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O
f the many depressing results of Hurricane Ivan, our devastated landscape, plants, and habitat were the worst. To
add insult to injury, borers soon attacked the pine trees that survived the storm. On the positive side, the loss
of tree canopy and the opening of the understory invited Eastern Bluebirds to move in. We immediately put up
boxes and nest building commenced. After a year of development, the borer larvae invited a colony of Red-headed
Woodpeckers to partake. Best of all, a pair of Osprey built a nest right across the pond from our bedroom window.
The first nest was difficult to observe because a storm-damaged
2
From the President by Da na Tim mons
O
ur planning session just completed and a new year done and continues to make every field trip a trip worth
in the early stages, I believe that 2008-2009 will taking. Plan to be a part of these great trips, perhaps
be a defining moment for the Francis M. Weston Platte River, Dauphin Island, or how about South Texas!
Audubon Chapter. The remarkable work that is
“Yard by yard, it’s hard…inch by inch, it’s a cinch.”
going on at the Hyatt Center, the grand trips and programs
I don’t know the origin of this wise old saying but it
planned, and the innovative educational opportunities
definitely applies to our chapter needs for the year. The
will truly make this year a “must-do” for all our chapter
Board of Directors needs your help. We are seeking to fill
members.
important vacancies, create new positions, and meet the
Our first program will be a pot-luck dinner at PJC demands of environmental education in our community. We
on Aug. 28. Other local environmental organizations will are looking for volunteers to take on small projects within
attend and share 2008-09 plans for their groups. This is an conservation, fund-raising, programs, education, publicity
encore from last year’s event at Shoreline Park and will be and outreach, and all areas of our chapter activities. The
an event worth remembering. Next, on Sept. 25, staff from days of bringing volunteers “to tears” and overwhelming
the Hyatt Center will introduce us to the work they will be them with work are ending. Inch by inch!
doing with raptors (hawks and owls) in education. We’re off
Please visit the Francis M. Weston Audubon web
and running!
site for more information on the jobs we are looking to
Last year, our chapter sponsored a birding trip to the fill. In the near future, you may be asked to fill out a
Platte River. Members enjoyed fantastic views of Sandhill survey. Maybe you can: drive a nail, drive a van, man a
Cranes, Greater Prairie Chickens and Ruffed Grouse. Morris membership table, attend a meeting, write a letter, send
Clark is planning more extended trips for 2008-09. These an e-mail, bake a cake, volunteer at a school, etc.…
trips require painstaking planning and scouting. Morris has We need you!
wings and wiggling of tail. The next day the second baby
3
F i e l d m N o t e s
by Bob Duncan
n Does anything exciting happen in the birding world in mid- habitat. And, it’s not a long walk from the Opal Beach parking
summer? Rarely. We watch nesting birds and their offspring cope area! Lucy and I easily discovered six pairs of nesting Wilson’s
with daily problems of survival, but this can’t really compare Plovers, a species that has rarely nested locally in recent times.
with watching spring and fall migrants come and go and the
n Morris Clark led a very successful field trip to the surreal
exhilaration of finding a “good” bird. Yet, if we are willing to
B-70 bombing range at Eglin AFB on 7 June where we were
trudge down a trail or beach in mid-summer coping with bugs
rewarded with knockout looks at 11 Burrowing Owls. Thanks to
and heat, we can sometimes be rewarded.
