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THE FISH HAWK HERALD
December 2003
Volume
13 Issue 4
Coeur d’Alene
Chapter of the National Audubon Society
"Birds are sensitive
indicators of the environment, a sort of 'ecological litmus paper' the
observation of birds leads inevitably to environmental awareness."
Roger Tory Peterson
"Over increasingly large
areas of the United States spring now comes unheralded by the return of the
birds and the early mornings are strangely silent where once they were filled with
the beauty of bird song. "
Rachel Carson
Silent Spring
CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNTS
An Audubon News Release
Audubon calls upon volunteers to join with 
birders
across the western hemisphere and participate in Audubon's longest-running
wintertime tradition, the annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC). Counts are open to birders of all skill
levels, either by participating on a team out in the field or at their feeders.
This year nearly 2,000 individual counts are scheduled to take place throughout
the Americas from December 14, 2003 to January 5, 2004.
(See
page 2 and 3 for details about the three counts in our area. Volunteers are always welcome.)
During this year's count, we are highlighting
the fact that many of the birds that will be counted are produced in the great
North American boreal forest that extends from Alaska to Eastern Canada. At the
close of the count, Audubon will analyze the population status and trends of
the birds of the boreal forests to see how these species are faring. Boreal species 
that appear to be declining that are
commonly seen on Christmas Bird Counts include Belted Kingfisher, Northern
Flicker, White-throated Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Purple Finch, Pine
Siskin, and especially Rusty Blackbird. (Editors
note: White-throated Sparrow, Purple Finch and Rusty Blackbird would be
accidental in our area and if reported would need good documentation to be
accepted. There are a few winter records for the White-crowned Sparrow in North
Idaho but most of them winter south or west of us. Documentation would be needed for acceptance of any sightings of
the White-crowned Sparrow in winter.)
CBC began over a century ago when 27
conservationists in 25 localities, led by scientist Frank Chapman, changed the
course of ornithological history. On
Christmas Day 1900, the small group of conservationists posed an alternative to
the "side-hunt," a Christmas day activity in which teams competed to
see who could shoot the most birds and small mammals. Instead, Chapman proposed to identify, count, and record all the
birds they saw, founding what is now considered to be the most significant citizen-based
conservation effort and a more than century-old institution.
Today, over 55,000 volunteers from all 50
states, every Canadian province, parts of Central and South America, Bermuda,
the West Indies, and Pacific islands count and record every individual bird and
bird species seen in a specified area.
During the 103rd count, about 73 million birds were counted.
Thanks in part to Bird Studies Canada, a leading not-for-profit conservation
organization that is the Canadian partner for the CBC, last year again saw a
record high - this time, 1,981 individual counts. Each count group completes a census of the birds found during one
24-hour period between December 14 and January 5 in a designated circle 15 miles
in diameter-about 177 square miles.
Apart from its attraction as a social and competitive event, CBC reveals
valuable scientific data. Now it its
104th year, CBC is larger than ever, expanding its geographical
range and accumulating information about the winter distribution of various
birds, and it is vital in monitoring the status of resident and migratory birds
across the Western Hemisphere. The
data, 100% volunteer generated, have become a crucial part of the U.S.
Government's natural history monitoring database. Articles published in the 103rd CBC issue of American Birds helped ornithologists
better understand the magnitude of the effects of West Nile virus on regional
bird populations. In addition, count results
from 1900 to the present are available through Audubon's website http://www.audubon.org/bird/cbc.
"Backed with
over a century of participation and collected data, the CBC is the
longest-running, volunteer-based bird census, spanning three human
generations," said Geoff LeBaron, director of the Christmas Bird
Count. The CBC has evolved into a
powerful and important tool, one probably inconceivable to any of the 27
participants on the first Christmas Bird Count. With continually growing environmental pressures, it seems likely
that today's participants cannot possibly fathom the value of their efforts now
and in the next century.
CBC compilers enter their count data via
Audubon's website www.audubon.org/bird/cbc
or Bird Studies, Canada's homepage www.bsc-eoc.org
where the 104th Count results will be viewable in near
real-time. Explore this information for
the winter of 2003-2004 or visit a count from the past. See if and how the state of your local birds
has changed during the last 25…50…or 100 years.
