Professional Documents
Culture Documents
WINGBEAT
Cullman Audubon Society
PO Box 1444 WELCOME
Cullman, AL 35056 FALL!
Francene Van Sambeek, Editor Volume 8, Issue 1
Inside this issue:
PRESIDENT’S ROOST By Jerry Jacob us, as a regular attending member, in
our meetings. Learn first-hand what November Speaker 2
A new year is upon us and we have your organization is doing to help pro- November Field Trip 2
several challenges. None the least of tect our "great outdoors." Become an Field Trips 2003-2004 2
which is the continuing environmental active part of our effort to do our part
threats to our sport and recreation, the en- and not sit back letting someone else Speakers 2003-2004 3
joyment of the outdoors. As an individual, fight the battles for us. We are Cullman National News 3
one can only do so much. As a group, Audubon, hear us roar! September Field 4
Cullman Audubon, we can do a lot. Join Trip Report
Citizen Science 4
October 17-19 FIELD TRIP: great opportunity to observe many species
Forever Wild Plates 6
(such as a variety of warblers) which most
Gulf Shores By David Pylant of us rarely even think about. Of course Birding Extravaganza 6
The Cullman Audubon Society will there are the shorebirds, wading birds and
be heading to Gulf Shores the weekend of Octo- other such species which we rarely have the
ber 17, 18, and 19. This is the fourth straight opportunity to enjoy.
year in which the Chapter has made a weekend Bob and Martha Sargent will be banding
trip to the Gulf. Previous trips have been to Na- birds at Ft. Morgan during this time, and Coming at-
varre Beach, FL (2 times) and Dauphin Island, Bob has invited our group to come out and tractions
AL. visit. What an opportunity! In addition to • October 14: Meet-
October is an excellent time to visit the Gulf our time with Bob and Martha, we will be ing 7PM. Speaker:
Coast, the weather is mild, the crowds are gone, visiting sites along the Alabama Coastal Dwight Cooley.
and the birding is excellent. Migrants heading Birding Trail, a series of locations which
• October 17-19:
south are here in great numbers, providing a (Continued on page 2)
Field Trip: Gulf
Shores
Act for the Birds 10 years ago, let alone 103 years ago when the
first Christmas Bird Count (CBC) was held. • November 11:
By Jerry Jacob With these elements in place, we are all able Meeting 7PM.
We have a window of opportunity. to participate in conservation efforts. In fact, Speaker: Chuck
Today, the vast majority of the species of birds in it is our mandate – our obligation – to become Abare
North America still exist in viable numbers in some citizen scientists.
remnant of suitable habitat. Today, we who love Over one hundred years ago, a handful of • November 15:
birds and the natural world in general exist in Christmas Bird Counters began a tradition by Field Trip: North
greater numbers than ever before, and those num- recording the species and their numbers Alabama birding.
bers are growing rapidly. And today, we have the in 25 circles around the continent. This 7AM
tools that allow us to know and monitor that fragile year you can be among the 10’s of thou-
world with depth and breadth that was unimaginable (Continued on page 5)
Page 2 WINGBEAT
2003-2004 CULLMAN AUDUBON can affect it positively,” Pylant said. “If we can influence just one
more person to respect what has been so graciously provided to us,
PROGRAM/SPEAKERS that person will hopefully influence someone else. It becomes a
by Henry Beeler snowball effect.”
The Cullman Audubon Society is planning a The following speakers have been arranged for this year’s sched-
busy year of activities that will begin in September ule:
2003-2004. Through a combination of guest November 11, 2003 Chuck Abare, Purple Martin expert
speakers and field trips the local chapter of the Na- December 9, 2003 Verna Gates, Flowers of the Bible
tional Audubon Society is emphasizing the envi- January 13, 2004 Ken Marion, UAB reptile expert
ronment and what citizens at the local level can do
February 10, 2004 David Pylant, Birds of Alabama
to have a positive impact.
March, 2004 Archaeologist from Bankhead
According to Past President David Pylant “our
group has been an active group ever since our April, 2004 The WheelerAmerican
count identified
Indian history
119 species. The Waterloo count:
founding more than 7 years ago. We have always May 14, 2004104. The Cullman
Officer count:
elections/social
71.
been interested in enjoying what nature has pro- Meetings are open to the general public; children must be accompa-
vided for us.” “We feel like we can help raise the nied by an adult. See below for directions and a map. For more in-
awareness of our environment and how individuals formation, contact Henry Beeler at 739-3438 or Jerry Jacob at 734-
6775.
