The annual subscription fee for a hard copy of The Fish Hawk Herald is $15 for one year, or $25 for two years. To subscribe to a mailed copy send a check payable to:

COEUR D'ALENE AUDUBON CHAPTER,

c/o Membership

P.O. Box 361

Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816

(Some of you have paid for two years, and some have a different expiration date. Please call Jan at 667-6209 if you are unsure of your subscription status.)

Articles for the newsletters are welcome. Please submit to the editor Shirley Sturts at: shirley.sturts@gmail.com by the 15^th of each month. All submissions are subject to editing.

Thank you and happy reading!

ARTICLES: Roger Young Memoiral - The Bluebirds are Back - Adopt-A-Highway - Audubon June Picnic - Audubon Fundraising Yard Sale - 2009 Yardlist Challenge - Education Committee Presents Bird Program to Home Schoolers - Birding Basics Field Trip -

ROGER YOUNG MEMORIAL

Ed Buchler

Your board decided to make use of the Susan Weller Memorial Fund this year to purchase a remembrance for Roger Young, a long-time Audubon member, pioneer in the preservation of Tubbs Hill and builder of hundreds of bluebird nest boxes. We have contracted to have the following inscription etched in one of the rocks at the east entrance to the Tubbs Hill trail: CDA AUDUBON REMEMBERS ROGER YOUNG. It will probably be there by the time you receive this newsletter. The rock is within viewing distance of the home where Roger lived in his youth.

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THE BLUEBIRDS ARE BACK

There're back! The bluebirds are back! Same time, same place! For the past four years a pair of Western Bluebirds have nested in this one particular bird house on Johnson's Farm. And for the past four years they have been successful. Last year they successfully raised two clutches!. Five years ago Roger Young and I put six bird houses along a line of old fence posts that edged the pasture on Johnson's Farm. That day, when we had finished, we looked back along the fence row and a pair of Western Bluebirds were already at this particular house (JF 3): "Let's take this one - it's perfect!". And every year since then they have been back to the same house. Are they the same birds? Or the offspring? Sibley says that bluebirds and relatives (Turdidae) live for several years and are monogamous from year-to-year. So, I assume these are the same couple, back again for another summer of chick raising. I've had other bluebirds in other houses nearby, but none consistently from one year to the next. So, I assume, this couple, as they sit in their tree in Southern California over the winter talking to their friends, say to them "Oh, we're spending the summer again in Coeur d'Alene!".

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ADOPT - A - HIGHWAY PROJECT
The May 22 event has been cancelled = a sheriff’s work crew recently cleaned the area)

Time again for some spring cleaning along the two mile stretch of Highway 95 that our chapter of Audubon has adopted. We meet at the Mica Grange and work our way down the backside of the hill going south. Our first trip out was in the fall of 2003 and every spring and fall we return to do some badly needed tidying up.

The date this spring is Saturday, May 22. Meet at the Grange for the ritual fueling up with donuts and juice at 8:00 a.m. Plan on about 1-2 hours. Long pants, long sleeves, and water are advisable. Come out and enjoy a pretty spring morning and see if this is the time that one of us finds a treasure out there.

For more info call Judy Waring at 765-5378.

AUDUBON JUNE PICNIC

Date: Tuesday, June 1

Time: 5:00 p.m. – Social

6:00 p.m. – Dinner

Place: Higgens Point – Picnic pavilion – Reserved for Audubon

Bring: Something to grill and a dish to share, eating and cooking utensils and drinks. Briquettes will be provided.

This site is handicapped accessible and the gate will be unlocked for us. The pavilion is being reserved by Idaho Parks and Recreation at no cost to us as a thank you to Audubon for habitat improvement projects.

JOIN US FOR AN EVENING OVERLOOKING LAKE COEUR D’ALENE !

Audubon Fundraising Yard Sale

Date: June 19th, Saturday (Set up June 18,

Friday - call for time)

Time: 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Location: Derek Antonelli's home and garden, 821 W. Mustang Ave., Hayden.