Audubon is dedicated to protecting birds
and other wildlife and the habitat that supports them. Our national network of community-based
Audubon nature centers and chapters, environmental education programs, and
advocacy on behalf of areas sustaining important bird populations engage
missions of people of all ages and backgrounds in positive conservation experiences.
Audubon Members make
a difference
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THE CHRISTMAS
BIRD COUNTS - POTLUCK AND PIZZA PARTY
Beginning and experienced birders are all
welcome and needed to participate in our three local Christmas Bird
Counts. You can join a team in the field
or count at your feeder if you live within the count circle. See "Field
Trips" on page 3 for details.
Christmas Potluck
After the December 14 bird count--Host Herb and Jan Severtson
You are all invited to come and share
potluck whether you have "counted" birds or not. The sign-up sheet will be at the Dec 8th
meeting or please call Jan at 667-6209.
Bring your own beverage and dish with servers to share: appetizers,
salads, desserts, and bread and butter.
Jan is making lasagna, both vegetarian and traditional. Place settings will be provided. We start at 4 p.m. Hope to see you!!
Christmas Pizza
Party After the January 4th bird count Host Ed and Kris Buchler
We will get started about
4:30 p.m.. Small salads, desserts, side dish or drinks are welcome. RSVP Kris 664-4739. Those attending will
share cost of the pizzas.
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2003-YARD
LIST CHALLENGE
How is your
yard-list coming along this year? You have one more month to whip it into
shape. On January 1, tally up your species and submit to:
Lisa Hardy
2153B Old River Road
Kingston, Idaho 83839
You will need to submit a list of species
and information about your location. Note whether you are in city limits,
urban, suburban or rural, whether you have a water view, type of vegetation and
cover available, feeders provided etc.
Remember, your list should include all birds seen or heard from your
yard, so you can include, for example, the geese that flew over at 3000’, or
the owl you heard one night in the neighbor’s yard. What was your favorite bird?
Share any interesting bird behavior you noted while observing birds in
your yard.
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BALD EAGLE SURVEY AND WATCH PROGRAM
For the past 6 years Corrine Cameron has
been counting eagles at Wolf Lodge and Beauty Bays for the BLM. She counts once a week between November 15
and February 1.
Other members provide scopes and answer questions at Bald Eagle
viewing areas in Wolf Lodge and Beauty Bay between December 26 and January 1.
For information or to help out with this program, contact Scott
Robinson at the BLM office, 769-5048
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EDUCATION REPORT
"Audubon
Adventures" education kits are in the mail! The Margaret W. Reed
Foundation helped sponsor 135 third and fifth grade classrooms this year.
All elementary schools have been served in the Silver Valley, Harrison,
Plummer/ Worley, Post Falls, Lakeland and Coeur d'Alene school districts.
Janet and Kris made all the contacts and completed the paperwork, while Scott
and Mary Lou Reed provided over $5,600 to pay for the kits and shipping.
Costs for these educational materials have risen over the years but the Reeds
continue to support our chapter's efforts.
Units of study
this year include: Coniferous forests, Urban Lands, Wetlands and Grasslands.
The first three are applicable to our area. Urban Lands include yards,
parks and schoolyards, which is ideal for students. Each student receives
four different newsletter/ worksheets about each habitat. Education
Committee members are available for presentations in the classroom.
Lori
Frank, a biology teacher at Coeur d'Alene High School, is again teaching
Advanced Biology/Forestry to six students this year. In November, Kris
Buchler gave a presentation on forest birds to the students.
Education Committee:
Janet Callen and Kris Buchler
"If I were to make a study of the
tracks of animals and represent the .m by plates, I should conclude with the tracks of man"
Henry David Thoreau
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BIRDING THE DRY TORTUGAS
Kris Buchler
There is nothing in the name, “Dry Tortugas” that calls to
you or conjures up an image of a tropical paradise. This small group of keys about 70 miles from Key West does not
have that reputation. However, the name
is well known to birders and for good reason.
