(By Kim Ryan) Help support the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey and join in the fun on March 10-11 to participate in the Wind Beneath Our Wings virtual fundraiser which will include a behind-the-scenes Raptor ER field trip, Raptor Happy Hour, a keynote presentation by Dr. Paul Gray, and an online auction.
This is the center’s annual celebration benefiting conservation programs and our state’s raptors. Gather with friends and family to help raise critical funds to support raptor rehabilitation, conservation education, youth leadership and community science.
Your support will ensure the center’s ability and success in treating more than 700 injured and orphaned raptors annually, connecting people to nature through education, developing the next generation of conservation leaders, and protecting Bald Eagles in Florida.
March 10, 6-7pm – Raptor Happy Hour- Along with a cocktail or mocktail you can test your knowledge on raptors! A few lucky folks will get to play Let’s Make a Deal, where contestants compete for the title of Reining Raptor Champion. Fun to be had by all with games and a visit from feathered guests.
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March 11, 12-12:30pm – Raptor ER – Take a peek inside the Raptor Trauma Clinic, where care is provided for Florida’s top avian predators. They have 42 years of experience in birds of prey rehabilitation and will share what it takes to help them back to the wild. Learn about patient’s common injuries and the special skills our technicians must have to work in this specialized emergency room.
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March 11, 7-8pm – Keynote presentation: Raptors and Restoration with Dr. Paul Gray
For more than 30 years, Dr. Paul Gray has taken to the waters, prairies, and forests of the Greater Everglades to protect the famed River of Grass. You are invited for an evening filled with first-hand accounts from a 14-year-old banded Caracara that lives near his office, to protecting thousands of Swallow-tailed Kites around the largest pre-migratory roost in Florida, to the crash and gradual recovery of the Everglade Snail Kite population. He’ll share about fighting habitat destruction and drainage, restoration projects, land acquisitions and the myriad things he and Audubon are doing to make Florida’s future better for birds and people.
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*Please note: each event requires a separate registration
Registration is free this year, however the hope is folks will consider making a donation to support the event and the sustainability of the Center’s programs. Your support makes a real difference for our raptors.