FRIENDS OF HAGERMAN NWR

FEATHERLESS FLYER NOVEMBER, 2019

VOLUME 14, ISSUE11

By Laurie Sheppard

What does it take to find a butterfly that no one has

seen before? First and foremost, it takes curiosity and a

desire to learn more about the natural world. The Butterfly

Garden Docents have been learning about the 90 butter-

fly species found at Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge

through research and practice at monthly meetings and

many visits to the Butterfly Garden. It was at one of those

visits that Nana Rylander saw a small, brown butterfly

with unusually shaped wings. She knew right away it was

something she’d never seen before.

Ms. Rylander called over nearby Butterfly Garden Do-

cents and all agreed this little butterfly was something new. Donna Rogers took pictures from as many an-(Continued on page 2)

Refuge Update: The Geese Are Beginning to Arrive! Texoma Water Level: www.laketexoma.com/level

A deer hunt will be taking place November 1-3rd. As a

result, Haller's Haven Trail will be the only open trail.

The visitor center will remain open.

WHAT’S GOING ON??

See our DETAILED,

PRINTABLE Event Sheet,

Butterfly & Bird Survey Re-

sults on Pages 8 and 9!

COUNTY RECORD BUTTERFLY FOUND AT HAGERMAN NWR

Northern Sicklewing by Donna Rogers

A Little Inspiration...Perhaps By Bert Garcia

It’s been a little tough with the patchy performance of the tram, the waiting for the new tram, the transition to the van, the uncer-tainty of it all, etc. Perhaps my experience yesterday will help a little. Yesterday I had a special tour scheduled for the Grayson Co-op student group and two of their teachers. For those of you who may not know, the Grayson Co-op students are special young people. I have given them several tours before always arranged by Courtney Anderson and they are always exciting for me and the students never seem to fail to amaze me. I decided, after securing a lifeline with refuge staff that they would come get us if needed, to take the tram and not the

van. I had checked the tram several times and the battery variously gave me one mark or 10 marks de-pending on when I checked it. I asked the students if they wanted an adventure in the tram but that we might get stuck in the wilderness if the tram failed us (I didn’t tell them about the lifeline although I did tell the teachers). They all excitedly and boisterously chose to take the adventure. After about 45 minutes or

(Continued on page 3) Link

Ever feel a sudden yen for chocolate while walking through the HNWR butterfly garden? If so, you may be passing the Chocolate Dai-sy patch. Also known as Chocolate Flower, Lyreleaf Greeneyes, or Green-eyed Lyre Leaf, these pretty flowers put forth a chocolate aroma on warm days and when the rays are plucked from the flower head.

A perennial, the chocolate daisy is a member of the Aster family. The gray-green foliage feels velvety. Growing 1 – 2 feet in height, this leafy plant has many short branches that grow from the base, with longer, leaning branches that end in leafless stalks topped by the flow-er heads. The numerous daisy-like blossoms have yellow rays sur-rounding a maroon central disk. Look for the two-inch blossoms to open in the morning and droop in the daytime heat. In time, chocolate daisies may spread and form a sprawling ground cover. Trim back by one-third in summer to control the spread. This will also result in a sec-ond show of blooms.

Blooming from April – November, chocolate daisies enjoy well-drained sand, loam, clay, or caliche and can be found in the arid and semi-arid region of the country that includes Kansas, Arizona, Colora-do, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. They need sun to partial shade and appreciate moisture in the soil, but are susceptible to root rot in heavy, wet soils. Flowers can be propagated by seeds, which should be collected in late spring and early summer. The seeds germi-nate well outdoors from spring to fall and should be kept moist for best germination.

A nice choice for your butterfly garden, these daisies attract pollina-

tors and are deer resistant. In addition to enjoying their pretty blooms

and sweet fragrance, the flowers can be used for seasoning food. You

may even be inspired to start your own “chocolate garden.” Who

doesn’t love the sweet smell of chocolate on a bright sunny day?

Chocolate Daisy: Berlandiera lyrata

gles as possible and after some research, it was decided this was a Northern Sicklewing. The sighting was

quickly confirmed as a Grayson County record.

Since the groundbreaking for the Butterfly Garden, the garden docents have been documenting all

species of butterflies found anywhere on the refuge by having a photograph confirmed by the volunteers

from the Butterflies and Moths of North America project. Each year a small number of butterflies are added

to the list of what might be found on the refuge. Some-

times these are butterflies more commonly found in

South Texas but in the fall, they stray northward. The

Northern Sicklewing (Eantis tamenund) is such a but-

terfly. Its forewings are rounded but come to a point at

the end of the leading edge, giving it an unmistakable

silhouette. With a wingspan of less than two inches, it

is a small butterfly. This species may be found year-

round in the deep south, but it is most common from

August to November. It may be competition for food

that drives it as far north as Kansas, even though it is

rare to find one north of Austin. The butterfly could not

be relocated the next day and must have moved on.

