MARION — This event was for the birds _ and the birders who loved them.

The Marion Natural History Museum hosted Justin Barrett on Feb. 16 for a discussion of the importance of the Great Backyard Bird Count.  

Each February, for four days, the world comes together for the love of birds. Over these four days people are invited to spend time in their favorite places watching and counting as many birds as they can find and reporting them. These observations help scientists better understand global bird populations before one of their annual migrations.

After learning about the count and doing related projects, the students went outside  to identify a small flock of starlings, get good views of juncos and also observed a mourning dove, cardinal, house finch, house sparrow and American crow.

 They also found an old nest in a tree.  

Upcoming afterschool programs include Monarchs on March 2 and Fossil Hunting on March 16. For a full list of upcoming programs, visit www.marionmuseum.org.