Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, for those of you that might be down south or looking for a new refuge to explore: located 10 miles south of the State Capital. Events will be held from 9 AM-4 PM and include: guided tours; watching shorebirds, raptors, and waterbirds; children's' wildlife scavenger hunt; presentations that feature bats, birds of prey, a mountain lion, and other wildlife species; listen to music by the "Hawks and Eagles" and enjoy a conservation talk and visit with "John Muir". For more info call Jeanne Clark at 916/979-2085.

Central Coast Birding Rally - The La Purisima Audubon Society (LPAS) of northern Santa Barbara County, California announces its first annual Central Coast Birding Rally to be held on Saturday, October 24, 1998. A birding rally is a contest whereby "teams" of birders go from birding site to birding site in a given amount of time and identify as many species of birds at each site as possible. The winner of the rally is the team that has identified the most birds in its arena in the time allotted. The Central Coast Birding Rally is held between the hours of 7:00 AM and 12:00 noon and is open to birders from everywhere at all skill levels, and it is FREE! In lieu of any registration fees participants are encouraged to solicit per-bird pledges from friends and colleagues, BUT THIS IS NOT REQUIRED!!! Those interested in adding pledges to their participation can access a pledge form from this page. Come join the fun. The Rally, held in cooperation with community businesses, organizations, and Chambers of Commerce includes some fine birding, a free barbecue picnic, and the chance to bid on birding-related goods at a mini-auction. Please visit our Rally website for more details. Also visit the LPAS homepage to learn more about the area and what we have to offer the discerning birder as well as current bird walk lists and interesting sightings. It's definitely worth a trip! We're looking forward to hearing from you. Oh, did we mention it was free?

The Second Central Valley Birding Symposium will be held in Stockton on November 19-22, 1988. Speakers include Pete Dunne, Arnold Small, John Dunn, Bill Grenfell, Micheal Bradbury, Jim Gain, Joe Morlan, Edward Rooks, and Dan Taylor. There will be panels on bird identification, Gulls & Terns, Seabirds nesting in the Central Valley, Conservation, Photography, Optics, and many other subjects. Field trips include the Cosumnes River Preserve, Yolo County, Salt Springs Reservoir, Modesto Sewage Treatment Plant & Caswell State Park, and O'Niel Forebay & Merced Refuges. The event headquarters is the Stockton Radisson, which has a limited number of rooms at $70/night. Call 209-957-9090 for reservations; mention the Symposium for the discount price. The event registration fee is $75 per adult, $145/couple, or $30 per person per day. For further details and registration information, see the CVBC website.