Welcome!

Greetings and welcome to the Payne County Audubon Society! 

Payne County is uniquely situated to provide an amazing experience for both the local and out-of-town birder year-round. This is where East meets West and North meets South. Scissortailed Flycatchers and Painted Buntings breed here. Winter brings a variety of hawks—Rough-legged as well as Krider’s and Harlan’s Red-tailed Hawks—and a good opportunity for Smith’s Longspurs and Harris’ Sparrows. A checklist featuring both Eastern and Western Meadowlarks is very possible. Most of the songbirds passing through during migration are from the East, but there are always surprises from the West that make it fun.

Here, you will find an active collective of local birders passionate about discovery and sharing the wonder of birds with the local community and beyond. We are a group committed to birds by supporting research, education, libraries, and partnering with local businesses along the way.

What does this look like?

If you are visiting this site or have spent time in Payne County, then you may know us for our monthly field trips. We have enjoyed American Woodcock displays in early spring, gone “bunting hunting” in the summer, and honed our waterfowl ID skills in the winter. We often head a little further afield a couple of times a year—perhaps to the Great Salt Plains for Whooping Crane or Drummond Flats for Long-eared Owl and other surprises. Oh. And we love butterflies too and will lead a walk or two at the Botanic Garden at Oklahoma State University. We also coordinate the Stillwater and John Couch Sooner Lake Christmas Bird Counts.

You may also know us for other activities that allow us to raise both funds and awareness. Birdlam occurs the 4^th Saturday of April. Bourne from the spirit of “Bedlam” (the Oklahoma State-OU rivalry), Birdlam is our annual big day birding event in which we compete with other chapters across the state for various prizes sponsored by local businesses. Additionally, we hold a photo contest. Winners are featured in our “Birds of Oklahoma” wall calendar available for the holidays.

And those of you who have been watching us closely know that we support student research through the Helen Miller and Edwin Glover Awards. Recent work has examined the subtle effects of lead on passerine birds; the effects of the immune response, gut microbiome, and boldness behaviors on pathogen exposure in House Sparrows; and the presence of webspinner populations in Oklahoma. The following year, recipients present their findings to the PCAS community (and if you’re wondering, the presentation on webspinners was fascinating!).

So, what’s next?

Glad you asked! You can, of course, look for us to continue to keep truckin’. You can also expect a few new initiatives. First, we will be placing greater emphasis on education this year—we’ll be looking for ways to support a local teacher to inspire the next generation of nature enthusiasts. Second, we will be exploring ways to build international connections. We have recently committed to work with the Sociedad de Observadores de Aves del Atlántico (the Atlantico Birding Society) in Colombia to explore holding joint activities. After all, many of the birds we see here in Payne County are international travelers. You can follow them on Instagram here. You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!

How do you get involved?

Many, many ways actually. Honestly, simply joining us on a field trip or attending a program event is a great way to learn a bit about the birds around us, who we are, and what we do. That’s always a good starting point. And, of course, if you want to play a more active role, we’re happy to provide opportunity. We could always use a field trip leader, someone with a specialty skill to help support Birdlam or the “Birds of Oklahoma” calendar, or a new member of the board. And, of course, any donations we receive help us to support local research, schools, and libraries. 

We are very excited about 2025 and hope you will join us on the journey.

Good birding to all.

Our Mission

We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization promoting education and wildlife conservation in Payne County, Oklahoma. As a local chapter of the National Audubon Society, we sponsor field trips and evening educational programs, an annual big day birding competition, and award annual research grants. We are actively engaged in citizen-science for ornithology by managing two Audubon Christmas Bird Counts (Stillwater and Sooner Lake), and we have led the state in submissions to the Great Backyard Bird Count. Payne County Audubon proudly supports the Important Bird Areas program in Oklahoma, and the initiative to establish a statewide Audubon office.

For those so inclined, we also manage a Facebook group, which is a great place to share information, photos, and announcements relevant to birding and wildlife conservation right here in central Oklahoma.