Author April Pulley Sayre: School Talks

With stunning color photos and infectious enthusiasm, Jeff Sayre introduces some of the plant wonders of the Midwest, from rare fen orchids to common prairie blooms. Find out what native plants are, how to grow them, and why some make terrific garden plants. Discover the challenges of growing native plants on a large scale and why native seed is rare and surprisingly expensive. Learn what native plants are perfect for attracting butterflies and hummingbirds to your backyard. This talk will leave beginning gardeners packed-full with information and experienced naturalists with some new thoughts and questions.

With colorful slides and amazing anecdotes, Jeff and April Sayre present as much hummingbird natural history as can be packed into an hour. (Also be prepared for a few bad jokes.) This intensive introduction to the natural history of hummingbirds will highlight hummingbird physiology, hummingbird/plant interactions, and hummingbirds' interactions with other animals, including people. Watch as Jeff and April try to move as fast as hummers to cover all the material in the allotted time. The slides will cover both U.S. species and some incredible tropical hummingbirds. Tips for attracting and feeding hummingbirds will be presented. Bring your hummingbird questions and stories to share as the Sayres welcome them.

With dazzling slides and video, the Sayres introduce stories of their adventures in Panama's rain forests and experiences with massive hawk migrations. They explore how the unique geography of Panama creates a fantastic mix of North American and South American species, plus an incredible views of migratory hawks, warblers, and tanagers. You'll find out what the Panama Canal and its boats have to do with great environmental protection. The Sayres will describe the fascinating history of a radar tower turned ecolodge: the Canopy Tower Also discussed and shown are Panama mammals such as sloths, howlers, and agoutis. You'll also find out the identity of the three huge panther-like creatures that climbed down from a tree and startled Jeff and April while they were standing in an army ant swarm.

In Brief
As authors of Hummingbirds: The Sun Catchers, naturalists Jeff and April Sayre travel widely to lecture about hummingbirds, wildlife gardening, native plants, and writing. Jeff is an ecological consultant in charge of the J.F. New native plant nursery, which produces over 300 species of wetland, prairie, and woodland plants native to the Great Lakes region. Jeff is involved in endangered species surveys, bird surveys, biological inventories, and restoration projects throughout the Midwest. April, an award-winning author of over 49 books for children, visits schools all over the U.S. as a featured author. Together the Sayres lead ecotours to Panama's rain forests and travel widely to photograph and research for their books. If they're not off in Madagascar, Belize, or Guatemala, they're at home in their butterfly-hummingbird garden, trying to identify yet another mysterious insect so they can add it to their insect yard list.

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$1500 per talk. Signing session included.
$300 for each additional talk at the same event
Transportation additional
Lodging additional
Food and other expenses receipts or $100 per diem
For an all-expenses-included fee for your area, e-mail us.

Can't afford our rates?
Set up connected school visits in the area to help cover travel costs. If you set up school visits, we may reduce fees for associated talks.
Many groups pay for our speaker fees by pre-selling copies of our books. (40% discount if they order through publisher. Or groups may be able to negotiate a good discount through a local bookstore.)
Email and tempt us with terrific birding, great publicity, or a commercial booth. Once in a big while we cave, especially for Audubon groups.

Jeff and April Sayre are naturalists who explore and write about many aspects of the natural world. They have traveled extensively throughout the world studying, photographing, and videoing animals and natural events. They produced a nature documentary on wetlands for a local television station in Virginia and were on-camera hosts for a pilot series on birdwatching.

The Sayres travel widely to encounter, study, and photograph wild animals and diverse habitats. Some of their trip highlights include Madagascar, the Galapagos Islands, Panama, and the cloud forests of Ecuador and Costa Rica. They are active in the birding community, giving talks at bookstores, nature centers, and conferences throughout the United States. Through their company, Sayre Nature Adventures, LLC, they lead tours to Panama's rain forests.

Both Jeff and April have a strong background in biology and experience in writing and publishing. Together they authored a book on North American hummingbirds released by NorthWord Press and now in its third printing. Hummingbird experts reviewing the book wrote: "We were impressed with the quality of the writing and your commitment to accuracy." Well-written." "Excellent!" commented others. One said, "None of the other hummer books targeting this market is as complete or as accurate."

In addition, April Pulley Sayre is the author of forty-five natural history books for younger readers, including a recent Houghton Mifflin book profiling bioacoustic scientists: SECRETS OF SOUND; STUDYING THE CALLS OF WHALES, ELEPHANTS, AND BIRDS. She also wrote about field biologists in her renowned book , PUT ON SOME ANTLERS AND WALK LIKE A MOOSE. April has a biology degree from Duke University and editorial experience working at the National Geographic Society and the National Wildlife Federation. Her children's picture book, IF YOU SHOULD HEAR A HONEY GUIDE, received a pointer review in Kirkus and Smithsonian called it "the outstanding natural history title for 1995." Her recent picture book, DIG, WAIT, LISTEN: A DESERT TOAD'S TALE ,was chosen by Riverbank Review as one of the top three young nonfiction books of the year. It was also featured on NPR's "Talk of the Nation" Science Friday Summer Reading list.

Jeff is an ecological consultant and partner at the 80-person firm of J. F. New & Associates, a consulting firm in the Great Lakes region. He is in charge of the company's native plant nursery, which produces over 300 species of wetland, prairie, and woodland plants native to the region. In addition to his botanical duties, he is involved in endangered species surveys, bird surveys, biological inventories, and restoration projects throughout the Midwest. An accomplished naturalist and birder, Jeff has served as president of the South Bend Audubon Society, a local chapter of the National Audubon Society with over 1000 members in the Michiana community. He has an ecology
and microbiology degree and masters of business administration degree (MBA) from the University of Notre Dame.