• 61 South Main Street Farmington, Utah 84025
  • M-F 8am to 5pm

Enter the student art contest

All Utah students in Preschool and grades K-12 are invited to participate in the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival Student Art Contest for cash prizes.

Registration Opens March 25

2024 festival registration will open on March 25th at 10 am MT. Field trips fill up fast, so be sure to check out this year's full schedule! 

Welcome to the 26th Annual Great Salt Lake Bird Festival

 

Many Thanks to our Festival Committee: Kristal Blessett – Chair, Susie Jones – Vice Chair, Tim Avery, John Bellmon, Adam Blundell, Alyson DeNittis, Melissa Halvorsen, Dallin Henderson, Heidi Hoven, Ashley Kijowski, Max Malmquist, Don Paul, and Tori Sohm. Read their full bios here.

The Great Salt Lake Bird Festival is made possible by Discover Davis, Davis County Commission, and many community partners and industry supporters. 

Discover Davis, Utah’s Amusement Capital, is pleased to once again welcome you to the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival in beautiful northern Utah. Davis County is home to the Great Salt Lake, a major North/South migration route for more than 250 bird species, making it one of the top places for birders to catch unique glimpses of our many feathered friends. Not only is Davis County a great place to find a variety of majestic birds, but it is also the ideal location for festival-goers to relax after a long day of birding. From hotels to dining and shopping to grabbing a quick breakfast before your adventure-filled day, you are in good hands as you go and Discover Davis!  

We are pleased to offer over 60 field trips and 11 workshops during this year’s festival. Our festival offerings are designed to create a unique experience with trips providing “behind the gates” access to areas that cannot be accessed by the general public. Attendees will be able to experience some of Utah’s most beautiful State Parks, State Wildlife Areas, and National Refuge areas. Utah is known for its diverse habitats, which result in a variety of birds. Vast deserts, high mountain peaks, rushing rivers, and of course, the saltiest lake in the country are sure to lure the most fascinating birds from all over the world! 

Festival headquarters will be hosted at the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Wildlife Education Center at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area. Located on the edge of the Great Salt Lake, you’ll discover a birder’s paradise at one of the most incredible natural locations in Utah. The festival will take place over the course of four days, along with pre and post-trips that will be available through festival partners. Field trips with provided transportation will meet at this breathtaking spot before heading out to experience the Wasatch Front, or if you prefer to drive yourself, many opportunities will be available for you to meet your guide on location.

Not only will birders have the opportunity to attend our unique field trips, but also have the chance to sit down for a night, socialize, enjoy dinner, and listen to the keynote address at the Eccles Wildlife Education Center. Free educational workshops will also be available for participants, and of course, our annual family day, where birders of all ages are invited to learn about birds, participate in hands-on activities, and even do some birdwatching of their own. 

We hope you will join us in our 26th year for another memorable festival. Happy Birding!

*All events and schedules are subject to change based on health department policies and other unforeseen circumstances

 

Keynote & Guide Information Schedule & Field Trips Spotlight Bird Workshops Merchandise Family Day

About Us

The Great Salt Lake Bird Festival, established in 1999 and organized by Discover Davis, has evolved into a medium-sized birding festival with the support of a dedicated committee of Utah birding experts and consistent community partners. Drawing hundreds of attendees annually, the festival offers unique field trips, hands-on workshops, and engaging presentations by keynote speakers, providing a platform for passionate birders to celebrate the diverse array of migratory birds in the region while emphasizing the importance of habitat preservation. Participants can expect rare access to closed-off areas, diverse bird species sightings, and the enjoyment of Utah's outdoor beauty during the four-day event.

Learn more

Lodging

Stay close to all the action by booking your festival lodging in Davis. Choose from national hotel chains and boutique rooms for a perfect festival experience.

2024 Spotlight Bird

Black-chinned Hummingbird


Essay by Ella Sorensen

There is something so familiar and unique about a hummingbird, that scarce exists the human who cannot instantly recognize it as a hummingbird when spying a tiny shape, darting between flowers, hovering briefly, probing into the flower with its long needle-like bill before zipping onto the next blossom or returning to perch on a near-by branch.  

Hummingbirds occur only in the Western Hemisphere.  The range of the Black-chinned Hummingbird includes mostly the western US and much of central and northern Mexico.  There is a suggestion that after nesting at lower elevations, some follow the emerging flowers upward as spring and summer march up the mountains before the birds depart for winter mostly in Mexico.

Adult male hummingbirds usually come adorned with brilliant iridescent chin feathers often of red, orange, or pink coloration called a gorget.  When the gorget briefly catches sunlight, it glistens and glows like an ember. But typically, as the bird darts about or sits on a perch, the gorget appears wholly black.  As its name implies, the gorget of the Black-chinned hummingbird is actually black.  Only a small band of iridescent purple feathers form a small strip at the base.  Females and juveniles display dull colors of green, white, and gray and can sometimes be difficult to distinguish from other non-adult male hummingbird species.
Black-chinned Hummingbird Black-Chinned Hummingbird Black-chinned Hummingbird Black-chinned Hummingbird

Photos by Scott Baxter

Unlike many bird species whose preferred habitat correlates with elevation or inches of rain, the key to productive hummingbird habitat is simply the abundance of flower nectar for energy, insects for protein and other food essentials,  and tall trees or shrubs for nesting and perching.  The Black-chinned hummingbird is a habitat generalist. In Utah, it nests commonly in deserts, mountain forests, and even in urban settings. 

Estimates of total hummingbird species in the world are around 350. Only the tyrant flycatcher family lists more species than the hummingbird family. Most numerous near the Equator, as latitudes move south or north, the number of nesting hummingbird species declines.  Only five species, including the Black-chinned, regularly nest in Utah.

The wings of a hummingbird are specially designed for prolonged hovering, flying rapidly backward, and maneuvering like a helicopter.  The origin of the name hummingbird comes from a hum produced by wing movement. Their long tongue extends far into the flower for nectar.  Hummingbirds have the highest metabolism of all vertebrates.  Their heart can beat 480 times a minute, their wings can beat 80 times per second.  Constant whirling flight can burn up to the human equivalent of 150,000 calories per day.

A hummingbird essay recorded in the late 1500s by Sahagun, a Franciscan priest,  as relayed to him by Aztec elders: 

"In the winter, it hibernates.  It inserts its bill in a tree; [hanging] there it shrinks, shrivels, molts.  And when [the tree] sprouts, when it leafs out, at this time [the hummingbirds] also grow features once again.  And when it thunders for rain, at that time it awakens, moves, and comes to life." (excerpted from Florentine Codex)

Folklore inspired long ago by keen observation of a reality! Hummingbirds are one of a few birds that have the ability when food resources are short or temperature dips, to enter for a short period into a state similar to hibernation called torpor. Hummingbird metabolism requires enormous amounts of energy. Torpor allows the hummingbird to lower physiological activity by reducing metabolism, heart rate, respiration, and body temperature and thereby reserve energy for when conditions are favorable.

The tiny Black-chinned Hummingbird, weighing little more than a copper penny, is truly among the most incredibly beautiful jewels of nature.

Contact Us

For ways on how you can be involved, including sponsorships, additional information or questions about the GSL Bird Festival, please contact us.

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