Just A Chirp

Grosse Pointe Audubon Spring 2010

It’s time to bird for glory!

Do it for civic pride! Do it
for personal pride! Do it for
fun! Set your calendar now,
and join Grosse Pointe
Audubon on Saturday, May
22, for the fifth annual Grosse
Pointe Birding Challenge.
Teams will be scouring the
Grosse Pointes for as many
bird species as they can
count. Tabulation takes place
at noon at Panera Bread in
the Village, and the winner
takes home a trophy and a
feeling of smug superiority.
Join a team for the morning Spring bird walks at the Country Club, see Page 2.
or just for a while. Don’t live for a team at the April 19 gpaudubon.blogspot.com for
in the Grosse Pointes but meeting. See the GP rules and more information.
want to participate? Sign up Audubon website at See Spring, Page 2

Spring Schedule
April 19—”Asian Adventures: Ornithological Discoveries and Rediscoveries” with Pamela
Rasmussen, assistant curator of mammals and ornithology at Michigan State University Museum.
Rasmussen is a heavyweight in the world of ornithology, having co-authored the most authoritative
book on the birds of southeast Asia. In this presentation, Rasmussen will recount stories of her
involvement in the descriptions of five bird species new to science and the rediscoveries of three
others thought extinct. She is also considered a top sleuth in the world of ornithology after
helping to expose the British ornithologist Richard Meinertzhagen as a fraud. This will also be our
annual meeting.
April 27 and May 4, 11 and 18—Bird walks at the Country Club of Detroit. 6:30-8 a.m.
May 4—Bird walk at Neff Park. 6:30 p.m.
May 8—Our annual field trip to Seven Ponds Nature Center.
May 11—Bird walk at Patterson Park. 6:30 p.m.
May 22—Grosse Pointe Birding Challenge. Rules at gpaudubon.blogspot.com.