Save your good throw-a-ways re-usable "junk": furniture, tools, pots, pans, dishes, books, music, and lots of starter plants from our gardens, as we did in the past.

Organizing Committee: Lynn Sheridan - 765-2603, Jan Severtson 667-6209 and Valerie Zagar 819-5115 --

volunteers Needed! Call Organizing Committee

2009 YARDLIST CHALLENGE

Lisa Hardy

Finally, after some technical problems on my part, here are the results of the 2009 Yardlist Challenge. Eight yards reported 2009 lists, for a total of 92 species.

Highlights include Common Nighthawk spotted by Donni Moen, Northern Saw-whet Owl detected by Kris Buchler and Shirley Sturts, Wilson's Snipe heard by Doug Ward, and Brewer's Backbird found by Janet Callen. While five yards reported Steller's Jay, only the Warings spotted a Blue Jay, and Lynn Sheridan reported the only hybrid Steller's X Blue Jay.

Several reporters noted nests in their yards: Western Flycatcher (Shirley Sturts), and Tree Swallow, Black-capped Chickadee, House Wren and ... mice hosted by Donni Moen's nesting boxes.

Valerie Zagar noted that a water feature in her yard was a big draw for many species, including nuthatches and finches.

Northern Saw-whet Owl

Photograph by Wayne Tree

A few more statistics: 20 species were reported from only a single yard, and 5 species (Northern Flicker,

Black-capped Chickadee, Mountain Chickadee, American Robin, Dark-eyed Junco) were reported from all eight yards.

A big thank-you to all reporters. The complete, tabulated 2009 results can be found on the website. And remember that the "challenge" is a personal one - to jot down a few notes from time-to-time on the world going on outside your door.

Education Committee Presents Bird Program to Home-schoolers.

Eula Hickam

On April 9^th, Eula Hickam and Kris Buchler presented a program on Adaptations and Bird Songs to about 60 Middle-schoolers who are part of the Idaho Virtual Academy. This chartered school is free to families that are home-schooling their children. While parents teach most of the curriculum, several times a year the group gets together for a day of enrichment. On this day, students had science projects that they had been working on to share with each other. Our program added an enrichment element to their learning. In addition to the presentation, 20 copies of “Birds of the Inland Northwest and Northern Rockies” were given out to families that entered a drawing. These books, donated to the Coeur d’Alene Chapter, are to be put into the hands of children. This was a great opportunity!

Later this summer, we’ll be traveling to the Sandpoint Library to present a program to 1st -4^th grade children. Anyone who is interested in being on the Education Committee should contact Eula Hickam at 208-661-3228.

summer field trip opportunity

Carrie Hugo

There will be a summer field trip opportunity to see a MAPS (monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) bird banding station along the north fork of the CdA River. On June 23rd we will meet at the Fernan Ranger District at 7:00am. Folks should bring bug spray (there will be plenty of mosquitos this year!!), field guides, binoculars, cameras, and snacks. We can plan to have lunch at the Rose Lake Cafe on the way home, or bring sack lunches and picnic somewhere along the way. Those who want to attend should call me to RSVP so I can provide a head count to the banders from the USFWS. 769-5048.

A Maps Banding Station

Photograph by Lisa Hardy

TUBBS HILL OUTING April 20, 2010

Lynn Sheridan

It was a lovely warm day for our outing. Two enthusiastic birders joined me at 11am, for a walk up the sunny side of Tubbs Hill. We admired the wide array of flowers and some birds. The highlight was the sounds of 2 Winter Wren tinkling back and forth. We finally saw one in the leaves. Other treats were Barn and Violet Green- Swallow, Pygmy and Red-breasted Nuthatch, Northern Flicker. Robins were heard, but not seen. The Osprey was perched on its snag nest. Three male Mallard were sitting on the dock.

The flowers were profuse. Best were yellow glacier lilies, lavender shooting stars, pink spring beauties,

and just emerging from buds--- Chocolate Lilies.

