Hilton Head Audubon upcoming events

Field Trip: Onslow Island with Pam Smith (09/09/2026)

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 12:30:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 8/2; Nonmembers on 8/9)

Join Ogeechee Audubon Master Birder Pam Smith for a field trip to Onslow Island.

Onslow Island is a section of the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, consisting of an elevated area of dikes and water impoundments immediately adjacent to the Savannah River. For several years its impoundments have been nearly dry and so rarely used that many now have shrubs and small trees in them. However, in October 2024, some were being used as dredge spoils sites. So we hope there will be more nutrients and water, which we also hope will attract our wintering ducks and shorebirds. Join Expert Birder Pam Vercellone for a hike of 2 -3 miles, to and around the impoundments. No facilities. Footing is uneven on the only occasionally mowed grassy dikes.

Onslow is only open on Wednesdays. This property is very exposed, with no protection from the weather. If the weather looks really nasty, especially if very windy, we will postpone until Wednesday, September 16, 2026.

Directions: From north of Bluffton take Rte 170 west (Okatie Hwy). Follow Rte 170 the WHOLE way. It turns here and there, so you have to pay attention. At one point it joins Rte 17, then in about a mile, exits right. Follow Rte 170 right, pass the entrance to the Laurel Hill Drive (which your GPS can probably find). Cross over 1 bridge, then look for a small dirt parking lot on the left. At that turn, you will be able to see the Savannah River bridge ahead of you (which has been under construction and may still be so). If you cross the river into Port Wentworth, turn around!

Pam Vercellone Smith

Field Trip: Ft. Pulaski Nat Monument with Pam Smith (09/12/2026)

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 13:30:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 8/2; Nonmembers 8/9)

Note additional fee: National Park Entrance fee: $10.00 per person. (unless you have a Ft. Pulaski annual pass or an America the Beautiful pass).

Join Pam and (Co-leader TBD) at historic Fort Pulaski, a 5400-acre National Monument situated on the Savannah River. Fort Pulaski is a great place to find a wide diversity of shorebirds, wading birds, gulls, terns and early migrants. Pam will bring a spotting scope.

Trip rigor: Moderate with approximately 2 miles of walking on mostly level grassy or gravel surfaces. Bring a hat, sunscreen, water and bug spray. Restrooms are available.

Meet Pam in the Visitor Center parking lot at 9:30 AM. Note: The fort opens at 9 AM but the meeting time has been set for 9:30 AM to give birders time to pay the park fees at entry gate and travel to the Visitor Center parking lot.

Directions: From Interstate I-95, take Exit 99 onto Interstate I-16 East (James L Gillis Memorial Hwy) for 7 miles. Take Exit 164A onto Interstate I-516 East toward US-80 East. Take Exit 3 (US-17 S/US-80 E) toward US-80 East. Turn left onto Ocean Highway, Ogeechee Rd (US-17 N, US-80 East). Bear right onto West Victory Drive (US-80 East .Continue on US-80 East for 13 miles.Fort Pulaski National Monument entrance will be on the left hand side of US-80; the entrance is just after a turn in the highway.

Pam Vercellone Smith

Season Kickoff! Coffee and Birding at Jarvis Creek Park (09/15/2026)

Tue, 15 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT

EVENT IS FREE BUT PLEASE RSVP !!

Join Hilton Head Audubon Board and Members for our season kickoff at Jarvis Creek Park on Tuesday Sept 15th 9:00am. Come hear about all the great upcoming events including field trips, classes and member meetings!

We will enjoy coffee and donuts and take a bird walk around the Park, so bring your binoculars!

Class:Wildlife Photography (09/19/2026)

Sat, 19 Sep 2026 13:30:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 8/2; Nonmembers 8/9)

This class will describe the essential technical, artistic, and behavioral tools to make beautiful wildlife images. Learn the creative techniques that will enhance your wildlife photography skills as well as improve your knowledge of wildlife subjects in their environments. Experienced wildlife photographer, Mary Alice Tartler, will guide you through understanding your camera, necessary camera equipment, the importance of composition, animal behaviors and environments, and finding wildlife in the Lowcountry. No matter what level of expertise you possess, this class will help you take your photography to the next level. All nature and wildlife enthusiasts and all levels of photography are welcome to attend. Please bring your camera!

