement, stories, art projects and an outdoor adventure. Parents participate too. Be prepared to be outside nature detectives for a portion of each program.
- Wildflower Walks – July
Summer is in full swing, and the wildflowers continue to bloom in the warmth. This is our third in a series of Wildflower Walks offered at Gilsland Farm. Join us for just this one program, or attend them all to watch the flowers transition through the season, and deepen your knowledge of these plants.
We’ll focus on the natural history and identification of the plants we find using Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. This book utilizes a simple and elegant key system, and with a little practice, it’s easy to use. If you have a copy of Newcomb’s please bring this with you (other field guides are welcome too).
Instructor: Mike Windsor is the staff naturalist at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm Center. An avid birder and outdoor enthusiast, Mike has worked as a field biologist, environmental educator and trip leader.
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- Jewelweed
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- Wildflower Walk © Kathleen Kelly
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- Mullein
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- A Day to Peaks Island
Bring a bag lunch and join Registered Maine Guides, Gary Roberts and George Libby, for a day trip to Peaks Island. Learn about the island’s history, from the time it was used as a summer gathering place by Maine’s early native peoples, its settlement in the 1600’s, to present day. - Wildflower Walks – August
Summer is starting to wind down, but there are still many flowers to find and observe. This is our last in a series of Wildflower Walks offered at Gilsland Farm. Join us for just this one program, or attend them all to watch the flowers transition through the season, and deepen your knowledge of these plants.
We’ll focus on the natural history and identification of the plants we find using Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. This book utilizes a simple and elegant key system, and with a little practice, it’s easy to use. If you have a copy of Newcomb’s please bring this with you (other field guides are welcome too).
Instructor: Mike Windsor is the staff naturalist at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm Center. An avid birder and outdoor enthusiast, Mike has worked as a field biologist, environmental educator and trip leader.
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- Wildflower Walk © Kathleen Kelly
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- Wildflower Walk © Kathleen Kelly
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- Weekend at Gulf Hagas: The Grand Canyon of Maine
Gulf Hagas © Gary Roberts
Located in the mountains of central Maine, Gulf Hagas is a gorge carved out by the Pleasant River. Often referred to as the Grand Canyon of the East, this area is part of the Appalachian Mountain Trail. Camping, hiking, and great nature with two Maine Registered Guides.
Learn more - Mushroom Workshop
The natural history of mushrooms and their role in ecosystems will be the focus of this day’s outing. We will search for, find and really discover the world of fungus, with discoveries at every turn through the Gilsland Farm property, discussing every fungus we encounter. An optional mushroom slide show will be presented during lunch (please bring food if you plan on staying).
- Moose Rut Weekend
Join fellow moose lovers for a unique weekend of moose stalking in the northern forest. In rut (breeding season) and looking for a female, adult male moose sporting full antlers for their month-long mating season are on the move. Our leaders will use birch-bark horns to imitate the breeding calls of a cow moose to draw in the bulls. With fall bird migration underway, there should be good birding, too.
Learn more
Featured
Maine Audubon Speaker Series – Film: Scavenger Hunt: An Unlikely Union
- May 22 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
- Location: Gilsland Farm
