The Common Black Hawk reaches peak migration through Southern Arizona this month, according to the nonprofit conservation group, HawkWatch International.
To honor the flight, HWI is set up at the Tubac Nature Center, 50 Bridge Road, through Tuesday, hosting a Black Hawk Up Festival, a family-friendly celebration of the spring migration.
The mostly free event gives area residents a chance to look for hawks with the experts, meet Raptor Ambassadors and purchase sweet bird merchandise.
Its two biggest days have the following schedules:
Saturday, March 15th: Optics Days
- HawkWatch International Tabling
- 7:15 AM: Bird walk with Tubac Nature Center and Tucson Bird Alliance, Register Here
- 9:00 AM-11:00 AM: Raptor Ambassador Meet and Greet
- 11:00 AM: Bird walk with Tubac Nature Center and Tucson Bird Alliance, Register Here
- 11:00 AM: “Everything you wanted to know about the Common Black Hawk but were afraid to ask!” from Peter Collins, site founder, at the Tubac HawkWatch
- 3:00-4:00 PM: Reading with Raptors at the Tubac Community Center
Sunday, March 16th: Optics Days
- HawkWatch International Tabling
- 7:15 AM: Bird walk with Tubac Nature Center and Tucson Bird Alliance, Register Here
- 11:00 AM: Bird walk with Tubac Nature Center and Tucson Bird Alliance, Register Here
- 11:00 AM-1:00 PM: Raptor Ambassador Meet and Greet
- 1:00 PM: “Why we watch hawks and how we use count data to assess population trends” by Dr. Dave Oleyar, HWI’s Director of Long-term Monitoring & Community Science, at the Tubac Community Center
The festival is sponsored by Tubac Nature Center, HawkWatch International, Tucson Bird Alliance, and Kowa Optics
