Birds of a feather flocked together during the eighth annual Indian River Bird and Nature Art Show to benefit the Pelican Island Conservation Society, hosted for the sixth year by the Sebastian River Art Club.

Held in conjunction with National Wildlife Refuge Week, the event highlights the Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, designated in 1903 as the nation’s first by President Theodore Roosevelt.

Artists and conservationists, united in appreciation of the abundance of native flora and fauna in our backyard, hope to raise awareness about the delicate balance between humans and nature and the importance of ecological conservation. Their efforts include protecting species from extinction, the maintenance and restoration of habitats, and the protection of the biological diversity of the Indian River Lagoon.

At the opening reception, guests perused roughly 60 submissions by area artists capturing such beauty as native birds in flight, dolphins frolicking in the waves, and fish hiding from predators in the seagrass.

Judges Barbara Schlitt Ford, executive director of the Environmental Learning Center, and arts proponent Mark Wygonik were tasked with selecting the winners from among the menagerie of works.

Tim Glover, PICS past president, hoped to educate and enlist volunteers to support the nonprofit’s mission to promote the awareness, conservation and stewardship of the refuge.

“We promote wildlife and the idea of conservation. They do a lot of nature-based artwork, so it fits right in with the art club’s promotion of their artwork,” said Glover.

Noting a recent name change from Pelican Island Preservation Society to Conservation Society, Glover said their focus had more firmly shifted to conservation, noting that Florida’s influx of residents has put more pressure on protecting the environment.

Although National Wildlife Refuge Week events were not possible this year because of the pandemic, PICS hopes to move forward with winter events and the Pelican Island Festival in the spring.

“One of our missions is to support other nonprofits within the community,” said Donna Ware, SRAC vice president.

She noted that 100 percent of the proceeds from their Little Gems sales are donated to the Ecumenical Council Food Pantry’s Christmas Meal program, and other philanthropic endeavors include scholarships and the support of other lagoon-related nonprofits through their annual Beautiful Lagoon Art Show.

“We have a good relationship with Pelican Island. It’s a win-win for us because a lot of us paint nature-related work. This gets the word out to their members and people that want to support Pelican Island,” said Ware, adding that the abundance of wildlife – affording an endless variety of artistic subjects – is the reason many of their members moved here.

The art club’s monthly art shows at Riverview Park in Sebastian begin Nov. 21, and art classes are ongoing.

For more information, visit firstrefuge.org or sebastianriverartclub.com.