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 Spring, continued from Page 1
Bird Walks at the Country Club
Bird walks are scheduled for April 27 and
May 4, 11, and 18. These walks will start at 6:30
a.m. and will end by 8 a.m. Enter the grounds
of the Country Club and drive toward the club
house. Just before the club house, turn left and
drive down a service road, down the hill past
the tennis courts and the polo field. Meet at
the stand of trees on the right. Grosse Pointe
Audubon thanks the Country Club for their
cooperation!
Bird Walks at Neff and Patterson Parks
Grosse Pointe Audubon will be hosting
evening bird walks at Neff Park on Tuesday,
May 4 and Patterson Park on Tuesday, May 11.
All walks are free but require pre-registration
at least one week ahead of the event. You can
register for the walks at our April 19 meeting
or by calling GP Audubon President Bill Rapai
at 313-885-6502 or by email at brapai@aol.com.
Bird Walks at the Ford House
Bird walks are scheduled for April 17 and
May 6, 7, and 8. These walks will start at 7:30
a.m. In addition, there will be an evening walk
at 6 p.m. on May 6. As usual, there is a $7 per
person fee, and you will need to call
313-884-4222 to register in advance.
Annual field trip to Seven Ponds
Plan now to attend our annual field trip to
Seven Ponds Nature Center on Saturday, May
8. Director Mike Champagne is looking
forward to showing us the center’s new
Schemm-Naish Interpretive Building. The
building is partially named after Grosse Pointe
Audubon member Patty Schemm, who along
with her late husband, Ripley, gave much of
the land to start Seven Ponds.
We will be counting birds for the annual
North America Migratory Count that day, and,
frankly, we need your help. Lapeer County has
come in dead last of all the counties that have
been covered the past two years. And although
this is not a competition, it’s clear to me that
there are far more birds in Lapeer County than
we’ve had a chance to count in the past. Those
counting birds will be heading out at 8 a.m., and
Champagne will be leading a second walk at 10
a.m. To get an idea of how many people will be
coming, there will be a sign-up sheet at our
April 19 meeting, or your can sign up by
emailing or calling Bill Rapai.
Even if you don’t feel like walking the trails to
look for birds, come to see the new building
and watch the birds come and go from the
feeders right outside the windows. Let’s show
our continued support for Seven Ponds by
having a big turnout this year! (For directions to
Seven Ponds go to gpaudubon.blogspot.com.)
Lake St. Clair declared an IBA
The entire Michigan shoreline of Lake St.
Clair has been designated a state-level
Important Bird Area. IBAs are sites that
provide essential habitat for one or more
species of bird. There are 96 IBAs in Michigan,
ranging from Pt. Mouillee in Monroe County to
Isle Royal National Park in Lake Superior. Lake
St. Clair was designated because of the large
numbers of waterfowl that congregate on the
lake every winter and because its shoreline is an
important staging and/or stopover area for
many migrants.
The next governor and the environment
Feeling the need for a road trip? The
Michigan League of Conservation Voters
Education Fund will host a gubernatorial forum
on Wednesday, May 12, to engage the
candidates for governor in a discussion about
the role of Michigan’s chief executive in
rebuilding Michigan’s economy and
safeguarding our natural resources. The forum
starts at 7 p.m. in the Plachta Auditorium on
the campus of Central Michigan University in
Mt. Pleasant. Might be worth a drive.
--Bill Rapai,
president
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 Seven Ponds Nature Center
Call (810) 796-3200 for more information or to
register for programs.
Seven Ponds Annual Meeting
Saturday, April 10, 9:00 a.m.
All Seven Ponds members are welcome as we
review the center’s activities for the past year,
honor outgoing board members, and elect new
board members and officers.
Invasive Plant Workday
Sunday, April 11, 1:00 p.m.
Help remove dame’s rocket around the nature
center building.  This is a great opportunity to
earn community service hours. Dress for the
weather and bring work gloves.
Spring Bird Walk
Wednesday, April 14, 8:00 a.m.
This walk will take us along the center’s trails in
search of sandhill cranes, ducks, swallows,
eastern bluebirds, towhees, blackbirds, and
others. All bird watching levels are welcome.
Bring binoculars and field guide, and dress for
the weather. $5 per person ($2 per member).
Owl Prowl
Friday, April 16, 7:00 p.m.
Our owl prowl will begin indoors with a short
talk about the owls of Michigan. We’ll then hike
along the trails in hopes of calling in one or
more of the nature center’s resident owls. Bring
a flashlight. Limited to 20 participants. Please
pre-register by calling the center at
810-796-3200. $5 per person ($2 a member).
Salamander Foray
Saturday, April 17 and Sunday, April 18
2:00 p.m. both days. Join us for a salamander
day of discovery at Jonathan Woods. We will be
looking for many examples of the six species
that reside in the rich woods while learning
about their natural history and conservation.
Meet at Seven Ponds and carpool to the site.
Limit 12 at each session. Must pre-register by
calling 810-796-3200. $5 per person ($2 per
member).
Family Game Night—Nature Style
Friday, April 23, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Parents and kids are welcomed to an evening of
fun, filled with all sorts of nature games, snacks,
and family competitions. We will end with a
short walk on the trails. Families must pre-
register. $20 per family.
Naturefest & Native Plant Sale
Saturday, May 1, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Garlic Mustard Pull and Wildflower Walk
Sunday, May 2, 1:00 p.m.
This is a great opportunity to earn community
service hours. Please dress for the weather and
bring your work gloves. We will go on a
wildflower walk before working.
Spring Bird Walk
Wednesday, May 5, 8:00 a.m.
We’ll explore the center’s trails in search of the
many species which arrive in late April and early
May, including migrating warblers, house wren,
Baltimore oriole, rose-breasted grosbeak, and
scarlet tanager. All birdwatching levels are
welcome. Bring binoculars, field guide, and dress
for the weather. Fee: $5 per person ($2 per
member). Additional bird walks will be held
May 12 and May 19.
Wild Lapeer—An Earthday Celebration
Saturday, May 8, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Seven Ponds will be co-hosting this event at The
Willows Environmental Center in Lapeer. We
will have a “please touch” table and be giving a
nature program. Lunch will be available with a
focus on locally grown foods and many earth-
friendly vendors will offer their wares.
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JUST A CHIRP

SPRING 2010

About Grosse Pointe Audubon

President -- Bill Rapai, president, (313) 885-6502 or BRapai@aol.com
Sylvia Sanders, vice president, (313) 886-0869
Mark O’Keefe, treasurer, (313) 884-7472 or Birds891357@aol.com
Joanna Pease, representative to Seven Ponds Nature Center, strixvaria@sbcglobal.net
www.gpaudubon.blogspot.com
Grosse Pointe Audubon meets in the Annex of the Pointe Unitarian Church at 17150 Maumee,
between St. Clair and Neff in Grosse Pointe. Social hour starts at 7 p.m. and the meeting starts at
7:30. Our meetings are free and open to all, so bring a friend!

Grosse Pointe Audubon

443 St. Clair
Grosse Pointe, MI 48230