Events in January 2026

Annual Outings

Community Events

April

May

August

December

February

May

October

Summer/Fall

Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month from September through April. Speaker presentations are open to the public, providing environmental education to everyone in our community.

We sponsor outings and participate in bird- and conservation-related community events at the local, regional, and national level. We also participate in a number of community, regional, and even national events.

People watching for birds for the Christmas bird count on a winter day — Christmas Bird Count – St. Cloud

These are outings that occur every year.

Sand Prairie WMA – look and listen for Woodcocks in their mating ritual. Programming the date is challenging as we are still subject to snowstorms, but the display is always worth the effort.

Albany Wastewater ponds – migrating ducks and shorebirds

Peck Farm in Rockville – Annual picnic. This event has been held for the past thirty years.

Varying locations – Chimney Swift Sit. We choose a location where there is a migratory communal roost. This outing had been very popular in previous years. We have just restarted it this past year and plan to continue, hoping to identify additional communal roosts in the CMAS area.

St Cloud/Collegeville area – Christmas Bird Count. The CBC has been around for 125 years, and the St Cloud circle has participated since 1980. Brian Jungels is the compiler for the CBC

CMAS members are also encouraged to participate in area birding events:

Great Backyard Bird Count, promoted by National Audubon, Cornell Lab, and Birds Canada

Birding Days at St. John’s Arboretum, Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge, and Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.

Sand Hill Crane Viewing at Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge.

21 7:00 pm: CMAS Meeting: Lichens of Minnesota 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm January 21, 2026 Tanner Barnharst studies lichens and mushrooms. He lives in Minneapolis, MN, and travel the area visiting parks, forests, and natural areas looking for fungus. Tanner has published a book called Minnesota Lichen Guide: Basic Identification for Common Lichens in Minnesota. He will be sharing his love and knowledge of lichens of Minnesota with us. Presenter Bio: Tanner Barnharst has been educating for over 15 years and has been leading lichen and mushroom walks for nearly 10 years. Tanner published the Minnesota Lichen Guide in January of 2025, which is the first lichen guide for the entire state of Minnesota. Tanner holds a BS in Microbiology and an MS in Environmental Engineering. Tanner has been with the Minnesota Mycological Society since 2021 and is a former chair of foray planning. He has been a Minnesota Master Naturalist since 2022 and has organized yearly long-weekend trips for fungi since that time. Tanner enjoys reading, hiking, and photography in his spare time. We will meet at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship at 3226 Maine Prairie Rd. in St. Cloud (map below). The meeting is open to the public and will also be available on Zoom. Invite your friends and neighbors or request a Zoom link at centralmnaudubon@gmail.com. Refreshments and Door prizes to follow the presentation. Map of Unitarian Universalist Fellowship iCal Google Calendar

24 6:00 pm: Owl Hoot 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm January 24, 2026 St. John’s Outdoor University is hosting an Owl Hoot on January 24th from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at St. John’s University. This will be an opportunity to learn about the owls of Minnesota, and there will be an option for an outdoor hike to call for the owls that live at St. John’s. Note that pre-registration is required, and if you are not a member of Outdoor U there is a fee. More information and registration can be found here. iCal Google Calendar

Removing Invasive Species, Planting Native Species, Building Bird Houses or Feeders, Placing and Monitoring BlueBird Houses in Trails.