Mark “Bird” Westall, a longtime canoe tour guide, will make a special guest appearance on Thursday, Feb. 4, at 1 p.m. in the Education Center at Sanibel’s J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge.

Westall’s is a well-known name on Sanibel and Captiva islands. Besides once serving as mayor for the City of Sanibel, he has worked tirelessly for decades on behalf of island conservation, most notably by founding the International Osprey Foundation.

He will give a PowerPoint Presentation on Exploring the Backwaters of “Ding” and habitat management as part of “Ding” Darling Bookstore’s 2010 Thursday Afternoon Lecture Series.

Admission is free to the event, which is sponsored by the “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society-Friends of the Refuge. Seating is limited and available on a first-come basis.

For more information, call 472-1100 ext. 241 or log on to www.dingdarlingsociety.org.