october 2010 flicker flashes newsletter, birmingham audubon society

8/8/2019 October 2010 Flicker Flashes Newsletter, Birmingham Audubon Society

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Volume LXIII, Number 2 October 2010

2010-2011 Audubon Teaches Nature Series

The Making ofNature JournalSunday, October 17th, 2:00 p.m. ~ Larry Davenport, Guest Speaker

Oak Mountain Interpretive Center AuditoriumI am happy to announce that the 2010-2011 slate of Audu-bon Teaches Nature (ATN) seminars has been confirmedand I think youll like the choice of seminar speakers andtopics. Some will be familiar to you while others are new tothe series.

The ATN seminar series is a joint effort of the AlabamaWildlife Center, Birmingham Audubon Society, Friends ofOak Mountain and the Oak Mountain Interpretive Center.The series is designed to appeal to a range of natural his-tory interests for all age levels and it is especially hopedthat families with children will attend together. After all, thefamily that plays together stays together!

The first speaker in the series is well known to BAS mem-bers and the Birmingham conservation community. Dr.

Larry Davenport is a Professor of Biology at Samford Uni-versity who has taught for many years at the AudubonMountain Workshop. Larry authors a regular column in

Alabama Heritage magazine, and these columns form thebasis of the chapters in his new book, Nature Journal,which was published in August by the University of Ala-bama Press as part of the Gosse Nature Guides series.Larrys presentation will focus on the making ofNatureJournaland how you and your children might incorporateits contents into your own lives to foster a new sense ofconnection to the natural world.

Be sure to come early and enjoy some refreshments andconversation in the Observation Room at the AlabamaWildlife Center, then, when it is time for the program, wewill proceed to the Interpretive Center for the program.There will be a bird walk after the program, weather per-mitting.

See page 5 for the other topics and Seminar dates in theseries.

October Monthly MeetingTelescoping Time in Bhutan

Presented by: Jim Brown, Malia Fincher and Dick MillsThursday, October 21st, 7:00 p.m. ~ Birmingham Zoo Auditorium

Bhutan is the last of the independent Himalayan king-doms. More rugged than the Rockies and more heavilyforested than the Smokies, it is about the size of Swit-

zerland but 20 degrees further south. It was closed toall foreigners until the late 1950s, and only legalized TVand the internet in 1999. Mahayana Buddhism is theofficial religion, a tantric version that came by way ofTibet. Bhutan gained some quirky fame with the lastBhutanese kings claimed attempt to maximize notGross National Product, but Gross National Happiness.

In the summer of 2009 Jim Brown was invited to give apresentation on values as preserved in traditional folk-tales to a royally-sponsored Bhutan National Storytel-ling Conference in Thimphu, Bhutans capital. The main

host of the group was a nobleman and director of theCentre for Bhutan Studies, Oxford educated (and thegovernmental official in charge of officially measuring

GNH!). He gave the non-Bhutanese conference speak-ers a wonderful tour and explanation of at least thewestern half of the country. Upon return Brown immedi-ately talked up the possibility of a travel/study trip therewith other faculty members. Malia Fincher, whose ex-pertise is in plant-insect interaction, was one of the fac-ulty who enthusiastically signed on. Dick Mills agreed tobe our liaison with a well-connected but new and untriedBhutanese travel agency. Half a dozen students boughtinto it, and a few adults from out in the real world, andthe trip came off the last of May 2010, including a foray

(Continued on page 2)


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August 8 through August 31, 2010

Bob Sargent reports that this has been a banner year forRuby-throated Hummingbirds through-out eastern United States and Canada.

Now, get this. On 1 September, 2009, Mary Wilson banded a Ruby-throated Hummingbird at Al-pine, Al. Remarkably, this bird was recaptured 8 August, 2010 near Huttonsville, West Virgina byHummer/ Bird Study Group trainees.

Greg Harber has been enjoying watching several hundred Chimney Swifts enteringa chimney on

Birminghams Southside. Greg says this begins about 7:40 PM and by 7:45 PM they are all in forthe night. Harriett Wright and Pelham Rowan joined him on 31 August. Of course by the time thatthe OctoberFlicker Flashes is delivered most of these birds will have migrated, but perhaps theywill return to the same location next year (7 th Avenue South at 24th Street). Stay tuned.

