Naturally. Newsletter of the Conococheague Audubon Society. March Vol. 36 No. 4

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1 Naturally Newsletter of the Conococheague Audubon Society March 2012 Vol. 36 No. 4 Published: September, November, January, March, May On the Record By Donna Hocker Light snow didn t discourage seven birders from attending the winter hike and picnic on the Falling Springs in February. Led by Barb Higgins (Dan stayed home and watched the feeders with Joan Bowen due to a knee replacement) 24 species were seen. No we have not changed the calendar. Due to a publishing error April follows June on the activities list. Please do not miss all our activities in April and May Migration Report The final 2011 Migration report lists Pennsylvania as having 930 observers, 2,932 field hours, 199,120 birds with 238 species with 53 counties reporting. Franklin County came in second with having the most field hours and first for having the most Bohemian Waxwing; photograph by Bob Keener participants. The most abundant species was the American Robin. The Eurasian Collared-Dove was only reported in Franklin County. Mourning Doves were reported in 50 of the 53 reporting counties, led by Franklin with 522. South-Central PA had the majority of the 53 Red-Headed Woodpeckers found this year. Clay-colored Sparrows were found, one in Franklin and two in Clarion County. Sixteen of the 41 Vesper Sparrows were located in Franklin County. Of the White-throated Sparrows 28 of the 166 were tallied in Franklin. The Northern Cardinal was reported in 52 of 53 counties. There were 353 American Goldfinches seen in Franklin County out of the 415 that were counted. The Ruffed Grouse, our state bird, was found more easily than last year with 104 counted in 32 counties. Pennsylvania is one of the few states that have sustained this count, formerly the North American Migration Count, over the years. More information can be found at

2 April Elections Election of new officers and board members will be held at the April meeting. Thank you to those who have volunteered to be part of the Conococheague Audubon leadership. Pennsylvania Migration Count (PAMC) This will be the 20th year that Conococheague has participated in the PAMC to be held Saturday, May 12, The PAMC is a county-based bird count. Observations can be made anywhere in Franklin County over a 24-hour period on count day. The results are then sent to county compiler, Donna Hocker, who in turn forwards them to the state compiler. The resulting data is published in Pennsylvania Birds, our state ornithological journal. If you are interested in participating please contact Donna at dlhocker@yahoo.com or Franklin County Science Fair Thanks to Earl Nollenberger and Debby Heishman for volunteering to judge the Franklin County Science and Technology Fair on April 13. CAS can award four - $50 awards one each at the elementary, intermediate, junior, and senior high level. Looking for Volunteers CAS is looking for volunteers to help man a table at the Daffodill Show April 27 and 28. If you are willing to help at the show, contact Debby Heishman. CAS Board Notes The board of directors voted to donate $150 to PA Audubon and $35.00 to the Ned Smith Nature and Art Center Newville CBC Summary by Bill Franz The constant wind with gusts to 40 miles per hour coupled with the mid-30 temperatures made it a tough day for birds and birders. The species total, 77, is slightly below the average of 82. We had three first time species and one high total. The three first time species are: the Great Egret, Osprey, and Blue-gray Gnatchatcher. Mary Craig and members of CAS spotted the Osprey. The high total went to 3 Bald Eagles. Four low counts included the Blue Jay, Robin, and Song and Tree Sparrows. Kathy and Dick Lauver again kept the Prairie Falcon on the list, and saw 14 of the 19 recorded Killdeer seen in the Mud Level Road area. The 22nd Newville CBC will be held Saturday, Dec. 29, Conococheague Audubon Film Series By Ruth Barton The final film in the 2011/2012 Conococheague Audubon Family Film Series will be Thursday March 22. The film for the evening is Majestic Montana by Steve Gonser. The film will be shown at Chambersburg Area Middle School, beginning at 7:30 p.m., with pre-show entertainment, Tresa Paul on the guitar, at 7:00 p.m Beginning Birder Workshop By Dave Cooney The 2012 Beginning Birder Workshop is scheduled for Saturday, June 2nd at 8:00 A.M. at Caledonia State Park. This will be our fourth year. Participation at last years workshop was fantastic and again our volunteers have made this event a great success. We can't thank them enough for the help and expertise they bring to our organization. That being said, it s not too early to start planning for this year s event and again we need your help. Dave Cooney will chair this function with some help from Conway Bushey, and they hope that if you have helped in the past that you would consider volunteering again this year. And of course, we welcome all volunteers. Some of the activities include; Bird Walks, Kid's Corner, Nature Walk,

