ENCINITAS — North County families are getting the chance to explore the diverse wildlife at the San Elijo Lagoon in Encinitas via educational events and family-focused programs focused on connecting more people to nature.
On Saturday, dozens of people could be found at San Elijo Lagoon participating in school-based programs and the annual Wings Over Wetlands festival, which offers educational activities to introduce the public to the lagoon’s local birds.
Wings Over Wetlands is one of several annual festivals by Nature Collective (formerly San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy) at the lagoon, focusing on education, exploration and conservation.
“We try to make them hands-on, very accessible, and all about curiosity and discovery,” Kristin Evans, education and outreach senior director for Nature Collective, said of the festivals.
At different stations along the trail, attendees of all ages could observe wildlife through binoculars and learn about how various species catch food. At the Nature Center, San Diego County park rangers held a Hawk Talk featuring live predators, including a red-tailed hawk and great horned owl.
On the same day, dozens of Escondido Union Elementary School District students and parents visited the lagoon as part of the Get Out In Nature (GOIN) program, which connects families with free, nature-based experiences at local parks, lagoons and beaches.
GOIN is funded by the California State Coastal Conservancy’s Explore the Coast grant, and participation and transportation are free for families in third through fifth grade at Orange Glen, Glen View, Rose, and Pioneer elementary schools in Escondido.
During the outing on Saturday, Nature Collective staff and volunteers led students, their families and district staff on a nature walk. The group stopped occasionally to observe Torrey pine needles, feathers fallen to the ground, and even an owl pellet and record observations in their nature journal.
Evans said GOIN connects many families to the outdoors who may not otherwise have the chance. Translation also allows Spanish-speaking families to be included.
“That’s one of the goals; to get families out, to feel safe and comfortable in a nature space,” Evans said. “While we fund the majority of the programs, the [Escondido Union] district funds the staff costs on their end, so they give as much as we do.”
The San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve is home to over 250 species of water and shore birds that make their home in the marsh wetland environment, including great blue herons, cormorants, snowy egrets, and endangered and threatened species such as the Ridgeway’s rail and Belding’s savannah sparrow.
The lagoon features over nine miles of trails. The Nature Center is located at 2710 Manchester Avenue and open from sunrise to sunset. For more information, visit naturecollective.org.
