South Mountain Airs

The 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

What is International Migratory Bird Day (IMBD)?

IMBD celebrates and brings attention to one of the most important and spectacular events in the Americas - bird migration. IMBD is a Western Hemisphere-wide event and is celebrated in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean. Held each year on the second Saturday in May, It will be on Saturday May 11, 2013 this year.

This IMBD date is also used for the Pennsylvania Migration Count (the PAMC), Pennsylvania’s way of celebrating IMBD. People all over the state count birds and the totals are collected to form a “Snapshot” of the great spectacle of migration across our portion of the Americas. Virtually every county and province in every country carry out some type of celebratory event, festival, or other undertaking on this day. No matter where you are on this day you can find an IMBD event taking place. Just go to your internet browser and type in International Bird Day (optionally add 2013 to limit search) and you can find myriad goings-on across the country and beyond. For more information on IMBD, the url for the IMBD Home Page is: http://www.birdday.org/

BUT, you can join us right here in the Gettysburg area. The South Mountain Audubon Society (SMAS) counts our local birds right here adjacent to downtown Gettysburg on the Spangler Spring portion of the Gettysburg National Battlefield and elsewhere across the region. See details below under field trips.

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.

As Earth Day continues to grow and provide more concern for “Our Planet,” there has been an annual theme created. For 2013, The global theme for Earth Day is “The Face of Climate Change.” Earth Network, the group founded by the organizers of the first Earth Day to coordinate the annual day of action that builds and invigorates the environmental movement, said that this theme was chosen because of the need to highlight the mounting impact of climate change on individuals around the world.

Please become more attuned to this area and its related issues. Just go to your internet browser and type in Earth Day and surf some of the wealth of available information.

By the way, there is also an Earth Hour. What is Earth Hour? Earth Hour is a global movement uniting people to protect the planet. Towards the end of March every year, Earth Hour brings together communities from across the world celebrating a commitment to the planet by switching off lights for one designated hour. For 2013, Earth hour was Saturday March 23rd; 8:30 – 9:30 PM

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.

Complete details are provided below. An attachment accompanying the Newsletter forwarding email provides details and a reservation / payment form for your convenience as well as a point of contact in the event of any questions..

All are cordially invited to attend.

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.

We’ve posted the information on our total activities’ schedule at the end of this edition

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.

The luncheon will feature a program and speaker. Ms. Bonnie Portzline, former SMAS Board Member and Education Committee Chairperson will present “Birds With a Gettysburg Address,” a digital slide-show, and she will chat about her “National Geographic moments” in and around the National Park Service’s Gettysburg National Military Park (GNMP).

Last summer Ms. Portzline was photographing a family flock of Wild Turkeys crossing a field off Black Horse Tavern Road when the runt of the flock took flight. She will share the story behind the photo and others she has captured by camera in local habitats in her presentation. In these local habitats, more than 125 species of yearround resident, nesting, or migratory birds have been identified. Because the National Audubon Society designated the Park’s southern grasslands as an IBA (Important Bird Area), the local Audubon chapter is concerned about its protection along with the ecological health of all Adams County habitats and the species attracted to them. More on this is provided as an attachment and/or embedded at the end.

To see a sampling of Ms. Portzline's bird photography as well as other photos by SMAS members, visit the SMAS web-site at http://southmountainaudubon.org. To see a sampling of Ms. Portzline's bird photography as well as other photos by SMAS members, visit the
SMAS web-site at http://southmountainaudubon.org.

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.

A graduate of Penn State University and Edinboro University of PA, Rusty has worked as a naturalist in Utah, California and Pennsylvania. Since 1993, he has worked for the Adams County Conservation District as a Resource Conservationist. His job involves soil conservation and water quality issues such as erosion and sediment control on earth-moving activities.

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.

We will carpool per attendee preferences and available vehicles. Bring a chair if desired, food snacks/drinks and any personal comfort items. Do not forget binoculars and apparel per weather forecast. Scopes a plus if you have one. There is an observation platform at the site. We will walk the area at times and you may walk as you wish or hang out at the platform area. Call the leader for additional information, clarification, or with any questions. We’ll look for spring land and water related migrants as well as resident and local seasonal species. There’s a Great Blue Heron rookery along the river here, the Monocacy. Facilities available.

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.

Do not forget personal items including food, drink and appropriate apparel. This is prime spring migration time and we should see a good selection of passerines and near-passerines as well as a mix of other species. Call the leader for additional information, clarification or with any questions. Facilities should be open.

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.

The area includes woods and fields, and there is a stream along part of the road we will drive / walk along. We will look for passage migrants and local resident and nesting species. Bring your optics, weather appropriate clothing and any food or drink you may need. No facilities.