Birding for Beginners at Birch Ridge Community Forest

Thanks to Jenn McKown and Virginia Long for photos of past MMRG birding outings.

MMRG will offer a birdwatching outing at Birch Ridge Community Forest in New Durham on Saturday, July 20 from 8 to 11 am.  Although this event will be aimed at beginners, birdwatchers of all levels are welcome to attend.  There will also be a brief update on vision, goals and the planning process for the Community Forest, which was permanently conserved just last month.

The trip leader will be MMRG staff member Virginia Long, who also leads MMRG’s monthly birding group called MOOSE-ie Birders and led a hawk watch on Birch Ridge last fall. Regarding the upcoming outing, Long says, “It’s always exciting to search for birds in a new place and I enjoy introducing beginning birders to new birds, so I’m looking forward to this event! We’ll explore part of the new Birch Ridge Community Forest and its birdlife. Recent and previous timber cuts on the property mean that we may see some less common bird species that rely on early successional habitat, which has been disappearing from NH as forests have re-grown. Join us as we explore!”

The event is free and open to the public but pre-registration is required. For directions and to register, call MMRG Education Coordinator Kari Lygren at (603) 978-7125 or email info@mmrgnh.org. Please bring binoculars; a bird guide would also be helpful, but leave pets at home.

MMRG is one member of the Partnership for Birch Ridge Community Forest (BRCF), which also includes Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire (SELT) and Merrymeeting Lake Association. The Partnership was formed to acquire, conserve and steward the 2000+ acre BRCF property overlooking Merrymeeting Lake, with SELT as landowner and MMRG holding the conservation easement. A celebration of the permanent conservation of the Community Forest is being held on Saturday, July 13; for details see seltnh.org/event/birch-ridge-celebration/. For more information on the Partnership organizations, see www.mmlake.org/and seltnh.org/.