The Tortugas are often the first stop for migratory birds crossing the
Gulf of Mexico and heading north in the spring. Many barely arrive, having exhausted themselves over the hundreds
of miles of open oceans, often in inclement weather. Many do not make it,
slowly swallowed by the waves before making landfall. What can they gain from small islands with no source of fresh
water? Rest, recuperation and now,
fresh water is offered. Little food is
available on these small patches of land and insects are scarce. There are
water sources now available on Garden Key and Loggerhead Key due to the efforts
of Florida Audubon societies. Cisterns
collect rainwater and bubble the life giving water into two fountains with
shallow pools. Humans
Ed and I provide their own water. We traveled to the
Tortugas on the 63-foot yacht, Tiburon and were two of fourteen birders with
Florida Nature Tours. We slept three
nights on the boat along with our two guides, Wes Biggs and Murray Gardler, and
four crew. This tour offered cabins for
singles and doubles while others provide dormitory cabins. There were two heads with showers, which is
actually the bathroom itself. Cabins had a small sink, two bunks and a
fan. The Tortugas can be reached by a
tour like ours where we slept on the boat, or, for day trips by traveling about
2-3 hours on huge catamarans or taking a seaplane. The campground was closed so there are no overnight
accommodations on Garden Key. The
Tortugas are a National Park and administered by the National Park Service.
There is no way to adequately describe the
vision of Garden Key with the historical Fort Jefferson thrusting over three
tall stories into the skyline. It is
surreal. The trip is worth just seeing
this structure and learning about its Civil War history. After cruising the gulf for sightings of
pelagic birds such as Bridled Tern, Brown Booby, Magnificent Frigate Bird,
Northern Gannet and Roseate Tern, we alighted on Garden Key to discover its
hidden “jewels” within and outside the crumbling brick walls of the fort. Our first rare discovery was the lone Black
Noddy perched among over 
400
Brown Noddy on the pilings of the old coal docks. We knew it was good when we saw the excitement of our guides.
They next led us
through the small interior of the fort where we spent
many quiet moments sitting and observing avians attracted to the fountain or
strolling the grounds where we discovered the Caribbean Short-eared Owl among
the ruins of old officers’ quarters.
Night-blooming Cereus abounds in these grounds providing beautiful white
evening and early morning blossoms.
Blue Grosbeak dotted the landscape along with the fiery Summer
Tanager. Warblers hounded the fountain
and surrounding trees giving us great looks at Hooded , Black and White ,
Palm and Prairie Warblers. They were joined by Indigo Bunting,
Ovenbird, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, White-eyed Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo,
Black-whiskered Vireo and Great Crested Flycatcher. Numerous Cattle Egrets spotted the lawns with an occasional
exhausted egret sitting in the fountain itself, hoping to snag a warbler as a
morsel. These birds are so weak they
can be gently picked up and moved, as small birds won’t come to the water when
the predator is present.
Our other “big find” at Fort Jefferson was a bird that might be
considered “ho hum” in North Idaho.
When it was spotted, all the bird guides went running for their phones
to alert the rare bird hotlines that a “******************” was spotted on
Garden Key. The cryptic bird was there
that one day but not seen again.
However we did find a Chuck-will’s-widow, another very cryptically colored
bird.
Our trip over
to nearby Loggerhead Key was eventful.
It is a long narrow key lending itself to a fairly thorough surveying
technique of walking the length of the island.
This produced the coveted and 
elusive Mangrove Cuckoo, American
Bittern, Gray Kingbird, Eurasian Collared Dove, more warblers and a
Yellow-billed Cuckoo. The key has a
lighthouse as well as housing for some park personnel and volunteers who stay
for periods of several weeks. The ones
we met were working on removing noxious weeds and conducting studies on sea
turtles during egg laying, when the key is off-limits to visitors.
Our nights were spent in the harbor at Garden Key where we were
constantly serenaded by hundreds of Sooty Tern, Brown Noddy and Magnificent
Frigate Bird that have nesting colonies on nearby Bush and Long Keys. Hospital Key is home to nesting Masked
Boobies, a stunning bird. One evening
we took a night walk, exploring the moat surrounding two thirds of Fort
Jefferson. What a place to be on
Halloween!!! It is spooky. We were looking for creatures in the moat
and found nurse shark and pipefish as well as numerous invertebrates like
lobster, brittle stars, sea cucumbers and colorful nudibranchs. Others took a candle light historical tour
of the fort.
