"Spring Field Ornithology," the eight-week course designed for beginning bird-watchers and scheduled this year for March 25 through May 16, is open for registration by the general public as well as by Cornell students.

Presented for the past 22 years by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, the series of course lectures and field trips covers the identification, life histories and behavior of spring migrants and resident birds of the Cayuga Lake area. Cornell students can arrange for course credit if enrolled by Feb. 7. Enrollment is limited to ensure small field groups.

Wednesday evening lectures with slides and audio recordings are presented by Stephen W. Kress, a National Audubon Society biologist who is stationed at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, and by other laboratory staff members. Saturday field trips to local habitats, such as Sapsucker Woods and the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge, also are led by Kress and laboratory staffers. Two optional, overnight field trips to Arnot Forest in Cayuta, N.Y., and to New Jersey's Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge also are offered at additional cost.

Registration fees for "Spring Ornithology" are $210 for both lectures and field trips and $130 for either the lecture series or the field trips, with a discount for current members of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. A special new-member registration includes the cost of the course and a one-year membership in the Laboratory of Ornithology, subscriptions to Living Bird magazine and Birdscopenewsletter, and a 10 percent discount on purchases at the Sapsucker Woods location of the Wild Birds Unlimited store.

Registration information is available at (607) 254-2440.

"We're expecting a spectacular spring migration after this winter's unusual weather, and the resident birds of the Cayuga basin are always some of the most fascinating in the region," Kress said. "You can learn a lot about these birds from the multimedia lectures, but there's nothing like habitat visits with experienced guides to understand what these birds are all about."