September 2007

VOLUME XXXVI ,NUMBER 6

The Newsletter of the Choctawhatchee Audubon Society

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Please Thank
In the Summertime, When the Weather is Hot:
Walton County 2 CAS and Friends at Morrison Springs
Nokuse Tortoises 2

Upcoming Festivals
And Fun 3

Membership Application 4

Thank you to our Sponsors 4

CALENDAR OF EVENTS:

CAS monthly meetings are

held the First Thursday of
each month at 6:30 PM at
OWC Niceville Learning
Resources Center (LRC),
Room 128. Non members
are welcome.

Sept 6: “ Falconry”
Falconry”

Summer Hargraves and

her male Red-tailed Hawk,
Polo, will teach us about
Falconry which is the
ancient sport of hunting
quarry with trained
raptors. Summer is in her
second year of
apprenticeship under a
master falconer. Weather
permitting we will have a
flight demonstration.
Sept 7: Eventure
Join Nonie at Henderson
Beach for a sea turtle walk
Contact 862-9588 to RSVP
Sept 15: Migration Count
Coastal Clean-up
October 13: Bird Walk
Niceville/ValP area, meet
at Badcock, Niceville at
7:30. Pat Baker -
George & Judi Russell, Margaret Benner, Nonie, Karen Newhouse, Kay and Gary Parson, The Horne’s and Don & Carol Ware.
Those not pictured, Kathy Tidwell, Betty Kintosh and Bob Penhollow, they must have been swallowed by the BIG GATOR! ;-)
Eight of us left Badcock's parking lot, Niceville, at 0735 for the 70-minute drive to Morrison's
Springs that feeds the Choctawhatchee River five miles south of Ponce de Leon. By about 9 AM,
17 of us Audubon folks had gathered with 10 watercraft; eight kayaks, a canoe and a four-
person aluminum boat with a small motor. Before it got too hot, most of us walked up the road to
search for birds at the edge of the flood plane. We heard, or got a brief glimpse of, Mourning Dove,
Red-bellied Woodpecker, White-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, Carolina Wren, Hooded Warbler, Eastern Tow-
hee, and Northern Cardinal.
It did not take long before we were ready for bathing suits and the watercraft. There were al-
ready many swimmers, children using the rope swing, and cave divers in the clear, cool springs.
We saw a young gator (about 3 ft long) floating near a much larger gators slide. The slide was at
least 2 ft wide and 8 ft long! We also saw turtles and large carp on the bottom as we moved out
toward the much warmer waters of the Choctawhatchee. Some went upstream and some down-
stream. The water level was much lower than it had been in the winter, requiring a lookout for
submerged logs.
The birds we spotted or heard along river were: Great Egret, Little Blue Heron, Cattle Egret, Black
and Turkey Vultures, Red-shouldered Hawk, Spotted Sandpiper, Belted Kingfisher, Pileated Wood-
pecker, American Crow, and migrant Yellow Warblers. We did not see or hear an Ivory-bill -cont. p3

CAS is dedicated to the protection of bird and wildlife habitat, environmental education, and a greater appreciation of Northwest Florida’s natural beauty.
Page 2 V O L U M E X X X V I , N U M BE R 6

Kudos to Walton County

Please take a moment to thank the good people in Walton County for opting out of the Florida State dog fly spraying
program. The move comes in response to concerns from residents and members of an environmental group who say
the pesticide used to kill the flies is hazardous to people and the environment. Gail Powell, founder of the Coalition
for a Non-toxic Environment in South Walton, says people should buy flyswatters to fight the flies instead of spraying
pesticides. There are also questions regarding the effectiveness of the pesticide Dibrom, which is being used for the
program. For more information on the studies please use the following links:
http://www.chem-tox.com/brevard/main.htm
http://www.wtv-zone.com/infchoice/naled.html
http://www.mindfully.org/Pesticide/Mosquito-Naled-Dibrom_14.htm
Commissioner Sara Comander-comsara@co.walton.fl.us
South Walton Community Council- info@southwaltoncc.org

If you do not have internet access and would like hard copies of the information please call Theresa Dennis at 863-8730.