Lenny Fenimore and Morris for arranging this treat.
n Once a week or more I have been monitoring the “cut”
n Other sightings. Rare for the area, a Hairy Woodpecker*
down Ft. Pickens Road where storm tides scoured across the
was in Betsy Tetlow’s yard on 15 June. I spotted a Black-
island leaving mudflats. It’s a mile and a half by bike and
whiskered Vireo,* a rare visitor from the tropics, in Gulf Breeze
another half-mile walk. The reward is watching Least Terns
16 June. On 10 July I found another rare visitor from the
have another banner nesting year. In the last mile, I encounter
tropics, a Tropical/Couch’s Kingbird* in my neighborhood. This
recently fledged young almost everywhere. Disturbance by people
is actually two species that are impossible to separate by sight
and raccoons must be minimal, unlike in pre-Ivan years. Further,
and reliably identifiable only by call. Unfortunately, the bird
almost everywhere I look there are both adult and juvenile
was silent. This was the 8th area record. On 19 July we walked
Snowy Plovers, another great success story.
to our beach to watch the sunset and to our surprise found a
The purpose of my trek is not to see the terns and plovers
Great White Heron on the end of our dock! This is considered
but to census shorebird numbers. Simply put, our area had no
by the American Ornithologists’ Union (AOU) a morph of
good shorebird habitat before Ivan. No mud flats. We had to go
the Great Blue Heron and not a separate species. However,
to the Mobile delta or the Ft. Walton spray fields to find these
prominent Florida ornithologists Henry M. Stevenson, Bruce
species. There were gaps in our knowledge of shorebird activity
Anderson, Bill Robertson, and Glen Woolfenden consider it a
in mid-summer because of the reluctance of birders to tolerate
separate species, and recent DNA work supports that conclusion.
heat as well as the lack of habitat. Hence, my trips to the cut.
It nests colonially in the keys and wanders widely. Maybe one
There are shorebirds out there in mid-summer—Semi-palmated
day it will be considered a separate species by the AOU and
Plovers, Semi-palmated and White-rumped Sandpipers, Short-
we can add it to our life lists. At any rate, it was a super “yard
billed Dowitchers, Sanderlings and others. The parameters of
bird.” Morris Clark’s yard Black and White Warbler 22 July
knowledge of June and July shorebirds expand with each trip.
was certainly a harbinger of fall migration. Yellow Warblers,
And there were other shorebirds as well! On 4 June, I found an
American Redstart, Prairie Warblers, Louisiana Waterthrush
adult breeding-plumaged Roseate Tern* at the cut. It was also
and Orchard Orioles have made their appearance in our yard as
seen by GINS employees Monica Cain and Sally Shultz. This was
of this writing (28 July). Fall migration is underway!!
the first sighting in 50 years. The last was in 1958 by Francis M.
Weston and Burt Monroe, Jr.! A trip to the cut 15 July yielded
The Skimmer welcomes reports of noteworthy birds. If you
14 species of shorebirds and hundreds of migratory Black Terns.
have something to report, please call Bob or Lucy Duncan at
Lucy and I found a Marbled Godwit there 17 July, a bird that is
932-4792.
rare locally in any month.
4
TRIPPING
by the Sea . . . You can go home again
Ann Forster
T
welve years ago we went on an intense birding blitz birds were everywhere. It was then clear that the photo stops
tour of Ecuador’s Pacific coast. We saw wonderful were going to be too numerous to count. We spent the first
birds, great scenery, and were totally exhausted at night in a lodge in the state of Esmeraldas right on a bay with
the end…but in a good way. We had always wanted the fishing boats coming in day and night. Their low-tech
to go back on a lower-key (maybe several lower) trip so that fishing techniques are much kinder to the environment than
we could enjoy the fishing villages and just have a vacation. ours. Furthermore, they use everything they catch. Small boats
A few months ago the Ecuadorian biologist, Lelis Navarrete, go out to the shrimp boats and buy what we call ‘by-catch.’
who has led trips to Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil for Our shrimpers simply dump the non-shrimp overboard, but the
several members of FMWAS, e-mailed that he would like to Ecuadorians process and use every morsel. And were those mor-
treat us to a family vacation. The plan was to drive the length sels good! We ate seafood twice a day for a solid week. They
of the coast, stop at every village, and let Dan take the 2000 have such a variety and prepare it so many ways that we never
photographs that he was threatening to take. I was worried even thought about ordering anything else.
