By Caron Golden
Love birds? Have kids who love birds? Then you’ll want to put this San Diego Bird Alliance 75th anniversary community celebration in your calendar. On Oct. 20, San Diego’s avian-aligned will be gathering at Liberty Station’s South Promenade from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for a day of music, art, food, live bird demonstrations, games and exhibits.
Artists and vendors will show off their wares or lead the kids in art activities — like creating bird or butterfly masks, building bird feeders and making enrichment toys for parrots living in a sanctuary. There will be live animals from local wildlife nonprofits. And there will be conservation education where you and the kids can learn about recycling, plant and take home a native plant for your pollinator garden, or learn how to start a nature journal. Best of all, it’s free.
All of this is being organized by the San Diego Bird Alliance, a name that may not be familiar to some. In fact, it’s the new (since August) name of the San Diego Audubon Society. The organization has long been d with the National Audubon Society but, as executive director Travis Kemnitz explained, it is a separate nonprofit.
This became an important distinction in 2020 when John James Audubon’s history as a racist and enslaver became part of an uncomfortable discussion for the national group and its s. The national organization decided to retain the Audubon name while still promoting awareness of what they describe as his “problematic legacy.” The San Diego organization decided to go a different way.
“We waited for National to go through its process to make a decision,” Kemnitz said. “Once they rolled out that they were going to retain the name, we then, as a separate organization, decided to go through our own process to make sure that that what we decided was best for us.”
They spoke with volunteers, and donors to get . Some, he said, wanted to retain the name, but others stated they’d leave the organization if the name wasn’t changed.
“We determined that a new name would better serve our organization and help us to include more people, and to be able to be more clear as far as what we do as an organization. It was a unanimous decision by the Board to change our name to San Diego Bird Alliance.”
Since then, Kemnitz said, the has been “phenomenal. And additionally there’s been lots of new engagement with people saying, ‘I’ve been waiting for this to happen.’ They see Bird Alliance and tell us they love birds. It immediately attracts them.”
The local organization has evolved since its launch in 1948. Originally volunteer-led, it was mostly about the appreciation of birds and birding, as well as a celebration of the region’s unique biodiversity and habitat. Gradually, it developed an advocacy bent even as it also began to shift to a board leadership structure and now a staff-led organization with a board that serves an advisory function.
Back in 1965, the group helped establish Silverwood Wildlife Sanctuary, which has grown from its original 45 acres to 785, serving as a refuge for more than 124 bird species. In the early 1970s, collaborated with the Army Corps of Engineers to stop the dredging of the San Diego River. In the late 1980s, the group led the effort to protect the Famosa Slough Wetland Preserve from development, and it remains the home to birds like American avocets, black-necked stilts and belted kingfishers.
There’s still a strong focus on appreciation for birds and wildlife and events that celebrate that, but the San Diego Bird Alliance remains activated around efforts to help habitats and stop major degradation to those habitats or threats to birds or wildlife. ReWild Mission Bay, a project begun in 1991, continues to be a ionate undertaking. The group continues to protect the Mariner’s Point Least Tern Nesting Area, which became an issue in 1995 when the X Games at Mariner’s Cove threatened to disrupt the nesting until confrontation followed by negotiation has keep the area safe.
The advocacy success list goes on and on. The San Diego Bird Alliance is very active in native plant seed libraries throughout San Diego County. As the group has noted, “This program follows a long-standing effort by our chapter to promote landscaping with native plants.”
In fact, said Kemnitz, part of the point of the 75th anniversary community celebration is to help give people some direction on what they can do to help preserve habitat.
“In particular, what can I do in my own space, whatever that may be — from my balcony in my apartment to my backyard to my local community,” he said. “So we have our native seed library program and we have a map on our website to help individuals find neighborhood native seed libraries.”
Jennifer Hajj, the organization’s public program manager, added that planting natives is important to the success of biodiversity.
“You want to include plants that attract pollinators,” she said, “not just seed-bearing plants but also fruit-bearing plants and plants that have nectar that can attract not just the birds but also the insects, because bird and insect populations are ed at the hip and large insects are struggling as well as birds because of the loss of habitat.”
Kemnitz suggested people visit the Calscape website (calscape.org) to find native plants that would work in their garden, along with local nurseries and even landscape professionals. One plant that he loves — which he also said thrives almost anywhere — is the California sunflower.
“You can’t really go wrong with it,” he said. “I’ve been experimenting with it in my own backyard.”
“You see little finches, lots of goldfinches hanging out on your sunflowers and some sparrows as well,” said Hajj.
“And lots of bees and butterflies,” added Kemnitz. “It’s a good trifecta combination.”
Another way people can help protect their surrounding habitat, if they live in a community overseen by a homeowners association, is to advocate for native plants to the people making decisions about what gets planted in the community.
“It’s becoming more common that a lot of people are living close together with a shared habitat,” said Kemnitz. “You need to be aware of what’s going on around you. So, if trees are being trimmed in your community, let the HOA know if you see nests so that the tree trimmers can be prevented from destroying or disturbing them.”
Kemnitz also brought up a campaign called Lights Out, San Diego! that the organization is advocating. He explained that light pollution affects migrating birds as well as other wildlife along San Diego’s Pacific Flyway.
“Eighty percent of birds migrate during the night, and they rely on the stars to be able to do that. The more we can keep light down from evening hours to early morning the better. People worry that they need the lights on to protect their house, but studies show it doesn’t necessarily deter people from committing a crime. So turning lights off is a really easy solution to helping bird migration. It’s something individuals can do and also discuss with their HOA.”
With 75 years of bird and habitat appreciation and advocacy behind them, the San Diego Bird Alliance is looking forward to tackling new initiatives. ReWild Mission Bay remains a key effort. But Kemnitz talked about identifying new ways to engage with nature.
“I think the vision for what’s possible will inspire many to rethink how we’re interacting with nature and helping create climate resiliency, and healthy and safe places,” he said. “Let’s explore nature in new and unique ways, like paddle birding and fun things like that.
“We face so much fear — of wildfire, of drought, even of each other,” he added. “I think when you can become a part of a community, to be able to learn what solutions are out there, it helps alleviate a lot of the pressure that’s put on us. Do I need to be a fire clearance expert in my backyard? What plants should I grow or not grow? But when you’re part of a community, there’s answers, there’s solutions, and there’s innovation.
“I think that’s a part of what we’re trying to leverage — more diversity and more ideas to address today’s problems, but also working towards a future that we love.”
To learn more about San Diego Bird Alliance and its programs, visit sandiegobirdalliance.org.
75th anniversary celebration
What: San Diego Bird Alliance 75th anniversary community celebration, with music, art, food, live bird demonstrations, games and exhibits
When: 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 20
Where: Liberty Station’s South Promenade, 2850 Roosevelt Road, San Diego, CA 92106
Details: sandiegobirdalliance.org
