Roger Tory Peterson’s 100 Year Birthday Party

RTPI Group for the Peterson festival!

This weekend the Roger Tory Peterson Institute (RTPI) celebrated the 100th anniversary for the birth of Roger Tory Peterson with a big birding festival. RTPI had lined up a world series of speakers and had many participants for his celebration.

Me, YN-J, Kim and Kenn Kaufman

The two main speakers for the four-day event included Pete Dunne and Kenn Kaufaman, who did the keynote addresses for Friday night and the Saturday night dinner. Other workshop leaders included Kim Kaufman, Lang Elliott, John Rappole, Scott Stoleson and Doug Carlson.

Kenn Kaufman was the Friday Night Speaker!

I was the leader for the Saturday bird banding fieldtrip while many other participants were visiting the Jamestown area where Roger Tory Peterson had once birded when he was young birder. I didn’t have the record banding session as I would liked for the festival but we did capture a few nice birds to share with everyone. Highlight was watching Young Naturalist J being bitten by the Northern Cardinal . . . . . ya ya I was bitten also!

Me, Pete Dunne and YN-J

Our friend Barb (from My Bird Tales) decided to attend the fieldtrip over to my stomping grounds in “Allegany State Park”! She should be posting something soon about her festival adventure! I know that Young Naturalist J and I were very happy having the opportunity to meet her during this festival.

Pete Dunne doing the “Art of Pishing” workshop!

After bird banding in the morning both Young Naturalist J and myself participated in the “Art of Pishing” workshop by Pete Dunne! Look, it was Barb sitting in the row in front of me and we had a few seconds to chat before we started doing our “pish pish pish pish (stuttering) pish pish pish”!

Pete Dunne was the Saturday Night Speaker!

They keynote speakers were both exceptional with Kenn Kaufman speaking Friday evening and Pete Dunne on Saturday evening. Kenn dazzled the participants with his humorous slide program introducing us to some of his new birding friendships that had formed over the years! Pete did a reading from something that he wrote about Roger after Mr. Peterson’s death. Although very touching his reading was . . . . it was also quite amusing! I couldn’t have thought of a more outstanding way to spend two evenings with so many of our great birding friends!

Me, Lang Elliott and YN-J

If you happen to missed this birding festival . . . there are talks of making this an annual event and then you will be sure to have as much if not more fun as we had celebrating a 100 years of Roger Tory Peterson’s birth.

Northern Cardinal with RTPI in the background!

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