that Lelis’ wife and son might be bored to tears but we all had As you can imagine, we made numerous photo and bird-
a great time. ing stops and actually saw two life birds. We also stopped at
The trip started in the capital, Quito. The weather was crisp beaches so that Lelis’ son could try waterskiing and skidooing
and clear so the nearby volcanoes were spectacular…photo and generally scare his mother half out of her wits. We spent
stop numero uno. We drove toward the northwest corner of the last night of the trip in a lodge called Tinalandia. We had
the country stopping at a beautiful restaurant for lunch. They, stayed there on the other trip all those years ago. It is still the
of course, had bird feeding trays and hummingbird feeders so birdiest place we have ever stayed. You can go home again!
E d u c a ti o n by Pe g g y B a k er
T
Audubon he child opened up the colorful newspaper. It was his very own, his to
Adventures
keep. Color leapt out from each page in vivid nature pictures, graphics,
and maps. Audubon Adventures, the excellent environmental tabloid
helps young provided to area classrooms had arrived. The lesson about to be taught
people form by his teacher would focus on ecosystems and all they include, and conservation
positive attitudes ideas and knowledge to imprint this child for life.
about nature The membership of FMWAS graciously sponsored subscriptions to Audubon
Adventures to 51 classrooms last school year. Once again, we are asking for your
support to bring these award-winning educational lessons and this paper to local
schools.
A year’s subscription per classroom is $45, although we are very appreciative
of all contributions. If you would like to sponsor a specific classroom at a school,
please first check with that teacher to be sure she would like to receive it. Then
send us the teacher’s name, school, and the school address with your check. We’ll
do the rest. You can mail your Audubon Adventures contributions to FMWAS, P.O.
Art by Kayla, 10-13 age group.
Coutesy of Audubon Adventures. Box 17484, Pensacola, FL 32522. Thanks SO much for your continued support!
5
Skimming by Jere French
ZOO Story
T
he gorilla grabbed hold of me and During the 1970s, after the celebration of the first Earth
Day and consequently our first glimmer of national concern
wouldn’t let go. She’d reached for the natural environment, our zoo philosophy began to
change as well. Education and protection of endangered
between the bars and got me by
species became the new mission of zoos across the nation.
the arm and was holding tight. I Television, in turn, gave us a window to observe wildlife in
the wild—finding food, defending territories, and raising
couldn’t get away. Okay, she was their young.
6
NEWS and VIEWS
n Chapter committee positions are open for Publicity and Out- one person can effect important change. While I don’t advocate the
reach. The Publicity Chair makes the community aware of chapter activi- measures used by the protagonists, I would advocate that this should
ties and concerns through the media, public events, posters or brochures, be on your Christmas gifting list, or read to your child’s class. Lucy
and presentations to the community. The Outreach Chair is responsible
for contact between community groups and interested chapter members. n Bird ID lesson. Shorebirds are moving south again, and they con-
Details about each committee are on our website at www.fmwaudubon. tinue to confound many birders with identification dilemmas. You either
org. The good news is that a large amount of these volunteer positions love ‘em or hate ‘em. If shorebirds baffle you, start learning with an ID
is easily done from home, and previous chairmen have assembled contact lesson at our August meeting: A Peep at Shorebirds.
lists so you don’t have to “start from scratch.” Please see the Presidents’
column for information on other volunteer n Munson Community Heritage
opportunities. Contact any board member for Festival. In conjunction with State Forest
“GoodSearch” is an easy way
information and to volunteer. Awareness Month, Blackwater River State
for FWMAS to make money.
