| MURIE AUDUBON SOCIETY CASPER, WYOMING |
| VOLUME 43 - ISSUE 8 MONTHLY PUBLICATION NOVEMBER 2009 |
CALENDAR
Click HERE to return to Index page
Nov. 13—Gen. Mtg.—7:00PM ~ OGCC Bldg.
Nov. 14—Project FeederWatch begins
Nov. 23—Deadline for submission of articles for the Dec./Jan. newsletter—articles for both months
Nov. 26—Thanksgiving Day Bird Count
Dec. 19—CBC—Casper (organizational mtg. TBA) ~ contact Chris Michelson
Jan. 1, 2010—Bates Hole CBC—contact Charlie Scott
January 2—CBC—Guernsey-Fort Laramie
August 10—Annual Picnic—EKW State Park
Every Thursday—Noon—ARLC ~ Brown Bag Birding
TABLE OF CONTENTS
(Click on title to go directly to article. Click on "turkey" at end of article to come back HERE)
NOMINATIONS FOR CONSERVATION AND EDUCATION AWARDS
AUDUBON CENTER AT GARDEN CREEK
COOKIE AND/OR BAR BAKERS SCHEDULE
ADDITIONAL LINKS
MURIE AUDUBON BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Retired geologist Bob Maxwell will be the guest speaker for the monthly program November 13th at 7 PM at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Building at 2211 King Blvd. The program is free and open to the public!
Bob spent a week in Tanzania in May 2008. They toured west Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater and witnessed the migration of wildebeest. This part of the Serengeti straddles the northward migration route of enormous wildebeest herds. This is the wildebeest’s wet/dry transitional zone where migrating herds join the resident wildebeest and zebra and where they remain until the dry season, about July. Other resident animals include giraffe, Cape buffalo, eland, topi, impala, waterbuck and Thomson’s gazelle. These resident herbivores support large populations of predators including lion, leopard, cheetah and hyena.
Ngorongoro Crater is the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera. The Crater's rich soils and abundant, year-round water provide an ideal habitat for a variety of animals. It is not a self-contained ecosystem and some animals do migrate in and out, but only in small numbers. Most of the animals in the Crater are resident and remain there year-round. There are approximately 20,000 large mammals at any given time within the Crater walls.
Over the past 40 years since the early 1960s when long term studies began, the Crater has undergone drastic changes. Wildebeest have historically made up at least half of the large animal populations. However, their numbers have been declining since the 1970s. Alternatively, Cape buffalo have been on the rise as wildebeest numbers have decreased. It is thought the departure of the Maasai and their livestock in the mid 1970s triggered this shift in wildebeest and buffalo populations. Maasai regularly burned the grass in the Crater creating fresh green grass for their cattle, which may have benefited the wildebeest. Now that the Maasai have departed, the grass is longer and coarser favoring the buffalo. This fluctuation in large herbivores may have lead to a decrease in lion and hyena numbers which in turn allowed cheetahs to thrive. As in natural ecosystems everywhere, the Crater is dynamic and ever changing.
In addition to all the mammals that were observed, Bob will also share photos of the birds he saw, so join us for an armchair safari. Program Chair—Bruce Walgren
In last December's "ponderings." I solicited ideas for Murie’s participation in the TogetherGreen Innovation Grants Program, a major conservation initiative of National Audubon supported by a generous gift from Toyota. The goals of the program are to "nurture conservation leadership, achieve conservation results, and engage millions of Americans in conservation action.” Murie's TogetherGreen committee, comprising Fred Eiserman, Floyd Field, Laurie Fletcher, Ann Hines, Rose-Mary King, Sandy Leotta, Anne MacKinnon, Bart Rea, Bob Yonts and yours truly, met several times in subsequent months to fashion a proposal and funnel information to grant writer par excellence, Laurie Fletcher. Building on an idea developed by Bart Rea, the committee decided to apply for funds to conduct a comprehensive study of the annual flow regime of Garden Creek, underscoring the importance of understanding the link between flow volumes and the health of the Creek's ecosystem. Although reams of information are available on Garden Creek’s variable water quality and the biota along its banks and riparian corridors, the missing link has been systematic measurement of stream flow along its seven-mile course between headwaters on Casper Mountain and confluence with the North Platte River, passing through several wildlife habitat zones from sub-alpine to prairie. The Creek is also a valuable resource for recreation as it flows through a conservation easement and several parks. Although there is anecdotal evidence that stream flow has been reduced in recent years, owing to drought and appropriation of water associated with development on the upper reaches of the creek, there is no empirical proof.
