The city of Lansing in far northeast Iowa is hosting for its fourth annual bird festival this weekend. Co-organizer Ric Zarwell say people visit the city on the Mississippi to view tundra swans, ducks and geese. He says the Fish and Wildlife survey does a weekly survey and last week they counted 320-thousand ducks and geese on the river between Lansing and Harpers Ferry.
Zarwell says the feathered visitors bring in a lot of people to see them. He says they’ve had three previous festivals and last year they had 257 people from 12 different states. He says in the last three years they’ve had people from 19 states and Canada. Zarwell says some people make a long trek to see the birds.
He says 45-percent of the people come from greater than 120 miles and he says about two-thirds stay in Lansing several nights. The three-day event began Friday and include tours on the river and several other activities.