EVENTS
All are welcome to attend our events! Our monthly programs run from September through May. Our events are usually free and open to the public (any exceptions would clearly noted).
Cancellation Policy: If the Dubuque County School District cancels classes on the day of our event, our program will also be cancelled. Any changes or cancellations will be posted here if possible, as well as on Facebook.
When we share an event sponsored by another organization, please check with the sponsor for details and up-to-date information.
Upcoming Events
Host: Iowa Ornothologists’ Union (IOU)
IOU Spring Conference 4/24/26 – 4/26/26
Upper Iowa University, Fayette, IA
The conference includes birding field trips, program speakers, and a keynote address (Dexter Patterson).
Conference Details
Register by 4/17/26.
Dubuque Audubon Annual Spring Species Count
Saturday, 5/9/26
(Traditionally the Saturday before Mother’s Day)
Join us for our annual fun day of spring birding! You’re welcome to spend as much or as little time as you like. We’ll meet up for a potluck picnic at the end of the day.
This event is free, and no birding experience is required. Audubon guides will be on hand to help you identify species. Binoculars are recommended, and we will have a couple pairs available.
Arrive as early as 6 AM at the Julien Dubuque Monument for birding around the monument, but be sure to arrive in the monument parking lot by 8 AM if you want to continue to other locations.
Julien Dubuque Monument
1810 Monument Dr
Dubuque, IA 52003
View Map
After 8 AM, we’re no longer guaranteed to be in the monument area. We’ll likely start on some trails at Mines of Spain, and we’ll drive between locations. Some may opt to go to lunch and continue birding into the afternoon, where the destinations are determined as we go.
At 5 PM, we‘ll gather at Swiss Valley Park (not to be confused with Swiss Valley Nature Center) for a potluck picnic at the Sycamore Pavilion. We’ll provide brats and hotdogs, and we’ll tabulate the birding results. Optionally bring a dish to pass and/or table service, but neither are required. Bottled water will be provided.
Swiss Valley Park
Sycamore Pavilion
13069 Swiss Valley Rd
Peosta, IA 52068
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To help with our planning, please give us your brat and/or hot dog counts using the sign-up button no later than noon on the day before.
Dubuque Audubon Annual Meeting
Annual Elections
Before our May program, we will hold a short annual meeting to elect our 2026-2027 board. All are welcome to attend the meeting, but only those with an active membership may vote. Please arrive by 6:30 PM to participate.
© Jon Stravers
© Kat Busse
Dubuque Audubon May Program
Driftless Area Research on Red-shouldered Hawks and Cerulean Warblers (& More)
Thursday, 5/14/26
6:30 PM Annual Meeting
6:45 PM Social Time
7 – 8 PM Program
EB Lyons Interpretive Center
8991 Bellevue Heights Road
Dubuque, IA 52003
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Jon Stravers, director of Driftless Area Bird Conservation, will present summaries of Red-shouldered Hawk monitoring conducted each year since 1982, as well as summaries of Cerulean Warbler surveys conducted each year since 2009 in the Effigy Mounds/Yellow River Forest Bird Conservation Area of Northeast Iowa.
Red-shouldered Hawks are listed as an endangered species in Iowa. For the first 35 years, our surveys showed a relatively stable or even and slowly expanding population in Northeast Iowa. However, recent surveys have shown a drastic decline in nesting Red-shoulder nesting activity along the Mississippi River – most likely due to an increase in flood events and significant tree mortality in some sections of the Upper Mississippi Refuge.
Cerulean Warblers are one of Iowa’s rarest nesting warblers. Our initial surveys in 2009 thru 2012 revealed a somewhat unknown population of this species in Northeast Iowa. Subsequent surveys revealed a surprisingly dense and relatively stable population of Ceruleans, especially in Yellow River State Forest and Effigy Mounds National Monument. These findings were a critical factor in the Effigy Mounds/Yellow River Forest Bird Conservation Area being designated as “globally significant” in 2013.
With the support of Iowa Audubon and several Audubon Chapters and several government agencies, and with the help of a variety of younger field assistants, these projects have continued through the years.
PLUS: In the tradition of making this an interesting program, Jon will also include provocative bird photos from his work in the mountains of Costa Rica, from a season in the Arctic Wilderness on Baffin Island, and from his years of raptor migration work in the Manzano Mountains of New Mexico.
© Jon Stravers