Ric
Eig
ha
Sa
rd A
ht
int
Mil
Cot
Be
ve N
rna
eC
ta
E
ge D
rd
ree
Av
k
rive
Ave Maria
Grotto
Auditorium, Old Science Build-
Message from National the first woman to chair Audubon, and one vationists of our time. Again and again
of the few to ever lead a conservation or- she has led the way in fighting to protect
Audubon President John Flicker ganization. America's great natural heritage.
To The Audubon Family: Carol will lead the board when our Throughout her tenure at the EPA, Carol
Two determined women who were com- Chairman Donal O'Brien completes his was guided by the philosophy that safe-
mitted to the environment founded the first term this fall. Audubon has been truly for- guarding the environment meant protect-
Audubon chapter more than a century ago. tunate in having Donal to guide and help ing where people live and how they live.
After 107 years, Audubon is returning to its foster the organization for over 12 years. She partnered with business leaders,
heritage in electing a determined woman who He has been a tireless champion for conser- community advocates, and all levels of
cares passionately about the environment to vation and for the Audubon movement, and government to promote common sense,
lead the organization. Carol Browner, the has set the standard for what an Audubon cost-effective solutions to the nation's
longest serving Administrator of the Environ- Chair should be. Undoubtedly, he will most pressing environmental and public
mental Protection Agency, has been named continue to be among the most influential health problems.
Chair-elect of the National Audubon Society conservationists in America for years to Carol will chair Audubon at a very
Board of Directors. Carol, who is the head of come. important time in its history as it pursues
the board's Public Policy Committee, will be Carol is one of the outstanding conser- (Continued on page 4)
Page 3 WINGBEAT
Cullman Audubon Society Field Trip: Those in attendance included: Mike Rhoden, Neal
Culpepper, David Pylant, Bettye Boyd and Lynn Hurley.
Mitchell Property on the Mulberry River. Those of you who missed this one missed a good one.
September 13, 2003. By David Pylant. Walking leisurely through one of the tracts we identified
We had a wonderful field trip on September 13, when we ex- over 40 species in a fairly short period of time. If we had
plored three tracts of land adjacent to the Mulberry River just more time in any particular area the number would have been
west of I-65 and south of SR 91. Mike Roden, who led us on the well over fifty. We were in particular looking for albino
expedition, leases the land from the Mitchell estate. The land is Wild Turkeys, but no luck. Although we did see many pine
a mixture of active cropland, pine/hardwood forests, small per- warblers and a few Redstarts, early migrant warblers were
manent openings, and CRP managed land. The weather, unlike not around (more time and closer looks may have turned up
the field trips last year, was beautiful. Clear skies, light breeze, some though). Also absent were sparrows. Those species we
mid 70's, no bugs! did see are listed below.
Page 4 WINGBEAT
(Continued from page 1, ACT FOR THE BIRDS) When we began to receive letters, emails, and phone calls in
sands who gather data in some of those same circles and in August 2002 about dwindling bird numbers in a variety of
over 1900 additional sites. But now, rather than waiting neighborhoods around the east and mid-west, we were alarmed
months to enjoy or study those data, you’ll be able to see the and concerned. These reports seemed to coincide with the
results as soon as they are entered into the on-line database. spread of the West Nile Virus. As this year’s warm months
Right now, 103 years of reports are available for many uses, came to an end, we could do little but provide information
but especially conservation. Using this immense vault of CBC (available at http://audubon.org/bird/westnilevirus.html ), cau-
data (found at http://audubon.org/bird/cbc/hr/index.html ), you tion against inappropriate reactions like rampant pesticide ap-
can now conduct your own local, regional, or national study plication, and educate regarding alternative responses. We had
with relative ease. Please tell us what you find. no broad scale, summer monitoring data for comparison to re-
More than 16 years ago, Project Feeder Watch (visit http:// cent 2002 surveys.
www. birdsource.org/pfw ) became a continent- However, this winter, we can all do much more. While no
wide project sponsored by the Cornell Lab of Or- one was thinking of a scenario like the West Nile threat when
nithology, the Canadian Nature Federation, Bird these citizen science monitoring projects were developed, in the
Studies Canada, and National Audubon. Follow- end, we have built a platform for an informed response to just
ing a careful protocol, thousands of dedicated ob- such an event. The winter projects are in place and years of
servers – some elderly, some housebound – have collected data have been collected. So let’s use these tools to learn as
data about the status of feeder birds across the continent from much as possible about the impact of this disease on our winter
November through April. When participants reported an bird populations as we continue to collect long-term data. It is,
illness among House Finches, the network of Feeder Watchers of course, critically important that we maintain the same proto-
made it possible to track the disease, identified as avian con- col as in previous years when we collect data this winter.