Other sightings were:

8/8 Tricolored Heron, only five previous records for the Mountain Region;Lake Purdy (GJ,DJ).

8/24 Warblers- Chestnut-sided, Cerulean, and Canada;Baltimore Oriole (3); Botanical Gardens (GJ,DJ).

8/28 Osprey; Highland Lakes (BC).Veery; Lincoln, Al. (RC).

8/30 Buff-breasted Sandpiper (4 juv); Pell City sod farms (GJ).

8/31 Common Nighthawk (Approximately 100); Homewood (GH).

Contributors:

Please submit sightings for November/DecemberFFat least five days before the October 1st

deadline to:Ann Miller, 520 Yorkshire Drive, Birmingham, Al. 35209

Barry ClemmonsRoss CohenGreg Harber

Greg and Debi JacksonPelham RowanBob and Martha Sargent

Mary WilsonHarriett Wright

into the rural heart of central Bhutan, Bumthang, and thevalley of Phojibka where the black cranes winter (thoughit was not the time the cranes were actually there).

The attempt of the course was to telescope time in astudy of Bhutan to do as best we could with the timeavailable the old Regional Planning trick of surveying

geology and climate, soils, native vegetation, native zo-ology, layers of human history, and the modern eco-nomic and political balance that obtains today as aquick way to get a handle on a very foreign subject. Jim,Malia and Dick will try to do as much of that as they canin the program time, with Google Earth maps and photo-graphs by way of illustration.

(Continued from page 1)


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October Field Trips

Oak Mountain State Park - Half DaySaturday, October 2nd, 8:00 a.m.

Early October is near the peak of the southbound fall mi-gration, and as we will hopefully witness for ourselves on

this trip, migration season includes more than just migrat-ing birds! Butterflies of several species also migrate, andso along with songbirds and hawks, we hope toobserve butterflies on the wing too. VitalyCharny, co-author with W. Mike Howell of therecently published Butterflies of Alabama, will co-lead this trip and well depend on him to identifythe butterflies we see!

Our plan is to meet at 8:00 a.m. at the RangerStation, outside the main entrance to Oak Moun-tain State Park. The park is located in Pelham;take the Cahaba Valley Road exit (#246) off I-65and follow the signs to the park. From here welltravel into the park in search of migrant and resi-dent songbirds at several locations within thepark, visiting different habitats in an effort to maximize thenumber of species well observe. Well also be looking forbutterflies, so bring your butterfly field guides.

Mid-morning, once the temperatures start to warm appre-

ciably and the hawks and vultures start taking to the skies,well head for the hills. The hills, in this case, will be the

road to Peavine Falls. Here well have an unobstructedview of the ridges and valleys to the north of Double OakMountain. Our trip will then adopt a lazy mansapproach to birding and butterfly watching as wetake to our chairs and wait for the hawks andbutterflies to come to us! Hopefully, the weatherwill cooperate and bring us a cool front, and withit, Broad-winged Hawks migrating past our van-tage point. Butterflies such as Monarchs shouldalso be in evidence.

This trip wont take us far since well stay withinthe park the entire time. Be sure to bring a foldingchair with you, along with plenty of snacks anddrinks. Dress for the weather, as always. Parkadmission is $3.00 per person, $1.00 for senior

citizens.

For further details and/or questions, please call our tripleader Greg Harber at 205-251-2133. BAS member VitalyCharny will co-lead the trip.

Skyway Motorway and Talladega Mountain,plus Kymulga Grist Mill, ChildersburgSaturday, October 16th, 7:00 a.m.

Fall color and migrant songbirds (late fall and early winter)will be the order of the day for our October field trip to theSkyway Motorway atop Talladega Mountain south ofCheaha State Park. In recent years we have visited thestate park and Rebecca Mountain, at the southern termi-nus of the motorway. This trip will take us to an intermedi-ate stretch of the road between the two.

