News from "Ding" Darling Wildlife Society

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News from "Ding" Darling Wildlife Society
January 28, 2016 4:13:18 AM EST
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"Ding" Darling Wildlife Society Newsletter
January 28, 2016
In This Issue
Film Series
Special Chance Drawing
Go Wild for "Ding" Event
Biology Interns
Lecture Series
Reddish Egret Research
National Training
Wildlife Sightings
Upcoming Events
Red-shouldered Hawk by France
Paulsen
TOMORROW,
January 29:
Reddish Egret
Lecture
Dr. Kenneth Meyer,
from the Avian
Research and
Conservation
One of "Ding's" research
Institute (ARCI) in
Reddish Egrets. Photo by Jim
Gainesville,
Bennight.
conducts a
groundbreaking study at the Refuge to learn
more about the movement of Reddish
Egrets. The researcher will present two
programs titled "The Dance of the Reddish
Egret - From 'Ding' to North Florida"
beginning at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on
Friday, January 29, in the free Visitor &
Education Center. Meyer is currently
tracking five Reddish Egret individuals he
originally tagged at "Ding" Darling refuge.
The Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens),
Quick Links
Scat Video
Accommodations
Discover 'Ding' App
Nat'l Refuge Assn
"Ding" Darling NWR
Sanibel Bike Video
San-Cap Audubon Lectures
"Ding" Darling Wildlife
Society
known for its erratic "dancing"READ MORE
Click here to view the season's lecture series
schedule.
A BIG thanks to our 2016 Lecture
Series sponsors.
&
Little Blue Heron by Gary Biltgen
Wednesday, February 3: Vanishing of the
Bees doumentary
Vanishing of the Bees Trailer
The film Vanishing of the
Bees continues the fourth
annual "Ding" Darling
Wednesday Film Series on
February 3 at 2:30 p.m.
in the Visitor & Education Center
auditorium. Honeybees pollinate onethird of the food we eat, and they are
threatened by a worldwide phenomenon
known as Colony Collapse Disorder. This
87-minute film chronicles the fight READ
MORE
Many thanks to our 2016 Film Series sponsor for its generous support.
For brief synopses of this season's films, please click here
Legacy Gift
When Ruth Rachel wished to
honor the memory of her
deceased sister, Chris Glancy,
she thought immediately of
"Ding" Darling. "Chris loved 'Ding'
Darling," Ruth said. "We used to
visit there when my father was
alive, before Chris moved to
Florida in 2006. She loved the
Chris Glancy
birds." Shortly after she moved to
the area, Chris began volunteering at the Refuge. In 2008, she started
working part-time for the Society as the relief manager in the Refuge
Nature Store and also assisted with membership bookkeeping and
fundraising.
As the former senior vice president for United Way of Central Indiana,
Chris provided valuable assistance to DDWS until she retired in March
2011. When Chris passed away on September 20, 2015, many staff and
volunteers mourned her absence. So it was fitting, her sister concluded,
that she memorialize Chris with an endowed fund for Refuge education
that Ruth and other family members and friends could also contribute to.
Ruth recently made a contribution to the fund in honor of Chris' birthday
on February 3.
"An educational fund to help people learn about birds is a great way to
keep the memory of Chris and her passion alive," said Ruth. For
information on contributing to the fund, please email Birgie Miller or call
239-292-0566.
Don't miss out on the largest
annual fund raising event to benefit
the J.N. "Ding" Darling National
Wildlife Refuge!
Special Chance Drawing
Only 150 Chances at $150 each
Grand Prize: Hand-carved and -painted Reddish Egret Feather
pin valued at more than $5,000 AND membership in the exclusive
Sprankle Feather Club (fewer than 50 members) which
"flocks" together once a year.
Master Wood Sculptor Jim
Sprankle has carved a
feather for this special
drawing.
Don't miss an opportunity to win one of three prizes in this
special drawing. The drawing will be held at the February 23,
winners need not
be present to claim their prizes.
2016 Go Wild for "Ding" Event, but
DDWS is selling only 150 chances at $150 each, and they are going fast.
