April - June 2013 Newsletter |
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South Mountain AirsThe Newsletter of the South Mountain Audubon Society April - June 2013, Volume XXXVII #2 – The E-mail Edition UPCOMING BIRD RELATED EVENTS International Migratory Bird Day Earth Day Earth Day is April 22 this year. Founded in 1970 as a day of education about environmental issues, Earth Day is
now a globally celebrated holiday that is sometimes extended into Earth Week, a full seven days of events
focused on green awareness. The brainchild of Senator Gaylord Nelson and inspired by the antiwar protests of
the late 1960s, Earth Day was originally aimed at creating a mass environmental movement. It began as a
"national teach-in on the environment" and was held on April 22 to maximize the number of students that could
be reached on university campuses. By raising public awareness of air and water pollution, Nelson hoped to
bring environmental causes into the national spotlight. Earth day has continued to grow and is now recognized
and participated in around the planet. SMAS Annual Luncheon The SMAS annual luncheon is now back on its regular schedule in April after a temporary move to September as
part of our 30th year anniversary celebration. The luncheon will be held at our traditional site, the Hickory
Bridge Farm restaurant located in Orrtanna, PA, on Saturday 27 April; meal at 12 Noon; social time at 11:30. UPCOMING SMAS PROGRAMS & PRESENTATIONS Unless indicated otherwise, all SMAS Programs are held at the Adams County Agricultural Resource Center,
670 Old Harrisburg Road, Gettysburg, PA at 7:30 PM. A room number for the SMAS meeting will be posted on
the front lobby entry inner door. April - SMAS Annual Luncheon We do not have April Program meetings as we hold our annual SMAS club luncheon in April. It is held on a
Saturday at noon, not a Monday evening. See general info above, details here, and attached or embedded flyer. Monday May 13th - “The eBird System And Why We Should Use It” - Mike Bertram Have you ever wanted to become a citizen scientist, to share your bird sightings, and contribute to science and
conservation? Join Mike Bertram on Monday, May 13th, at the Adams County Agricultural Resource Center,
670 Old Harrisburg Road, Gettysburg, PA at 7:30 PM for “The eBird System And Why We Should Use It.”
eBird is a system for collecting and retrieving bird sightings from around the world that has been developed by
the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. It allows you to enter and query your own sightings and to see listings
by other birders in the same area or anywhere around the world. A huge amount of data is now available in the
system and new listings are being added at the rate of many thousands PER DAY! The system is a wonderful
example of citizen science in action. This program is free and open to all. Monday June 10th - “Introduction to Bird Watching” - Rusty Ryan Join the South Mountain Audubon Society (SMAS) for an Introduction to Bird Watching (or “birding” as we like
to call it) on Monday, June 10th, at the Adams County Agricultural Resource Center, 670 Old Harrisburg Road,
Gettysburg, PA at 7:30 PM. Rusty Ryan, a local naturalist, will teach us about birding equipment such as
binoculars and field guides. He will concentrate on the common birds of south central PA and northern
Maryland, as well as share nearby bird watching “hot spots,” and provide useful handouts such as raptor and
waterfowl identification aids and bird species checklists. If you'd like to learn how to identify the birds in our
area and learn where to find them, please join us! This program is free and open to all. UPCOMING SMAS FIELD TRIPS Contact Mike O'Brien, Field Trip Chair, as necessary for more information on all Field Trips, the annual Christmas Bird Count and the Spring Migration Count: 717.642.6676 Res / maddogobrien@gmail.com E-mail. Please let the Leader know in advance if you plan to attend any field trip, especially if you plan to go direct. Trips are subject to weathering out, especially in the colder months, or otherwise being changed. In addition, if we have only one or two known attendees, we may cancel or reschedule a given field trip. We cannot alert you unless we hear from you. Wednesday April 17th - Lily Pons Water Gardens, Frederick County, MD Meet at 8:00 AM at the trip leader’s house at #231 Carroll’s Tract Road just off PA Route #116 near the Fairfield,
PA Post Office. #231 is about ½ mile past the post office on the right, the 2nd house after crossing Bullfrog and
Mt. Hope Roads; the house sets back several hundred feet from the road. Saturday May 11th - Spangler Spring Area At Gettysburg National Military Park (GNMP) Meet at 7 AM at the Spangler Spring area, GNMP. Turn off Middle Street at its intersection with Liberty Street
in Gettysburg and go one short block to a left at the park entry. Follow the one-way road to the Spangler Spring
parking area. This outing is a SMAS tradition coinciding with International Migratory Bird Day (See above).
Easy walking on mostly paved areas. We’ll be there into the afternoon, so depending on your schedule, you can
always join us anytime beyond the stated start time. Bring a chair if you wish and hang out. Wednesday June 5th - Pennsylvania State Game Lands #249 Meeting time is 7:30 AM at the Gameland’s entrance located on Game Lands Road (aka State Game Land Road
depending on your map) off PA #234 about midway between Biglerville and US #15. Meet at the rustic sign for
the Gamelands just down the entry lane from Rte #234. Depending on the current management configuration of
the various areas at the time, we should be able to bird from our vehicles stopping at various vantage points.
Some may chose to walk. The area is mostly flat with easy walking.
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