Sarasota Audubon welcomes the public to its nature center with Fly Wild

Sarasota Audubon Society hoped the public would take a close look at the birds, but also more, as visitors to the Sarasota Audubon Nature Center tried out binoculars and spotting scopes on Feb. 21. 

The organization's first Fly Wild day, held in and around the center, which is located at The Celery Fields, offered a variety of educational activities, with multiple outside vendors participating.

Components of the event included guided bird walks and tours, a bird-a-thon, a photo contest, a kids' scavenger hunt, and presentations and booths by local organizations from Save Our Seabirds to Sarasota County's Pop-Up Library.

"This is the first Fly Wild event, and we really aimed for public outreach and just for people to know what we do as an organization," said Sara Reisinger, president of Sarasota Audubon. "That was really the goal, and to educate kids and the community about what they can do to help species in the area."

She said the educational opportunities ranged from the tables by various conservation groups, to tours of the microforest and the quad parcels the organization has been working on re-wilding alongside Big Waters Land Trust and Sarasota County. The group also offered trolley tours of the area and had naturalists at boardwalk stations throughout the event.

The organization's mission involves conserving ecosystems that host birds and other wildlife, and it hosts activities that include monthly meetings, local cleanups and nature walks.