Who knows how far north it flew?

County Record Butterfly (Continued from page 1)

Participants of the Refuge Roundup enjoyed special

activities in the Butterfly Garden.

Photo by Donna Rogers P. 2

By Jean Flick Thank you

Photos provided by Sue Abernathy Thank you

P. 3

so we had reached the turn to Plover and I had two marks on the meter, but I knew that they liked to go to the oil jumping jacks and have their picture made there. I again asked them if they wanted to take the chance of driving to the jacks but that we might get stuck out there. Once again they hollered and giggled and said let’s go and take the chance. So we did.

By then we were down to one notch and out there by the jacks. Heading home I told them I might need their help because the tram was on its last leg. As we crossed the Harris Creek bridge, without prompting from me or the teachers, they started to chant “go tram, go” over and over. We still had the hill to climb and the tram was on ze-ro and slowing fast. As we started up the hill, with an audi-ence of the Butterfly Garden workers taking a lunch break on the patio and again without prompting, they all of a sudden change the chant to “fly Cardinal, fly.” (I had told them that the name of the tram was the Cardinal Ex-press). And so we made it home and got the tram back in the bay, but some higher power tells me that these spe-cial human beings got us there with their attitude.

To top it off, I had Matthew McConaughey as a rider! Whenever I pointed something out or we saw some-thing we stopped to talk about I would hear “alright, alright, alright” from the back. I finally turned around and asked who was the Matthew McConaughey voice and Matthew (a/k/a Jeremiah yesterday) said “I am.” On the pictures be-low Matthew is the slight one with the gray small brim hat in the left front. Who knew?

Maybe, just maybe, this is what the new tram and yes even the old tram with all its problems are all about. It helps to think so, at least it helps me.

A Little Inspirations Perhaps... (Continued from page 1)

Sign up at friendsofhagerman.com/contact Last Month’s Topic: Spiders Above: “Caught in the Spider’s Web” game (younger group) Far left: Making Walking Spi-ders (older group) Left: Making Cobwebs (older group)

Worth the Trip! An Exploration of Haller’s Haven Trail By Renny Gehman

What is on the refuge, but you must go off the refuge to access it? What has an old bridge, a picnic pond, spec-tacular views of Lake Texoma, upland meadows and forest paths? Don’t know? Unfortunately, you’re not alone. Many people—even those who visit regularly—have never walked Haller’s Haven Trail. Named for longtime Friends of Hagerman volunteer, Karl Haller, this 2.7-mile trail has something for everyone—and is accessed from the Goode Picnic area, so you can start or end your trip with a cook-out or just a snack from your cooler. If you’re more adven-turous, there is a sheltered picnic table overlooking Picnic Pond, just a short walk from the trail head. Haller’s Haven Trail lends itself to leisurely meander-ing, with its gentle slopes, wide trail, and enough shade to allow you to cool off in summer, but those same trees would make it an interesting November hike for fall color. And the overlooks of the Big Mineral Arm of Lake Texoma make it a perfect place to view Snow Geese during the winter season. What was surprising to my husband and I as we walked Haller’s Haven Trail in late September were the abundant wildflowers trailside and across the upland meadows about halfway along the path. The eryngo and snow-on-the-prairie were abundant and mixed with yellow goldenrod, sunflowers and purple gayfeather (liatris). And you thought wildflower shows only happened in the spring! Because we walked the trail in mid-afternoon, we didn’t expect to see much wildlife—but we were wrong! True, we didn’t spot any deer (though plenty of deer tracks), but we did have abundant evidence that they, too, use the trail, along with raccoon. And while the larger animals were scarce in the midday heat, we did see many egrets, her-ons, chickadees and cardinals. Plus, this handsome arma-dillo so busy hunting for grubs under the trees that he completely ignored our presence. The beautiful views, the gentle climbs, the alternating shade and sunny patches, the interesting bridge, the marshes and streams all made for a pleasant afternoon walk. We’ll make sure to drive down Refuge Road, across the low-water crossing, off and back onto the Refuge again in the near future. Haller’s Haven Trail is well worth the trip. Be sure to stop by the Visitor Center before your adven-ture to get a trail guide, borrow some binoculars or insect repellant and get an update on current trail conditions.