The Skyway Motorway is paved for a short stretch south ofthe state park before it becomes a reasonably well-maintained gravel Forest Service road. Well travel it forseveral miles through the forest atop Talladega Mountain,

stopping at various sites as conditions warrant. It is abeautiful landscape with some impressive vistas, and thefall color will make it even more breathtaking, so youlldefinitely want to come on this trip if youve never been tothe area.

Once we come down the west side of Talladega Mountainwell make our way back country to the Kymulga Grist Mill,located northeast of Childersburg. Our route will traverse

some scenic countryside and well have a late picnic (bringyour own) lunch once we arrive at the mill. Following lunchwell bird in the forested areas of the site as well as takingin the historic structures within the park. There is a $3.00admission fee.

As veterans of the trips I lead will attest, lunchtime is flexi-ble, especially if the birding is good. The drive to the parktakes about 45 minutes, so come prepared with plenty ofsnacks and fluids to tide you over during the drive. Dressfor the weather, and be sure your cars gas tank is full.

Travel plans: Depart 7:00 a.m. from the Eastwood McDon-alds, located at 1569 Montclair Road and caravan east onI-20 to exit #173. Well travel the back roads to CheahaState Park, where well take a short bathroom break at thestore at the park entrance. Those wishing to meet us hereshould arrive by 8:30 a.m.

For further details and/or questions, please call our tripleader Greg Harber at 205-251-2133.

BAS Field Trip Cancellation PolicyIf there is a possibility of dangerous road conditions due to inclement weather please contact the trip leader at the phone number provided.


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The state of Alabama is blessed with a tremendousnumber of different animals and plants (biodiversity),including five sea turtle species that visit the beaches.When these species, Atlantic Loggerhead (Carreta car-reta), Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas), AtlanticHawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricate),Kemps Ridley(Lepidochelys kempi), and Leatherback(Dermochelyscoriacea), are mature adults, they return to the beacheswhere they hatched to lay their eggs. For some of theseturtle species that return trip may be 30 years later.

This year many turtle eggs were removed from Ala-bama, Mississippi and western Florida beaches andsent to Georgia and eastern Florida beaches. Many ofthese eggs were sent to a climate controlled building atNASAs Cape Kennedy facility to prevent the baby tur-tles from swimming through the oil spilled into the Gulfof Mexico.

Beaches are monitored daily during the summer for seaturtle nests. When a nest is found, a fence is placedaround it to keep people from walking on or digging up

the sand. These nests are monitored and the fencesremoved when the sea turtles hatch. This takes about

50 days, but the number of days to hatch varies be-tween sea turtle species. Once the eggs hatch they willbe released in the Atlantic Ocean.

In order to remove the eggs, biologists had to carefullydig through the sand with their fingers. Each nest maycontain over 125 eggs. The eggs are placed in coolers,with sand from the beach. Each egg must be placed inthe same up position as it was in the nest. In otherwords, the bottom and top sides of the egg must remainthe same for the baby turtle to develop properly.

The eggs were transported free by FEDEX. Eggs weretransported three times a week for four months! Howmany trips did FEDEX make transporting sea turtleeggs? Actually by mid-July, FEDEX would start makingsix trips per week using a semi truck and trailer. Thankyou FEDEX!!

To learn more about sea turtles visit the Sea Turtle Con-servancy (http://www.conserveturtles.org/), the oldestsea turtle conservation organization in the world! You

can follow via satellite several different sea turtles thathave radios on them.

We are looking for artists and writers: Send us your pictures, jour-nal pages, stories and poems about birds, nature, wildlife, etc. Ifselected, your original work will be published in the FlickerFlashes.

Do you have any suggestions as to what you would like to readabout in Kid's Corner? Send your ideas to:

Birmingham Audubon SocietyAttn: Kids CornerP.O. Box 314Birmingham, AL 35201

Sea Turtle Egg-vacuationBy: Shirley Farrell

Save The Sea Turtle Hatchling!

There are many hazards that can prevent a baby sea turtlefrom getting to the ocean. One hazard is predators. Manybirds and other animals eat these turtle babies. Anotherhazard is buildings with lights on at night. The turtles seethe bright lights and think it is the ocean. They crawl to-wards the lights instead of heading to the ocean. Help ourbaby sea turtle make it to the ocean by finding the paththrough the maze!


