SOLD OUT – Join the waitlist
Start Time – 9:30 a.m.
The Gull Frolic is a unique winter event at Illinois’ premier gull-watching hotspot, North Point Marina. Bring your binoculars, scope and cold weather gear, and join birders outside of the yacht club to enjoy a close study of some of our harder-to-find winter species, including Iceland (Thayer’s and Kumlien’s), Glaucous, Great Black-backed, and Lesser Black-backed Gulls! A variety of waterfowl typically make an appearance too (scoters and other diving ducks), along with the occasional raptor, owl, or winter finch. Birders wearing bright orange hats will be available to help answer questions along the “boardwalk”.
Whenever you need a break from the cold, retreat indoors to the Winthrop Harbor Yacht Club that’s just a few feet away from the shore. Birders from all corners of our state come to mingle, relax and drive away the winter doldrums. Coffee, tea and hot-chocolate will be available all day to help us warm up. There will be a presentation in the conference room that’s offered twice (Session A & Session B).
Speaker: Amar Ayyash, author of The Gull Guide: North America.
Ayyash, leading authority on the gulls of North America, will be leading an entertaining and intriguing conversation of the natural history of gulls, and share some of the lesser-known adaptations and quirky behaviors of gulls.
Ayyash’s new book, The Gull Guide: North America, will be available for purchase during the Gull Frolic. He will also be signing books throughout the day.
REGISTRATION:
The $40 registration fee / $30 for IOS members: includes a continental breakfast, lunch, and more. Any surplus raised will go to the IOS Grant Program, which provides money to local researchers and projects that benefit Illinois birds and birding.