SENECA ROCKS AUDUBON SOCIETY
"Nocturnal Flight Calls"
with Dr. Joe Gyekis
6:00 pm, April 8, Clarion Free Library
Joe Gyekis is a health science instructor at Penn State and an enthusiastic lifelong birder with particular interests in patch listing, nocturnal flight calls, and bird-window collisions.
Joe will talk about recording bird migration from his suburban home at night for the past 8 years as well as observations from other Pennsylvania nocturnal flight call (NFC) recording friends, including fun rarities, interesting discoveries about migration timing, and which species are consistently easier to find by NFC than normal daytime birding.
Joe Gyekis in a selfie with curious cows.
"Alaska Birding"
with Tom Kuehl
6:00 pm, May 13, Clarion Free Library
Tom and Janet Kuehl were on the Wildside Nature Tours ALASKA BIRDING tour in June 2025. Tom will present a photographic tour of the flora and fauna of the rugged coastline, expansive tundra habitat and wildlife, and summer colors of Nome and the surrounding area. The tour tallied 91 bird and 9 mammal species, and Tom will share his photographic highlights from among the most spectacular of these species. If time allows Tom will be prepared to share a few more of the highlights from the other areas they visited on the Tour.
Tom and Janet are longtime members of very many Western Pennsylvania bird and nature clubs, and Audubon chapters. Tom and Janet became avid birders in the late 1990’s and are prolific participants in citizen science projects – Christmas Bird Counts, Pennsylvania’s Winter Raptors Survey Project, Breeding Bird Surveys (now retired) and served as regional coordinators in the Second Pennsylvania Breeding Bird Atlas.
For the current Third Pennsylvania Bird Atlas, Tom and Janet are the Southwest Regional Coordinators that includes Clarion and Jefferson counties, as well as another ten counties. Tom also is the County Coordinator for Beaver, Lawrence and Westmoreland counties. Tom is the Westmoreland County Compiler for the PA Birds Journal and served 2-year terms as Vice-President and President of the Pennsylvania Society of Ornithology.
The rugged Alaskan coastline, one of the many photographs to be shared by Tom Kuehl.
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"Butterflies of Pennsylvania"
with Dr. Brian Wargo
6:00 pm, June 10, Clarion Free Library
Brian M. Wargo is best known for being a hawkwatcher. He was a counter at Cumberland Gap Hawk Watch in Maryland and is currently a counter at Allegheny Front Hawk Watch. Along with birds, butterflies have become another serious interest for Wargo. He regularly spends time when the weather is warm, and the sun is shining looking for his favorite insects!
Wargo is the president of the Allegheny Plateau Audubon Society. He is also the chair of the board of the Hawk Migration Association.
Wargo is the author of three books. “Bird!”: An Exploration of Hawkwatching, which gives a bio-ethnographic overview of the hawkwatching community, including the culture of HMA. Wargo’s second book, Visiting Mother Nature: A Beginner’s Guide to Off-the-Grid RVing, documents how he was able to use an RV to view birds in all 49 contiguous states. His most recent book, Idealized Science: A Framework for Practicing Science Authentically, targets his main passion in life, teaching science.
Dr. Brian Wargo
"Birding Pennsylvania’s State Parks"
​with Chris Kemmerer
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6 pm, September 9, 2026, Clarion Free Library
Pennsylvania has one of the largest state park systems in the country. With 125 parks across 64 counties the system includes geologic wonders, prominent moments in American history, old growth forests, tidal waterways, and Great Lakes access. This diversity is also represented in the flora and fauna that call our Pennsylvania State Parks home.
Join Chris Kemmerer, Education and Interpretation Section Chief for Pennsylvania State Parks, on a tour of the best birding spots in PA’s state park system. He’ll highlight parks close-to-home near Clarion, parks worthy of a day trip and parks further afield that may require an overnight visit or two. You’ll get a sense for the diverse habitats of each park as well as the best birds to look for. You’ll also learn a few other ways to engage with PA state parks beyond a birding adventure.
Chris Kemmerer has been with Pennsylvania State Parks for over 20 years. As an avid birder and conservationist Chris works to bring his love of the outdoors to Pennsylvania residents and visitors. As the Education and Interpretation Section Chief, he oversees the educational program for state parks; providing direction, support, and training to field staff who annually educate 300,000 people. In addition, he promotes state park educational opportunities, develops and fosters ongoing partnerships, represents DCNR on environmental education panels and working groups, guides development of State Park Interpretive Management Plans, and leads various exhibit and non-personal education projects, such as the award-winning exhibits at Hickory Run State Park.
McConnells Mill State Park