A trip to the
Dry Tortugas is certainly an all-around experience as well as a unique birding
opportunity. Trips are offered April
through early May and each trip will encounter some different species because
of the timing of the migration and weather patterns. Inclement weather may produce the most numbers in bird species
but we were satisfied with our glorious sunny days and beautiful sunsets. A fictional account of Fort Jefferson’s
history is mystery author Nevada Barr’s “Flashback”, which captures
much of the essence of
Garden Key and Fort Jefferson. A fun read.
The bird that
caused such a stir on garden Key was a Long-eared Owl, 
way out of its range and a rarity
there.
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ORIGINS OF BIRD NAMES
Taken from: Words for Birds: A Lexicon of North American
Birds with Biographical Notes
MacGillivray's Warbler Oporornis tolmieri
William
MacGillivray was a Scots naturalist who was born in 1796 and died in 1852,
after an abortive effort in medicine; he began his studies in zoology in
1817. He was a "natural"; a
fine scholar and a great field observer and recorder as well as a gifted
author.
The species
name comes from William Fraser Tolmie, a Scots doctor and an officer in the
Hudson's Bay Company. He was born in
1812 in Inverness and died in Victoria, British Columbia, in 1886. He was educated in Glasgow as a physician and
shortly after graduation joined the Hudson's Bay Company (1832). In 1833 he was
stationed in British Columbia to which post he arrived after a voyage around
the Horn. Shortly afterward, he made
the first recorded ascent to the peak of Mt. Rainier.
John K. Townsend met him at Fort Vancouver in
1836 and named the warbler in his honor Tolmie became Chief Factor in 1856 and
retired from the Company in 1860.
Townsend's Warbler Dendroica townsendi
John Kirk
Townsend (1808-1851) was one of the notable ornithologists in Philadelphia in
the first half of the nineteenth century.
He was born into a prominent Quaker family and studied at Quaker
schools, where his interest in natural history was encouraged.
At the age of
25, Townsend persuaded the reclusive Nuttall to join him on a trip to the
Pacific Northwest. Together they joined
the Wyeth expedition and, while Nuttall returned overland, Townsend came back
by ship via Chile and around the Horn.
The results of their collecting in the west caused Audubon great
anxiety. He desperately wished to
finish the Birds of America but
dared not to do so without inspecting the specimens brought back from the
west. The skins had been deposited at
the Academy in Philadelphia and there Audubon's enemies tried to prevent his
drawing or examining them. A direct
approach to Nuttall proved to be initially unsuccessful, but he finally
relented. When Townsend returned
without additional skins, it was only his impoverished condition that made it
possible for Audubon to gain access to them by paying.
Townsend's
account of his trip was published in 1839 and remains a classic of its
kind. In 1840 he started a book on the Ornithology of the United States of North
America. Only one small part
appeared and its failure served to release the printer to undertake the quarto
version of Audubon's Birds of
America. It has been thought
that Townsend stopped his effort when he realized that it would have to compete
with Audubon's; a tough act to follow.
In 1842 he was
in Washington in a rather junior position at the National Institute. By 1845 he was back in Philadelphia studying
dentistry! He never practiced the
profession, and, as his health failed, had to give up many projects.
He had little
luck--even the fact fact his wife's sister married Baird's brother - did
nothing to further his career.
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11th ANNUAL
BIRD FEEDER WATCH
Sign up to count the birds at your
feeder 4 times during the winter (starts Dec.15). The purpose of the survey is to share information about the birds
coming to our feeders. The results will
be summarized in the March issue of the newsletter.
If
you participate in the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology "Project Feeder
Watch", you could use the same data for our local feeder survey.
You can pick up survey forms at our
December meeting or call Shirley Sturts - 664-5318, and she will send you
one.
