March 2023 |
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Inside this issue:
- What's New
- Upcoming Events
- New & Noteworthy
- Audubon Newhall Preserve
- Feathers Through Our Lenses
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Members and Friends of Hilton Head Audubon,
In this issue, we alert you to the upcoming Board of Directors elections in April and introduce three candidates who are on the slate. Our intiatives and partnerships are growing and we are excited to add diverse experiences and skills to our Board.
Board of Directors Elections In April, you will be receiving an Audubon Election email to vote. Keep an eye out for details about the election process and the board slate in the April Ecobon.
All members of HHIAS are eligible to vote in the election of the Board of Directors. Following that, the Board itself elects its officers, and the President will confirm or select Standing Committee Chairs. At present there are also several member-at-large positions vacant. The new Board begins its service in May.
Most members of your current Board were confirmed for a 2-year term last year, and will serve through the new fiscal year (May 2023 – May 2024): Jack Coleman, Kay Grinnell, Sarah Gustafson, Natalie Hefter, Jane Hester, Lynn Hodgson, Patricia Kappmeyer, Susan Murphy, Laura Voight, Shannon Wilkinson. Short bios of Board members can be found on the website.
Rotating off the Board at the completion of this term is Carlos Chacon, who has been Chair of the Field Trips Committee. Thanks, Carlos!
With the approval of the Board during the 2022 summer, Karen Penale has been filling the position of Chair of the Education Committee, formerly held by Lois Lewis. Hilton Klein and Rosemary Staples have expressed interest in running for Board seats. All three will be on the ballot for a 2-year term beginning in May. Read on for their statements of interest.
March MeetingJoin us on March 14 for a presentation on "Red-cockaded Woodpecker Monitoring, Management, and Recovery at Fort Stewart, Georgia" by Larry Carlile, Chief of the Fish and Wildlife Branch, U.S. Army at Fort Stewart, Georgia. The Red-cockaded Woodpecker is a habitat of the Southeast’s once-vast longleaf pine stands. Its habitat—old pines with very little understory—was shaped by the region’s frequent lightning fires. They also occur in stands of loblolly, slash, and other pine species. The birds dig cavities in living pines softened by heartwood rot. They live in family groups that work together to dig cavities and raise young. The species declined drastically as its original habitat was cut down, and the species was listed as Endangered in 1970. Larry Carlile received his undergraduate degree in Zoology from the University of Georgia (UGA) School of Arts and Sciences. He went on to receive an M.S. degree in Forest Resources and Wildlife Management from the D.B. Warnell School of Forest Resources, also at UGA. Larry began his career at the Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) site at the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory, North Carolina, where he assisted with a study involving the decline of pitch pine populations on drought-stricken mountainous ridges and conducted his master’s research project on bird habitat preferences in varying experimental watersheds. Subsequently, he worked at Tall Timbers Research Station in the Red Hills Region of southwestern Georgia, where he curated a vertebrate museum collection, conducted ornithological surveys on northern bobwhite quail plantations, monitored a red-cockaded woodpecker population in an old-growth longleaf pine forest, assisted with prescribed fire operations, and most importantly, fell in love with longleaf pine/wiregrass ecosystems. Larry began working as a field biologist for the U.S. Army at Fort Stewart, Georgia in 1994. He’s been there ever since and is now the Chief of the Fish and Wildlife Branch where manages a staff of 22 personnel, is responsible for the management and monitoring of federally listed threatened and endangered species, game species, fisheries, pesticide management, and the installation’s Restoration and Environmental Protection Integration program, which has protected 50,000 acres from incompatible development around the boundary of Fort Stewart. Save the Date! April 22Earth Day Beach Clean Up & After-Party at Lucky RoosterHilton Head Audubon has teamed up with the Lowcountry Tri Delt Alumni for this year’s Outside Foundation’s Earth Day Beach Clean Up at Fish Haul Beach. Join this fun and easy way to help our birds! We need volunteers! Sign up for the beach sweep. Lead a bird or nature walk during the Beach Clean Up. This is a great opportunity to show people not so familiar with our beach birds and environment how amazing they are! Contact conservation@hiltonheadaudubon.org to sign up for the beach cleanup. Audubon members and guests are invited to join us afterwards from 4- 6 pm on the enclosed patio at Lucky Rooster, 841 William Hilton Pkwy Unit A. Meet our board members and volunteers, and learn about how you can join us to help promote the awareness and appreciation of nature, preserve and protect wildlife and natural ecosystems, and to encourage responsible environmental stewardship. Admission is free but you must register here to attend. Beverages and nibbles are Dutch treat. Local and National Outreach
President Kay Grinnell and Secretary Patty Kappmeyer gave a presentation to the Camera Club of Hilton Head on the State of Birds in the Lowcountry. If you know of an organizationt who is interested in hosting one of our speakers, please reach out to us at hhiaudubon@hiltonheadaudubon.org. Last month, Hilton Head Audubon received a national interview request from Scripps News to talk about the Great Backyard Bird Count and why it is important. Patty Kappmeyer offered up her backyard and agreed to the interview. Read the article and view the news story linked here.Keep an eye out for the April issue of Local Life on Birds that will feature Hilton Head Audubon members. Happy Birding! Spring migration is almost here! Your Hilton Head Audubon Board and Committee Members.