Nokuse Gopher Tortoise Relocations

We have been relocating gopher tortoises from development sites throughout Florida to
Nokuse for the past 2 years (850 tortoises). During this time we have been conducting a strict
monitoring program (using radio telemetry and intensive burrow surveys) and using large enclosures
(25-350 acres) for 6-12 months to enhance site fidelity. This research and the relocations are being
conducted under a FFWCC permit. Nokuse has about 25,000 acres of gopher tortoise habitat and
is well under capacity (about 0.02 tortoises per acre) due to historic over harvest of tortoises for
their meat. Similarly, throughout the Panhandle and north-central Florida, there are thousands of
acres of good tortoise habitat on public lands that are also have very low densities. While I agree
that the best option is preservation of tortoises on good habitat rather than relocation, we are forced
by development of private lands to find the best methodology to successfully relocate gopher tor-
toises to reestablish or augment populations on conservation lands. We have not had any tortoises
die due to disease and we have not seen any behavioral differences between tortoises from central
Florida and northern Florida that would compromise their survival. The only mortality we have ob-
served of the 850 tortoises we have relocated is mammalian predation of 7 tortoises, a predation
rate that is no greater than that in existing populations. The issue of disease (primarily URTD) has
received a great deal of attention but has been proven to be less significant that previously thought,
prompting FWC to drop the mandatory URTD test requirement last year. We do not require blood
testing of tortoises relocated to Nokuse, but I do examine each tortoise for clinical signs of sick-
ness. I have only received a few that appeared sick and they were treated by a vet and then re-
leased into a permanent quarantine pen. None of those have died. The gene pool issue is debat-
able; purists think that we should keep tortoises in Florida within distinct genetic regions. However,
because we don't currently have large tracts of conservation land available in central Florida,
tortoises would be buried under IT permits if we did not relocate them to the Panhandle.
Because of this reality, we are less concerned about genetics and have received tortoises from
northeast Florida and central Florida. I hope this helps to convince you that relocations can be
done properly and are an important conservation tool to restock depleted lands. Relocation will be
a key part of the new FWC management plan for gopher tortoises and we are sharing our informa-
tion with them so that others will do it right.

Matthew J. Aresco, Ph.D.

Shorelines Page 3

CAS will conduct the Fall Back To Nature Festival

North American Migration Bird October 19-21 2007
Count on Saturday, Septem- South Walton Community Council's
6th Annual Festival
ber 15. Volunteers are
celebrating the outdoors in Walton County Florida -
needed to assist experienced Sixth most biologically diverse area in North America!
leaders as recorders or spot- Join us for this year's events including:
ters. The primary objective is * Night River Safari * Kayaking Coastal Dune Lakes
*Astronomy Walk * Grayton Beach Historic Walking Tour
to monitor the status and dis-
* Birdwatching * Beach Ecology Walk * Native Plant Walk
tribution of bird populations. * Campfire Celebration
No prior birding experience
For more information, please e-mail info@southwaltoncc.org
necessary. This citizen sci-
ence is vital for migratory bird St. Joseph Bay Buffer and Aquatic Preserves Day
Saturday, October 6th, 2007
conservation efforts. To help in Low Country Shrimp Boil 12:00-2:30 $10 Guided trips all day (8:00 am to
10:00 pm) * Trips to St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve
the Count or for more informa- Fall Wildflowers * St. Joseph Bay Aquatic Preserve Boat Tours and
tion, contact Don Ware at 862- Seagrass Wading Tours
* Birding trips and astronomy program with Alan Knothe And More……
6582 or donware@embarqmail.com . For More Information:Visit: www.stjosephbaypreserves.org or call (850)
229-1797

INTERNATIONAL COASTAL CLEAN-UP

October 1-12 : Fall Banding at Fort
Morgan and Dauphin Island. Carpools can
be arranged by Bob Penhollow - 729-2602
Fourth Annual Alabama Coastal Bird Festival
October 18-21
Save the date for a huge festival with all kinds of trips staged
from 5 Rivers Delta Resource Center, located on the Causeway,
about halfway between Mobile and the Eastern Shore .
http://www.alabamacoastalbirdfest.com/schedule.htm
September 15
Our Audubon chapter is proudly sponsoring the
local beach clean-up along with Okaloosa County
Environmental Council and other wonderful groups.
We invite you to take some time between counting
birds to come out and help us keep their habitat
clean. We will also need volunteers to help run
educational booths from @9am-11am for children
and their families. Please contact Theresa Dennis
or Nonie Maines for more information.