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Common Bird Songs is the title of one of the programsthat is presented on the McWane Science Center stageat least once a week. Sounds simple enough, right? Peo-ple of all ages come over to listen to the sounds thatsome of the most common birds make. This programwas created to spark more interest in those that lovefeeding the birds, but need or want a little more help inlearning about the birds they hear around their homes,and to get people to step over to the sound tree to learn

about other birds in Alabama too.

I never know what kind of crowd I am going to have oreven if they will stay, but for the most part, unless theyhave lunch plans, they stay for the entire program. Re-cently, I had a woman come with her two and four yearolds to listen in on the program. There were about 15people during this presentation listening in to learn aboutbird songs. I was totally thrilled. This woman took a seaton the floor with her two sons and they leaned in to listento the birds.

I have added a photo of each bird on the stage cart so

the kids could remember the different birds that weretalked about throughout the power point - which grabstheir attention right from the start. Usually when present-ing, I watch the faces looking at me and try to gauge notonly interest levels, but how much I will have to reviewwith the audience before giving them their group quiz.On this day, the little boys caught my eye, not becausethey were disruptive, but because I had them fixed on

the program intently! How do I know this? Well, the twoyear old boy had some pretzels on his stroller and hehad the munchies, but he did not want to miss seeinganything on the screen - so he stood up and walkedbackward with his hand feeling for the stroller tray. Hegrabbed a few pretzels without looking and came rightback into his mothers arms. Now this might not seemlike a big deal, but when the two boys both shouted out 6out of 8 birds that were featured on the screen correctly,

I was totally impressed. Some adults cant do that some-times.

As I was cleaning up, I watched as the mother lead themover to the bird sound tree and played some of the samebird sounds over again and the kids still had the rightanswers. When the Mom added another sound the kidswanted to know what bird that was too. This is just one ofthose times that give me hope for the future of our birds,wildlife and habitats. People only care about the thingsthey know about and what they know about is whatfires their passion to protect it. Whether we are two orninety-two, it is never too late to learn about the world

around us, to claim it with a passion, and to protect itwith a better understanding of how it is all connected andI am glad to help that passion soar. I send kudos to thatMom for stopping by and giving her children a smallfoundation on which to build that passion!

Happy Birding Everyone and remember to follow yourpassion.

Captive AudiencesBy: Helena Uber-Wamble

Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in the Talladega Na-

tional Forest ~ Meet the new NeighborsSunday, November 21st, 2:00 p.m. ~ Art Henderson,Guest Speaker

An Introduction to Birds of PreySunday, January 16th, 1:30 & 3:00 p.m. ~ John and DaleStokes, Guest Speakers

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds ~ Winged Jewels of theSkiesSunday, February 20th, 2:00 p.m. ~ Bob and MarthaSargent, Guest Speakers

Reptiles and Amphibians of Alabama ~ Critters that

Hop, Slither and Crawl!Sunday, March 27th, 2:00 p.m. ~ Ken Marion, GuestSpeaker

An Introduction to the Fishes of AlabamaSunday, April 10th, 2:00 p.m. ~ Mike Howell, GuestSpeaker

Spring is Here ~ Time to Learn our Bird SongsSunday, May 22nd, 2:00 p.m. ~ Greg Harber, GuestSpeaker

2010 - 2011 Audubon Teaches Nature Series


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2010 BAS Spring Count ReportSaturday, May 1, 2010

The 2010 BAS Spring Count was one of the slowest in recent memory indeed, the entire spring migration almostseemed as though it never occurred. Still, teams of intrepid BAS birders managed to count 131 species on count day,with an additional 4 count week species noted. Teams spent 97.25 party hours in the field, with 0.1 hours spent owling.563.1 miles were covered by car and 24.75 miles were spent on foot a substantial effort! Temperatures ranged from62-83 degrees, with cloudy skies, variably breezy conditions and trace amounts of rainfall.