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Elections Coming in April Statements of Interest: 2023 Candidates for Board of Directors
Hilton J. Klein VMD
I first became interested in wildlife and conservation as a young person while growing up on a farm in rural western Pennsylvania. That interest didn’t just include mammals but also our avian friends .As an undergraduate, it became more apparent to me that, as a society, we should do more to conserve our wildlife by protecting and preserving the environment where animals and humans live so that we all benefit .That interest in birds and in conservation expanded during and after my training as a veterinarian and has become a lifelong interest. I believe that this knowledge allowed me to better understand the complex relationships between humans, all animals, and our environment so that we all can make a difference here in Hilton Head Island in our understanding of and improving the lives of wildlife, birds, and other species. This allows us to better conserve and improve wildlife to enhance the natural beauty of HHI which local residents and visitors enjoy. I believe that by becoming a Board member I can contribute further to the mission of HHI Audubon by giving my time and talents to the organization.
My volunteer work and experience in several state, national, and international nonprofit organizations has helped broaden my knowledge in how to effectively contribute to helping advance the success of different organizations and to better realize their tactical and strategic initiatives. I would hope that I could use that knowledge and skills to help Hilton Head Audubon if elected to the Board.
Over the past several years, I have enjoyed serving on the Conservation Committee and as a volunteer for the Newhall Preserve. I am really pleased to be a newly trained Master Birder and say that I have enjoyed working with my Audubon friends!
Karen Penale
I am a Master Naturalist and have a Palmetto Environmental Education Certification (PEEC). As the current Chair of the Education Committee for Hilton Head Island Audubon, I hope to help start a Junior Audubon to encourage a young population of local birders. A retired teacher with 24 years’ experience, I am also the cofounder of WonderFun Learning, which provides local kids, families and visitors with fun outdoor experiences to learn about the flora, fauna and history of Hilton Head Island.
Rosemary Staples
I moved to Hilton Head in 1993 and became enthralled with Lowcountry history. As a former travel agent, I started working as a guide for various tour operators and a docent for the Coastal Discovery Museum. I’ve written for local magazines, have given speeches about history and occasionally perform as Clara Barton, Founder of the Red Cross, for the Heritage Library. In 2012, I took the Master Naturalist course which sparked a passion for birding, and I also rescue or transport birds for the Birds of Prey in Charleston.
Becoming a better birder is my goal these days, and being active with HHI Audubon seems the best way to accomplish that.
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Volunteer Opportunities
Special Events
Volunteers needed for Earth Day, April 22, Fish Haul Beach Cleanup. Sign up for the beach sweep. Lead a bird or nature walk during the Beach Clean Up. To volunteer email us at: conservation@hiltonheadaudubon.org.
We are looking for volunteers to help in our booth, kids' activities and tours during the Historical Mitchelville Freedom Park's Juneteenth Celebration on Saturday, June 17, 2023. If you are interested in helping out please send an email with your interest to: hhiaudubon@hiltonheadaudubon.orgCommittee OpeningsThe field trip committee is seeking individuals who can help organize field trips. If you are interested please send an email to Lynn Hodgson at hodgson.lynn@aol.comVisit the Volunteer page of our website for all opportunites.
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Joining HHIAS or renewing your membership is easy, click here to complete the online forms. Please consider a contribution beyond the basic annual membership level to support our mission. A reminder that Gift memberships are available for purchase, click here.
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DonationsHilton Head Audubon accepts donations online, using Venmo, or by mailing a check. Donations can also be made in honor or memory of someone by following the instruction on the form. Donate online. Donate by mail.Donate by Venmo. If you have Venmo, scan the Venmo QR code or go onto the Venmo app and find us by typing “HHI Audubon Society” or “@HHIAudubon”. We use our donations to support: advocacy regarding conservation/birding in our region, providing birding education programs to area schools, maintaining and interpreting through signage and tours of the Audubon Newhall Preserve, managing the annual Christmas Bird Count, actively participating in regional Citizen Science programs, and increasing awareness about local conservation projects or concerns.
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Events |
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Our monthly member events are held at 2:30 on the second Tuesday of each Month at The Coastal Discovery Museum's Sea Island Room. Newhall work days take place on the second Saturday of the month.
