The Pine Warbler. November/December Meetings Joshua Hodge. November 7 The Sarah Gillespie Bird Sanctuary (Dr. Tommy Rauch)

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1 The Pine Warbler November/December 2013 Volume 2013/ Officers President Ron Blackwell Vice-President Secretary Larry Basden Treasurer Lin Harper Newsletter Larry Basden Committees Field Trips Diane Lafferty Education Diane Lafferty Conservation Hospitality Emily Nelson Membership Historian Linda Basden November/December Meetings November 7 The Sarah Gillespie Bird Sanctuary (Dr. Tommy Rauch) Dr. Tommy Rauch, Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences at William Carey University, will introduce us to the new Sarah Gillespie Bird Sanctuary on the William Carey campus. This is a fitting memorial to Sarah who was one of our very early PWAS members. There are still many of our current membership who remember Sarah and her enthusiasm for birding. We are hopeful that this will be a valuable addition to our Christmas Bird Count circle and provide our Chapter with another local destination for field trips. December 5 Finding Birds (Dr. Jason Hoeksema) Dr. Hoeksema will discuss bird finding in northern Mississippi and the Mississippi Delta (his home area). While he will be using examples from this area, many (if not most) of the techniques and tips for finding birds are generic and will be equally applicable to our area. This will be an excellent primer for the Christmas Bird Count coming up later in December. Jason has agreed to provide a second presentation in the afternoon prior to our evening meeting which also fits with the upcoming Count a workshop on ebird. The objective of this presentation will be to familiarize the participants with how to enter and analyze data from ebird. NOTICE: The December regular Chapter meeting and the afternoon workshop will be held at the Lake Thoreau building. Final arrangements are still being worked out at this time. This change of meeting location applies to the December meeting ONLY. Full details should be available at the November meeting and will be shared by . November/December Field Trips Diane Lafferty Meetings are held on the first Thursday of the month (September through May) in the Education Building at the Hattiesburg Zoo. Refreshments at 6:30 pm. Meetings begin at 7:00 pm and are open to the public. is a chapter of National Audubon Society, Inc. Nov. 9 LeFluer s Bluff State Park & Mays Lake Meet at Midtown Market to leave for Jackson at 6:30 6:45am. Dec. 6 (Friday) Our December speaker is coming from Oxford and will lead a field trip on the Friday after the meeting. Plans are not complete but current proposal is to go south to the coast. Watch the listserv for final details. Dec. 17 (Tuesday) Hancock County Christmas Bird Count Meet at Midtown Market to leave for Waveland at 6am. Dec. 28 Hattiesburg Christmas Bird Count All day event. See article in this issue. Jan. 1 (Wednesday) Crow Baby Stroll and Potluck Stroll to take place at Chain Park with potluck after at Ron & Lin s house. RSVP (Accept Only) to Lin at Details for Stroll will be included in next Newsletter. Jan. 3 (Friday) Jackson County Christmas Bird Count Meet at Midtown Market to leave for Ocean Springs at 6am.

2 President s Message Ron Blackwell Our world is changing all around us, whether you believe in climate change or not! Most immediately, we can feel Fall as it sets its foot into our back yards and woods, bringing cooler air, bluer skies, and drier air, and the promise that winter is not far behind. Lin tells me that the Almanac says we will have an unusually cold winter for south Mississippi, a statement that chills me through my old bones and makes me want to run for another blanket! So, with Fall on our doorstep and Winter an assured visitor on her way, let s keep in mind those tiny feathered creatures (and perhaps some others) that we love. It s time to clean your feeders with bleach water to subdue the finch eye disease; time to dig out those suet feeders that you didn t (or perhaps did) use over the summer and get them filled and hung; time to start shopping for Niger (Rape) seed that the finches love and find your finch socks or feeders; time to make up a batch of Marvel Meal or lay in a supply of store-bought suet; time to make that water feature in your yard (if you haven t already!); time to clean out your bins that contain old black oil sunflower seed and shop for new; time to prepare for COLD! I can t say I m happy about the cold that I know is coming, but I am happy about the migrants I know it will bring with it our northern and western visitors who come to our yards to escape the real cold of the north and the western mountains: we ll see new kinds of hawks, lots more Yellow-rumped Warblers, finches of several kinds, perhaps some Winter Wrens to visit their cousins the Carolina Wrens, and other more occasional visitors. So, being good southern hosts, it s time to get ourselves ready to greet these wintering visitors and make their stay a welcome, safe, and wonderful one. And please don t forget that wintering birds also need brush to hide in, dormant limbs to perch on, and lots of water, along with the food you re serving. Wait a bit to whack back that summer overgrowth to give your wintering visitors a place to welcome them. You ve got lots of other preparations to make! Hope to see you at our November meeting! Ronnie Hattiesburg Christmas Bird Count Larry Basden Saturday, December 28 is the date chosen for the 40th consecutive Hattiesburg Christmas Bird Count. The Count continues to be sponsored and supported by Pine Woods Audubon Society. The Christmas Bird Count is an excellent way for everyone to contribute to science. The data gathered by this activity have been, and continue to be, used for assessing the long-term health of bird populations by ornithologists. The effects of habitat change and other changes in the environment can be easily shown by changes in the population of bird species. The greatest value comes from analysis of regional and national data over time but, even on the local level, the data gathered by the Hattiesburg Christmas Bird Count for numbers of species found and total numbers of individuals within those species can indicate some long-term trends and the effects of major events (such as Katrina, for example). Our Christmas Bird Count allows us to become more familiar with the birds that spend their winter here and where they spend it. While we are delighted to find unexpected birds, finding and counting the most common birds (think Northern Mockingbirds and Northern Cardinals) is equally important for identifying long-term trends. This is what gives the Christmas Count appeal to all birders. You definitely don t need to be an expert at bird identification to have a positive impact. Dec th Hattiesburg Christmas Bird Count We can use all the help we can get with this event. If you can join us in the field for the whole day, that s great. If you can spend only a couple of hours in the field during the day, that s great. If you can spare some time during the day to do a feeder count in your own backyard, that s great. Put the date on your calendar. Contact Larry Basden at or larryb@basdenfamily.com to let him know what you can do to help us with this important annual event. After that the only thing left to do, whether you participate or not, is have good thoughts about the weather for the day of our count it couldn t hurt. Page 2

