Maricopa County Parks and Recreation: Guided Bird Hike (City Nature Challenge)

Learn about birds of the Sonoran Desert on this easy to moderate guided hike with Ranger Eric while participating in the City Nature Challenge! Join Ranger Eric to look for and learn about resident and migratory birds of the Sonoran Desert on this easy to moderate walk. We will meet at the Nature Center first and check out the nearby vegetation, before going over to the pollinator garden and mesquite bosque around the turf area, followed by caravaning over to a primitive trail down by the Gila River, which is a bit more moderate hiking. Please carry ample water, wear sturdy footwear and sun protection, pre-hydrate and have electrolytes beforehand, and bring binoculars if you have them. Restrooms are located at the Nature Center and at a few spots around the turf area. Today is also the beginning of the Greater Phoenix City Nature Challenge, which runs April 24-27 and involves people using the free community science app, iNaturalist, to document the biodiversity around us! You can use iNaturalist to help you identify any living organism on the planet, learn about what other people are seeing, and help scientists better understand the distribution of organisms across the globe. The City Nature Challenge is a bioblitz-style competition challenges local communities to make the most observations of biodiversity in their area during this 4-day period using iNaturalist. This particular City Nature Challenge will focus on the Phoenix Metro area, including all of our Maricopa County Parks. For more info, check out the following link: https://greaterphoenixcnc.com/ *If you would like to learn how to document nature observations via iNaturalist, please download the free app at home and register an account prior to arrival. MEETING LOCATION: Nature Center Google Maps: https://maps.app.goo.gl/MVUX52wSr3jKuBjS8 Limit 15 participants. To register, please call the Nature Center at 602-506-2930 ext. 6 with your name, phone number, and number of people attending. If you find you cannot attend a program after you have registered, please call the Nature Center ASAP so we may contact those on the waiting list. Registration for this program will close on 4/22. April is Citizen Science Month! Citizen Science Month 2026 is an official partner of America 250, the campaign to celebrate the United States of America’s semi-quincentennial anniversary. Help us reach 2.50 Million Acts of Science by reporting your iNaturalist observations to SciStarter! Create an account on SciStarter.org, an ASU research affiliate, and add your iNat username to settings (under “Affiliation Integration”)—do this once, and all your observations count! Why join SciStarter? Earn credit, explore more projects, and help measure impact! Questions? Reach out! greaterphxcnc@googlegroups.com PLEASE NOTE: Outdoor programs may be canceled on short notice due to severe weather, including extreme heat events. The Maricopa County Parks website (www.maricopa.gov/parks) is the most accurate resource for verifying the program’s status. Please check the program listing online before coming to the park.   Part of Greater Phoenix City Nature Challenge 2026