Mary Alice Tartler

Field Trip: Little Tybee Island Birding by Boat (10/03/2026)

Sat, 03 Oct 2026 16:00:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 8/2; Nonmembers 8/9. Adults only.)

Cost is $78.00 for members and $88.00 for Nonmembers which includes tips. Capacity limited to 11 people in two boats. Please note HHA refund policy and rain date below.

Join Expert Birder Patty Kappmeyer and Shorebird Biologist Allie Hauser (Georgia Bight Shorebird Conservation Initiative) for an exciting birding trip to Little Tybee Island, Georgia through Georgia Coast Charters. Accessible only by boat, Little Tybee Island is an unspoiled, uninhabited nature preserve.

Departure location: Tybee Island Marina

Boat and Mobility Information: Transportation will be aboard 22-foot center-console boats. Both boats are open, with no cabin or restroom facilities. Boarding and disembarking will involve stepping into and out of the boat and making a beach landing rather than using a dock. This field trip may not be suitable for individuals with limited mobility, balance concerns, or difficulty entering and exiting a boat. Please contact the trip leader in advance with any questions about accessibility.

Trip Details: The three hour trip will take us through the marshes and out to the beaches of Little Tybee. We will spend about 30 to 45 minutes aboard the boat looking for birds in the marshes and hammocks of Little Tybee. When we arrive at the beach, the group will disembark and Allie will lead a program on shorebirds from the sand. This usually includes a short hike on the sand and will last approximately 1.5 hours. Upon completion of the beach portion of the program, we will re-board the boats for the return trip, continuing to bird from the boat until back at the marina. The boat is equipped with all required safety gear including life jackets. Guest over the age of 13 will not be required to wear a life jacket but are welcome to do so if they choose. If a guest wishes to bring and wear a life jacket of their own, that is not a problem.

Rain date is Friday October 9 either 7:00a-10a or 4:30p-7:30pm.

Event: Lantern Making Workshop (10/09/2026)

Fri, 09 Oct 2026 19:00:00 GMT

EVENT IS FREE BUT PLEASE RSVP!

Join Hilton Head Audubon in this year’s Lantern Parade. We will be walking with a very large Red Knot as our featured bird lantern. Anyone who would like to walk with us and carry a small lantern is welcome! Our lantern theme is horse shoe crabs. Lanterns and supplies will be provided.

Come to the workshop and prepare your lantern for the parade on Saturday, November 14, 2026!

Field Trip:Mindful Birding at Mid Island Park with Kathy Byrd (10/18/2026)

Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 9/6; Nonmembers 9/13)

Join Master Birder and Mindful Birding advocate Kathy Byrd for a slow walk around the park, immersing ourselves in the natural world.

The scientific data is in! Relief from the daily pressures we face in life is critical to our mental and physical well-being. What better way is there to get away from it all than to spend a couple of hours on a woodland amble with the birds? Unlike our usual bird walks which focus on identification, counts and an eBird list, this “Mindful Bird Walk” will instead encourage us to use all our senses to fully experience the wonder of nature. We will walk slowly and stop often.

The Mid-island Community Park, formerly the Planters Row Golf Course, is a recently established park that is another terrific birding location on Hilton Head Island. It boasts a mix of open grass fields, a variety of trees and shrubs, and freshwater ponds and lagoons -all wonderful habitats for an impressive number of birds at any time of the year. Great-horned owls have nested there, and it's one of only a couple places on the Island with nesting red-headed woodpeckers. The ponds are home to common gallinule, wood ducks, kingfisher and a number of herons and egrets.

Directions: The parking lot is about 100 yds off of Rte 278, on Union Cemetery Rd, Hilton Head, SC, which begins one block south of the Dillon Rd traffic Light, on the left. If coming from the north (from Bluffton or the Cross Island Expressway), take 278 Business east. Go past Mathews Rd, then past the Dillon Rd intersection (McDonald's) -- both of which have traffic lights. The next left (no traffic light) is Union Cemetery Rd. If coming from the south on Rte 278 Business (e.g. from Sea Pines), go past Port Royal Plantation entrance, and take the next right onto Union Cemetery Rd. If you make the turn onto Union Cemetery Rd, but miss the parking lot, you will soon see the Union Cemetery itself, and need to turn around.

