A Magical Morning at Rushton Farm

This is probably one of my favorite days of the entire school year.  Our 2nd Grade trip to Rushton Woods Preserve Bird Banding Station was, once again, truly amazing.  I wanted to share some pictures of the event, and tell you a little bit about the Preserve.  First, take a look at the Williston Conservation Trust Bird Blog http://wctbirds.wordpress.com/ to get a sense of the magic of the place.  Then, try to get there to see it for yourself!  The Preserve is home to the bird banding station, a CSA organic farm, herb garden, and quiet woodlands.  Blake Goll, Nature Education Coordinator, took us on quite an adventure exploring many beautiful parts of the preserve.  Take a look below!

First we learned about the nets that catch the birds each morning.  They nets are very delicate and are designed to catch the birds so that they don't get injured at all.

Here the students are learning about the different sized bands that are used for different birds at the bird banding station.  The bird banding station is open from early spring until late fall a few mornings a week.

The volunteers who collect the birds from the nets place them in bags while they are waiting to be tagged!

Taking a look at the first bird which is a beautiful Ruby-crowned Kinglet!  We also saw a Northern Cardinal, a Gray Catbird,  a White Throated Sparrow and several Eastern Towhees.

The students learned all about the tools used in the banding process.  The birds are observed, measured and weighed.

A closer look at the beautiful cardinal being banded.

The students learned how to gently hold the songbirds!  Each student was able to hold a songbird before it was released.

On our woodland walk, we learned about spicebush and other plants in the forest.  Students were able to collect these specimens in their collection bags.  We stopped at a beautiful stream and heard many birds singing in the forest!

After lunch, we had an opportunity to explore all the wonderful tastes and smells in the herb garden.  The students were allowed to pick and taste everything!  The collected many of the wonderful plants to make an "herb soup" in their collection bags.

Here the students are settling in for some quiet reflection in the garden.  The students used their science journals to record their thoughts about the wonderful day at Rushton Farm.