Successful closing of the V Festival of Shorebirds

On the afternoon of Saturday, November 25th, the V Festival of Shorebirds that gathered more than 3 thousand people during the past week was successfully closed. They participated in the proposed activities, connecting with shorebirds and learning about them and the local environment that receives them in their long migrations.

The Shorebird Festival is organized every year by the Asociación Ambiente Sur together with the Municipal Environmental Agency and the UNPA-UARG within the framework of the agreement signed between the institutions for the operation of the Environmental Interpretation Center "Estuary of the River Gallegos" (CIERG ), and of the project "Conservation of Two Focal Species of Migratory Shorebirds in Southern Patagonia, Argentina: Connecting Communities through Urban Natural Reserves, Environmental Education and Citizen Participation", phase II, financed by the Fisheries and Wildlife Service of the USA, through the application of the Law of Conservation of Neotropical Migratory Birds of that country.

This Saturday there was an intervention with the mascot "Rufus", which represents the reddish beach, in the start of the 11th Bicycle and Solidarity Walk of the company La Anónima, which enrolled 4600 people and where an information booth about the V Festival was installed, inviting to participate in the closure of the same, while children and adults played and photographed with the pet.

During the afternoon, at the CIERG, there was a closing with dance, the participation of the murgas Tabar Retumba, De la ruta para atrás y Se armó la gorda,, and the collective painting of a mural that portrays the shorebirds with the group "Surealist Movement"

In this way, after five days of free activities, with training, playful proposals to learn playing on shorebirds, guided visits to the Interpretation Center, two environmental theater performances for children, music, murgas and art, the organizers evaluated that the V Festival of Shorebirds was a success and a rich experience of exchange and learning where around 3100 people participated, new groups joined to accompany the work and new neighbors; On this occasion, it was also possible, through a free transport service, to bring schools farther away from the center to participate in the various proposals and there was a high impact on social networks. The organizers thanked the neighbors, organizations and companies that supported and collaborated for the V Festival of Shorebirds.

The migratory shorebirds arrive each year at the estuary of the Gallegos river and the local lagoons in search of rest and feeding in a spectacular route that joins the extreme north of the continent with the southern end. On this tour, they use various sites, many of which celebrate their arrival each year through Festivals such as the one held in Río Gallegos, as a way of raising awareness among the local population regarding their presence and the importance of the conservation of the areas natural resources used by them, with the understanding and knowledge that man and nature are intimately related and linked since these birds are indicative of a healthy environment.