Audubon Community Nature Center’s 2026 Birdathon fundraiser supports the Ryan Exline Memorial Scholarship and the care of Audubon’s Animal Ambassadors. You can be part of this event by finding a birding partner and signing up or contributing on behalf of those who do.

JAMESTOWN — Spring migration season is a great time to be outdoors looking for birds.

Audubon Community Nature Center’s (ACNC) annual Birdathon combines birding with raising money for a cause.

Each year, teams of birders raise money to fund the Ryan Exline Memorial Scholarship and to provide ongoing care and habitat improvements for Audubon’s Animal Ambassadors.

The scholarship awards $500 to an area college-bound high school senior or college student who intends to pursue a future in an environmental or related field. Additional money raised helps cover the approximately $6,500 annual expenses to keep Audubon’s Animal Ambassadors healthy, including visits to the vet, food, and other necessary items. This year’s goal is to raise $2,000 to fund the scholarship and to offset some of the animal care expenses.

You can help in a variety of ways.

Find a birding buddy and sign up as a team where people can pledge online to support your efforts. Birders can bird for 24 hours from Saturday, April 25 to Sunday, May 3. Then spread the word to get friends and family to pledge your team by sharing the link to the Birdathon website, AudubonCNC.org/birdathon-2026.

Join ACNC’s Birdathon kickoff at Breakfast with the Birds on Saturday, April 25. Audubon staff and volunteers will make a delicious breakfast to go with a short presentation, birding at the birdfeeders, and a short walk if weather permits. Paid reservations are required by Monday, April 20. For details and to register, call (716) 569-2345 or go online to AudubonCNC.org/breakfast-with-birds.

If you’re interested in birding but don’t know where to start, you can visit the website or contact Aaron Sidder at ASidder@AudubonCNC.org to join or form a Birding Team. New birders are always welcome, and Audubon is happy to add you to a team with “seasoned” birders who can bring you up to speed.

If you don’t want to bird, you can visit AudubonCNC.org/birdathon-2026 and support your favorite team and/or the cause. Donors can contribute based on the number of birds seen or by making a flat contribution.

For assistance creating your team’s webpage, contact Audubon Marketing and Design Director Jess Piskor at JPiskor@AudubonCNC.org.

Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown, N.Y., and Warren, Pa. You can visit the nearly 600-acre nature preserve, check in on the live birds of prey, and hike the six miles of trails dawn until dusk daily for free.

The three-story Nature Center building houses interactive displays, a collection of live animals, the 2025 Nature Photography Contest winners, and the Blue Heron Gift Shop. Visitors are welcome Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., and Sundays, 1-4:30 p.m. Nature Center members and SNAP/EBT and Arts Access cardholders have free building admission daily. Building admission is also free Sundays for non-Nature Center members.

To learn more about Audubon and its many programs, call (716) 569-2345, find Audubon Community Nature Center on Facebook or Instagram, or visit AudubonCNC.org. Check out AudubonCNC.org/about for a quick fly-by. Get the details for submitting or voting on entries in the 2026 Nature Photography Contest at AudubonCNC.org/Photo-Contest.

Audubon Community Nature Center builds and nurtures connections between people and nature by providing positive outdoor experiences, opportunities to learn about and understand the natural world, and knowledge to act in environmentally responsible ways.