September - Jayhawk Audubon Society
Transcription
September - Jayhawk Audubon Society
www.jayhawkaudubon.org VOLUME 38 Monday, September 23rd Black-footed Ferrets in Kansas Stepping Back From the Brink Marty Birrell and Dave the black-footed ferret from Prairie Park Nature Center will be our guests at the Jayhawk Audubon Society program on September 23rd. Marty will update us on the black-footed ferret reintroduction in Kansas. She will also talk about the history & natural history of the species, the factors contributing to its near extinction, the role of captive breeding, the challenges of finding suitable, disease-free habitat, and the overall assessment of the success of reintroduction as well as the need for ongoing monitoring and support. Meanwhile, Dave will fascinate us simply by being his furry, live self. 14 years directing all aspects of Prairie Park NC and teaching many classes herself; 10 years directing the Stone NC in Topeka; 22 years as a wildlife BF Ferrets at night. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service rehabilitator & the last 13 as Head of Rehab in northeast Ks; many years directing nature education and being a foster parent at a group home; 7 years teaching science in public school and in the Peace Corps: Marty Birrell has dedicated her life to opening young minds to the existence, biology, needs, and importance of wildlife and the environment. We are honored to have her as a JAS presenter. Join us to meet her and Dave the BFF. BYO Dinner with Marty Birrell (but probably not Dave…) 5:00 p.m. Free State Brewery 636 Mass. St. Lawrence Please call Joyce Wolf at 887-6019 or 766-0697 to reserve a place for dinner Program: 7:30 p.m. Trinity Lutheran Church Fellowship Hall. 1245 New Hampshire St. ISSUE 1 SEPTEMBER, 2013 JAS Seed Sale Coming Up! Books & Feeders Too Saturday, October 12 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Lawrence Senior Center, 745 Vermont Cue the trumpet fanfare! It’s the first seed sale of the bird-feeding season. Stock up on Audubon bird seed and browse our carefully selected books, bird feeders, and field guides. See page 3 for Joyce Wolf’s review of a new Peterson field guide we’ll have for sale by the editor of Bird Watcher’s Digest. Pre-ordering information: page 2 Order forms on the website: www.jayhawkaudubon.org. Monarch Tagging Day Saturday, 21 September 2013 7:30-11:30am What: Where: Who: Monarch butterfly tagging event ~ FREE & open to the public. Sponsored by Monarch Watch & Jayhawk Audubon. Baker Wetlands, 31st and Haskell, in Lawrence. Directions at http://www.monarchwatch.org/wetlands/ You, your kids, friends, neighbors & anyone who wants to try something different & be a citizen scientist! See page 3 for important details 2 JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY Board Vacancy Created as Jim Bresnahan Steps into Vice Presidency Chapter Chat Seed Sale Pre-order Info Because of last year’s drought, no millet will be available at the 10/12 sale and safflower will be limited. So, to get safflower, order early! And no millet means we won’t have our custom premium and economy blends until the December sale. But we will have lots of other nutritious seeds that your birds will gobble up. Board member Jim Bresnahan has volunteered to take on the duties of Jayhawk Audubon Vice President. Great news, but it does mean that the Society has a board position to fill. Position requirements are not burdensome: Attend board meeting on the 3rd Thursday of the month. (We skip July and December.) Perhaps help at a Seed Sale or event such as Eagles Day. Be a strong advocate for a healthy environment, wildlife conservation and environmental education and you will be a perfect fit for our board. Contact Gary Anderson as given below. Pre-Orders must be received by, October 8, 2013 The pre-order form is on the website www.jayhawkaudubon.org. Make check payable to Jayhawk Audubon Society; or you may pre-order but pay on the day of the sale when you pick up your bird seed…& perhaps a new feeder. Return Pre-Order Form by October 8, 2013 to Linda Lips, P. O. Box 1285, Lawrence, KS 66044-8285. To order by phone call Cynthia Shaw at (785) 842-0475 or Linda Lips at (785) 766-3567 To order by email contact Cynthia at [email protected] or Linda at [email protected] Prairie Park Nature Center Field Trip JAS invites you to a guided nature walk at Prairie Park, on Sunday, September 22nd at 10:00am. We’ll meet in the PPNC parking lot at 2730 Harper St., Lawrence. Questions? Contact Mike Fraley at (785) 550 2785 or [email protected] Also Prairie Park will hold a Monarch tagging event on the 22nd from 1-4pm. Cost is $3. No preregistration required. www.lawrenceks.org/lprd/summer-fall/13/nature.pdf