The Schuylkill County Conservancy is hoping to receive a grant from the Pennsylvania Society of Ornithology to help educate the youth and community of Schuylkill County about the benefits of birds, how people can help them at their homes and how to build a stronger culture of conservation.

To receive the grant, the conservancy’s bird survey team, led by local bird expert Dave Kruel, will conduct a 24-hour Bird Blitz for Conservation. The goal is to identity as many bird species as possible in a cross section of the county.

Each species must be confirmed by two observers to be counted. Based on past experiences, Kruel expects to identity around 70 species during the event.

Identifying the birds helps all understand the status of birds in Pennsylvania.

The conservancy is looking to use the grant to educate schools on about our wildlife, land and the conservation of it all.

Folks can help by making a donation of $10 or more. Donations can be mailed to the Schuylkill County Conservancy, P.O. Box 318, Orwigsburg, PA 17961.

For more information, call Frank at 570-449-4239.