3 Welcome, New Members! Here are the new members who have joined since the last issue of The Pine Warbler. If you know any of these people, please take a few minutes to welcome them, to tell them about PWAS, and to invite them to join us at a meeting, field trip, or other activity. Thomas S. Denton Hattiesburg Thomas Jerome Hattiesburg Lelia Wilson Hattiesburg Kerry D. Stewart Hattiesburg Elizabeth Harrison Hattiesburg Jim & Carol Higgs Hattiesburg John Whitaker Hattiesburg Len McCombs Hattiesburg Billy Edmiston Hattiesburg Martha Polk Hattiesburg Sandra Nicholas Hattiesburg Pam Carney Hattiesburg Barbara Moody Hattiesburg Rae A. Lambert Hattiesburg Kenneth McCarty Hattiesburg R. E. Stratton Hattiesburg Jim Bell Laurel Martha Howell Laurel Joann Burklaw Laurel Eloise Buckler Laurel Tina Byrd Moselle Katherine Seeley Petal Sheila Gonzalez Petal Johnnie Gentry Collins Mary A. Purvis Purvis Winnie Smith Richton Don t Be Late! (excerpts from a rticle by No rma Siebenheller in September/ Octo ber 13 Bird Watcher s Digest) Scattered among the vast collection of bird books that my husband Bill and I have accumulated over the years are a couple of dozen titles, at least, that deal with the most basic rules of birding. These books for beginners are filled with the kind of sage advice that birding veterans are familiar with: wear dull-colored clothing, never shout, don t get ahead of the leader, keep your eyes on the bird as you raise your binoculars, don t point, use audio equipment sparingly, and so on. [.] But with about 35 years worth of field experience under our belts, Bill and I would like to share one more birding basic that we ve never seen written down anywhere. We have passed this on to friends in our bird club and to people in birding classes we ve taught, but until now we ve never stated it on paper. Here it is, pure and simple: The best birds of the day are often found in your first few minutes in the field. Sounds silly right? What are you doing in those first few minutes but parking the car, searching the backseat for your field guide and bug spray, polishing your binoculars, and maybe chatting with friends if it s a group outing? Who s looking for birds? We ve learned, however, that looking for birds is exactly what you should be doing, even if we are standing with our feet firmly planted on the pavement, car keys still in hand. Forget the friendly conversation. Listen for an unfamiliar song. Look for a surprise bird at the edge of the field or wood that you ve come to explore. If luck is with you, you may find a birding miracle before you get your shoes laced up. Editors Note: This seems to ring true with me. Off the top of my head, I can t recite specific times that this has happened to me. But, if I do see a bird when getting out of the car to begin my field activities, that bird flies immediately and tells every other bird for miles around that I m there and they should lay low for a while. At least that s the way it seems to me. Think about this and consciously try to remember to defer the heretofore normal activities when arriving to bird and just LOOK and LISTEN first. Maybe even just roll down the windows for a couple of minutes before exiting the vehicle. Page 3

4 We re on the Web! The Pine Warbler 544 West 4th Street Hattiesburg, MS Address Service Requested Bird Sightings & Field Trips The McSwain s fall field trip fell victim to bad weather. The Dauphin Island fall migration trip was very successful. A total of 116 species were identified during the weekend. And this was in spite of spending time watching the rain! I wonder what the count total would have been if the weather had been better. (Based on what I have heard participants say in the past, it would probably have been lower). Conditions may have been good for counting but they were not so good for photography. Diane reported hearing a Great Horned Owl in her backyard early on a recent morning. We are hearing reports of the arrival of our winter Mississippians White-throated Sparrows, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Dark-eyed Juncos, and perhaps even others by the time you receive this Newsletter. Have not yet heard any reports of American Goldfinches or Chipping Sparrows.

5 BIRD PHOTO QUIZ Directions Identify which species is pictured at right. The correct answer will be a species listed in the current version of the Mississippi Ornithology Society s checklist. November (Photo Taken March 2013 Jackson County, MS) Each month a winner will be selected at the meeting. Visit the PWAS website for a higher-resolution version of the photos. December (Photo Taken October 2013 Forrest County, MS) Page 5