Redwood Region Audubon Society

Announcements for October 2002

Member Picnic and Birdathon in October

Here’s an opportunity for RRAS members to “meet and eat!” Many of you weren’t able to attend last February’s banquet and our monthly programs don’t allow much time for socializing. So whip up your favorite potluck item and come out to Freshwater Park on Sunday, October 13, starting at noon.  This is also the culmination of the Annual Bird-a-Thon fundraising event. Click here for the Calendar and further details on both activities.

Wanted: Wildlife-Friendly Gardens

Have you a haven for hummingbirds at your home? A buffet for butterflies in your backyard? A neighborhood niche for native plants? If so, we want to hear from you!

Redwood Region Audubon Society, in partnership with the North Coast Chapter of the California Native Plants Society, is sponsoring a garden tour for summer 2003 (tentative date: Saturday, July 26).

We are searching for 8 to 10 gardens in the Eureka-Arcata area to showcase. If you are the proud owner of such a garden – or would like to suggest someone who is – please send your name, address, phone, e-mail, and one-paragraph description of your garden by Monday, December 2, to Tom Leskiw, 5440 Cummings Road, Eureka CA 95503; phone 442-5444; e-mail tomleskiw@aol.com.

RRAS to Sponsor Two Educational Awards in 2003

In addition to awarding a $100 scholarship to a K-12 student or classroom, the Board voted to create a $150 travel grant for an HSU student to attend and present the results of his/her research at a scientific meeting. The research presentation must focus on the ecology, conservation, or evolutionary biology of birds, with preference given to research conducted on birds in northern California.

Travel grant applicants should submit the following materials: 1) resume; 2) the abstract they have submitted (or plan to submit) for inclusion in the scientific program, including the list of authors and the title; and 3) a short summary of the costs of attending the meeting. The winner is expected to give a 45‑minute presentation of his/her research, geared to the informed layperson, at an RRAS general meeting.

Flyers advertising the K-12 scholarship -- for projects related to local habitats or species, conservation, or other environmental topic – were distributed to all Humboldt County schools. Application forms should be requested from scholarship chair Louise Bacon-Ogden (see contact information below).

Applications for both awards must be received by January 30, 2003. The awards will be presented at the RRAS annual banquet in February. Submit applications to: Louise Bacon‑Ogden, Scholarship Chair, 123 F St, Eureka, CA 95501; phone 445‑8304 or 445‑1822; e‑mail sftb@juno.com.

 

Christmas Is Coming, the Birds Are Getting Counted by Sue Leskiw

Did you know that by participating in the Christmas Bird Count (CBC), you:

·         Are joining more than 50,000 observers?
·         Are contributing to the longest-running database in ornithology?
·         Are setting an example of citizen science in action?
·         Don’t even need to leave your house? (feeder observations count, too!)

Prior to the 20^th century, people commonly engaged in a holiday tradition known as the Christmas “Side Hunt.” They would choose sides and go afield with their guns; whoever brought in the biggest pile of feathered quarry won. Conservation was then in its beginning stages and many observers were becoming concerned about the indiscriminate slaughter of wildlife and concurrent declines in bird populations.

On Christmas Day 1900, ornithologist Frank Chapman, of the Audubon Society, called for an end to the slaughter. He suggested that, rather than shooting birds, people count them. So began the Christmas Bird Count. Thanks to the inspiration of Chapman and the enthusiasm of 27 dedicated birders, 25 CBCs were held that day. The locations ranged from Toronto, Ontario to Pacific Grove, California, with most counts in or near the population centers of northeastern North America. Those original 27 Christmas Bird Counters tallied a total of 90 species on all the counts combined.

Modern-day CBCs are not limited to Christmas Day but are scheduled for a 24-hour period between December 14 and January 5. Celebrating the CBC’s second century in 2000, 52,471 participants were involved in 1,823 counts. In 2002, 51,913,289 birds were tallied in 1,936 counts. The counts have expanded beyond the original United States and Canada to include locations as far south as Argentina, changing the focus from North America to the Western Hemisphere.

The CBC’s primary objective is to monitor the status and distribution of populations through an all-day census of early winter bird numbers. When these data are combined with other surveys (e.g., Breeding Bird Surveys), we begin to see a picture of how the continent’s bird populations are changing.

All are welcome to participate on any CBC. If you’ve every heard yourself say, “Maybe it’d be fun to learn birds,” here’s a great opportunity. Beginning birders are teamed with experienced ones. [Personal note: I make myself useful to my team by keeping track of how many of which birds are seen and exclaiming “There’s a bird!” for others to ID.] Participants count within a designated 15-mile circle on the given day. At the end of the day, counters are invited to meet at a local restaurant for the 3 C’s: Compilation (of results), Camaraderie, and (a bit of friendly) Competition as to whom located the rarest bird!

Each December, RRAS holds a pre-CBC brush-up session on bird identification. A local expert shows slides of species that may be seen locally.

As long as there are birds to be counted, the Christmas Bird Count will go on being the most popular, fun, and rewarding bird census the world over. We look forward to welcoming YOU to our growing community of citizen scientists.

Want to access the data from past counts? Visit the National Audubon Society website at www.audubon.org/bird/cbc. You can make maps of bird distribution, construct graphs of species trends, view raw count data, or see what’s happened in your count circle over time.

[Author’s note: Thanks to Joan Loitz for pointing out the need for a general information article to promote CBC participation outside the “usual circle of suspects.” Next month’s issue will contain details on the 5 local counts: Arcata, Centerville, Willow Creek, Del Norte, and Lewiston.] (web note: these will also be added to the Calendar when announced.)

 

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