The committee applied for a one-year grant of $41,500 to kick off a multi-year, multi-pronged approach to assessing the water regime of the Garden Creek watershed, starting with: (1) identification of and hiring a project director, whose responsibilities would be to establish and implement a stream flow gauging program and seek public engagement; (2) funding for flow gauges and the creation of media materials to publicize the project as it is developed and implemented; and (3) funding for a graduate student/research assistant to collect and interpret the data derived from the flow measurements and integrate them with existing studies that describe the Garden Creek watershed.
Thanks to the Herculean work of Laurie Fletcher, the Murie Audubon Society met the deadline and submitted its grant application in late April. Regrettably we were turned down, but will re-submit the proposal in the next go-around, incorporating some of the suggestions from the National Audubon/TogetherGreen Grants Committee. Thanks to all for their hard work.
President – Jim Brown
NOMINATIONS FOR CONSERVATION AND EDUCATION AWARDS
Murie’s annual banquet is February 13, 2010 and as part of the festivities, we would like to again honor those contributing to the preservation, protection, understanding, and enjoyment of wildlife and ecology of Wyoming.
Murie’s Conservation Award is presented to individuals, agencies, and organizations that have made contributions to wildlife, habitat, and the environment in the state of Wyoming. Past recipients include:
1)Lois and Frank Layton for their 35-plus years dedicated to the hospitalization and rehabilitation of birds in our state;
2)the Bureau of Reclamation was recognized for the development of wetland habitat below Glendo Dam and Reservoir, ensuring continuous water flow and providing habitat for a variety of plant and animal species;
3)Jim and Audrey Bailey received the award for giving a conservation easement to the Nature Conservancy, thus protecting that land parcel at the base of Casper Mountain from further development and also promoting outdoor education activities;
4)Gwyn McKee, wildlife biologist from Gillette, was honored for her work protecting wildlife and the environment in the areas of coal bed methane development in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin;
5)the Eagle Ridge Ranch was recognized for the Scott family’s dedication to conservation measures in all aspects of ranch operations.
And last year Murie members Bart Rea and Fred Eiserman received awards. Bart has a long history of Audubon service and conservation projects and has also worked with many local community groups with conservation-oriented goals. Fred was honored for his long history with Wyoming Game & Fish fisheries habitat improvement and stream preservation.
We also want to recognize contributions in education – honoring those who have helped to increase the understanding, enjoyment, and basic knowledge of the wildlife and ecology in our state. Murie has always put education as our #1 priority – our motto is “Conservation through Education.” Recipients in the field of environmental education include:
1)Ann Hines for her years of work with Audubon Adventures and working with school kids both in the classroom and outside on field trips;
2)Ed Strube was honored for his many years working with the summer Field Science classes here in Casper.
Since our members live in many locations throughout the state, the board would like state-wide input. You need not be a Murie member to nominate a candidate, and the nominee does not have to be a Murie member. Therefore, we are asking for nominations from you for candidates for Conservation Awards and for Education Awards. Murie’s Board of Directors and Banquet Committee will review the nominations and determine award recipients. Send your nominations to Murie Audubon Society, P.O. Box 2112, Casper, WY 82602; or you may send them by email to any board member (email addresses are listed in this newsletter under “Murie Audubon Society Chapter Officers”).
Please be detailed, descriptive, and specific in your reasons for nominating candidates. Please return your nominations by January 25, 2010.
Thank You!!
Donna Walgren
Fall migration may be shutting down early with the advent of the below normal temps and snow flurries. We are still seeing some migrating warblers – The Lawrences southwest of Casper had a brief visit from a Blackburnian Warbler, and yellow-rumps are still being seen. An Anna’s Hummingbird was reported in the Jackson area, and Common Loons have been reported around the state. Sandhill Cranes are moving through – Stacey Scott had a flock on 33 Mile Rd. northwest of Casper, the Martins had 53 southwest of Casper, and Bruce and I had a small flock of 15 just outside of Douglas. White-crowned sparrows are showing up at feeders along with a White-throat or two.
Anything is possible when birds are on the move, so keep an eye out for that “something special.”
September yard birds – For the month of September, Wayne and I received 200 yard bird selections from 17 states plus the Yukon and Brazil, with 92 different species reported. Warblers are still moving through (6 different species reported); flocks of Turkey Vultures getting ready to head south, as are Sandhill Cranes; also getting more reports of woodpeckers (7 different species). First place in September was a tie between Black-capped Chickadee and Yellow-rumped Warbler. The no. 2 spot went to the Turkey Vulture; White-crowned Sparrow was in third place. Fourth place was a tie between Clark’s Nutcracker and Sandhill Crane.