To view all upcoming events in a calendar format, click here.
Newhall Work Day Saturday March 11, 2023 To learn more, click here.
March Member Meeting Featuring Larry Carlile on Red Cockaded Woodpeckers Tuesday, March 14, 2023 To learn more click here.
April Member Meeting Featuring Riley Egger of the Coastal Conservation League. Tuesday, April 11, 2023 To learn more click here.
Save the Date! April 22, 2023 Earth Day Beach Clean Up Day Join us on the morning of April 22 to help Clean Up Fish Haul Beach. To signup and learn more, email us at: conservation@hiltonheadaudubon.org
Earth Day Social Event Join us at The Lucky Rooster on April 22 from 4-6pm. Admission is free but you must register - click here to attend.
May Member Meeting - Picnic and Birding at Jarvis Creek Park Tuesday, May 9, 2023 To learn more click here. |
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Field Trips and Walks |
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Pinckney Island NWR - March 11 To learn more and register, click here.
Kingfisher Pond Field Trip - March 18 To learn more and register, click here.
Save the Date as we finalize the following field trips! Webb Wildlife Management Area Saturday April 22
Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge Saturday May 6
Newhall Preserve Guided Walks Free guided tours every Tuesday led by Master Birders. Please gather in the parking lot by 8:30 AM.
Pinckney Island NWR Birdability Tours for Mobility Challenged Individuals Tuesdays, March 21 – May 16, 8:30am – 10am To learn more and register, click here. |
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Red-Shouldered Hawk Release at Newhall Preserve by Lynn Hodgson On February 2, Amie Diamond of Sea Pines rescued an injured Red-shouldered Hawk from Hwy 278. She noticed one clearly dead hawk in the middle of the road, and a dazed live one to the side. The live one had feathers in his talons, so she thinks they were fighting. She picked up the live hawk, kept in her garage overnight, then took it to Port Royal, where it was picked up by the Center for Birds of Prey for transport to their facility in Awendaw, SC, where it was rehabilitated.
Joyce and Andy Nielson and Sandee Johnson, from the Center, decided to bring the now-healthy hawk back to Hilton Head for release in the nearest forested expanse to where it was found – Audubon Newhall Preserve. On February 15, all four of them joined Newhall volunteer Lynn Hodgson for the big day. The hawk practically leaped out of the carrier and flew to a nearby tree, where he posed regally while digesting his new surroundings, which included several scolding chickadees and yellow-rumped warblers. After he flew into the forest, those of us preparing to leave the Preserve were treated to the bonus sight of 2 red-tailed hawks flying into the preserve together and proceeding to mate! We are hoping for hawklets, maybe even both red-tailed and red-shouldered, if we are lucky!
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Field Trip Report: Great Backyard Bird Count not in a Backyard! February 18, 2023 by Lynn Hodgson On a 40 degree, blustery but sunny morning, 8 hardy birders joined Lynn Hodgson at the entrance to Bear Island Wildlife Management Area. Water level in Mary’s House Pond was lower than usual, so some of the larger water birds were elsewhere. However, we got a good start on the day with lots of dunlins, least sandpipers, dowitchers, and a few each of Bonaparte’s gulls, Forster’s terns, great and snowy egrets, great blue, little blue, and tricolored herons, plus a few white pelicans hoping for deeper water for fishing. Making our way around the tour route, we found several deeper water impoundments with about 30 graceful avocets, a tight flock of over 100 less graceful American Coots, a few shovelers, and at least 30 glossy and 40 white ibis. A high point was a low flyover by a flock of about 20 roseate spoonbills, beautifully pink against the deep blue sky. Bald eagles, turkey and black vultures, and a lone kestrel occasionally dotted the distant sky, while very busy tree swallows kept buzzing around so close to us that we worried about getting hit by one or having one join us in the car. We had 51 species at Bear Island. Winter birding is great in the Lowcountry!
After about a 5-minute lunch break! We headed to Donnelley WMA just up the road. Along the Blocker Run road and around the Check Station, we saw only the usual suspects: blue birds, mockingbird, phoebe, etc. Then we stopped to check on the tree with the hole, which the Eastern screech owl occupied the last couple of years. He/she was home! Sitting at the edge of the hole, he appeared to be asleep with eyes closed, enjoying the afternoon sunshine -- High point of the trip for most participants.
Fishbourne Pond, by the Lodge, is now a regular hang-out for black-crowned night-herons, plus the usual waders as well as lesser yellowlegs, double-crested cormorants, a solitary pied-billed grebe, a small group of blue-winged teals and another small group of gadwalls.
