The Delaware Valley Ornithological Club (DVOC) is one of the oldest ornithology organizations in the United States. Founded in 1890, the club has held regular meetings at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia for over 125 years, and has published the periodical Cassinia since 1901. Membership is open to any dues paying person with an interest in birds. The club organizes birding field trips throughout the Delaware River valley region, including a dedicated year-round trip schedule within the city limits of Philadelphia (BirdPhilly).
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Remembering Doris McGovern
Meetings
November 19, 2026 @ 7:15 pm - 9:30 pm
1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia
The in-person portion of the meeting will be held at the Academy of Natural Sciences, BEES classroom (3rd floor).
Meeting agenda:
7:15 PM: Zoom opens
7:30-8 PM: Club business
8 PM: Presentation followed by questions (might start earlier if club business finishes earlier).
Please register for the meeting whether you will be attending in person or via Zoom. Then watch for the meeting link in your email. Disregard the meeting link if you will be attending in person.
Bringing Back the Purple Martin
Speaker: Will Krohn (in-person)
Purple Martins are the largest species of swallow in North America, and in the east, they nest almost entirely in human-constructed nesting cavities. Purple Martins are unique among our cavity nesters, given that they nest colonially, or in large groups. Since 1970, Purple Martins have declined by approximately 38%, but recent conservation efforts are bringing the Purple Martin back. Will Krohn, an avian ecologist and graduate student at the University of Delaware, studies Purple Martins, specifically how young birds move between and select colonies for nesting. Over the course of the talk, you’ll learn all about Purple Martins, from their fantastic migrations and nesting habits to identification and how you can attract them to your own backyard. You’ll also get to learn about Will’s research and what it means for the conservation of this species into the future.
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Will received his B.A. from Colgate University in 2023, where he double-majored in Biology and Environmental Studies. After graduating, Will worked as a technician on various avian research and conservation projects around the country, working with taxa ranging from Common Loons to Yellow-breasted Chats. In 2025, Will started his Master’s in Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware’s Aeroecology Lab. His research investigates natal dispersal, or the movement of young out from the colony of hatching, and selection and use of the artificial colonies that Purple Martins rely on. Will plans to continue working in the field of avian research and conservation after graduation, whether that be by pursuing a PhD or working as a wildlife biologist. In his free time, Will enjoys birding, rock climbing, hiking, and anything else that gets him out in nature.
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Field Trips
http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L6069151
Free to all members and non-members
Join BirdPhilly as we explore Andorra Natural Area.
Winter songbirds are arriving in Philly, and several species have already been observed at Andorra Meadow; including Purple Finch, Winter Wren, Brown Creeper, and more! We’ll see if we can find these as well as other birds in the meadow and surrounding woodland. Saturday’s decent NW winds will hopefully push some migratory raptors and large waterbirds through as well! We will meet outside the environmental center at 12 pm and plan to bird for 1 to 2 hours. The terrain can be muddy.
No binoculars? No worries! Birding backpacks with binoculars and field guides are now available on loan at all branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia.
For questions, please reach out to birdphillywalks@gmail.com.
The event is free and open to everyone.
See more
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Free to all members and non-members
Join BirdPhilly for a walk at one of the city’s less visited parks, Burholme Park.
Located in the Burholme neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia, Burholme Park is an 85-acre public park that was gifted along with the Robert W. Ryeress Museum and Library to the city in 1910 by the Ryeress family, who were prominent local philanthropists and early animal rights activists.
The park itself includes sports fields, a playground, a picnic area, and a beautiful wooded area of mature native trees. We’ll mostly be birding the picnic area and wooded area for year-round and winter resident birds.
Meet us at the parking lot by the playground.
No binoculars? No worries! Birding backpacks with binoculars and field guides are now available on loan at all branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia.
For questions, please reach out to birdphillywalks@gmail.com.
The event is free and open to everyone.
See more
Add to Google Calendar
Download ICS
BirdPhilly is an initiative of the Delaware Valley Ornithological Club. Founded in 1890, the DVOC has been based at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia since 1891. The DVOC runs fields trips throughout the tri-state region, however BirdPhilly focuses on trips within in Philadelphia city limits in collaboration with Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and the Fairmount Park Conservancy.
Through BirdPhilly our goal is to increase interest and awareness of Philadelphia’s birds by providing quality birding experiences on expertly guided field trips. All field trips are free unless the site charges an admission fee. These trips are open to children, adults, and well behaved pets. BirdPhilly also participates in DVOC’s Philadelphia Bird Race to raise funds for conservation and research projects.
The club enthusiastically welcomes new members – young people, beginners and anyone else who is genuinely interested in birding. Members benefit from the wealth of information and expertise that this club offers. The bi-annual club journal, Cassinia, is provided to members.
People interested in receiving the club's weekly email newsletter can sign up by using the button below. Note that new club members start to receive the newsletter automatically after joining the club.
© Bert Filemyr
The Delaware Valley is the name given to the region that lays on either side of the Delaware River, centered on Philadelphia. This consists of southeastern Pennsylvania, central and southern New Jersey and the state of Delaware. Tell me more...
The following counties fall within our boundaries.
In Pennsylvania;
Berks County, Bucks County, Chester County, Delaware County, Lancaster County, Lebanon County, Lehigh County, Montgomery County, Northampton County and Philadelphia County.
In New Jersey;
Atlantic County, Burlington County, Camden County, Cape May County, Cumberland County, Gloucester County, Hunterdon County, Mercer County, Middlesex County, Monmouth County, Ocean County, Salem County, Somerset County and Warren County.
In Delaware;
New Castle County, Kent County and Sussex County
DVOC Flickr Page
Want to see and share photos of Delaware Valley birds? Check out our Flickr page.
BirdPhilly is an initiative of the Delaware Valley Ornithological Club. Founded in 1890, the DVOC has been based at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia since 1891. The DVOC runs fields trips throughout the tri-state region, however BirdPhilly focuses on trips within in Philadelphia city limits in collaboration with Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and the Fairmount Park Conservancy.
Through BirdPhilly our goal is to increase interest and awareness of Philadelphia’s birds by providing quality birding experiences on expertly guided field trips. All field trips are free unless the site charges an admission fee. These trips are open to children, adults, and well behaved pets. BirdPhilly also participates in DVOC’s Philadelphia Bird Race to raise funds for conservation and research projects.
New Bins for New Birders (NB4NB)
Partnering with DVOC's World Series of Birding Team's corporate sponsor, Nikon Sport Optics, NB4NB is committed to supplying new, serviceable binoculars to organizations that expose young people to birding and the outdoors. We focus on those organizations that are local to the Delaware Valley Region: southeastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware.
You can quickly and easily make a donation to various DVOC initiatives using PayPal. Click the "Donate" button above to do see a list of initiatives. If you have a Paypal Account please log in. If you do not, use the "Don't have a PayPal account?" section in the lower left-hand corner of the page that appears after you click one of the "Donate" buttons on the next page.
The DVOC is a 501(c)(3) organization.
Contributions to DVOC are tax-deductible.