The Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission and the Audubon Society of the Capital Region will host the fourth annual Migration Celebration on Saturday, May 2, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Albany Pine Bush Discovery Center at 195 New Karner Road.

The event celebrates International Migratory Bird Day and will feature bird experts, a demonstration with live birds of prey, the Migration Challenge obstacle course, crafts, and lectures.

The day begins with a pre-event bird walk and banding demonstration at 7:30 a.m. suitable for people who are 10 or older, and guided by Audubon naturalists. Space is limited and pre-registration is required.

The Albany Pine Bush Preserve’s Conservation Director and United States Geological Survey Master Bird Bander Neil Gifford will offer a bird banding demonstration and an opportunity to see how birds influence preserve management.

“There are more than 190 kinds of birds using the preserve,” Gifford said in a release from the discovery center.  “Thanks to their high abundance, boisterous song, and vibrant color, they are some of the preserve’s most watchable wildlife and they tell us a lot about the health of the globally-rare pitch pine-scrub oak barrens.” 

Gifford added, “The short foliage characteristic of pine barrens makes it fairly easy to watch birds here, with the preserve hosting large populations of several young-forest bird species that are declining elsewhere, including eastern towhee, prairie warbler, indigo bunting, field sparrow, eastern kingbird, and brown thrasher.”

After the early morning bird walk, there will be an indoor presentation at 11 a.m. with keynote speaker and bird expert Dr. Jeremy Kirchman from the New York State Museum. He will present, “The Passenger Pigeon: Icon of Extinction.” 

One hundred years ago, on Sept. 1, 1914, the world’s last passenger pigeon died in captivity at the Cincinnati Zoo, marking the demise of a species that once numbered in the billions of birds. The presentation will discuss the question: “What were passenger pigeons, and what caused their extinction?”

Any 12 or older may participate; pre-registration is required. 

At 1 p.m., Trish Markie, wildlife rehabilitator from the Wildlife Institute of Eastern New York, will present a bird of prey program to all ages. Markie will teach participants about the adaptations that put these animals at the top of the food chain. Space is limited and pre-registration is required.

Attendees will have the chance to learn from numerous bird experts, take the Migration Challenge by making their way through six stations set up to give them the experience of challenges faced by migratory birds, make a bird craft, and more.

All ages are welcome to this free event, which will be held rain or shine. For more details and to pre-register for any of the events, visit AlbanyPineBush.org and click on Events Calendar or call 456-0655.