A note from Timothy Parker at Fish and Wildlife:
Below you will find our programs for December. … You may also wish to visit our programs page.
Public Programs
*REGISTRATION*
Programs are free, however, donations to The Friends of Patuxent are greatly appreciated! Some programs require advance registration by calling 301-497-5887. Programs are subject to changes or cancellation due to weather or low participation. Please notify the refuge of any special needs so that you may be accommodated. www.fws.gov/refuge/patuxent
*NORTH TRACT PROGRAMS*
*230 Bald Eagle Drive*
*Laurel, MD 20724*
+++Riding Bicycles to Experience Patuxent Research Refuge’s North
+++Tract+++
Sunday, Dec. 3rd, 1:00 – 3:30 pm
Ages 10+, registration required
Enjoy a late fall bicycle outing as you learn about the refuge. Experience the beauty of this natural area on two wheels while discovering local wildlife, plants and historical sites. Learn the importance of reducing your footprint and leaving no trace on this 12 – mile guided bicycle ride.
Bring your own bike, energy bar/snack, water bottle and helmet. Ride is weather dependent.
*NATIONAL WILDLIFE VISITOR CENTER PROGRAMS*
*10901 Scarlet Tanager Loop*
*Laurel, MD 20708*
+++Camera Basics+++
Saturday, Dec. 9th, 10:00 – 11:30 am
Ages 16+, registration required
The auto function on cameras is often helpful, but usually another setting will get you the image you really want. This is a beginner workshop for those using DSLR cameras.
+++Skull Detectives (Esp. & Eng.)+++
Saturday, Dec. 9th 12:30 – 1:30 pm
Ages 7-15, registration required
What was that animal? When you look at a skull there are many clues as to what the animal was. We’ll be looking at the teeth, eye placement, and something called a skull ridge. Participants will be using real and plastic animal skulls.
+++Nature Songs with Stina+++
Sunday, Dec. 10th, 2:00 – 2:45 pm
All ages, registration required
Parent participation required
Join nature troubadour Stina for an afternoon indoor campfire sing along in our auditorium. Get your groove on with fun and silly nature songs!
+++Nature Tots: Senses of Winter+++
Tuesday, Dec. 12th, 10:30 – 11:30 am
Tuesday, Dec. 19th, 10:30 – 11:30 am
Ages 3-4, registration required
While seasons change, so do the smells. Come explore Patuxent using your senses. Dress appropriately.
+++Spruce, Fir, & Pine+++
Monday, Dec. 18th, 10:30 – 11:30 am
Ages 5-7, registration required
Come enjoy the smell of conifers while learning about why they are still green.
+++Raptors Reign+++
Saturday, Dec. 16th, 1:00 – 3:00 pm
All ages, no registration
Join special guest and licensed falconer, Rodney Stotts, as he shares the power of nature through discussions and up close encounters with birds of prey. This is a drop in program. No registration required.
HOLLINGSWORTH GALLERY
Our November photographer is on her fourth career! Jean Phillips grew up on her family’s dairy farm in Montgomery County – but farming was (only) her third career. After high school, she took a degree in science at the University of Maryland and taught school for a year. Her second career was a 10 year stint at the National Institute of Health as an immunologist, but she left it to take over her father’s dairy farm and raise her two sons.
Over the years she transformed the farm operation to grainhay/straw/vegetables-and finally, “entertainment farming!”
(translationwhich I needed-suggests corn mazesand pumpkin patches). But with “retirement” Phillips revived a life-long interest in photography piqued originally by a single-lens reflex camera received as a college graduation present, and furthered in 2008 by a more sophisticated one given her as a Christmas present from her children. Presently, she works with a Canon 5D Mark II and a Canon 7D with a Canon 70-300 mm zoom or a 500mm Sigma lens! Impressive, but this is a granny who snaps polar bears up north as well as butterflies in her back 40. She writes that “photography gives her a good excuse to be outdoors and a way to share with others the natural beauty she loves.”
In the last two years Phillips has been working on the Sugarloaf Trails Association Indian Trailguide, and studying at the Smithsonian annex and “recording spots along the C&O Canal where Native Americans once lived.”
This year also included a trip to a Florida rookery! Phillips has submitted photos to the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair and “placed” every year since 2009-including two “firsts.” Her other festival and exhibit participation are too numerous to list and her work is available from Gaitherburg’s Artbarn to dozens of points north. Check out PhillipsFarmPhotography.com.
December brings a special treat – a veritable potpourri of volunteers’
talent. Committed so far are: Lucy and Ed Grimes, photography; Louis Buck, carving; Barbara Buck, paintings; Brenda Stone, quilting; Dennis Hartnett, photography; and Mary Ann Hartnett, needlework. Additional last-minute contributors are expected also, so we look forward to a full gallery of goodies-a delightful seasonal array. OK fall, bring it on!
/for Timothy Parker
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/