Audubon, Library offer bird colors talk

ROSEBURG, Ore. – The Umpqua Valley Audubon Society and Roseburg Public Library invite the public to “A Bird’s Rainbow” presented by scientist, birder and teacher Bob Lewis at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 11.

The free public program will be offered at the library, 1409 N.E. Diamond Lake Blvd.

Many birds are brightly colored. Others use patterned feathers for camouflage. How do these colors originate? What’s the difference between colors from pigments and physical colors? From yellow warblers to Anna’s hummingbirds and from snow geese to Brewer’s blackbirds, each species makes unique use of the feather colors it possesses. What do the colors indicate to other birds? And do birds see the same colors we do? Lewis will unravel some of the mysteries of color in birds with a little chemistry, a bit of physics and a lot of brightly colored slides.

Lewis trained as a chemist and worked in the energy field for 33 years. He has taught birding classes in the San Francisco Bay Area for more than 25 years and served as the chair of Golden Gate Bird Alliance’s Adult Education Committee. He was honored with American Birding Association’s Chandler Robbins Award for Education and Conservation in 2016 and Golden Gate Bird Alliance’s Paul Covel Education Award in 2010 and 2017.

He loves to travel and photograph birds and has chased birds in more than 60 countries. His life list contains more than 5,500 species.

For more information, contact Roseburg Public Library staff at 541-492-7050 or library@roseburgor.gov.

To learn more about the Umpqua Valley Audubon Society, visit their website at www.umpquaaudubon.org.