CLIP, SAVE & ORDER JAS 2013/14 Seed Sale Calendar Saturday, October 12 Saturday, December 7 Saturday, February 1 10:00 a.m. ~ 1:00 p.m. Lawrence Senior Center 745 Vermont Order forms at www.jayhawkaudubon.org JAS Officers & Board Members President: Ocean of bidens blooms at Hoosier National Forest in Indiana Gary Anderson: 785-246-3229 [email protected] Vice President: James Bresnahan Recording Secretary: Julie Maxwell Corresponding Sec’y: Pam Chaffee Treasurer: Jennifer Delisle Board Member: Lisa Ball Board Member: Volunteer Needed Board Member: Jennifer Dropkin Board Member: Dena Friesen Board Member: Susan MacNally Board Member: Jon Standing Member Chapter Change Report: Chuck & Ruth Herman Membership Promotion: Dayna Carleton Newsletter: Susan Iversen: 785-843-1142 [email protected] Conservation: Randy Kidd Programs: Joyce Wolf Education: Sandy Sanders Field Trips: Mike Fraley Publicity: Pam Chaffee Facebook Page: Jennifer Dropkin, Principle Administrator [email protected] Chuck Herman, Administrator [email protected] Webmaster: Steve Kinder/KLW webworks Bird Seed Sales: Linda Lips Birdathon: Richard Bean Christmas Count: Galen Pittman Eagles Day: Bunnie Watkins Hospitality: Kelly Barth Historian: Ron Wolf Books & Feeders: Ron & Joyce Wolf Audubon of Kansas Chapter Representative: Joyce Wolf JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY A Seed Sale Goody! Identifying and Feeding Birds by Bill Thompson III is an excellent guide for beginning birders, but it’s also great for more experienced birders who want to know how to make their yard more attractive to birds. It’s a Peterson Field Guide beautifully illustrated with full color photos of bird-friendly backyards. There are tips on bird-feeding basics, how best to provide water and housing, and a section on what the author calls “special customers” like hummingbirds, bluebirds, finches, woodpeckers, sparrows, orioles & squirrels! Thompson has spent more than 40 years studying and enjoying birds, and this book is packed with his insights and advice, along with answers to FAQs about bird behavior and the best seeds to offer. He even explains why Red-headed Wood- you should save the egg shells after baking or pecker: a special making omelets. Because gardening is customer indeed! another favorite hobby of mine, I especially appreciate the section of the book where he lists trees, shrubs, vines & flowers that are beneficial to birds. The last section of the book has large photos of 125 common backyard birds. At first I thought the inclusion of both eastern and western birds would be confusing to a beginning birder, but there are great range maps which eliminate any possible confusion. We will have copies of this book at the first seed sale. MSRP $14.95, member price $13.50. JAS revenue from the sale of books, feeders and seed supports our education and conservation projects. ~ Joyce Wolf More about Monarch Tagging Day Wear ~ Clothes you don’t mind getting wet or dirty. Ditto shoes. Hat. Insect repellent!! Bring ~ Water. A snack if you’ll need one. No food or water will be available. ~ Bring a net if you have one, but we will have nets available. Expect ~ Tagging demonstrations will take place all morning. No experience necessary! ~ Historically, thousands of southbound Monarchs stop to refuel on nectar from the wetlands’ ocean of yellow Bidens blooms ~ We will have check-in/information tables at the boardwalk entrance to the wetlands but you can arrive and leave as you please. Check the Monarch Watch website or the JAS facebook page a few days beforehand to make sure SLT construction isn’t going to necessitate changes to the venue. www.monarchwatch.org/ 3 A Whoo’s Whoo of Conservation Allies: The Kansas Land Trust KLT is dedicated to conserving natural ecosystems, farm & ranch lands & scenic open spaces —our state's most precious natural resources. Preserving these special places is vital to maintaining the economic & environmental well-being of all Kansans now and in the future. KLT helps landowners with the legal work of placing permanent conservation easements on their properties, then monitors the easements annually to ensure that the land is being cared for in accordance with the easement. With the help of our members, we've preserved 53 easements with 22,327 acres of treasured Kansas prairie, woodland, farmland, and ranchland forever. See www.klt.org The KLT logo memorializes the lone elm that stood on the Elkins native prairie. The clandestine plowing of that prairie in 1991 galvanized Kelly Kindscher to form the Kansas Land Trust with other conservation minded activists. On Oct. 12, KLT is sponsoring a Disc Golf Tournament at the private Thornfield Disc Golf Course in Stillwell, KS located on one of our beautiful easements. To be a sponsor or attend the tournament call Carol Huettner at KLT: 785-749-3927 or email [email protected]. Check the newsletter on the web for color pictures/ extra content. Friend JAS on Facebook for updates. Mini Calendar Sept/Oct. Sat. 9/14: Monarch Watch Open House. Food, Butterflies, Caterpillars, Games. Foley Hall, KU West Campus http://monarchwatch.org/openhouse/ Sat. 9/14: Science on 8 Legs. Science Saturday at KU Natural History Museum. Free. 1-3pm. 785-864-4450. Sat. 9/21: Monarch Tagging Day at Baker Wetlands. See p. 1. Sun. 9/22: JAS Field Trip to Prairie Park. 10:00am. See p. 2. Mon. 9/23: Black-footed Ferrets in Kansas. Marty Birrell. JAS Program. 