Eagle Expo & More is Friday and Saturday

The 14th annual Eagle Expo & More will be Friday and Saturday in St. Mary Parish and features presentations on eagles, other birds of prey, wildlife and nature, along with boat tours of the area.

Cajun Coast Visitors and Convention Bureau, also known as the St. Mary Parish Tourist Commission, hosts the event.

The second annual Water & Nature Expo, part of the Eagle Expo & More, is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the former M.D. Shannon Elementary School gym and free to the public. Included in that event are exhibits and presentations on outdoor recreation, wildlife, water safety and protecting St. Mary Parish’s natural resources.

Also Saturday at the Water & Nature Expo, there are two Wings to Soar presentations by Dale Kernahan and John Stokes on various birds of prey. Those presentations will be at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. and are free to the public.

Full registration to the Eagle Expo & More comprises one boat tour, the Wings to Soar presentation sponsored by Rotary Club of Morgan City, a Friday Night Social and entrance to the Water & Nature Expo.

Boat tours will go on as scheduled as long as conditions are safe. If too much rain falls and the boat captain deems the conditions unsafe, the tour will be canceled. Officials will also cancel tours if lightning strikes in the area near the time of the tour, Cajun Coast Executive Director Carrie Stansbury said.

Full registration to Eagle Expo & More costs $105, including boat tours 1, 2 or 3. All Friday tours and Captain Ivy tours (boat tour 4) are already sold out. Boat tours 1, 2 and 3 cost $60 individually. As of Tuesday, spots were still available for the following Saturday tours: 8 a.m. Captain Caviar (Tour 1), 10 a.m. LUMCON (Tour 3), 11 a.m. Captain Caviar (Tour 1), 2 p.m. Captain Caviar (Tour 1), 2 p.m. Captain Billy (Tour 2) and 2 p.m. LUMCON (Tour 3).

Boat tour guests should arrive 30 minutes prior to their boat tour. Boat tour 1 will be on a covered flat bottom boat with a bathroom on board and visit the Atchafalaya Basin with John Burke, known as Captain Caviar, to view the American Bald Eagle.

The second tour will journey into the backwater of Bayou Black with Billy Gaston, swamp tour operator of Cajun Man’s Tours. The vessel is also a covered flat bottom boat with a bathroom. Visitors will have the opportunity to see several birds of prey including bald eagles, ospreys and various species of hawks. Other birds that are likely to be encountered include various species of ducks, wading birds and some song bird species.

Boat tour 3 will actually consist of two boats touring Turtle Bayou with LUMCON. Guests can view bald eagles and get a glimpse of an eagle nest. Other birds likely to be encountered include anhingas, double-crested cormorants, red-shouldered hawks, white ibis, yellow-rumped warblers, Carolina chickadees and various species of terns and gulls.

The fourth boat tour will visit Bayou Long with Captain Ivy and includes various waterways, such as Lake Verret, Bayou Magazille, Four Mile Bayou, Grassy Lake, Bayou Cheramie, Bayou Milhomme, and Lake Palourde. On this tour, visitors will be able to view bald eagles and their nests, along with blue herons, great egrets, belted kingfishers and white ibis.

On Friday, CC Lockwood will host a photography workshop with a minimum of 10 students and maximum of 16. The workshop requires separate registration from the rest of the Eagle Expo & More and includes a field trip to Bayou Black. Contact 225-245-5008, 227-763-1259 or cactusclyd@aol.com to register.

For additional information on the Eagle Expo & More, contact Cajun Coast at 985-380-8224, 800-256-2931 or info@cajuncoast.com.