Flora and Fauna Walks 2025
Celebrate Community and Biodiversity in April 2025!
Whether you live in the woods or in the city, nature is all around us! Celebrate Earth Day week (April 21 – 27) with Hitchcock Center by joining us for one or more of our Flora and Fauna Walks — a celebration of nature, biodiversity, and community action!
This Earth Day, join the Hitchcock Center’s Flora and Fauna Walks fundraiser during earth week to celebrate the beauty and biodiversity of our planet! Choose your own adventure by designing a personalized nature walk to discover and document the diverse wildlife of Western Massachusetts, or join one of our special, guided walks to connect with community and nature. Explore how plants and animals make our planet healthy.
Choose Your Own Adventure: Design a personal nature walk to discover and document the incredible wildlife of Western Massachusetts. Explore your neighborhood, backyard, nearby hiking trails, or a city park. From noticing as many species of trees as you can and the squirrels in their branches, to finding rare species of birds (this will be nearly the peak for bird migration) or woodland flowers on a local hiking trail (some spring ephemerals will still be out) enjoy getting out and finding nature all around us.
Join a Guided Walk: Connect with expert naturalists and fellow nature lovers on special themed, scheduled walks throughout the week. expert naturalists will lead us on local trails and survey biodiversity while fundraising for a healthy planet. We’ll identify local plants and flowers, make a few friends and meet our neighbors along the way. This is a relaxing opportunity to have fun, be outdoors and explore in your own way — maybe bring a flower press, a notebook, or a sketch pad!
- Birds, w/ John Green – Tues, April 22, 7AM – Amherst
- Earth Day Family Walk, w/ Casey Beebe – Tues, April 22, 3:30PM – @Hitchcock
- Spring Ephemeral Wildflowers, w/ Katie Koerten – Wed, April 23, 8AM
- Birds, w/ Dan Ziomek – Thurs, April 24, 8AM – South Amherst
- Low Maintenance Native Gardens, w/ Owen Wormser – Thurs, April 24, 7PM – @Hitchcock Center
- Native Plant Gardens, w/ Master Gardener Bridgit Litchfield – Sat, April 26 – 10AM Hitchcock Gardens
- Vernal Pool Walk, w/ Jennifer Unkles – Sun, April 27 – 1- 2:30PM
Take Meaningful Action by Raising Money for the Hitchcock Center: Raise pledges, compete for exciting prizes, and contribute to a healthier planet. Click Here to make your own Fundraiser/Fundraising Team. Your participation directly supports the Hitchcock Center’s mission to develop hopeful, creative problem solvers ready to tackle the challenges of climate change. If you like, you can even compete for prizes. Can you find the most bird species? Or raise the most money? Take the coolest picture?
Go alone or go with friends! It’s the perfect family activity. Get your networks to sponsor your explorations and help support the Hitchcock Center’s work developing hopeful, creative problem solvers who can take on the challenges of climate change.
Your participation directly supports the Hitchcock Center’s mission to inspire hopeful, creative problem solvers prepared to tackle the challenges of climate change.
How do I participate?
- Register as an individual or as part of a team. The registration fee is $30 and includes a Flora & Faunathon fanny pack. 100% of your registration is tax-deductible and supports education for a healthy planet. There is no fundraising minimum, but those who fundraise will be eligible to earn prizes. For questions about registration contact shelly@hitchcockcenter.org.
- Set up your personal fundraising page! Use our easy templates to collect donations from friends, family, and neighbors. There’s no fundraising minimum, but fundraisers are eligible for awesome prizes! Here is a toolkit to help you with setting up your page and making your goals.
- Explore & Track Your Findings! Head outside April 21 - 28 and set a personal goal! Whether it’s exploring four new places or identifying 100 species, every step supports education for a healthy planet.
- Share Your Adventure! Post photos using #FloraandFaunaWalks25 and tag @hitchcockcenter on social media. You can also send photos to Shelly for us to share. You can also email your photos to shelly@hitchcockcenter.org and we will share them for you.
- Log Species on iNaturalist! Track your findings using our official Flora & Fauna Walks iNaturalist event page.
Can I win prizes?
Yes! (Everyone loves prizes!) All registrants will receive a Flora & Faunathon fanny pack- to carry your phone, pen, and notepad, when you head outside- while supplies last. Fundraisers who raise $300+ will also earn a Hitchcock Center t-shirt, baseball cap, or water bottle.
Here are the prize categories:
Team Prize - Most flora & fauna identified (each team member wins a Hitchcock t-shirt!)
Individual Prize - Most flora found
Individual Prize - Most fauna found
Individual Prize - Most money raised
Individual Prize - Most sponsors/supporters
Can I seek/explore/find with a team?
Absolutely! You can fundraise as a team, and you can seek/find/explore together or apart. You’ll see there’s an option to join or create a team when you register. Each member of your team must register as an individual. You will receive one fanny pack per individual registration, and each individual on the team will be eligible for the individual prizes.
Who can participate?
Anyone can participate! There are no age restrictions. You don’t have to live in the area to participate. Even if you know nothing about different species you can seek/find/explore! We will provide lists of accessible flora & fauna to search for at various knowledge levels. The use of iNaturalist can help guide you, too.
Where can I go to seek/explore/find?
You can find plants and animals everywhere! In your backyard, walking down the street, in the woods, even in the city! Any state, any trail, any mountain. You can find suggestions on these websites, or follow us on Facebook for recommendations from other hikers. Here are some websites with trails to check out.
I can’t participate this time around, can I just donate?
Of course! You can choose to sponsor an individual (or several!) or you can make a general donation here.
Can my workplace sponsor Flora & Faunathon?
Yes! Sponsorship opportunities are available for any business that wants to support the event. Contact Kim Snyder.
For questions about registration contact shelly@hitchcockcenter.org.
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