7:30 pm. Trinity Lutheran. See p. 1 Oct. 5 & 6: Kaw Valley Farm Tour. 10am-6pm both Sat/Sun. days. Many farms. Ticket and other info at www.kawvalleyfarmtour.org Oct. 11: Wild & Scenic Film Fest. Friends of the Kaw Fri. 7-9:30pm. Liberty Hall www.kansasriver.org Oct. 12: JAS Seed Sale. 10am-1pm. See pp 1, 2,5,6 Sat. 745 Vermont. www.jayhawkaudubon.org Oct. 12: Kansas Land Trust Disc Golf Benefit Sat. Tournament. Visit www.klt.org. Sign-up 785-749-3917 or [email protected]. JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY 4 Capturing My Soul A Report from the America’s Grasslands Conference A conference room filled with biology-type academicians, conservationists, and ranchers is not a place where I’d expect one of life’s peak experiences, but it worked for me at this year’s America’s Grasslands Conference: The Future of Grasslands in a Changing Landscape held in Manhattan in August. I’m sitting in the first plenary session (thanks to a National Wildlife Federation sponsorship) amid the other 200-plus attendees, watching a photography show presented by Michael Forsberg. My expectations of photography presentations are not usually high, but this one proved to be different. Forsberg gave a photo-documentary of how his personal background eventually led to America’s Grasslands as his primary photographic subject. Forsberg is a Nebraska native, and as is true of many flatlanders, all he wanted to do was to get out and live in the mountains … until one day while climbing Long’s Peak in Colorado with friends, he noticed they were all looking westward to the mountains, while he was mesmerized with the beauty of the horizons to the east. So, Forsberg took his camera to the Middle American Grasslands and spent several photographically productive years there. One assignment had him on the edge of a prairie dog colony trying to get a good shot of a burrowing owl – which proved to be harder than he’d imagined. After several very boring days of looking Burrowing into empty prairie, he was about to give up, when there it was. A head slowly appeared over the Owl fledgling burrow mound, then a body, and legs. The bird slowly rose to full height, lifted one leg, and flapped its wings overhead. All the while staring directly into the camera. “That’s when it happened,” claims Forsberg. “It was right then that that bird’s eyes captured my soul. Quite literally captured my soul. I’ve been a prairie photographer ever since.” As he’s telling his story, the photo of the owl is on the conference’s giant screens at the front of the room. Now, I’m not sure about the other attendees, but the story of engagement with the land, the photo of the bird, the bird’s posture, and of course, the bird’s eyes, those riveting eyes -- all of them had captured my soul too. They had taken my breath away and literally captured my heart and soul. OK. I admit soul capture is maybe a bit too much to expect from one photograph or even from one experience. But the way I see it is that the key to us preserving Nature, the key to us preserving what is left of the American Grasslands, the key to preserving my backyard in the Flint Hills, all rely on our ability as elders and as teachers to help those coming after us, our grandchildren and their grandchildren, to see in Nature, to see in the Prairies something -- anything -- that captures their soul. Adult Burrowing Owl (on right, note barred underparts) attending older fledgling. Our job is to help them see and connect with whatever part of nature captures their soul; to help them experience whatever parts of nature make their heart sing; to help them engage with that same passion of experience that has likely affected all of us “old” prairielanders. The challenge is not an easy one – as no challenge worth pursuing should be. We elders will need to connect to Nature the parts of the youngster’s heart and soul that have been captured by the addictive blare of TV and the mesmerizing impact of social media. We will have to do more than just transmit information