Little Owl Festival is Saturday

The Chattanooga Audubon Society is holding its eighth annual Little Owl Festival at Audubon Acres on Saturday, June 1, from 9 a.m. to noon. The wildlife sanctuary is located at 900 N. Sanctuary Road.

Organizers have refocused the emphasis of the festival to reflect its new tag line “Kids, Nature, Art.”

The Happinest Wildlife Rehabilitators will open the festival with the release of a first-year broad-winged hawk outside Walker Hall on the wildlife sanctuary grounds.

The young bird was found grounded with a broken leg and underwent surgery at University of Tennessee veterinary clinic, according to Ray Zimmerman of Audubon Acres. The bird has become a strong flier while under care and will soon soar over its natural habitat.

Visitors can join Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center biologists as they survey Audubon Acres for yellowbilled cuckoos. Researchers from the center are tagging and tracking cuckoos to determine their migration routes. The information obtained will benefit conservation for migratory birds worldwide.

There will be a short educational talk followed by a tour of the property for a leisurely hike, hoping to hear and see yellow-billed cuckoos. Children over 5 are welcome to attend the 45minute hike. Bring water, sunblock, binoculars and bugspray. Hikes are limited to a total of 36 people; 1012 per hike. Meet at the Audubon Visitor Center.

Throughout the day, guests can view an exhibit of children’s art in Walker Hall.

More info: 423-892-1799.

If you go

› What: Little Owl Festival

› Where: Audubon Acres, 900 N. Sanctuary Road

› When: 9 a.m.-noon Saturday, June 1

› Admission: $6 adults, $5 ages 55 and older, $3 children

5-13, free for Audubon Society members

› For more information: www.chattanooga

audubon.org/little-owl-festival.html

Festival Schedule

› 9 a.m. Tours of the historic log cabin begin.

› 9-11 a.m. Old-time music by Peggy Douglas and

friends on the back porch of the log cabin.

› 9-11 a.m. Meet Bilbo the box turtle.

› 9-11 a.m. Help complete a large mural to celebrate nature and Chattanooga Audubon’s 75th anniversary. Meet in Walker Hall.

› 9-11 a.m. Build a bird nest and find out if you have what it takes to be a good bird parent. Meet at the picnic area.

› 9-11 a.m. Meet animal ambassadors from the Chattanooga Zoo.

› 10 a.m. Water-quality activity by Waterways in Walker

Hall.

› 11 a.m. Meet Marley the great horned owl from Harrison Bay State Park in the picnic area.

› Noon. Enjoy walking the grounds at Audubon Acres.