Established in the 1940s and incorporated in 1972, we serve the Greater Hillsborough County region,
including Tampa, Lutz, Plant City, Brandon, Riverview and Seffner. 

By Mary Miller In summary, the success of these 8 BB Trails this year is due in large part to the following people, thanks to: Bluebird Trail Monitors Sonya Rose (Carrollwood Village Park), Joni Hartzler and Gary Krotz (Lake Park), Nancy Eydmann (Lithia Springs Park), Sherry Keller (Lettuce Lake Park), Patricia O'Brien-Giglia (Hunter's Green), Roxie Custalow (Sargeant's Park), Lynn Mitchell, and Mic McCarty (MacDill AFB). Photographers Sherry Keller and Roxie Custalow, who

By Jessica Parrish Recently, I co-lead the Lettuce Lake Beginning Bird Walk. I have co-lead this past month as well and saw a lot of familiar faces, which was so neat! Clearly, the event was well received enough to warrant continued participation! The question came up, how long does it take for me not to be a beginner? Will there be a time when I can't go to this walk? How about other walks? Will I be welcomed as a beginner? Lettuce Lake Bird Walk August 8th, 2026

By Arnov Dhakal & Raegan Perry July 18, 2026 Recently, the Florida Young Birders Club spent a day exploring the process of bird banding at the Prairie Creek Bird Banding Lab and the University of Florida's Florida Museum of Natural History collections from Dickinson’s Hall. Below, we explain our experience. As soon as we arrived, we learned all sorts of interesting information about birds in general. Mr. Charlie Muise showed us how they identify young birds from older bird

Saturday, Sept. 26, 9-11 am As our part of an agreement between Port Tampa Bay and the Sierra Club to manage the Westshore Audubon Sanctuary, we are collaborating on a cleanup on September 26, Saturday, meeting at 9 a.m. and working until 11 that morning to remove trash and debris from the area on the north side of San Jose Street. Dress in walk-in-the-water closed-toe shoes and long pants and long-sleeved shirts. Let Todd Randolph of the Tampa Bay Sierra Club know you will c

Presented by Anita Camacho, native plant expert & founder and president of the Tampa Bay Butterfly Foundation Tampa Garden Club, 2629 Bayshore Blvd, Tampa Thursday, Sept. 3 6:30 pm - Potluck. Bring a dish to share 7:15 pm - Announcements 7:30 pm - Presentation In person only. We plan to resume Zoom sessions in October. Join conservationist Anita Camacho as she presents Re-wild all landscapes – Simply Plant Florida Natives. During her presentation, she explores how every lan

October Big Day Contest​ Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026 Tampa Audubon is excited to announce an Inter-Chapter Audubon Birding Competition! We're celebrating​ World Migratory Bird Day with a friendly birding competition Oct. 10. On this day, people from all over West Central Florida will gather to count as many species of birds as they can during 24 hours. As a participant, you can create a team, join a team or let Tampa Audubon assign you to a team. Anyone in the following counties

New to TAS: Ron D., Walt S., and John D. Supporters: Alyssa E., Susan C., Dylan M., Agi B., Paul L., Adam K., Michael G., Heather G., and Erin J.

By Mic McCarty, Vice President Tampa Audubon Society formally invites members and friends to join an unforgettable birding and cultural journey to Belize and Guatemala, March 10–18, 2027, in collaboration with Holbrook Travel. This nine-day adventure is designed for travelers who want to experience the region’s rich birdlife while exploring ancient Maya archaeological sites set amid tropical forest. Participants will bird through a remarkable variety of habitats, from hotel

By Mic McCarty, Vice President Ospreys are the only raptors that are true plunge divers: they completely submerge themselves and are still able to fly away with the fish. When spotting a fish, they often hover, plummet, and then dive– legs extended forward just before plunging feet-first into the water.(1) The osprey’s toes are semi-zygodactyl, meaning they have one toe that faces to the rear and three that are usually facing forward. However, when seizing a fish, the fourth

By Lucy Polak, Owner of Birds Unlimited Water has always been important! So, what’s changed to make it more important now than ever before? The world has entered into a time of global water bankruptcy. It appears now more than ever that the circumstances occurring in nature are making water – especially fresh, clean water – harder to come by for birds and other wildlife. Depending on the geographic location, birds have had to deal with extreme heat events, extensive wild