Forest will sponsor a two-day celebration
Instead of using Google to search
n Yard Sale: If you are interested in helping and re-creation of the
the internet, go to GoodSearch.com.
the Yard Sale Committee, please contact Camey old days and old-time
Enter Francis M Weston Audubon
Hanks, Chairperson, 850.554.4971. Also, ways of life in the Deep
Society in the “Who do you search
FWMAS needs “gently used merchandise.” South in and around the
for?” box, and when you search,
Details to be announced. Munson Community, with
you’re earning for the chapter. If
exhibits, demonstrations,
you try it a few times, you’ll see
music, and guided ecology tours.
that it’s easy.
Activities and demonstrations include
cow milking, a sugar cane mill, cane syrup
making, wood stove cooking, plowing
n Burrowing Owls. It had been with a mule, food preserving, whip making, quilting, chair caning, bee
ages since we’d seen these tiny owls, keeping, basket making, blacksmithing, moonshining, water-powered
so we joined the field trip with owl gristmill operation, corn shelling, antique gas engines, meat smoking,
researcher, Lenny Fenimore. I’d forgot- thread spinning, tatting, sewing on treadle sewing machines, animal
ten their owl antics—the deep knee trapping the old-time way, wood carving, dulcimer making, cross-cut
bends, the bold yellow stares, and sawing, old logging equipment, and more. Put yer duds on, see ya there
the duck-and-run escape. The day was Saturday and Sunday, October 11-12. Where? Blackwater River State
91 degrees. Puffball cumulus teased Forest, Krul Recreation Area from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. For more information,
with thoughts of needed rain. But no tease came from the trip. On the contact Florida Division of Forestry at 850/ 957-6140.
B-70 bombing range at Eglin AFB, we examined burrows and watched
the comical owls watching us. It was a fine day for birding. What a hoot! n Did you know? Some songbirds can contract their vocal muscles
(Burrowing Owls don’t hoot, by the way.) Lucy Duncan 100 times faster than humans can blink an eye—placing birds with a
handful of animals that have evolved superfast muscles. University of
n Hoot by Carl Hiaasen charmed the socks off our family when Utah researchers found that some birds can contract and relax their
I read it aloud to our grandson this summer. I’d look up and find parents vocal muscles in 3 to 4 milliseconds, which is 100 times faster than
(and Grandpapá) listening from around the corner. The strong environ- the three-tenths to four-tenths of a second it takes for humans to blink
mental ethos in Hoot and its captivating story line illustrate how just an eye.
7
Francis M. Weston Audubon Society NONPROFIT
P.O. Box 17484 ORGANIZATION
Pensacola, FL 32522 U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
PENSACOLA, FL
PERMIT NO. 821
C orporate S u pporters
Armstrong World Industries
C H A P T E R C O N TA C T S
Baskerville-Donovan, Inc.
Kerrigan, Estess, Rankin, McLeod and Thompson
Presidents’ Council Peggy Baker..................934-3242
Pfizer
Jim Brady.....................456-5083
Solutia, Inc.
Morris Clark...................968-5498
Annelise Reunert...........492-4389 Introductory Membership National Audubon Society
Recording Secretary Jan Lloyd.....................453-1660 Individual/family $20 for one year
Corresponding Secretary Ann Forster...................456-4421 $30 for two years
Publicity ............................ Position Open Student/senior citizen $15 for one year
Treasurer Becky Grass...................455-9666 Make checks payable to the National Audubon Society.
Membership Annelise Reunert...........492-4389
Field Trips Morris Clark...................968-5498 _____________________________________________________
name
Programs Dana Timmons...............934-4521
Fund Raising Camey Hanks.................458-7979 _____________________________________________________
address
Conservation Jere French...................400-0000
Education Peggy Baker..................934-3242
_____________________________________________________
city state zip
Outreach ............................ Position open
_____________________________________________________
Skimmer Editor Lucy Duncan.................932-4792 phone
Skimmer Art Director Lynn Gould
_____________________________________________________
Webmaster Debra Jones e-mail
The National Audubon Society occasionally makes its membership list available
to carefully selected organizations whose mailings you might find of interest.
To have your name omitted from this list, please check here r.