Thank you, Susan and Don Carey. I apologize for having to change the date twice,

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BIRDING BASICS FIELD TRIP 2010

Kris Buchler

April 10 brought sunshine and 19 eager birders to Fernan Lake. Owners of spotting scopes generously shared them so everyone could observe the heron rookery with several pairs actively arranging nesting materials or in a few cases, incubating eggs. I can only account for about 8 active nests at this time. This is down from 12 nesting attempts last year and 28 in 2008. Reasons for the decline may be the FHA road project and the death of the main nest tree, now a prime ponderosa snag. A few herons appeared to still be nest-building. At least two were down in the nests incubating. I usually have observed chicks being fed by the beginning of May.

A new addition to this Idaho Birding Trail site is a pair of Bald Eagles who are not yet nesting but seem to be establishing a territory. They perched nicely for the birders in the large snag overlooking the rookery. These eagles have been observed in the vicinity the last few weeks. Hopefully, they will be able to remain but face stiff competition from the pair who nest on the east end of Fernan Lake. Several groups of at least 3 have been observed soaring as well as some interactions with screeching and irritable behaviors. We will follow the drama. I’ve asked birders and residents of Fernan to keep records daily of all eagle sightings so we can determine which pair we are seeing and where.

Also seen and heard near the docks were Tree Swallow, Violet-green Swallow, House Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-winged Black-bird. Double-crested Cormorant, Mallard, and Bufflehead.

Driving along Fernan Lake currently does not offer stopping opportunities due to the FHA road project. The best pullout for eagle nest observing near the east end has been blocked with large boulders. Consequently, our group went to the far end to the large pullout near the wetlands. The water is up and the yellow pond lily is just emerging in Lily Pad Bay. In addition to female Common Goldeneye seen along the lake, at this location we saw Osprey, 2 more Bald Eagle, Red-necked Grebe, Canada Goose, Wood Duck, Bufflehead, Great Blue Heron, Double-crested Cormorant and Song Sparrow. The eagle nest across the lake appears very tattered and mostly destroyed by recent strong winds.

A drive further up Fernan Creek gave everyone a complete look at the road project and some new species. We added many European Starling, American Robin, Red-winged Blackbird, Black-billed Magpie and a Red-tailed Hawk. We failed to attract the Virginia Rail which we found in February or a Sora which we had hoped to find.

We welcomed many birders new to our group and hope all of you will join us again in the near future. Our chapter is always eager to encourage new birders in this wonderful hobby.

Participants were: Derek Antonelli, Linda Bernhardt, Ed and Kris Buchler, Roland Craft, Bill Gundlach, Kathy McKeown, Judy and Fred McMurray, George and Katie Sayler, Jan Severtson, Lynn Sheridan, Ruth Spencer, Adela Sussman, Margie VanVlymen, George Wilson, and Linda Wright.

Coeur d’Alene Audubon Member Survey

What is your preferred day for meeting each month next year?

Monday	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
Tuesday	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
Wednesday	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
Thursday	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
Friday	1st	2nd	3rd	4th

What is your preferred meeting time? Please circle one: 5:30pm 6:30pm 7:00pm

Do you support having meetings and/or organized field trips through the summer?

Please circle one: Meetings Field Trips Both

What topics would you like to learn about during speaker presentations? Please list a few.

Are you interested in skill building workshops indoors and in the field? Please circle any option and/or provide suggestions:

Birding by ear

Birding by habitat

Birding technology workshops

Other sugguestions:_______________________________________________________

Would you be willing to pay a small amount in addition to your annual membership (for example- no more than $10.00 per year) to put towards refreshments, educational materials, presenter fees, volunteer reimbursement etc? Please circle one:

Yes No

If organized overnight field trips are offered would you be likely to attend (for example, trips to southern Idaho to watch sage grouse on their leks)?

Yes No

If you are not currently attending meetings could you please tell us why and any changes you suggest to the meeting timing, format etc that would make you more likely to attend?

If childcare in a safe and fun environment was provided for a nominal fee- would you be more likely to attend?

Yes No Not Applicable

If you have any additional comments or ideas, please write them on the back of this page.

Please help us by filling in the survey and sending it to:

Coeur d’Alene Audubon - P.O. Box 361

Coeur d’Alene, 83816

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