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.
August 13, 2026
Swift Night Out
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August 13, 2026
We have been monitoring the Chimney Swifts at the Wenner building in Cold Spring this summer. Come join us for a larger group gathering to see and hear the swifts return to their roost in the chimney of the building. We will also exchange information on our monitoring efforts. The monitoring will be from a half hour before sunset to a half hour after. We are meeting in the parking lot of the Subway restaurant in Cold Spring (24 Red River Ave N, Cold Spring, MN 56320). The parking lot is a tarred surface and bathrooms are available in local businesses. Photo credit: Dori Minnerath-Kneip
Photo: Doris Minnerath-Kneip
Annual Outings
These are outings that occur every year.
April
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.
May
Albany Wastewater ponds – migrating ducks and shorebirds
Peck Farm in Rockville – Annual picnic. This event has been held for the past thirty years.
August
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.
December
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
Community Events
CMAS members are also encouraged to participate in area birding events:
February
Great Backyard Bird Count, promoted by National Audubon, Cornell Lab, and Birds Canada
May
Birding Days at St. John’s Arboretum, Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge, and Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.
October
Sand Hill Crane Viewing at Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge.
Summer/Fall
Removing Invasive Species, Planting Native Species, Building Bird Houses or Feeders, Placing and Monitoring BlueBird Houses in Trails.