About us
Welcome to Wake Audubon Society – where our love for nature meets a commitment to inclusion and belonging and providing programs, outings and activities where all can safely access and celebrate nature.
As a chapter of Audubon NC and the National Audubon Society, our 1,900-strong community in Wake, Johnston, Franklin, and Nash counties, North Carolina, is proud to lead education, conservation, and advocacy efforts to grow our region responsibly and with concern for the birds, wildlife and places we all live.
There is no requirement to join Wake Audubon Society in order to be a member of this Meetup. There is no fee for this Meetup. We encourage you to join Wake Audubon, however, as we depend on member fees to support our environmental projects.
This group enjoys local (and regional) outings to experience wildlife in the Raleigh, Wake County area of North Carolina. We focus on birding, and we enjoy teaching anyone who is new to birding. We welcome visitors to the area who want to attend our outings.
Wake Audubon hosts free, public, in-person educational programs that are generally held on the second Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m. in the NC Museum of Natural Sciences Nature Research Center, 121 W Jones St. Raleigh, NC, 4th floor meeting room. Most of these programs can also be viewed virtually via Zoom. See the topic, and confirm the location and Zoom link for each program in our Meetup or calendar posts.
We also volunteer for various events, including river cleanups, invasive species removal, nestbox maintenance, helping with events at various parks and museums, and community science projects such the Christmas Bird Count and Great Backyard Bird Count.
Thanks for your interest in Wake Audubon. Come, join us!
Our mission statement: "To foster knowledge, appreciation, and enjoyment of nature; to encourage responsible environmental stewardship; to conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats, for the benefit of humanity and the earth's biological diversity."
Upcoming events
13
Friday Morning Bird Walk at White Deer Park 2026-02-06 (Register Off-Meetup)
White Deer Park, 2400 Aversboro Road, Garner, NC, USEnjoy an easy walk at White Deer Park while looking and listening for birds. Learn how to identify the birds in our area and discover their behaviors and preferred habitats. This walk is great for first-time and experienced birdwatchers. Pre-registration is required. Bring your own binoculars or borrow a pair. Walk leader is Colleen Bockhahn.
RSVP ONLY via the Town of Garner website at: Program: First Friday Bird Walk (2/6/26)
Registration deadline is 3pm on February 5th.
You will need to create an account to register.The specific meeting location in the park will be shared with registered participants. Questions or trouble registering? Email Colleen at cbockhahn@garnernc.gov.
1 attendee
LGBTQ+ and allies: Let’s Go Birding Together at Shelley Lake Park
1400 W Millbrook Rd, Raleigh, No, USLGBTQ+ and allies: Let’s Go Birding Together at Shelley Lake Park
RESCHEDULED to Saturday, February 7 (from Saturday, January 31), 8:30 - 10:30 a.m. (arrive at 8:15 if borrowing binoculars)
RSVP to this event here on Meetup. Or off-Meetup via this form if you prefer to keep your RSVP private.
Yes - we're hosting outings at Shelley Lake Park on back-to-back weekends. With resident eagles and great blue herons actively nesting this time of year - it's a great place to be!Sponsors: Wake Audubon and The LGBT Center of Raleigh.
Let’s enjoy winter with another affirming and inclusive bird outing. We welcome the LGBTQ+ community, allies, families, and anyone who wants to enjoy an outdoor experience that is inclusive. Why? Because the outdoors has not always been a welcoming place for persons who identify as LGBTQ+. Wake Audubon and The LGBT Center of Raleigh seek to help change that.
The pace of this outing will be specifically geared towards building our beginner birding skills; birders of all talents are welcome.
What our outing entails: Enter at 1400 West Millbrook Road, Raleigh in the parking lot for Sertoma Arts Center. Meet at the picnic tables to the right of the Center. We will walk down to the lake and enjoy the view from the long bridge, then walk some distance clockwise along the 2-mile loop of paved scenic greenway trails around the lake. We hope to see Bald Eagles and Great Blue Herons (both are actively nesting along the trail), as well as woodpeckers, sparrows, cardinals, and early winter waterfowl. While the path is paved, we may step off to the side of it at times, or onto grassy fields.
The paved trail from the Center to the lake declines at a slope of 7 degrees and is then relatively flat around the lake. There’s a serpentine incline at the dam end of the lake (near the end of our path), and a short, 15-degree decline that can be avoided by a taking an alternate trail back to the center. If you use an adaptive mobility device and have any questions, please contact Rick.
More info at https://raleighnc.gov/parks-and-recreation/places/shelley-lake-park
Borrow binoculars from us or bring your own.
If borrowing binoculars, please arrive to the picnic tables meeting point at 8:15 to be provided a pair and receive personalized help to focus them for your eyesight.There are two gendered restrooms and drinking water accessible from the parking lot. Please bring your own refillable water bottle. We'll bring plenty of snacks to share.
What bird species frequent the Park and Trail? Check out Shelley Lake Park sightings on ebird.org ahead of us adding a checklist of our own.
https://ebird.org/hotspot/L882613Our leader is Matt Florez (he/him), with co-leaders along to help with optics and bird sightings. Matt is an outdoor nature educator who is super highly knowledgeable about birds, and delights in sharing his knowledge with others.
Your host is Wake Audubon board member and Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging co-chair Rick LaRose (he/him), who serves to bring accessible and welcoming ways for everyone to enjoy birds and take part in nature.
Questions ahead? Reach Rick at rlarose.was@gmail.com.
Questions day-of? Text Rick at 919 609-7570.We’re looking forward to birding together with you on February 7!
Wake Audubon advocates wildlife, nature and environmental conservation with a commitment to providing activities where all can safely access and celebrate nature as their authentic selves.
The LGBT Center of Raleigh envisions an inclusive world where LGBTQ+ people are thriving, equal, and valued members of society.36 attendees
Past events
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