See
last years results
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Kootenai County Big Year Additions since the November 2003
Newsletter (see February-November Newsletters or go to our Website to see bird
species seen so far this year in Kootenai County (Current total 191)
Common Redpoll 1+ Nov. 17 and Nov. 26 Athol and Armstrong
Hill, CDA (SRED,KBUC)
Northern Saw-whet Owl 1
injured one picked up and now in rehab (BPAR)
Western Screech Owl 1
injued one picked up and now in rehab (BPAR)
=======================
Other Sightings of Interest
Pacific Loon 1 Gotham Bay, CDA Lake Nov. 10 (EKEN)
Common Loon 1 Mica Bay
Survey Nov. 12 (SSTU,KBUC)
Horned Grebe 1 Mica Bay
Survey, CDA Lake Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU)
Double-crested Cormorant 7 on
pilings off Rosenberry Drive (NIC Dike Road) Nov.2 (TPOT, SSTU) and Nov. 16
(PWAR)
Tundra Swan 2 Cougar Bay, CDA Lake Nov. 2 (RYOU)
Ring-necked Duck 40+ Mica
Bay Survey, CDA Lake Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU)
Bufflehead 4 Fernan
Lake (1st this fall on Fernan) Nov. 2 (SSTU)
Common Merganser 6-8 Fernan
Lake (1st this fall on Fernan) Nov. 2 (SSTU)
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 Arrowhead
Rd. CDA Nov. 11 (TPOT)
Bald Eagle 5 Wolf
Lodge Bay (1st winter Bald Eagle Survey for the BLM) November 18
(CCAM); 1 Mica Bay Nov 17 (DGRA); 1 immature on a walk along the North Fork of
the CDA River near her home Nov. 22 (LHAR)
Northern Pygmy-Owl 1 Fernan
lake Nov. 13 (JHOL) 1 was hit by a car
on the Farragut State Park Rd. (EBUC)
Herring Gull 1 Mica Bay
Survey Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU)
Belted Kingfisher 1 Mica Bay
Survey, CDA Lake Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU)
Downy Woodpecker 1 Mica Bay
Survey Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU); 1 showed up at her feeder Armstrong Park Nov. 18
(KBUC)
Hairy Woodpecker 1 Mica Bay
Survey Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU); 1 at her feeder every day Armstrong Park (KBUC);
and one showed up at my feeder Fernan Lake Nov. 22 (SSTU)
Blue Jay 1 hybrid Pine Ave. CDA at
feeder Nov. 11 (NMER)
Steller's Jay 1 coming
daily to feeder Fernan Lake (SSTU)
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 2 Mica Bay Survey
(feeder of Jerry Hanson), CDA Lake Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU)
Great Horned Owl 2 Cougar
Bay, CDA Lake Nov. 1 (SSTU,KSTU)
Pygmy Nuthatch several Fairmont Loop Rd. CDA at feeder Nov.
17 (JSEV); 1+ heard in Ponderosa Pine NIC Campus (TPOT,SSTU)
Brown Creeper 1 Arrowhead RD CDA Nov. 16 (TPOT)
Winter Wren 5 on a walk
along the North Fork of the CDA River near her home Nov. 22 (LHAR)
American Dipper 1 on a walk along the North Fork of the CDA
River near her home Nov. 22 (LHAR)
Varied Thrush 5 on a walk along the North Fork of the CDA River near her home
Nov. 22 (LHAR); 1 came in with some robins in her yard, Armstrong Park mid Nov. (KBUC)
Bohemian Waxwing 150 on a walk along the North Fork of the
CDA River near her home Nov. 22 (LHAR)
Northern Shrike 1 Cougar
Bay, CDA Lake Nov. 12 (SSTU,KBUC)
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored)
2 on a walk along the North Fork of the CDA River near her home
Nov. 22 (LHAR) and I have one coming to my feeder on Fernan Lake (SSTU)
Note: Slate-colored which nest in
Canada and the North Eastern U.S.
winter throughout the continental U.S.
They are usually found with flocks of
our resident Oregon Junco.
American Goldfinch 2 Mica Bay
Survey Nov. 12 (at feeder of Jerry Hanson) Nov. 12 (KBUC,SSTU)
Gray-crowned Rosy Finch 3 on a walk along the North Fork of the CDA
River near her home Nov. 22 (LHAR)
Observers: Ed and Kris Buchler
(EBUC.KBUC), Corinne Cameron (CCAM), Roland Craft (RCRA), Diane Gray (DGRA)
Nancy Mertz (NMER) , Lisa Hardy (LHAR), Jannie Holmes (JHOL), Earl Kendle
(EKEN), Beth Paragamian (BPAR), Theresa Potts (TPOT), Sara Reed (SRED, Jan Severtson (JSEV), Keith and Shirley Sturts
(KSTU, SSTU), Phil Waring (PWAR), Roger Young (RYOU)
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