Monthly Programs

Upcoming meeting:

Building California's First Statewide Breeding Bird Atlas
with Van Pierszalowski, Executive Director, California Bird Atlas

Tuesday, April 14, 2026, 6:00 PM
at Hopkins Marine Station - Izzy Abbot Lecture Hall

Join Van for an overview of the California Bird Atlas project, one of the most ambitious community-driven research efforts ever undertaken in the state. While 44 states have already completed a statewide breeding bird atlas, California has long been an outlier. That is now changing.

The Atlas officially launched in January 2026 and will document the breeding distribution and behavior of every bird species across California during a five-year field period (2026–2030). Organized by the nonprofit California Bird Atlas in collaboration with partners statewide, including Monterey Audubon Society, this talk will explain how the project works, how birders of all experience levels can participate, and share an early status update from the first months of fieldwork.

Starting in April 2026, lectures will be at the Izzy Abbott Lecture Hall at Hopkins Marine Station. We have made the decision to switch venues to utilize the larger space with enhanced audio and visual features. Unlike past events at Hopkins, this lecture is exclusively hosted by Monterey Audubon Society and does not require an RSVP. The doors will open at 5:45, and the lecture will begin at 6:00. We plan to conclude the evening with a social hour featuring snacks and beverages.

Future Presentations

May 2026 - Dr. John McCormack, Director & Curator, Moore Laboratory of Zoology
July 2026 - Jake Smtih, MPRPD - Rewilding of Palo Corona
October 2026 - Island Bird Conservation with Brad Keitt - American Bird Conservancy

Indoor Events with Monterey Audubon Society - For the health and safety of our community, we ask that everyone in attendance be up to date on all of their Flu/Covid/RSV vaccinations as appropriate. We invite you to wear a mask if that makes you more comfortable and request you to consider staying home if you have any symptoms of illness.

Past Presentations

To watch previously recorded presentations, head to the MAS YouTube channel. We are making every effort to Live Stream each month's presentation on YouTube which automatically uploads within a few days after the presentation.