Wyoming Yard Birds
Casper: Jim Herold – Blue Jay, Pat Classen – Blue Jay, Cecil Foote – Western Meadowlark, Brigid Herold – Mourning Dove, Chris Michelson – Blue Jay, Rose-Mary King – Wilson’s Warbler, Anna Moscicki – Rock Wren, Casper College Greenhouse – Turkey Vulture, Tony Martin – 53 Sandhill Cranes, Harry Martin – 53 Sandhill Cranes, Stacey Scott – Eastern Screech-Owl, Ann Hines – Cedar Waxwing, Donna Walgren – Red-winged Black-bird
Buffalo: Deane Bjerke – Wilson’s Warbler
Edness Kimball Wilkins SP: Chris Michelson – Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
Dubois: Anna Moscicki – Mountain Bluebird, Michael Kenney – Steller’s Jay
Evanston: Patti Gorman – Turkey Vulture
Lovell: Glen Olsen – Brown Creeper
Mills: Bruce Walgren – Blue Jay
Riverton: Suzanne Hargis – Orange-crowned Warbler, Bob Hargis – Wilson’s Warbler
Shawnee: Donna Walgren – Turkey Vulture
Whitman: Bruce Walgren – Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Yellowstone NP: Anna Moscicki – Common Loon, Michael Kenney – Baird’s Sandpiper.
Thanks to all who helped with the Yard Bird Project in September!! Send your bird notes and yard bird reports to Donna Walgren, 4311 S. Center St., Casper, WY 82601, or email to Piranga@bresnan.net, or phone 234-7455. Good Birding!!! Donna Walgren
Many, many thanks and accolades to the following people who for many years have religiously donated to the Audubon Adventures program.
Adding to those sponsors in September and October newsletter are:
Two or more classrooms: Grace Jenkins, Laurie Fletcher, Gloria and Jim Lawrence, Starla and Mike Mammon, Beecher Strube, Judi Van Rensselaer, Jacque Warburton, Barbara Bentzin, Lois Layton, Dr. and Mrs. Robert Narotsky and Jim Brown.
One classroom: June Calmes, Herb Waterman, Whitney Bradley, Patrick Dixon, Bonnie Lombardo, Donna and Terri Cleveland, Mary and Walt Hein, Frank Odasz, Ann and Wilmer Hines, and Bobbie Roberts.
All of these people have been faithful sponsors.
I feel this is vital part the of our children's education. We would have difficulty continuing this program without your support.
You may not have received thank you notes for your contributions due to circumstances beyond my control. You should be receiving them soon. Education Chair – Ann Hines
The fall sunflower seed sale was held on October 19, 2009. We sold 66 bags of seeds on a wintery day. Perhaps cold weather and slippery streets kept folks at home, but we thank those of you who came out and purchased seeds. Depending upon interest, we may have another sale in February, 2010.
First though, a big thank you to Tim Schlager and his employees for hosting the sale and placing the seeds within easy reach.
Thanks to Chris Michelson, Larry and Kathy Keffer, and Stacey Scott for helping load seeds for our customers.
We also thank the following individuals for donating seed to the Audubon Center at Garden Creek: Kathy Davis, Shirin Hola, Kathy Knapp, Lance and Linda Neiberger, Bart Rea, Betty Rickman, Jackie Valdez, Christa Wiggs, JP Cavigelli, Don and Hallie Harris, Dwaine Waggoner, and Chris Michelson. Seed-Sale Chair - Bruce Walgren
AUDUBON CENTER AT GARDEN CREEK
Mule and whitetail deer, pronghorn, prairie dogs, raccoons, squirrels, magpies, jays, juncos, chickadees, sparrows, towhees, finches, hawks, blue skies, white snow, warm sun, clearing winds, the flowing water of Garden Creek, the vistas of Casper, and the mountain—there is much here to entertain, inspire and learn from, even as the temperatures drop and the days get shorter. I hope you will find the time to visit during the month of November. If you tire of all things natural, remember the assortment of magazines, books and videos that are waiting to be enjoyed. Also look for a selection of books at the General Meeting each month that will be available for check out.
As you think about the gift giving season, there’s quite the assortment of stuffed musical birds for sale that would delight youngsters of all ages. And what birder on your list wouldn’t love a Sibley’s guide of their very own!
Brown Bag Birding every Thursday at 12:00 noon is another chance to visit the Center and enjoy the wildlife antics and converse with other birders.