Wednesday, 03/10/2027 Arrival, Belize City Upon arrival at the airport, you will be met and transferred to Black Orchid Resort. After an orientation and presentation on birding and conservation enjoy a welcome dinner at the hotel. Thursday, 03/11/2027, the Jungle Lodge in Tikal Start the day by birding around the hotel grounds to look for Ringed and Green Kingfishers. After breakfast, you travel to Tikal, Guatemala. In Guatemala, you go birding at Yaxhá Na

By Mary Keith, PhD, Tampa Audubon Society Conservation Chair and Audubon Florida Director On May 17, five of us from TAS went out to check on the breeding bird colony at Edward Medard Conservation Park. It was a youngling filled day, with chicks of just about every species! There were immature and chicks of Great Blue Herons, Tricolored, Snowy, and Great Egrets, Roseate Spoonbills, Glossy and White Ibis, Black Vultures and more still in the nest! The Purple Gallinule that ha

By Shauna Justi, Newsletter Editor Hello everyone! I would like to formally introduce myself: my name is Shauna, and, from this letter on, I will be taking over for Sandy Townsend as Newsletter Editor. I joined Tampa Audubon in November of 2025 as both a member and as Assistant Newsletter Editor. I am from South Florida, but will be moving to Tampa this August to start my Master of Social Work degree at the University of South Florida in pursuit of becoming a Licensed Clinic

By Mic McCarty, Vice President and Field Trip Coordinator Dear Tampa Audubon members and Bird Enthusiasts, We are thrilled to announce a limited number of free subscriptions to Birds of the World for our volunteers. Birds of the World is the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s premier online resource that has taken flight to become the leading authoritative source for everything avian! 🌍🐦 Your Ultimate Guide to Birds At Birds of the World, they have gathered and meticulously c

By: Amy Swinford, Audubon Resource Center Coordinator Did you know that the Audubon Resource Center at Lettuce Lake Park (ARC at the Park) has educational materials you can use to help with your child's homework? Operated in cooperation with the Hillsborough County Parks and Recreation Department and the Conservation and Environmental Lands Management Department, the ARC displays wildlife native to the Hillsborough River Watershed and provides a variety of environmental ed

By Mary Miller August 11, 2026 BB Trail Reports: Carrollwood Village: 21 BB fledglings Flatwoods: 3 eggs, 5 chicks (all BB), & 218 fledglings (208 BB, 10 CC) Hunter's Green: 49 BB fledglings Lake: 113 fledglings (91 BB, 9 CC, 4 CW, 9 TM) Lettuce Lake: 4 CW fledglings Lithia Springs: 11 BB fledglings MacDill AFB: 17 BB fledglings Sargeant's: 11 BB fledglings Today was a beautiful day on the Flatwoods BB Trail. We only had a few boxes to check, so it went quickly. We still hav

By Jessica Parrish, Tampa Audubon President The answer is right there in our name: Tampa Audubon Society. A society is often defined as a group of people who come together around a shared culture, purpose, or set of values. For us, that shared purpose is captured in our mission: To inspire an appreciation of nature and to conserve and restore our ecosystems, focusing on birds, wildlife, and their habitats, through education, advocacy, and community involvement. While our

Presented by Meredith Budd, Deputy Director Live Wildly Foundation livewildly.com Tampa Garden Club, 2629 Bayshore Blvd., Tampa July 15, 6 - 8:15 pm 6 pm: Dinner Potluck. Bring a salad, side or dessert to share. The main dish will be provided. 7 pm: Announcements 7:30 pm: Speaker Please register here: https://act.sierraclub.org/events/details?formcampaignid=701Po00001kzkHRIAY Joint Meeting with Tampa Audubon, Sierra Club and Suncoast Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Societ

Jessica Parish, TAS President By Jessica Parrish, President Hello all! You may notice that my first President's message, as well as the Newsletter itself, may be shorter than you have been accustomed to seeing. As we march towards summer, not only are the birds slowing down their singing, as does Tampa Audubon Society slow down many of its outward appearing activities. Not that there aren't things to do, but it's our moment to look inward and to plan. In the coming months,