Click HERE to purchase your chance(s).
Other prizes include professional photographic and framed Reddish Egret portraits by Terry
Baldwin and Al Hoffacker.
Winners need not be present to claim their prizes.
Live Auction
We just added an original one-of-akind Jim Sprankle carving of an
American Avocet to our list of
exciting live auction items for the
February 23 Go Wild for "Ding" Dance of the Reddish Egret
Click here
fundraiser.
to purchase your
reservations for the event. Only 70 spots remain.
Advance reservations are
required.
Silent Auction
More than 40 items will be auctioned off at
Go Wild for "Ding." They vary from Red Sox
and Minnesota Twins baseball tickets to
framed wildlife photography prints. One of
our favorite items of the night is a framed
limited edition Audubon print of Reddish
Egrets valued at more than $2,000.
Tickets are selling fast!
Attendance at the February 23, 2016
Go Wild for "Ding" - Dance of the
Reddish Egret is by
reservation only. Tickets are $100 each
and include an island-restaurants buffet,
beer & wine, live music, and auctions.
Champion Level:
Mark & Gretchen Banks
John & Kathy McCabe
Jim & Patty Sprankle
Guardian Level: South Seas Island
Resort & Matzaluna's Italian Kitchen
Protector Level: Sarah Ashton & Jim
Metzler, Peter & Paula Bentinck-Smith, Jay & Cindy
Brown, Amanda Cross, George & Wendy's Seafood
Grille, Island Cinema, Sanibel Catering Company by
Bailey's, Traders Store & Café, Don & Ann-Marie
Wildman
Defender Level: Big Red Q Quickprint, Cast About
Charters, Hightower Advisors Fort Myers, Mike & Terry
Baldwin, Doug & Sherry Gentry, Greenwood Consulting Group, Inc., Glen & Phyllis
Gresham, Gulf Coast Landscape Supply, Dick & Emily Muench, Queenie's Ice
Cream, Sanibel Sweet Shoppe, TradeMarky Films, Vortex Optics
Become Part of the Feather Flock
Don't miss your chance to belong to the exclusive, fun-loving Sprankle
Feather Club. Here are pictures from this week's annual event - a "wild"
Poker Run at the Refuge.
Click here for information on entering this year's Go Wild for "Ding" Dance of the Reddish Egret drawing.
Need not be present to win.
Click here to purchase chances for a Reddish Egret Feather Pin and
membership in the Sprankle Feather Club, plus other prizes.
An American Flamingo was again
sighted last week at Bunche Beach - a
pretty-in-pink precursor to Valentine's
Day. Want to see flamingo's for
yourself? Through February 28, the
wildlife photography of Al
Hoffacker will be on exhibit in the
Visitor & Education Center. The
exhibit features an exclusive display of
six portraits the photographer captured of the American Flamingo who
visited the Refuge last winter. Other wildlife images by Hoffacker are on
display in the auditorium as well.
If you are shopping for romantic outdoor adventures on Valentine's
Day, click here for Tarpon Bay Explorers' suggestions.
Welcome Biology Interns
Patrick and Lindsay
Two new biology interns joined the team
effort at the Refuge in January. Patrick
Fuller and Lindsay Partymiller plan to stay
at least through June 2016 as part of the
Refuge's intern program supported by the
"Ding" Darling Wildlife Society. Partymiller,
originally from York, Pennsylvania, most
recently lived in Bend, Oregon, where she
worked for Bird Research Northwest, a
project READ MORE
Friday, February 5: Sex, Drugs, & Sea Slime Lecture
In Sex, Drugs, and Sea Slime: The Oceans' Oddest
Creatures and Why They Matter, marine scientist
Ellen Prager takes readers deep into the sea to
introduce an astonishing cast of fascinating and
bizarre creatures that make the salty depths their
home. As part of the free "Ding" Darling Friday
Lecture Series, the author will present two programs
beginning at
10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5 in the Visitor
& Education Center.