I wanted to share with you some words I received from just two of the teachers who brought students here to the Center:
“Thank you for the great experience we had on our nature walk. The children asked if we could go back to the Audubon Center. They loved it.”
“The students had a fabulous time and learned lots. You all did a wonderful job….”
I had the good fortune to be a part of the Garden Creek clean-up on Saturday. It was inspiring, not the trash, but what a small group of ordinary people can do in a short amount of time.
I share this with all of you, because it is your cooperation, generosity and support that this place exists and continues to enrich the lives of children and adults alike. So thank you to all who donate time, money, bird seed, and energy, it does matter and it does make a difference.
Special thanks to Kathy Privik and Dwaine Wagoner, for braving the cold, snow, wet AND energetic children.
Being here at the Center and in this community reminds me of Margaret Meade’s words: “Never doubt that a small group of concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.”
Hope November brings you to the Center and birds to your feeders!
ACGC Director - Wanda Peters
LISTSERV: this term looks like it's missing an "e", but that's how it's spelled. A listserv, or list server, is a small program that automatically sends messages to multiple e-mail addresses on a mailing list. When someone subscribes to a mailing list, the listserv will automatically add the address and distribute future e-mail messages to that address along with all the others on the list.
WyoBirds: this is pretty much self explanatory: it’s about Wyoming Birds. So WyoBirds Listserv is a subscription only service that keeps subscribers apprised of birds, bird sightings, and bird related activities within the state of Wyoming. All subscribers may post a sighting or bird-related topic for the viewing and comments of other subscribers. Listservs have pretty much replaced the old telephone bird hotlines that were popular a few years ago.
Will Cornell from Rock Springs began WyoBirds a few years ago, and the list has grown so that we now have more than 200 members. Murie Audubon began paying for the service when the cost became too large for one individual to absorb, and as it turned out, it was less expensive than the old bird hot line. In August, 2009 we increased the membership level from 200 to a maximum of 250. At that time we received donations (as in past years) from several WyoBirds subscribers to help pay for the cost to maintain this valuable service. At this time we would like to thank those individuals for their support: Jim and Gloria Lawrence, Chris Michelson, Pat Dixon, Chuck Seniawski, RC Cox, Joyce Cicco and Josephine Cook.
If you are interested in becoming a subscriber to WyoBirds, please visit the following web site: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/scripts/wa.exe?A0=wyobirds and click on the Subscribe link on left side of the screen. Conversely, if you find that you are a subscriber and are not using the service, please unsubscribe so that we have room for other potential subscribers. Also, you may help pay for this service by sending donations to Murie Audubon at our PO Box address. Bruce Walgren
We want to keep our membership up-to-date with the latest activities of Murie, i.e. meetings, field trips, classes, seed sales, etc. Most of the time these activities are listed in the monthly newsletter, but sometimes an activity is organized after the newsletter comes out or we schedule something during the summer. To that end, we are compiling a group list of members’ emails to send out notices of an up-coming activity. If you would like to receive notices of up-coming new activities or a reminder notice for a published activity, please send you email address to Bruce Walgren (bruce_walgren@bresnan.net) who will manage this list and send out the notices. He has a great way of protecting the addresses and your email program will think you are getting a message from Bruce and not block it as spam because it is going to a lot of addresses (at least that is the theory!)
Rose-Mary King
SAVE A TREE, SAVE ALOT OF INK, SAVE POSTAGE, SAVE OUR FOLDERS’ FINGERS FROM GETTING BLISTERS!!!
Thank you for electing to read your newsletter here.
Can you have 1-2 spare hours a month and help fold the paper newsletter. We have a great time and the more folding, the less time it takes. Due to new postal regulations, we now have to tape the newsletters closed which adds one more step in the preparations for mailing. Usually we fold the last or first week of the month. I will call you the day before and we fold at ACGC.
Rose-Mary King
COOKIE
AND/OR BAR BAKERS SCHEDULE
Nov. – Starla Mammon & Mary Hein
No Gen. Mtg. in December.
Jan. – Liz Rea , Karen Anfang & Jim Brown
February – Annual Banquet
March – Arlene Carr & Ann Hines
April – Debb Tarr & Dan Van Burgh
May – Kathy Keffer & Jackie Odaz
Thank you to all of you who have volunteered. If you can fill in for someone who can’t bring refreshments, please call me, 237-2392. Those who have signed up to fill in are Kathy Davis, Hallie Harris, Arlene Carr & Kathy Keffer. Hospitality Chair - Betty Krause
(Harry Martin Cartoons)
