Jennifer Ackerman

Jennifer Ackerman has been a birdwatcher since the age of seven and has been writing about science and nature for more than three decades.

Her previous book, The Bird Way: A New Look at How Birds Talk, Work, Play, Parent, and Think, was selected as a Best Science Book by NPR’s "Science Friday" and was a finalist for the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award. Her New York Times bestselling book, The Genius of Birds, has been translated into 25 languages and was named one of the best nonfiction books of 2016 by the Wall Street Journal and a Nature Book of the Year by the London Sunday Times.

Ackerman's articles and essays have appeared in National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine, Scientific American, and many other publications. She is the recipient of numerous awards and fellowships, including a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship in Nonfiction, a Bunting Fellowship, and a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

John Muir Laws

John (Jack) Muir Laws is a scientist, educator, and author, who helps people forge a deeper and more personal connection with nature through keeping illustrated nature journals and understanding science. His work intersects science, art, and mindfulness.

Trained as a wildlife biologist and an associate of the California Academy of Sciences, he observes the world with rigorous attention. He looks for mysteries, plays with ideas, and seeks connections in all he sees. Attention, observation, curiosity, and creative thinking are not gifts, but skills that grow with training and deliberate practice. As an educator and author, Jack teaches techniques and supports routines that develop these skills to make them a part of everyday life.

Jon Dunn

Jon's interest in birds developed from the age of eight when he became absorbed with the Hooded Orioles in his yard in the L.A. area in 1962.

He has written extensively about birds since the 1970's, often with his colleague, Kimball Garrett. Together they wrote Birds of Southern California, Status and Distribution (1981) and Warblers (1997). Jon also worked extensively with Jonathan Alderfer and together co-authored the Birds of North America by the National Geographic Society up through the 7th edition (2017) and Birding Essentials (2007) and co-edited the three editions of the Complete Birds of North America by National Geographic.

Jon has served on various committees, notably the California Bird Records Committee (30 years), the ABA Checklist Committee and the Committee on Taxonomy and Nomenclature of the AOS (2000 to present). Beyond birds Jon has an interest in history and the music and poetry of Leonard Cohen.

Opening Reception

Opening Festival Reception

Friday, January 12, 2024
5:00 to 6:30pm
Morro Bay Community Center

Enjoy wine and cheese and fellow birders at the Bird Festival Bazaar. Browse the vendor booths featuring optics, books, music, nature art & photography, woodcarvings, jewelry, educational exhibits, and more! Takes place at the Morro Bay Community Center, 1001 Kennedy Way, Morro Bay!