According to Dr. Fred Emerson of Solvang: “The spring is the best-of-all seasons for bird study as migrants from the south pass through, wintering birds change plumage and leave, and year-round residents are mating, nesting, and rearing young.” Dr. Emerson teaches natural history for several public and private institutions in California, and again led a birding course for the Wildling Art Museum, starting on March 22, 2005.

The spring session of the museum’s “Birds of the Santa Ynez Valley Region” course was expanded for 2005, with seven morning birding sessions instead of the usual six and, because the class did not meet April 5, the course was extended through much of the most productive part of the spring season, ending on May10. The classes met Tuesday mornings from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. After an introduction to the use of binoculars and the identification of various families of birds at the first meeting, the class convened at different Santa Ynez Valley locations each week, to study birds in a variety of habitats. Identification, habits, ecology, and life histories of birds were covered, as will the general natural history of the habitats visited. The course would be valuable for the first time bird watcher as well as experienced aficionados.

Dr. Emerson has conducted the Wildling Art Museum’s birding classes for several years and has a wide following of enthusiastic birders. He is broadly trained and experienced in biological sciences with a Ph.D. from Cornell University in wildlife management and an M.D. from Vanderbilt University. He has enjoyed careers as a physician and a wildlife biologist.