Huron Fringe Birding Festival Enters Its Sixth Year

Schedule of Events
List of bird sitings - pdf format (86 kb)

This spring, from May 23 to June 1, MacGregor Point Provincial Park celebrates its 6th annual Huron Fringe Birding Festival.

In 1998, Norah Toth, Natural Heritage Education Specialist for MacGregor Point, recognized that an event like a festival could raise the profile of the park and also increase public awareness about the excellent local birding opportunities. The idea came from her observation that the park was a favourite of local birding experts Dave Fidler and Mark Wiercinski. Dave and Mark visit the park every spring to increase their Baillie Birdathon results.

The Huron Fringe Birding Festival became a reality, and Kathy Parker was hired as coordinator, thanks to a Human Resources Development Canada grant. Kathy had excellent knowledge of the local birding opportunities and certainly fit the bill. With the support of the Friends of MacGregor Point Park, the Festival has become a labour of love for the many volunteers who have been involved over the past six years.

The annual commitment by many of the region’s leading naturalists, the Owen Sound and Huron Fringe Field Naturalists and the Friends of MacGregor Point Park, has ensured continued excellence and consistency in the Festival program. “This dedication, skill and desire to share their knowledge has benefited each person who has attended the Festival since its beginning,” said Norah Toth.

Looking back, Kathy Parker said, “It was a lot of work, but it was the job of my dreams and I loved it!” Kathy took on a myriad of jobs, and always found a way to cover the bases. Kathy was the Festival co-ordinator until the funding grant ended and she and her family moved to South River.

“When Kathy moved on, we were placed in a position where the Festival had to become a volunteer-driven event. By default, this was Kathy’s biggest contribution,” said Norah Toth.

A committee system now operates the festival, using a master plan. Succeeding Festivals have been led by hardworking volunteer Chairs - Judith King, Barbara Martin and Mike Pickup, each determined to carry on the Festival tradition. All of these hard-working folks are still involved in making the Festival happen. Park staffer Norah Toth is the glue that holds the Festival together, working diligently in the background, handling day-to-day problems and requests that arise.

The 6th Annual Huron Fringe Birding Festival is bigger and better than ever, featuring 53 events over the nine days from May 23 to June 1, 2003. True to tradition, this year’s program has a dual focus – birding and nature.

At this year’s event, join us for:

• bird hikes


• owl prowls


• bird banding


• birds of prey demonstrations


• butterflies, dragonflies and other insects


• reptiles and amphibians


• wildflowers and plants


• trees


• history


• geomorphology


• slide show presentations


• nature photography workshop

The Program Committee has successfully invited Kathy and Martin Parker to lead a hike called Birding MacGregor. Join them on Saturday, May 31 at 8:00 a.m.

In each of the past six years, about 150 species of birds have been sighted during the Festival. A grand total of 190 species have been recorded in that time. Mix a little forest mythology and some astronomy into the program, and you have the magic recipe that makes the Huron Fringe Birding Festival such a great success every year. We hope to see you there!

The Huron Fringe Birding Festival is a co-operative project of the Friends of MacGregor Point Park and MacGregor Point Provincial Park. The support of a number of corporate sponsors, including Bruce Power and Ontario Power Generation, enables us to provide this wide array of activities. A registration fee applies and can be paid when you enter the park. There is no pre-registration for the Festival.

For more information:

For complete details of the 2003 Festival program and registration fee, visit the Friends of MacGregor Point Park web site at: http://www.friendsofmacgregor.org or call the park office at (519) 389-6231. Campsite or yurt reservations may be made using the Ontario Parks’ reservation service www.OntarioParks.com or by calling 1-888-ONT-PARK (1-888-668-7275).

The Towns of Port Elgin and Southampton are popular Ontario tourist destinations. For local area information including accommodations, visit http://www.sunsets.com

Contributed by:
Fred Jazvac, Southampton, Ontario, on behalf of the Friends of MacGregor Point Park