Benzie Audubon

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Frankfort, MI
Benzie Audubon

The Benzie Audubon club promotes an appreciation for and a better understanding of the plants and animals of northwest Michigan.

Our major objectives are promoting an appreciation for and a better understanding of the plants and animals of northern Michigan, preserving our natural environment, and preventing any activities that may pose a threat to our natural ecology. To meet our mission we offer educational programs and seasonal field trips and provide members with the Meadowlark newsletter. The Benzie Audubon Club is a t

ax-exempt charitable organization and a chapter of the Michigan Audubon Society. All of our meetings and field trips are open to the public without charge. Meetings are usually held the first Thursday of each odd month (January, March, etc.) at the Tribal Outpost at 7282 Hoadley Road in Benzonia (see map). Field trips are taken throughout the year.

05/18/2026

Mark your calendars! June field trips are rapidly approaching and we'd love to see you. From forest trails to grasslands, the opportunities are great for summer birding.

05/04/2026

While anyone can participate in our programming regardless of club status, we always welcome new members! The nominal yearly fee goes toward club activities (including booking fantastic speakers) and is applied toward the Robert Lytle Education and Environment fund - Benzie Audubon's mini-grant program. Every bit helps keep the club running. The biggest news is we have officially entered the 21st century and are accepting membership dues online! For more information visit: https://www.benzieaudubon.org/membership

Photo: April 11, 2026 - Early Spring Birding field trip at Arcadia Marsh. Credit: Emily Cook

05/01/2026

Just a reminder, we have a busy birding week ahead - join us if you can!

🐦Saturday, May 2nd @ 9am - Field Trip: Beginning Birding
🐦Wednesday, May 6th @ 8pm - Field Trip: Night Sounds
🐦Thursday, May 7th @ 7pm - Program: Forest Birds with Vince Cavalieri from Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
🐦Benzie/Global Big Day Count, May 9th (all day) - Team Birding Competition, pre-registration requested.

More information on these events and future programming can be found at www.BenzieAudubon.org/events

04/27/2026

May is a BIG month for birding. We hope you'll join us on one or more of our upcoming field trips. Interested in what else we have going on? Visit our website to see a complete list of 2026 events and to learn about becoming a club member. www.BenzieAudubon.org

04/17/2026

We have a great start to our 2026 programming! Join us on Thursday, May 7th at 7:00pm to hear all about Michigan's special forest songbirds. It will be a great precursor to the incredible birding that happens in May as migratory species return.

04/15/2026

Do you love birds? Do you love a little friendly competition? If so, join us for our second annual Team Birding Event in recognition of the Global Big Day of Birding. Grab a buddy and count as many species of birds as you can. Then, join the group for lunch to share what you found! Pre-registration is required - all details can be found at: https://www.benzieaudubon.org/events/benzieglobal-big-day-count

04/13/2026

Some of you will have heard Arcadia Marsh had an extra exciting visitor several weeks ago - a Whooping Crane! Their population declined to only about 20 individuals in the 1940s but through a dedicated captive breeding program and wetland conservation (shout out to Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy!) those numbers are now higher than 600 birds. A sunny spring day treated this early morning birding crew to great views. Local photographer Carl Freeman shared the close-up photos of the crane itself. Some research into the bands show it was reared in 2024 and released into Wisconsin.

03/23/2026

Mark your calendars! Field trips for 2026 have been scheduled and the first ones are coming up next month. Join us to see who is migrating back to the area as warmer weather returns. Visit www.BenzieAudubon.org/events for a complete list of programming. (All field trips and programs are entirely free and open to the public, regardless of your membership status with Benzie Audubon.)

03/19/2026

Recently the club was graciously given an early copy of "The Feather Wars" by James H. McCommons. For bird lovers, this is an important history on how so many of the special species we see everyday have been protected from extinction. If you are interested in purchasing your own copy, the author is offering complimentary signed bookplates - the publisher shared this easy link for signing up: https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-feather-wars-9781250286895-2/ . The first day of spring may be tomorrow but there is still plenty of winter weather left for reading a good book!

11/17/2025

There is still time to sign-up to participate in this year's Christmas Bird Count. 2025 marks the 50th year community members have been counting species in Benzie County! For more information about how to register see the image or visit www.BenzieAudubon.org/christmas-bird-count

Address

PO Box 804
Frankfort, MI
49635

Website

http://www.benzieaudubon.org/

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