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Click here for details on our special events and programs for children and adults,
and upcoming teacher workshops in 2011

The Montezuma Audubon Center (MAC) is a state-owned facility operated through a cooperative agreement between the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the National Audubon Society. The MAC houses a large exhibit area, classroom, nature store, office area, auditorium, and a meeting room. On its 198 acres, there are five different types of habitat, two restored freshwater marshes, a one-mile hiking trail, and an all-access observation platform. The Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) is one of the largest conservation projects in the nation for reclamation of important wildlife and wetland habitat. The complex is a crucial migration stopover point for migrating waterfowl in the northeast.

Audubon New York operates the center, in partnership with the State Department of Environmental Conservation, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ducks Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, and Pheasants Forever in the planning of educational and interpretative programs and exhibits.

The MAC Education Director works closely with school groups throughout the greater Syracuse and Rochester areas and points between. Schools and other groups come to the MAC and learn about its unique surroundings. In addition, MAC staff facilitate educational outreach programs such as For the Birds!, a program that has had great success in New York City with urban youth.

The MAC is a great addition to the already amazing Montezuma Wetlands Complex. Visitors will be able to find a full day of activities by coming to enjoy the MAC, the National Wildlife Refuge, and all the creatures great and small in the MWC.

The Montezuma Audubon Center is open:
Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 am - 4 pm

Download Center Trail Map (jpg).

Volunteers Needed at the MAC!

We're looking for people to help with the day to day activities and special events at the MAC including animal care (turtles, frogs, salamanders, and a snake) office support, gardening, trail maintenance, nature store assistance, educational programs, Wildlife Festival, and more! Please click here to complete a volunteer form and then return it via email. Click here for a list of upcoming volunteer events.

Want to make sure your birding observations count towards more than a sense of satisfaction? Welcome to the future of birding! After exploring the Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC), you can enter your bird sightings back at the Center using an easy touch-screen. Your observations are then added to others in the eBird database that scientists and citizens use to understand more about bird distributions.

eBird was developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society and it enables anyone to enter bird sightings from anywhere in North America and explore the results. The eBird TrailTracker is a portal through which any birdwatcher can enter the birds they have observed into the eBird database.

Furthermore, you have the option to accurately map your observations on a large-scale map of the MWC. Every time you notice a bird, you are holding a piece of a puzzle. By sharing your sighting with others through eBird, you'll make it possible to complete the picture we need to better understand and protect birds well into the future.

Montezuma Birding Trail

Pied-billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps, MNWR © Dave Spier

The Montezuma Birding Trail website provides information on birding hotspots, recent sightings, events and species in the Montezuma Wetlands Complex north of Cayuga Lake between Rochester and Syracuse, NY. The driving trail loops through adjacent portions of Wayne, Seneca and Cayuga counties and covers Montezuma NWR, the Northern Montezuma WMA and related public-access sites. For more information, contact them via email.

Help Give Montezuma Wildlife a Better Place to Live!

The Montezuma Alliance for the Restoration of Species and Habitats (MARSH) is part of a larger effort to restore, protect and enhance wildlife habitat on nearly 50,000 acres of the Montezuma Wetlands Complex. This volunteer group helps support these habitat restoration efforts. The work is hands-on as we cut and pull invasive species and replant natives that will be more beneficial to wildlife and less harmful to Montezuma habitats overall.

Click for more information on MARSH and a schedule of upcoming workdays!

DIRECTIONS: The Montezuma Audubon Center is located approximately 2 miles north of the Hamlet of Savannah on State Route 89 and is a part of the 36,000 acre Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC).

From the west: take the New York State Thruway (Route 90) to exit 42. Turn left onto Route 14 and follow for approximately 12 miles until you reach the intersection with Route 31. Turn right and follow Route 31heading east into Savannah, about 15 miles. Turn left heading north at the blinking light onto State Route 89. The Center will be on your left approximately 2 miles from the intersection of Routes 31 and 89.

From the east: take the New York State Thruway (Route 90) to exit 40 in Weedsport. Turn right off the ramp onto Route 34. Turn right on to Route 31 heading west. Follow Route 31 for approximately 12 miles to the intersection with Route. 89 in the Hamlet of Savannah. Turn right at the blinking light onto State Route 89. The Center is on your left, 2 miles north of the intersection of Routes 31 and 89.

For more information please contact:

Frank Moses, Director
Montezuma Audubon Center
2295 State Rt. 89
Savannah, NY 13146
(315) 365-3580