Once again it’s Anchorage’s greatest Birding Smackdown. How many bird species can your team find within Potter Marsh between 8:00 AM and Noon? How much food can you bring to the Potluck Picnic immediately following the contest period at Noon? Whose team has the best name? It’s an In-Your-Face trash-talking morning of birding, and this is NOT your Mother’s birding contest.
The garish obnoxious rotating trophy will be awarded for most species seen. Teams may consist of 2 – 6 people. The team must remain within voice or sight contact and must fit into one vehicle. Species may only be counted if they are seen/heard by the entire team (Exceptions: 6 – person teams may count birds seen by 5 members, and 5-person teams may count birds seen by 4 members.) A record was set in 2019 when the winning team spotted 54 species during the competition, and it is not surprising for every team to spot something that is seen by only their team.
Check-in is at 7:30 AM in the parking lot at the north end of the marsh. Teams will be given a check list and a Potter Marsh map on which to log the location of each species seen. At the end of the contest, we’ll re-cap what teams have discovered to allow all participants to re-locate desired species.
Entry fee is $20.00 per team. Exact change is required. The Official Smackdown ends precisely at Noon. Teams will be penalized one species per minute late. Birds may be counted Only if seen from designated roads and trails in the Potter Marsh area. No stopping or walking will be allowed on the West side of the New Seward Highway. Birds seen in non-designated areas may be counted if the observers are standing within a designated area.
SPECIAL SAFETY RULES: No stopping is allowed on the New Seward Highway except in designated turn-outs on the East side of the highway, and pulling into the designated turn-outs is only allowed for vehicles traveling NORTH. Parking in a manner that blocks other teams from using a pull-out will result in a penalty of 15 species.
Everybody is welcome, so assemble your team, whip up a dish to share, and meet us Saturday Morning at 7:30 AM for a hilarious birding field trip with Fabulous Prizes! Birding will be limited to the Potter Marsh area, and who knows what rarities will show up when there are birders combing every inch of an area that usually just gets the once-over.