Canada Goose 303Wood Duck 14Gadwall 2Mallard 55Blue-winged Teal 4Wild Turkey 15Northern Bobwhite 3Double-crested Cormorant 96Great Blue Heron 71Great Egret 27Cattle Egret 20Green Heron 8

Black-crowned Night Heron 9Yellow-crowned Night Heron 22Black Vulture 17Turkey Vulture 49Osprey 1Mississippi Kite 3Sharp-shinned Hawk 1Cooper's Hawk 9Red-shouldered Hawk 15Broad-winged Hawk 7Red-tailed Hawk 17American Kestrel 2Peregrine Falcon CWFalcon species 1American Coot 1

Killdeer 43Lesser Yellowlegs 3Spotted Sandpiper 6Least Sandpiper 7Pectoral Sandpiper 2Wlson's Snipe 2Rock Pigeon 53Eurasian Collared-Dove 17Mourning Dove 383Yellow-billed Cuckoo 5Eastern Screech-Owl 2Great Horned Owl CWBarred Owl 9Chuck-will's-widow CWWhip-poor-will CW

Chimney Swift 169Ruby-throated Hummingbird 21Belted Kingfisher 9Red-headed Woodpecker 28

Red-bellied Woodpecker 62Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 2Downy Woodpecker 31Hairy Woodpecker 2Northern Flicker 7Pileated Woodpecker 10Eastern Wood-Pewee 1Acadian Flycatcher 12Eastern Phoebe 66Great Crested Flycatcher 68Eastern Kingbird 159Loggerhead Shrike 6

White-eyed Vireo 185Yellow-throated Vireo 12Red-eyed Vireo 49Blue Jay 97American Crow 353Fish Crow 5Purple Martin 172Tree Swallow 28Northern Rough-winged Swallow 226Cliff Swallow 674Barn Swallow 194Carolina Chickadee 97Tufted Titmouse 135White-breasted Nuthatch 17Brown-headed Nuthatch 30

Carolina Wren 128House Wren 2Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 66Eastern Bluebird 225Gray-cheeked Thrush 3Swainson's Thrush 6Wood Thrush 52American Robin 133Gray Catbird 19Northern Mockingbird 225Brown Thrasher 69European Starling 376Cedar Waxwing 115Tennessee Warbler 13

Northern Parula 12Yellow Warbler 4Chestnut-sided Warbler 3Yellow-rumped Warbler 32

Black-throated Green Warbler 1Blackburnian Warbler 1Yellow-throated Warbler 1Pine Warbler 22Prairie Warbler 26Palm Warbler 13Blackpoll Warbler 1Black-and-white Warbler 2American Redstart 2Prothonotary Warbler 3Worm-eating Warbler 5Swainson's Warbler 1

Ovenbird 1Northern Waterthrush 2Louisiana Waterthrush 7Kentucky Warbler 24Common Yellowthroat 24Hooded Warbler 37Yellow-breasted Chat 41Summer Tanager 48Scarlet Tanager 12Eastern Towhee 149Chipping Sparrow 45Field Sparrow 1Savannah Sparrow 4Song Sparrow 2Swamp Sparrow 1

White-throated Sparrow 12Northern Cardinal 381Rose-breasted Grosbeak 18Blue Grosbeak 37Indigo Bunting 116Dickcissel 7Bobolink 154Red-winged Blackbird 354Eastern Meadowlark 76Common Grackle 220Brown-headed Cowbird 116Orchard Oriole 35Baltimore Oriole 1House Finch 76American Goldfinch 43

House Sparrow 90

Total 6,624

Many thanks to the following participants (party leaders in boldface): Greg Harber, Jessica Germany, BJ Allen, DonnaShook, David George, Sharon Hudgins, Katherine Bouma, Andrew Haffenden, Mac Braid, Suzanne Elder, MaureenShaffer, Anne Miller, John Imhof, Pelham Rowan, Harriett Wright, Mary Lou Miller, Gina McWilliams, Elisa Mejia, JohnSwan, Larry Wright, Cheryl Horncastle, Sallie Brice, Greg Jackson, Linda Cicero and her Montevallo - Orr Park volun-teers, and feeder watchers: BJ Allen, Stan Hamilton and Donna Shook. Compiler: Greg Harber.