Presentation: Origin and Lore of Bird Names (10/22/2026)

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 15:00:00 GMT

EVENT IS FREE BUT PLEASE RSVP!

This presentation by Chip Walker explores the history, origins, and evolution of bird names, including the influence of Old World and New World species on modern bird nomenclature. It also examines how bird names have become woven into popular culture through sports teams, literature, cartoons, and everyday language.

Class: Introduction to Lowcountry Bird Identification with Kay Grinnell (10/24/2026)

Sat, 24 Oct 2026 13:30:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 9/6; Nonmembers on 9/13)

This beginner-friendly class introduces simple bird identification techniques and helps you put them into practice with many of our Lowcountry birds. Learn how to notice field marks, behavior, shape, habitat and more so you can start identifying birds with confidence. A separate field trip is recommended but not required

. Instructor Kay Grinnell

Field Trip: Laurel Hill Drive, SavNatWildlife Refuge (11/01/2026)

Sun, 01 Nov 2026 13:30:00 GMT

(Member registration opens 10/4; Nonmembers 10/11)

Join Master Birders Rachel Green and Karen Seminary for an exciting morning on the 4 mile Laurel Hill Drive at the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge.

Meet at the entrance on Rte 170, for car-pooling. More eyes looking from fewer cars generally mean more birds spotted! Cars will drive slowly with frequent stops in favorite places to get out and look into the impoundments, along the dikes, and in the hammocks. Most of the drive is open, so prepare for windy, chilly weather.

Directions: Take Rte 170 (Okatie Hwy) west from Bluffton toward Savannah (about 6 miles or so). Rte 170 curves and turns, but Just stay on it! It will eventually join Rte 17, then in about a mile split off again, so keep right to stay on Rte 170. In about 2 more miles, you will see the entrance to the Laurel Hill Drive on your left, on a curve. Signal your turn well ahead of time and be CAREFUL. Rte 170 can be dangerous with logging and other large trucks. [Note that the Visitor Center is on Rte 17, so do not use that in your GPS.]

Member Mtg and Presentation: Life on the Edge: Shorebirds and the Rhythm of the Tides (11/19/2026)

Thu, 19 Nov 2026 18:00:00 GMT

Event is FREE but please RSVP!

Discover the extraordinary lives of the birds that inhabit the ever-changing boundary between land and sea with Mary Alice Tartler, an accomplished wildlife photographer, Audubon Master Birder and a Member of the International Shorebird Survey Team. This presentation takes you on a journey to the water’s edge to meet the diverse array of shorebirds—from the iconic American Oystercatcher to the delicate Piping Plover—that rely on our coastal beaches and mudflats for survival. You will explore the incredible stamina and specialized adaptations that allow these birds to navigate thousands of miles along the Atlantic Flyway, making Hilton Head a vital sanctuary for their rest and refueling.

Central to this exploration is an understanding of the powerful influence of the tides, the true heartbeat of the Lowcountry coastline. Mary Alice will reveal how the daily ebb and flow dictates the lives of shorebirds, creating a high-stakes race for survival as they follow the retreating waterline to uncover hidden treasures. From the high energy of low-tide foraging to the strategic huddling at high-tide roosts, you will gain a new perspective on how these birds synchronize their entire existence with the lunar cycle.

Through the lens of Mary Alice’s stunning photography, you will witness the fascinating "dance" of the shoreline and learn to identify often-confusing species by their silhouettes and rhythmic movements. She will also share expert insights into the hidden challenges shorebirds face in our dynamic coastal environment and the critical importance of protecting their habitat. Whether you are a casual beachgoer or a seasoned enthusiast, this session offers an enlightening and memorable experience, leaving you with a renewed appreciation for the resilient masters of the coast and the rhythmic tides that sustain them.