February Lecture: March Point Herony
February 20th Lecture: The March Point Herony With Anne Winkes & Stacy Dahl
Following a brief introduction to Skagit Land Trust and its conservation work, Stacy will discuss the history and management of the March Point heronry, one of the largest remaining heronries on the West Coast of North America. She will also discuss the community science projects focusing on great blue herons on Land Trust properties. Anne, with stills and videos, will take us into the March Point heronry giving us a look at life in the heronry throughout the 2025 breeding and nesting season, sharing expected and unexpected behaviors, with an intimate focus on three of the nests experiencing success and failure, as the adults work to rear young to fledging. Anne will also talk about how Skagit Land Trust’s public policy committee has been involved in protecting Blue Herons in Skagit County.
Meet The Speaker: Stacy Dahl
Stacy Dahl is the Volunteer and Education Programs Coordinator at Skagit Land Trust. She has coordinated the Trust’s March Point Heronry Conservation Area community science projects since 2018. Stacy planned and implemented the installation of three wildlife cameras at the heronry and developed protocols and volunteer training for the annual camera observation project.
Meet The Speaker: Anne Winkes
Anne Winkes is a Skagit Land Trust community science volunteer, who has observed and recorded great blue heron behaviors throughout the breeding and nesting season every year since 2013. Anne observed at the Samish Island heronry from 2013 to 2017 and then, following the abandonment of that heronry, has observed at the March Point heronry from 2018 to the present.
In addition to monitoring in the field Anne has been part of the March Point Heronry wildlife camera observation team since its inception in 2022. Anne is a member of the Skagit Land Trust Board of Directors and chairs the Trust’s Public Policy Committee. Following the abandonment of the Samish Island heronry, she became, and continues to be, a strong advocate for protection of Great Blue Herons in Skagit County.