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~ Membership Application ~Birmingham Audubon Society/National Audubon Society*

Name: ________________________________________________________________

Address: ______________________________________________________________

City, State and Zip code: _________________________________________________

Phone: ( ) ______________________ Email: ______________________________

New Members* $20.00Seniors (62 or better) $15.00

Full-time Students $15.00* NAS will contact you directly for membership renewal

Make check payable to: National Audubon SocietySend application and check to:

National Audubon SocietyP.O. Box 314

Birmingham, AL 35201

My check for $___________ is enclosed.

clip along dotted line

National Audubon SocietyNew Members and Renewals $20.00

Seniors (62 or better) $15.00Full-time Students $15.00

Make check payable to: Birmingham Audubon SocietySend application and check to:

Birmingham Audubon SocietyP.O. Box 314

Birmingham, AL 35201

Birmingham Audubon Society

Phone: (205) 714-8227Birmingham Audubon Society C0ZA0000Z

Birmingham Audubon Society is tax exempt under 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code

* There are two ways to become a member of Birmingham Audubon Society:

1. Join National Audubon Society. Birmingham Audubon Society serves as a local chapter of the NationalAudubon Society. Joining National Audubon Society also provides you a membership to Birmingham AudubonSociety and access to all chapter activities and benefits. You will receive the National Audubon magazine.

Your dues support the work of National Audubon Society and a small percentage is returned to theBirmingham Audubon Society for local efforts.

OR

2. Join Birmingham Audubon Society without National Audubon Society affiliation. This chapter only member-ship provides you access to all chapter activities and benefits. All dues stay in Birmingham to support localactivities. You will not receive the National Audubon magazine.

We need for you to volunteer! There are many opportunities available through which you can give of your time tomake great contributions to Birmingham Audubon. The Education Director is in particular need of those of you whowould lead children on a short birding venture.

A formal volunteer application can be found on the BAS web site under About Us, then Volunteer Opportunities.Or just call Louise Ayer Tommie at 428-9652.

The Birmingham Audubon Society gratefully acknowledges the following gifts and memorial donations:

Memorial gift to BAS in memory of Betty J. Susina from Elberta G. ReidMemorial gifts to Audubon Mountain Workshop in memory of Betty J. Susina from Edith Hunt and Greg Harber


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Please check your mailing label for yourmembership expiration date.

Printed on recycled paper

Birmingham Audubon SocietyA Chapter of the National Audubon SocietyP.O. Box 314Birmingham, AL 35201

Business Office:200 19th Street NorthBirmingham, AL 35203(205) 714-8227

Email: [email protected] Site: www.birminghamaudubon.org

Bird Reporting Line: (205) 879-7709

DATED MATERIALPlease deliver by September 30, 2010

Flicker Flashes is published eight times a year bythe Birmingham Audubon Society.Editor: Greg Harber (205) 251-2133Co-Asst Editor: Bianca J. Allen (205) 854-5233Co-Asst Editor: Donna Shook (205) 664-2982

Non-Profit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDPermit No. 3794Birmingham, AL

Copies ofFlicker Flashes can be viewed and downloaded from the BAS web site: www.birminghamaudubon.org

October 2010 November 2010

13 BAS 1/2 day Field Trip,Ruffner Mtn. Nature Center

18 Board Meeting, Birmingham Zoo Auditorium(BZA), 5:45 p.m.General Meeting, BZA, 7:00 p.m.Paulette Ogard & Sara Bright, Butterflies; GosseNature Guides

20 BAS Field Trip,Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge

21 Audubon Teaches Nature,The Wildlife Center, 2:00 p.m.Art Henderson, Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in

the Talladega National Forest ~ Meet the newNeighbors

1 Flicker Flashes articles due,November/December issue

2 BAS 1/2 day Field Trip,Oak Mountain for butterfly & Hawk watching

8-10 Alabama Ornithological Society meeting,Dauphin Island, AL

16 BAS Field Trip, Skyway Motorway & Kymulga GristMill

17 Audubon Teaches Nature,The Wildlife Center, 2:00 p.m.

Larry Davenport, The Making of Nature Journal

21 Board Meeting, Birmingham Zoo Auditorium(BZA), 5:45 p.m.General Meeting, BZA, 7:00 p.m.Dick Mills, Malia Fincher and Jim Brown, Bhutan

october 2010 flicker flashes newsletter, birmingham audubon society

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