This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
ST. GEORGE - Bird-watchers from around the country gathered in southwestern Utah Friday and Saturday to participate in the St. George Winter Bird Festival.
The annual event, in its fourth year, is expected to draw about 1,300 people to Washington County to take part in free workshops, field trips and speeches about the feathered creatures.
The event, which started on Friday, ends today with two field trips leaving at 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. from Tonaquint Park and Nature Center in St. George, where the festival is headquartered.
On a field trip Saturday to the campground at the Red Cliffs Recreation Site, Norm Parrish was one of about 40 birders catching a glimpse of red-tailed hawks, towhees, scrub jays and hummingbirds.
"I'm a snowbird from Alberta who comes here for the winter," said Parrish. "Yesterday, I saw a burrowing owl. That was the most exciting, so far. I have to check with my journal and see if I've seen a scrub jay before. This could be a first."
Hal Robins, who traveled from Salt Lake City with his wife, set up his tripod and spotting scope to get a better view of several species that fluttered around the red cliffs rising above the camping area.
"Yesterday we saw a red-breasted sap sucker," Robins said, adding that the bird usually lives in coastal areas and is out of place in Utah. "It got us birders pretty excited."
Carol Nelson, a member of the Utah County Birders club, dropped down from Provo for the festival.
"The field trips make you more knowledgeable," Nelson said. "I went to the lectures and learned new things. Events like this make birding more interesting."
The event, always scheduled the last weekend in January, is sponsored by the Red Cliffs Chapter of the Audubon Society, with area businesses donating goods and services.
Audubon Society member Marilyn Davis came up with the idea for a festival after attending a lecture at a St. George park several years ago. She was amazed by the variety of bird species in southwestern Utah.
"We get a lot of people from the Wasatch Front who are tired of the cold weather, so they're glad to be here," said Davis.