Please Note: The National Aviary is OPEN on Wed., July 15, however, our parking lot will be CLOSED. The Aviary will be CLOSED on Thurs., July 16 and Fri., July 17 for our largest annual fundraiser, Night in the Tropics! We will reopen at 12 pm on Sat., July 18; the parking lot reopens at 1 pm. Plan Your Next Visit
Birding Expedition: Powdermill Avian Research Center
Sat., October 3 | 8:30 – 11:30 am | Members: $50; Non-Members: $55 Meet at Powdermill Nature Reserve and Avian Research Center
A photo-worthy day full of important conservation work, stunning views, and beautiful birds! Begin your day at the Powdermill Avian Research Center (PARC), part of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s Powdermill Nature Reserve. Here, you can watch skilled ornithologists gently capture, band, and release wild birds—an up-close look at avian research and conservation in action. It’s a rare chance to see warblers, thrushes, and other songbirds just inches away while learning about migration and habitat studies.
Join the Aviary to zoom in on birds like warblers, thrushes, vireos, and flycatchers with Ornithologist Bob Mulvihill and Educator and Photographer Mike Faix, who will be able to provide interesting information and birding tales appealing to kids and adults alike. Bring your own binoculars, or borrow an Aviary pair that we'll help you use!
Afterward, we continue our adventure into the Laurel Highlands with a visit to the Spruce Flats Bog, a unique high-elevation wetland surrounded by spruce and tamarack trees. A short boardwalk trail leads you through mossy hummocks and quiet pools where we may spot migrant birds on their journey south.
Birding Expeditions are open to participants 6 years and older. Those under 16 must be accompanied by a registered adult. Binoculars will be available to borrow.
The National Aviary has two baby Guam Kingfishers, known as sihek in the indigenous CHamoru language. The male Guam kingfisher hatched on April 19, while the female hatched on May 12. On May 27, the male chick took his first flight.
With the help of two recently hatched chicks, Pittsburgh's National Aviary has plans to help a bird species that no longer exists in the wild to once again find its way home.