junctivitis as it spread throughout the eastern half of the coun- Heading into the future, take a look at eBird (available at
try. Additionally, the huge amount of data gathered during http://www.birdsource.org ), a new Bird Source tool that al-
this project is precious to the understanding of climate’s im- lows anyone to report any species, anywhere, and anytime.
pact on bird populations as well as of the general health of eBird opens a new era of citizen science when we can have all
these populations. All of this information is now submitted of the baseline data as they are needed, which will help our
and quickly available on-line. birds in a time of increasing threats from habitat loss to West
The Great Backyard Bird Count or GBBC (available at Nile virus. All citizen scientists can participate in eBird and
http://www.birdsource.com/gbbc/ ) will be 7 years old this other projects through Bird Source at their level of expertise
February 14-17, 2004. Submitted entirely on-line, the ap- and as their time allows.
proximately 50,000 checklists from every state and province The window of conservation opportunity through which we
provide a winter snapshot of the status of our birds on that gaze must become a door through which we step into action.
count weekend. A monitoring project that is designed to allow Report banded, tagged, and marked birds as well as your obser-
beginners and experts alike to participate, GBBC vations of rarities and unusual occurrences. Get involved with
aims to engage and educate families and individuals your local Important Bird Area program http://audubon.org/
in the hopes that they will continue their involvement bird/iba/index.html, helping to monitor birds at some of
through other bird monitoring projects. As with their most important places. And participate in citizen
other projects, GBBC data becomes more and more science projects at your level of ability and comfort. Re-
valuable with each year that the information is compiled. Ex- member, you will double your impact if you take along a
plore the results from your state or province, a region of the friend; and you’ll multiply it many times over if you in-
continent, or all of North America. clude a scout troop or a class of kids.
(Continued from page 4, JOHN FLICKER) nity of using technology to leverage National Mother's Day Committee, the Ad-
cars, SUVs, diesel trucks and buses, greatly emerging science, and created the EPA's vocate for Children Award from the Ambu-
expanded public right-to-know efforts, ac- first Office of Children's Health Protec- latory Pediatric Association, and Glamour
celerated clean up of hazardous waste sites, tion, a new Office of Environmental In- magazine's Woman of the Year honor.
which resulted in more than three times the formation, the American Indian Environ- Prior to leading the EPA, Carol served
number of Superfund clean-ups than in the mental Office, the National Environ- as Secretary of Florida's Department of
entire history of the program; she created mental Justice Advisory Council, and the Environmental Regulation. She also
the successful Brownfields program to re- Office of Reinvention. served on the staffs of Senators Albert
claim and redevelop abandoned, contami- Carol is currently a partner at The Al- Gore, Jr., and Lawton Chiles. Audubon of
nated urban properties, significantly in- bright Group, a global strategy firm. She Florida gave Carol the Guy M. Bradley
creased funding and strengthened standards is also a senior fellow at the Aspen Insti- Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998 for
for clean water and polluted runoff; and she tute's Program on Energy, the Environ- her work on restoration of the Everglades.
worked closely with Congress to pass two ment and the Economy. Her numerous Please join me in extending a warm
pivotal environmental laws -- the landmark awards and honors include the American welcome to Carol as she begins what we
Food Quality Protection Act and the Safe Lung Association's prestigious President's know will be an exciting and productive
Drinking Water Act. Award in 2000. She was also the recipient term as Chair of the Audubon Board of
In addition, she anticipated the opportu- of the Mother of the Year Award from the Directors.
Page 5 WINGBEAT
Cullman Audubon Society
PO Box 1444
Cullman, AL 35056
FOREVER WILD PLATES By Joe Copeland personalize your tag at no additional cost. The
Forever Wild License Plates are now available at all the tags are very attractive, featuring a Great Blue
county courthouses and annexes throughout the state. The pro- Herron, both male and female Wood Ducks,
ceeds from the premium paid for these tags will be used exclu- and a Bald Eagle. For more info, contact the
sively to purchase land for conservation throughout the state. All tag dept. at your local courthouse or annex.
land purchased is open to the public.
Since its inception, Forever Wild has preserved over 85,000
acres in Alabama. Two of the most recent purchases was a 40
acre addition to Monte Sano State Park and a 160 acre addition to
DeSoto State Park.
If you registered for a free tag, just carry the tag receipt you re-
ceived with you to your courthouse when you renew your tag, and
get your Forever Wild Tag to replace your present one. You can