Morrison Spring Continued from p1—

On 17 August Bob and Chris Larson followed the same route upstream that I did, and within ten minutes saw three birds flushed
by a motorboat: and Great Blue Heron, a Pileated Woodpecker, and another woodpecker that had a white trailing edge to the wing.
It was probably an "Ivorybill," and after waiting by the shore a while they heard a loud double tap that Ivory-billed Woodpeckers are
noted for. This was about the same spot that I saw a probable Ivorybill cross the river last November.
Don Ware
 Choctawhatchee Audubon Society Membership
Name:_____________________________________ Address:_________________________________________
City:____________________________________________________ State:______ Zip:____________________
Phone: ___________________________ E-mail: ___________________________________________________
□Introductory New Member- $20.00 □Individual Member Renewal- $35.00
□Introductory Student/Senior- $15.00 □Renewal Student/Senior-$15.00
When you join you will be part of national, state, and local Audubon groups and will receive...
• Audubon magazine
• Florida Naturalist Magazine
• Our local Shorelines newsletter
Chapter Representatives
• Inclusion in Audubon of Florida's advocacy network
• Discounts at Audubon Sanctuaries and Nature Centers
President: Nonie Maines
• Opportunities for Audubon Ecology Camps and specially priced travel adventures
nonie@noniesark.com……...862.9588
To join, mail this form and a check, payable to National Audubon Society, to;
Vice President: Thelma Phillips
NAS Membership Data Center, P.O. Box 51005, Boulder, CO 80323-1005.
TCMagures@aol.com……..…651.0508
Treasurer: Karen Newhouse CAS ONLY memberships are available and include SHORELINES NEWSLETTER ONLY.
newhouse@earthlink.net….897.3745 To join CAS ONLY mail this form and a check payable to CAS to; P.O. Box 1014 Fort Walton Beach, FL 32549.
Recording Secretary: Kathy Tidwell □New Member Newsletter Only- $10.00 □Renewal Member Newsletter Only- $10.00
Mysty6266@aol.com...........
...........651-5156
........... FL Dept of Agriculture REG # CH4619 A copy of the Official registration and financial information may be obtained
Corresponding Sec: Sharon Weaver from the division of consumer services by calling toll-free (800-435-7352) within the state. Registration does not
slw243@cox.net……………….897.5464 imply endorsement, approval, or recommendation by the state.
Bird Count Coordinator: Chapter Code: E-11 7XCH
Donald M. Ware……………....862.6582
donware@embarqmail.com
Conservation: Position Available
Education: Nonie Maines
nonie@noniesark.com……...862.9588 Printed on Recycled Paper
Field trips Coord: Bob Penhollow © 2007 by Choctawhatchee Audubon Society. All rights reserved.
bobpenhollow@cox.net…...729.2602
Hospitality: Sharon Weaver
slw243@cox.net……………….897.5464
Membership: Phyllis Pletcher A great big THANK YOU to all CAS sponsors !
pletcher@cox.net……….609-6993
Publicity: Linda Daugherty
Generous cash donations received from the Patricia F. Kellogg estate and from
wbudestin@earthlink.net….269.0665 Sandestin.
Programs: Thelma Phillips Costa Enterprises and McDonalds of Bluewater Bay provided delicious and
TCMagures@aol.com…..……651.0508
Shorelines Editor: Theresa Dennis
nutritious salads for our August meeting. Please express our gratitude by
tinkinneverland@yahoo.com……………. patronizing their restaurant.
Historian: Pat Baker Donations are welcome, and all contributions are tax-deductible. Feel free to
flabirder@cox.net .…………...678.2953
specify a particular fund/event that you’d wish to sponsor.

P.O. Box 1014 Nonprofit Organization

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