about Nature; we will need to engage learners in experiences that have the potential to capture their souls and imaginations. As I’ve said, no challenge worth pursuing will be an easy one. But reconnecting the human spirit with the soul of nature is a challenge worthy of pursuit. Indeed, it may be the most important challenge we humans, as a species on this planet, face in today’s world. ~ Randy Kidd JAS Conservation Chair Eagles Day Committee Challenge Randy’s article has likely made you eager to work on the challenge of forging a link between kids and nature. One very useful & fun way to do that is to help produce Eagles Day. Contact Bunnie Watkins at 785-213-5053 or [email protected] to learn more. Not just Soul Mates, but also natural pest control we cannot afford to lose A Burrowing Owl family can eat 1,800 rodents & 7,000 insects, mostly grasshoppers, during a single summer. www.naturesask.ca/rsu_docs/80933_owl_fact_bookfinalcopy.pdf JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY 5 A Little More About Burrowing Owls: (Kansas Burrowing Owls are technically Western Burrowing Owls: Athene cunicularia hypugaea). Burrowing Owls are 9-11 inches long with a wingspread of 20-24 inches. They have noticeably short tails and long legs. Average clutch size is 6 with a range of 4 to 12. In Kansas Burrowing Owls nest in shortgrass prairies using abandoned burrows in black-tailed prairie dog colonies. They occur in low numbers in the western half of the state with the greatest population of birds found in the Cimarron National Grassland. Wintering grounds are Arizona, Texas and Mexico although it is not unknown for some to stay in Kansas for the winter. Burrowing Owls are uncommon and local in suitable habitat throughout the Western Hemisphere. There are over 20 subspecies. Refs.: The Kansas Breeding Bird Atlas, Busby, W. H. & Zimmerman, J.L., 2001, and the USFWS document cited below. To see the Michael Forsberg photo referred to in Randy Kidd’s article go to: http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/birds/ wbo/Western%20Burrowing%20Owlrev73003a.pdf . Help the Monarchs through the yearly cycle MIGRATING MONARCH GAME. Players take turns rolling a die to see how many spaces to move. If you land on a box with instructions follow those instructions. 6 JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY The first player to reach FINISH wins for the Monarchs!!. Cut out the Monarchs & paste them on pieces of cardboard to make your game pieces. Game courtesy of Scholastic.com JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY 7 Summer World: A Season of Bounty By Bernd Heinrich Reviewed by Barbara Watkins Abbot’s Sphinx Moth caterpillar I hope that I have done this book justice in my rush to get my garden weeded and planted in this wild and crazy spring. As I started to read Summer World (Ecco/HarperCollins, 2009, pbk.) in early May, snow was still forecast. Just two days after a frost on May 2nd, the temperature was 95 degrees. Appropriately, one of Bernd Heinrich’s primary themes in this book is the adaptability of birds, insects, and other creatures of this world to the vagaries of temperature and seasonal delays. Bernd Heinrich is a 72-year-old University of Vermont emeritus professor of biology. Every summer his goal is to learn something new about the creatures at his log cabin in Maine. Writing with authority about the union of curiosity and science, he documents the “ingenuity of life more locally, as life-forms interact with one another—the main order of business in the summer.” The range of his interests and experiments is impressive: from trees to wood frogs to bald-faced hornets and mud daubers, to moths and flies, hummingbirds and woodpeckers, and the effects of summer’s stages on them. For most species summer is the season of “reproduction, feeding, growing, and trying to avoid being eaten...the season of courting, mating, and birthing, of living and dying.” Summer typically begins later in New England than here in Kansas. Heinrich identifies with the beavers in his bog: in winter “much of my living is, for months, repressed...summer releases it.” As summer begins, dawn comes earlier each day & he “awakens with yearning and anticipation.” The early birds, who return when “summer is still only a promise,” make him feel “hopeful and rejuvenated.” They may indeed get the worm and the male birds may get good territory, but the costs of betting on an early arrival— bad weather and a lack of food—may be fatal. “Summer in the northern hemisphere is short and preparation for it is long.” Trees and creatures can be deceived if they misjudge an early thaw or warm spell. As long as tree buds stay dormant, they are safe. But the house