More information about everything going in May can be found in our Chapter newsletter, “Flyer“. May is a busy month!  Join us!!!

May 7, 6:00 p.m. – Greenway Cleanup
Cheyenne Audubon is hosting a Greenway cleanup event, Wednesday, May 7th in the evening. The public is invited to help.
The starting location is the parking lot adjacent to the intersection of Van Buren Avenue and Laramie Street (just north of East Lincolnway and east of its intersection with Pershing Blvd.). Work will proceed to the north along Dry Creek and should take a little over an hour.
Trash bags and light-weight gloves will be provided. Participants should wear sturdy footwear (preferably waterproof) and heavy gloves and bring rakes and hoes, if available, for fishing trash out of the creek.

May 8, 6:00 p.m. – Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring Volunteers and Training
CHPAS needs volunteers to help monitor 16 nestboxes at Cheyenne Botanic Gardens’ High Plains Arboretum. Each survey takes about an hour and involves 1.5-miles of walking on mostly flat gravel roads and prairie grasses, with some unmown tall grasses.
Volunteers coordinate to complete the surveys weekly over the spring and summer. Surveys usually are completed in the morning on a day convenient to the volunteer during the week (or weeks) that they have selected.
Interested volunteers will need to attend a training session at 6:00 p.m. Thursday May 8th. Meet at the Arboretum parking area at 8301 Hildreth Road. The session will last 1 to 1.5 hours and will take volunteers to all monitored nestboxes.
Contact Kirk Miller (307-630-3238; kamiller63@gmail.com) if you plan to participate so that we can let you know if plans change. Kirk can also provide directions and more information.

May 10, 9:00 a.m. – First Big Day Bird Count for Platte and Goshen Counties
On May 10, the first Big Day for Platte and Goshen Counties organized by the Cheyenne – High Plains Audubon Society will take place. It will be on the same day as Global Big Day, and International Migratory Bird Day, and anyplace in those two counties can be part of it.
A guided group will meet at the Guernsey Fish Ponds at 9:00 AM and will use the paved path between there and the Platte River to bird. This will be for anybody, but is directed toward those brand-new to birding, families and those that may have mobility issues. Binoculars will be available for those that don’t have them.
For everybody else, you can bird together or alone, at home or your favorite spot, or seek out new opportunities. Are you looking to see birds you haven’t seen before, such as a Northern Cardinal or a Short-eared owl? This is a great area to try.
If you are interested, please contact Grant Frost at 307-343-2024 (call or text) to give him an idea of who is participating. Results can be entered through eBird, or lists can be sent to him at the end of the day.

May 12, 6:00 p.m. – Birding 101 Class
Join CHPAS at Laramie County Library in the Sunflower Room for an introduction to birding. This hour-long free class is open to the public, anyone with an interest in bird watching is invited. We will discuss the basics of bird identification, some birdwatching tips, and local bird species. Tools such as binoculars, guidebooks, and apps also will be covered.  For questions or more information, contact Kirk Miller (307-630-3238 kamiller63@gmail.com).

May 17, 8:00 a.m. – Annual Cheyenne Big Day Bird Count
Starting at Lions Park, we will cover birding hot spots throughout the Cheyenne area. If you want to join us later than 8:00 a.m., please call Mark, 307-287-4953, to get a location update throughout the morning. We also encourage people to report all bird sightings during the 24-hour period beginning at midnight on the free app at eBird.org.
We will leave from the Lions Park parking lot between the Children’s Village at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens and the picnic shelter to hike around the park for about an hour or two. We will then head to the Wyoming Hereford Ranch. At about lunch time we will head out to the Agricultural Research Station and the Arboretum west of the Air Force Base.
Bring a lunch or pick one up on the way; bring water and dress for variable weather. Everyone, no matter what your birding skills, is invited. Bring binoculars if you have them. We may finish the planned routes by 3 p.m. You may join us at any time throughout the day for as long as you wish and leave when you need to.

May 20, 6:30 p.m. – Special Program: Chris Madson, “Up From The Grass”
Cheyenne Audubon invites the public for a free program, at 6:30 p.m. in the Cottonwood Room at the Laramie County Library, 2200 Pioneer Ave., featuring guest speaker Chris Madson.
Chris, the retired, long-time, award-winning editor of Wyoming Wildlife magazine, will repeat his May 2024 Cheyenne-High Plains Audubon banquet talk, “Up From The Grass” that leads us through the fascinating history of the Audubon movement and highlights some of the Wyoming conservationists, such as Frank Bond, who were important in the early Audubon Society.
Chris’s talk will be professionally recorded that night and archived for public access at the American Heritage Center.

May 27, 6:00 p.m. – Monthly Board Meeting
Contact us, cheyenneaudubon@gmail.com, if you would like to attend and participate in helping to plan chapter activities, or if you are interested in volunteering in some of our activities. This meeting will be held at the Laramie County Library in the Sage Room.

May 30, 7:00 a.m. – Country Club Bird Survey
Contact Chuck Seniawski to be on his email notice list: 307-638-6519 or chuckski@aol.com. The count will start in the Country Club’s clubhouse’s main parking lot. These outings are free and open to everyone, but please let Chuck know you are coming