3 Scavenger Hunt, refreshments, parking visitors, registering participants and assisting with setting up the visitor center for the days events. If you any questions or want to volunteer, please contact Dave Cooney at or at or Conway Bushey at or at Norlo Park Garden By Jean Morton On Wednesday, April 18 at 9:00 a.m. we will have a weeding work day at Norlo Park. Please come and join us as we prepare our garden for the next growing season. We all look forward to seeing how our garden changes during the season. Tom and Judy Stenger not only volunteer their time, they also use their equipment which greatly helps to clear our garden of old growth and their shredder turns that old growth into mulch to replenish the soil. Let's all turn out to get the job done. Annual Meeting April 9 Presentation By Jean Morton Please join us for a very informative and interesting presentation by Marci Mowery on the history of our parks and forests, the benefits and some of the threats that face our natural resources today. Marci is the President of the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation and she was also involved with Audubon in the Harrisburg area and she is known to some of our members. It should be an enjoyable evening Christmas Bird Count Summary by Valerie B. Barnes Thanks to the 71 field observers and 31 feeder watchers, the December 17, 2011 Christmas Bird Count tallied 67 species and 17,506 individual birds. Numbers were low for this count; normally we see ~ 69 species and ~25,000 individual birds. There were no new high counts. The only unusual sighting was a Swainson s Thrush. Teams reported unusually low counts for American Crow, Field Sparrow, Common Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird, and Purple Finch. We missed these species seen on 30 or more previous counts: Ringnecked Pheasant, Ruffed Grouse, Turkey Vulture, Northern Harrier, Red-headed Woodpecker, Fish Crow, Eastern Towhee, American Tree Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Pine Siskin, and Evening Grosbeak. We saw more than the usual numbers of American Robins (49 versus average of 12). Mark your calendars for the next Christmas count Saturday, December 15th, 2012! Winter Birding in Minnesota By Bob Keener Just back from a great time at the Winter Birding Festival at Sax Zim Bog in Meadowlands, Minnesota. Following the festival I went north to Grand Marais, Minnesota on the shores of Lake Superior to search for Bohemian Waxwings. The first birds I saw, surprisingly, when I arrived in town were American Robins, about 15 of them sitting in a tree soaking in the morning sun rays. This was not a good sign, I thought. I began to wonder if there could possibly be any Bohemians in the same location as Robins, with such mild weather. However, within 15 minutes, I saw a flock of birds fly by and land a few blocks away. I headed in that

4 direction and was soon engulfed in the sound and sight of hundreds of Bohemian Waxwings sitting all over the trees and flying back and forth, feasting on the European Ash berries, which were now mostly on the ground. I asked the homeowner for permission to photograph the birds and he was delighted and offered a ringside seat. There were a few Cedar Waxwings mixed in the flock. I have looked at so many Cedar Waxwing flocks in search of a Bohemians over the past 20 years. Now, of all things, here were the Cedars mixed in with the Bohemians, and with Robins perched not far away, I thought, yes, birds really don't care about range maps! Regular Meeting Programs, Norlo Rark Community Room at 7:00 P.M. Activities (check activities list for details) 6 March - Tuesday, Woodcocks 10 March - York County for Waterfowl 17 March - Middle Creek for Waterfowl 24 March - Franklin/Fulton Counties for Waterfowl 13 April - Friday, Conococheague Institute for birds and plants 14 April - Saturday, Lilypons 21 April - Letterkenny Army Depot for Spring migrants 28 April - Little Cove for Spring migrants * 12 March - Marcellus Shale, by Dr. Edward Wells, Wilson College * 9 April - Pennsylvania Parks and Forest, by Marci Mowery Conococheague Audubon Website *** DEADLINE FOR ARTICLES FOR MAY 2012 NATURALLY NEWSLETTER IS 15 APRIL *** The URL for our website is: Or goggle - Conococheague + Audubon Visit often to keep up to date on all activities. Newsletter Editor - Doris Burdick 58 Homestead Drive Greencastle, PA Rcbdcb@comcast.net Assistant Editor - Joyce Schaff 3205 Warm Springs Road Chambersburg, PA Pjschaff@comcast.net Send all newsletter articles to the editor, and all mailing changes to the assistant editor. OFFICERS * President: Donna Hocker dlhocker@yahoo.com (717) * Vice President: Conway Bushey wcbushey@embarqmail.com (717) * Recording Secretary: Rhetta Martin rhettaanderic@embarqmail.com (717) * Corresponding Secretary: Valerie Barnes vbarhen@pa.net (717) * Treasurer: Henry Betz Hvbetz@embarqmail.com (717) * Immediate Past President: Dale Gearhart Dgearhart01@comcast.net (717) (H) (717) (Cell)

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