We made several stops on our way out of Donnelley, always hoping but rarely seeing red-cockaded woodpeckers. On the last dike before exiting, thinking to take a quick look, we had so many birds we ended up spending nearly an hour: red-headed, red-bellied, downy, and pileated woodpeckers, swamp sparrows, several Wilson’s (or Common) snipes, a few flying wood ducks and mottled ducks, American crow, bald eagle, red-tailed and red-shouldered hawks. At nearly all stops we had our usual contingent of winter birds such as cardinals, yellow-rumped warblers, a few pine warblers, eastern towhees, Carolina chickadees, tufted titmice, etc. The total for the day was 65 species. Last year we held this field trip in May and had 89 species. But 65 is pretty darn good for February. A perfect day like this required combining sunny weather, cooperative birds, and excellent bird-loving companions!
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Newhall Work Days by Bob Clemens We installed a new “Welcome” sign on the Trail Guide Box to replace the laminated sheet we had there before (see photo, below). The best new features are three QR codes linking the Trail Guide, Donations (via Venmo), and Audubon Membership. Studio One did an excellent job delivering a product which is likely to outlive the “Elders” on our Newhall Committee!
Speaking of “Elders,” we are proud to announce the expansion of our Newhall Committee to add four more youthful members. We welcome Julia and David Buzzard, Carrie Jones, and Steve Fishman. They join our long-standing Vice-Chairs: Rita Kernan, Lynn Hodgson, Tom Hennessey, Matt Mattoon, Jack Coleman, and Chair Bob Clemens.
We were thrilled to find that the folks at Allcare Tree Surgery, Inc. had donated more large logs to line the parking lot (see photo). We were so pleased with the logs they had placed on the entrance road from Palmetto Bay Road last Fall that we went back and begged for more. Please consider Allcare for your next tree project! Contact them at office@allcarehhi.com or by phone (843) 757-8095.
If you know a college age person who has an interest in nature or environmental science, please invite them to apply for our Spring Greeter Internship position. Flexible hours and decent pay are compensation for greeting our visitors and providing them with essential information about the Preserve. Applicants should contact Bob Clemens at rclemens318@gmail.com.
Finally, here’s our report of the February 18th Newhall Work Day! Once again, we had 13 hardy volunteers. The “pre-op” photo shows only 9, as Fearless Leader Clemens was taking the photo and the Rios Siblings: Charlotte (a first timer), Elizabeth, and Thaddaeus hadn’t yet arrived. Shown from left to right are Vice-Chair Matt Mattoon, Karen Lucey, John Grobe, Tony Facernta (also a first timer), Sal Gioia, Jim Reynolds, Hilton Klein, and new Committee members Julia and David Buzzard.
John and Tony continued the seemingly never-ending task of pressure-washing the Pocosin boardwalk, while Matt and Jim (assisted by Bob’s Jeep) moved the donation post to a more prominent location between the Trail Guide Post and the Bulletin Board (see photos.) We’re hoping the new location will lead to enhanced revenue.
The balance of the crew tackled the remaining mountain of milled asphalt donated by Sea Pines CSA, spreading it to level the new parking space between the towering pine trees (photos below). Sounds simpler than it was. It can be back-breaking work, and the surface has to be “tamped” to compact the millings. Thanks to all who did that!
Our next Newhall Work Day will be Saturday March 11th from 8:30 AM to 10 AM. We’ll cull vegetation from around Audubon Pond, finish pressure-washing the boardwalk, and try to clean the pine pollen from the benches! Bring gloves and eye protection. Insect repellant hasn’t been necessary in the winter months, but who knows what March will bring! RSVPs are not necessary, but helpful, to Bob Clemens at Rclemens318@gmail.com.
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It's Courting Time! by Patty Kappmeyer Nesting season has begun around the Lowcountry. Great Egrets and anhingas are among the first species to nest at Ibis Pond on Pinckney Island NWR. Ospreys and bald eagle nesting activity is visible on the Island and surrounding area. In our backyards, eastern bluebirds , northern cardinals, carolina chickadees and brown-headed nuthatches are a few of the species busy building nests. And soon, the ruby-throated hummingbirds will arrive!
With the growing popularity of birding, ecotourism and photography it is a good time to remind ourselves of the Do's and Don'ts of nest photography. You should always photograph birds responsibly. But you have to be extra responsible during nesting season.
National Audubon has put forth a set of guidelines that can enable us to get the nest shots we want without jeopardizing the well-being of the birds we love. Please read the full article here.
February Sightings Please enjoy these collages of bird activity photographed during the past month by our Facebook group members.
There are several ways to report bird sightings : use eBird, join the HHIAS Facebook group or Birding-Friends@google.com. If you would like to join the Birding-Friends google group please send an email requesting access to ecobon@hiltonheadaudubon.org. |
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