Program Chairman Dan Heitzenrater introduced Aaron Sidder, the Executive Director at the Audubon Community Nature Center. Aaron is an ecologist and science writer with over 10 years’ experience working with environmental non-profits, including land trust and conservation organizations like Bat Conservation International.
Aaron and his wife and dog are from Denver, CO and moved to Chautauqua County in 2025, however, her parents are from this area, so they are quite familiar with all that is going on. Aaron is trying to become a Buffalo Bills fan but… just until they play the Denver Broncos!
Aaron has written for environmental science publications such as National Geographic, the Smithsonian and National Geographic for Kids in addition to crawling through many mines on the Colorado Plateau looking for bats.
Audubon was started here in Chautauqua County in 1957 and officially became a not-for-profit in 1960. Their mission is: Audubon Community Nature Center builds and nutures connections between people and nature by providing outdoor experiences, opportunities to learn about and understand the natural world, and knowledge to act in environmentally responsible ways.
The organization envisions a future where every child within our community has a real and healthy connection to nature.
Audubon’s Riverside Road property was bought in 1950 and is named after John James Audubon, a naturalist with a checkered past. (check it out)
The Property encompasses 570 acres and includes a 3-story nature center, several outdoor pavilions and other storage and maintenance buildings. They house several animals and birds they take to schools and exhibits. The property is a critical wildlife habitat with many birds, foxes, otters, beavers, snakes, salamanders, turtles and much more activity.
Sidder presented an overview of the organization’s mission, facilities and programs for over 15,000 children at the Center as well as classroom visits and summer camps in Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Warren Counties in addition to focusing on connecting people with nature through outdoor experiences and environmental education.
Sidder presented an overview of the organization’s mission, facilities and programs for over 15,000 children at the Center as well as classroom visits and summer camps in Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Warren Counties in addition to focusing on connecting people with nature through outdoor experiences and environmental education.
The Center is busy year-round with activities such as Teen Talks, 7 weeks of Summer Camps, Mud Camp, Snow Camp, Friday night Bat Walks (first Friday of the months Sept.-May). For adults there is a kitchen garden and also a bat and bird garden; the bat garden grows plants to attract the bats at night.
Annually, the organization sponsors Audubon Lights – ½ mile of beautifully lighted trails. In June, they host the Dragons and Fairies Festival and The Enchanted Forest is held in October.
All of this is enabled by a cadre of wonderfully dedicated volunteers numbering 200 whose service saves the organization over $214,000 annually and who are so dedicated they even remove invasive species from the ponds. The Audubon has a small paid staff of 8 full-time and 3 part-time employees working to educate all of us about the nature around us.
UPCOMING EVENTS INCLUDE:
- September 28 – Annual Meeting
- October 2 – First Friday lecture
- October 3 – Photography Club
- October 2-3 - Enchanted Forest Festival
- November 7 – Wild 5K Race
- November 21 – Thanksgiving with the Birds
- FREE DAYS – SUNDAYS and October 12 (Columbus/Indigenous People Day) and November 11 (Veteran’s Day)
