Notes about your surroundings.

Follow-Up Field Trip--The Christmas Count Specialties Field Trip is Jan. 5. The purpose of the trip is to highlight the rare and interesting birds spotted during the Christmas Bird Counts--the northeastern count held Dec. 16 and the coastal count to be held Dec. 30. Sponsored by the Sea & Sage chapter of the National Audubon Society, the field trip will begin at Huntington Central Park, the site of an abundance of interesting bird sightings during past Christmas Counts.

Participants are asked to meet in the Slater Avenue parking lot of the park at 8 a.m. that day. Since it will not be known where the best sightings were until both counts are done, birders will meet at the park, which is centrally located, and receive the day’s itinerary there.

The length of the outing depends on the location of the birds. Call trip leader Jerry Tolman at (714) 539-8040 for more information.

A report on all the Christmas Bird Counts conducted across the United States during the last two weeks of the year will be published in late January in the publication American Birds.

Birding Workshops--The Sea & Sage chapter has also begun accepting reservations for weekly birding skills workshops to be offered beginning in January and continuing through March. The workshops, to be held Wednesday evenings, Thursday mornings or Thursday evenings, will help beginning birders identify different bird species through the use of sound tapes and slides.

Each 2 1/2-hour session will feature 15 common birds from different local habitats, including coastal birds, birds of the open country, birds of marshes and neighborhood birds.

The maximum enrollment for each session is 22 people; if any session does not have at least 12 enrollees by Dec. 30 it will be canceled. Registration confirmations will be mailed beginning Jan. 2, along with preliminary information and maps to the meeting site.

For more information, contact workshop leader Sylvia Gallagher at (714) 962-8990.

Nature Classes--Children’s programs covering reptiles, winter birds and birds of prey will be offered Wednesday through Friday at Oak Canyon Nature Center, 6700 E. Walnut Canyon Road, Anaheim Hills. Designed for children ages 6 to 10 to learn more about nature during their winter vacation, the programs run from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. daily. Pre-registration is required. Fee is $6 daily. For registration information contact the center at (714) 998-8380.

Nature Film Festival--The nature center will also present a family program of nature films Saturday, beginning at 10 a.m. at the center. Admission is free but donations are accepted. Information: (714) 998-8380.