Friday Courses   

Fascinated by birds but not sure how to start birding? This course introduces systematic approaches to bird identification and provides hands-on field experience. Emphasis is placed on understanding how habitat and behavior are essential to developing birding skills. We cover key birding resources, including equipment, where to go, field guides, and online tools. The course includes two Zoom classes featuring PowerPoint presentations and guided discussions, followed by field trips to local birding sites. 1–2-mile field trips walks, led by Curt, Cynthia, and other Master Birders, are a core part of the learning experience. Participants will practice identification techniques in real time, compare similar species, use binoculars, and field guides, and explore how season, habitat, and behavior influence bird presence. One field trip will include observation of bird banding (early start time). Sessions are 2½ hours. Participants should have binoculars, though a limited number may be available to borrow.

Zoom classes April 3 and 10; 2 1/2 hours.  Field trips April 17, May 1, May 8, May 15; 2 1/2 hours.   No class/field trip April 24.  One of the field trips will start earlier depending on the bird banding schedule.  

Donation of $40 per registrant required, paid at registration, to be made to Denver Audubon.  Field guides will be discussed in the class. 

To better understand the University of Denver’s Chamberlin Observatory, the quintessential hub for astronomical activities in Denver, it helps to go back to the 19th century when Victorian England dominated Western culture. “Britannia was the preeminent world leader in commerce, military might, manufacturing, technology and social change,” says Bill Kast, a lifelong astronomy buff. “And the Queen's consort, Prince Albert, was a passionate advocate of the sciences at a time when astronomy was entering a golden age, and towering observatory domes were becoming the new status symbols of cutting-edge universities.” Across the pond, Denver University was founded in 1864. An early friend of the fledgling university was British-born Humphrey Chamberlin. A wealthy real estate promoter, he wanted to elevate Denver to the Victorian Era’s cultural standards. He was also an avid student of astronomy and the natural sciences. In 1888, he pledged $50,000 to DU for the construction of a world-class observatory. Just six years later, Chamberlin Observatory opened with a 20-inch Alvan Clark refractor telescope that ranked among the largest instruments in the world. Join Bill Kast as he explores the beginnings of the observatory and offers a guided tour of the building. And weather permitting, enjoy a peek through the historic Clark telescope to view the Moon and Jupiter.