Bill Streeter, Master Falconer & Director of the Delaware Valley Raptor Center, holds a live American Bald Eagle that he is bringing to the Lehigh Valley Heritage Museum in Allentown on March 7 for Eaglefest 2020.
Click here to subscribe today or Login.
In celebration of nature and the American Bald Eagle, the Lehigh Valley Heritage Museum will convene its indoor Eaglefest from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. March 7.
Eaglefest is a large public program that celebrates the beauty and power of raptors — eagles, hawks, owls, and falcons in the wild. Live bird programs begin at noon and 1:15 p.m., offering a chance to see and learn about these majestic birds firsthand.
“A live adult American Bald Eagle, a Great Horned Owl or Hoot Owl, and a Peregrine Falcon, the fastest creature in the world, capable of exceeding 200 miles an hour in an airborne dive, are some of the live birds that the public will interact with during the presentation,” museum director Joseph Garrera said.
“In our hectic, urbanized lives, we forget the beauty of nature and the ways in which our lives depend on the health of the planet,” Garrera said. “Eaglefest 2020 celebrates the return of eagles and hawks while offering fun and engaging ways to understand nature.”
Admission to the program is $9 for adult non-members and $5 for child non-members.
The event includes simple science experiments, crafts and interactive activities for all ages. You can learn to identify a few backyard birds and their calls, strap on fabric “eagle wings” or make a bird mask, then step into a life-size model of an eagle’s nest. Measure yourself against a life-size eagle outline and help color it in. Discover how birds stay aloft. Cut and fold a paper bird that really flies. There will even be an egg hunt.
This year features several fun activities about raptors and the food chain. Create a project showing the food chain for a bird of prey. Learn how pesticides in the food chain endangered raptors. Make an eagle puppet and race to see how quickly you can “catch fish” in its talons.
At noon and again at 1:15 p.m., Bill Streeter, Master Falconer and Director of the Delaware Valley Raptor Center of Milford, Pennsylvania, will introduce visitors to several different live birds of prey, including both an adult and a juvenile American Bald Eagle.
Streeter has more than 30 years of experience as a raptor rehabilitator, falconer, and educator. Streeter’s work with Bald Eagles has gained national attention, including stories in The New York Times and Associated Press. “This is a remarkable opportunity for people of every age to have a close encounter with powerful and majestic birds of prey,” Garrera said.
This event is financed in part by a grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Community and Economic Development.
The Lehigh Valley Heritage Museum is located at 432 W. Walnut Street in Allentown. Parking is available in the rear of the museum, on the street, and in nearby lots. For more information, contact Joseph Garrera, Executive Director, at 610-435-1074 or visit lehighvalleyheritagemuseum.org.