wrens magically return to my property at the same time each year in late April. After they move into their familiar wren house, my property becomes theirs. They assume control over the territory and when I weed and plant in their vicinity, they loudly let me know that I am in big trouble. Heinrich describes how birds and insects both make distinctive nests, for which the design and construction are encoded in their DNA. Some wasps, barn and cliff swallows all make nests from mud of clay mixed with saliva “always exquisitely ‘perfect’ in functional design and constructed unerringly.” Birds have “specialized behavior to capture insects, and insects have specialized behaviors to try to avoid capture.” As one participant in an “evolutionary arms race gets better at hiding, the other gets better at finding.” On a research trip to Minnesota, Heinrich observed an Abbot’s sphinx moth caterpillar, which is truly a “master of disguise.” The larvae “transforms itself through an amazing series of four disguises==a noxious insect, two different kinds of camouflage, and a snake.” One of Heinrich’s former students, diagnosed with a “severe illness”, wrote him a letter expressing concern about greenhouse gas problems caused by cremation and asked whether he could be a “permanent resident at Heinrich’s summer camp”—a green burial. Heinrich applauds his choice and expresses his own concern that “overpopulation compromises all of our freedoms, from birth to grave.” He asserts that the “coffin is a last attempt to place a boundary between ourselves and nature...Offering oneself to the ravens when the time comes is to me religion at its best.” We sometimes see strange sights around the time of the first frost; spring blooming shrubs and flowers suddenly show signs of life, including dandelions, one of my least favorite plants. But for the leaves that fall, the hibernating beavers, and the female frogs carrying full egg clusters, “the end of summer is also the beginning.” Beaver constructing their lodge. Other books by Bernd Heinrich: Heinrich has written 18 books on his explorations of nature including: Winter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival which takes us into cold snowy woods to learn about the coping mechanisms and strategies of birds and animals in the challenging months of winter. (HarperCollins, 2004) (http://www.thebesttimes.org/readings_writings/ book_reviews/0312_winter_world.shtml) Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds documents Heinrich’s decade of studying and interacting with both wild and captive ravens. (HarperPerennial, 1999, pbk.) Jayhawk Audubon Society P.O. Box 3741 Lawrence, KS 66046 Return Service Requested Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Lawrence, KS Permit No. 201 9/21: Monarch Tagging Event p. 1 9/22: Field Trip to Prairie Park Nature Center. p. 2 9/23: Black-footed Ferret Reintroduction & Dave p. 1 10/12: Seed, Book, Feeder Sale p.1 & 2 Kansas Land Trust; Calendar, Field Guide Review p. 3 Capturing My Soul—America’s Grasslands. Randy Kidd p. 4 Burrowing Owls. p. 5 Book Review by Barb Watkins: Summer World p. 7 Kids’ Page: Migration Game p. 6 Application for New Membership in both the National Audubon Society and Jayhawk Chapter ___$15 Student; ___$20 Introductory for NEW members; ____$15 Senior Citizen. (Make check payable to National Audubon Society.) Application for Chapter-only Membership (Jayhawk Audubon Society). No Audubon magazine. ___$10.00 Chapter-only (Make check payable to Jayhawk Audubon Society.) Those with National Audubon memberships are encouraged to support the chapter by voluntarily paying these dues. Chapter membership expires annually in July. JAS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization National Audubon Society members receive four issues per year of the Audubon magazine and are also members of the Jayhawk Chapter. All members also receive 9 issues of this newsletter per year and are entitled to discounts on the books and feeders we sell to raise funds to support education and conservation projects. Please send this completed form and check to Membership Chairs at the following address: Ruth & Chuck Herman; 20761 Loring Road, Linwood, KS 66052; e-mail contact: [email protected] . {National Members Renewing: please use the billing form received from National. Send it with payment to National Audubon Society, PO Box 422250, Palm Coast, FL 32142-2250}. Name __________________________; Address__________________________________; City ___________________________; State ______; ZIP Code (9) digit ______________; Telephone (with Area Code) ___________________ Email:_________________________________ C0ZJ020Z
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