Hidden beneath the sea's waves, a staggering
abundance and variety of active creatures engage in
the never-ending struggles READ MORE
Tuesday, February 9:
Film Sneak Peak
Another chapter in the Jay Norwood "Ding" Darling
story will unfold on Tuesday, February 9 at the free
sneak preview of the film "Darling Is Back" at 1 p.m.
in the "Ding" Darling Visitor & Education Center. The
"Ding" Darling Wildlife Society is co-hosting READ
MORE
"Ding" Does National Training
Three representatives from "Ding" Darling braved the
"blizzard of the millennium" last weekend to network
with more than 150 other Friends groups and Refuge
staff from around the country. Below, Refuge
Manager Paul Tritaik, DDWS Publicity and Media
Specialist Chelle
Walton, and Associate
Director Sarah Lathrop deliver a workshop on
our efforts to engage underserved families in
the greater community during the Moving
Friends Forward conference at the National
Conservation Training Center (NCTC) in West
Virginia.
Porcelain Garden Lithophane Night Lights: Artwork
that comes to life when you plug them in. Made in
the U.S.A., the handcrafted night lights are created
using techniques from the 1800s called lithophanes.
Light shines through the varied thicknesses of
porcelain and causes beautiful images to appear.
The technique involves wax carvings, plaster molds,
and fine porcelain casts fired at 2300 degrees for 12 hours to achieve translucency.
Timelessly classic, this light will never go out of style and will cast a warm, soothing
glow in your home to create fond memories of your visit to "Ding" Darling and Sanibel
Island.
The night lights come in styles including cardinals, sea turtles, sand dollars, sunsets,
and dragonflies for $34.99 each. Email or call 239-472-1100 ext. 241 to order your
artful lights today. Remember, proceeds from all Nature Store purchases directly
benefit Refuge wildlife and research and education projects.
Discover Ding Contest
Our friends at Discover Nature Apps are
running a contest through April 2016. Every
visitor who downloads the app, takes a tour
of the Wildlife Drive, and earns a Roseate
Spoonbill Badge wins a cool "Give your
phone the bird" shirt. 25+ likes for a wildlife
Compete for a pair of quality
sighting, photo, or score wins a Discover
binoculars and other prizes
Nature hat. And the photo, sighting, or
score with the most likes will win a top-quality pair of binoculars. Look for
more details available on the Discover Nature Apps Facebook page. So,
download the app - available for both iPhone and Android devices - and
come on over. Click here to download today.
Wildlife Sightings & Tides
Looks like everyone at the Refuge is ready for an afternoon nap!
We've been told that yawns are contagious -- what do you think?
Now be honest with us,
did these pictures make you yawn?
Thanks to Jim Bennight, Paul McKenney, and Sylvia
Guarino for the photos
If you have taken any beautiful, interesting, or just plain
goofy photos taken at the Refuge, send them to Society
intern Carrie Alexander for a chance to be featured in
upcoming newsletters.
Free Winter Programs - January 4-April 3, 2016
Friday Lecture Series - January 8-April 15, 2016. Sponsor: Hightower Advisors
Biweekly Wednesday Film Series - January 13-April 6, 2016.
Darling Is Back Film Sneak Peek - February 9, 2016
Stokes' Birding Tours(filled) - February 19, 2016
Volunteer Luncheon - February 19,2016
Go Wild for "Ding" - Dance of the Reddish Egret - February 23, 2016
Federal Junior Duck Stamp Judging at the Refuge/Earth Day - April 22, 2016
Fifth Annual "Ding" Darling & Doc Ford's Tarpon Tournament - May 6-7, 2016
27th Annual "Ding" Darling Days - October 16-22, 2016
These are just snapshots of some of the things taking place at your Wildlife Refuge.
Please check our website at www.dingdarlingsociety.org to learn more!
Sincerely,
Birgit Miller, Executive Director
"Ding" On The Wing composed by
Chelle Koster Walton
Designed by Sarah Lathrop and interns Carrie Alexander and Anna Grubb
Ding Darling Wildlife Society, PO Box 565, Sanibel, FL 33957
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