NEW ORLEANS – Two separate, yet diverse, outdoor activities are scheduled in the Sherburne Wildlife Management Area in the Atchafalaya Basin next month.
The Neotropic Songbird Tour and the 7th Annual STEP OUTSIDE Day are both open to all children and adults.
Assembly for the Neotropic Songbird Tour is scheduled for 7 a.m. at the Sherburne Wildlife Management Area (WMA), adjacent to LA 975 between Interstate 10 and U.S. 190. Look for a gravel pull-off just after turning onto LA 975.
Tour participants will be guided to multiple sites where facilitators will be available to assist them in bird identifications. At each site it may be possible to hear as many as 15 species of birds. Some birds are easily seen whereas others are elusive, so binoculars may be useful.
Songbird tour stops are each estimated to last 30 to 45 minutes. The tour will include a mist-netting demonstration and conclude around 10:30 a.m. Participants are then encouraged to continue five miles north from the last stop to the Sherburne WMA Headquarters to participate in STEP OUTSIDE Day.
Locally sponsored by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, STEP OUTSIDE Day targets those with special needs, providing them an opportunity to engage in safe, hands-on outdoor activities. Registration begins at 8 a.m. at the Sherburne Wildlife Management Area Headquarters Activities will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
STEP OUTSIDE is a national program administered by the National Shooting Sports Foundation to increase participation in outdoor sports. Last year more than 600 registrants participated in the event. This year’s event will include fishing, archery, boating, target and trap shooting, wood crafts construction, nature photography, bird watching, ATV safety and owl pellet dissection.
Also featured will be exhibits on adaptive equipment, water safety, Louisiana black bear information, turkey trapping demonstrations, trapping techniques, and turkey and duck calling. Be sure to stick around for the prize drawings to take place after lunch.
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The Boy Scouts of America will also be present by celebrating and promoting activities during their centennial year.
No alcoholic beverages or glass containers will be allowed on the premises. Due to the nature of activities, liability waiver forms must be completed.
To obtain registration forms or get detailed driving directions to the Sherburne Headquarters, call the Corps of Engineers, Atchafalaya Basin Floodway System Project Office at 337-585-0853.
For more information, visit the following links:
Bird Checklist of US Fish & Wildlife Service
http://library.fws.gov/Refuges/atchafalaya_birds03.pdf
STEP OUTSIDE Day
http://www.stepoutside.org
Recreation in New Orleans District, Corps of Engineers
http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/recreation