Bayou Teche Black Bear
& Birding Festival
Festival Dates: April 15-17, 2011
Location: Franklin, La.
Black Bear Conservation Coalition
P.O. Box 80442
Baton Rouge LA
70898
Website: http://www.bbcc.org/
Main Contact: Paul Davidson
Main Contact Phone: 225-763-5425
The Bayou Teche Black Bear and Birding Festival will hold its Seventh Annual Celebration April 16,17, and18, 2010 in downtown Franklin, Louisiana. Organized birding trips, led by knowledgeable biologists from the LSU Chapter of the Wildlife Society, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and other amateur birders, will take birders into the Bayou Teche National Wildlife Refuge, the Atchafalaya Basin, and numerous other private land holdings in and around St. Mary Parish. The primary focus of the festival is educating the public about the Louisiana black bear and birding opportunities on the Cajun Coast. Traditional events like the Running of the Bears 5K Run/Walk sponsored by the Teche Action Clinic, a bike race sponsored by Franklin Foundation Hospital, the Bear-y-Patch Educational Area sponsored by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Cleco Cub Club sponsored by CLECO will be the backbone of the festival. Other attractions will be a rock climbing wall and inflatable playground, a petting zoo, a Teddy Bear repair clinic, and fireworks over beautiful Bayou Teche. The federally listed Louisiana black bear is an asset to St. Mary Parish and the state of Louisiana and this festival promotes the bear and other natural resources as a viable mechanism to promote ecotourism in south central Louisiana.