Above: Eryngo

Below: Snow-on-the-Prairie

Oct. 8th: The passage of the cool front late Sunday has brought changes evidenced by

our census today. Birds are on the move and were quite active this morning. We started

the morning by hiking the short loop on Harris Creek Trail. In the dead trees across the

creek there was a lot of woodpecker activity. There was a Pileated Woodpecker being

harassed by a Cooper's Hawk. Northern Flickers have arrived and were active. We also

saw Red-headed and Red-bellied Woodpeckers there along with some American Kes-

trels. We finished the day with 15 American Kestrels. When we preceded to Wildlife Dr.

as we approached the first pullout we saw a lot of activity in the heavy growth of Ses-

bania near the road. There we found a total of 11 Common Yellowthroats and at least 5

Marsh Wrens. There we also saw Dickcissels and a first of the season Savannah Spar-

row. In the lake nearby, American Avocets, Long-billed Dowitchers and a White-faced

Ibis were feeding. Near the marsh on the right as you turn onto Plover there were large

numbers of swallows perching in the dry reeds. We saw more than 350 Barn Swallows,

20 Cliff Swallows, a Bank Swallow and a Cave Swallow. As we proceeded down Wildlife

Dr. we found 4 first of season American Pipits by the large pond on the left. We saw a

total of 3 House Wrens today. On the way to Meadow Pond we saw a Hairy Woodpecker

and a Nashville Warbler. The morning was very calm and made for a great outing. We finished the day with 69 spe-

cies. Photo is one of the Common Yellowthroats that we saw today. This is a warbler that typically frequents areas of

cattails, reeds and other vegetation near water. They are often difficult to get a good look at.

Oct. 15th: The day started out overcast and we took a short

walk on Harris Creek Trail which was not very productive.

There we saw an American Kestrel, some Red-bellied Wood-

peckers, Northern Flickers and heard a Pileated Woodpecker

as we were exiting the trail. As we proceeded down Wildlife

Drive we saw a flight of American Avocets and proceeded to

the north low water crossing where we observed them up

close. Then we returned to Wildlife Drive and as we proceed-

ed there we saw a flock of Stilt Sandpipers and a Lesser Yel-

lowlegs. We saw Killdeer at many locations finishing with a

total of 84 for the day. Ducks are starting to arrive in larger

numbers with more species including, Green-winged and Blue

-winged Teals, Northern Shovelers, Gadwalls, American Wig-

eons, Redheads and Northern Pintails. We saw several flights of American White Pelicans and finished with a total

of almost 400 for the day. Lucy, the resident Bald Eagle was sitting on her favorite pole at the end of the pad be-

tween Egret and Tern pads. The first white geese of the year have arrived, 2 Ross's Geese that were with some

Greater White-fronted Geese in the large field across the road from the entrance to Plover pad. There was a total of

34 Greater White-fronted Geese. We saw 2 Wild Turkeys near the Big Mineral Picnic Area. We finished the day with

63 species. Photo is the two Ross's Geese accompanied by Greater White-fronted Geese.

Oct. 22nd: Today was an absolutely beautiful fall day with a cool start and almost no wind. Just as we started Ricky

the male adult Bald Eagle flew by headquarters headed south and

landed in a tree on Harris Creek. A little later we saw Lucy, the fe-

male in a tree north of the low water crossing near headquarters sit-

ting in a tree with her wings outstretched catching some sun rays. As

we proceeded down Wildlife Drive we found a flock of Greater White-

fronted Geese in the field on the left just past the Harris Creek

bridge. There were also some Canada Geese in the same field. At

the end of Egret Pad we saw 3 Dunlins and a small herd of White-

tailed Deer. There was a good variety of ducks near the observation

(Continued on page 6)

What else did they See??

See the most recent

Weekly Bird and

Butterfly Census

Results in their entirety

on Page 8 or visit: www.friendsofhagerman.com/BirdSurvey

BIRDING WITH JACK Thank You Jack Chiles

P. 5 Continued on page 6

platform but no where near the size of the large raft of ducks

we saw near Goose Point near the end of the day. Ducks

identified today were 17 Blue-winged Teal, 26 Northern

Shovelers, 19 Gadwalls, 79 American Wigeon, 10 Mallards,

50 Northern Pintails, 6 Green-winged Teal, 500 Redheads, 7

Ring-necked Ducks, 15 Lesser Scaups, 2 Ruddy Ducks and

1200 duck sp. We also saw 2 Hooded Mergansers in Mineral

Marsh. We found a couple of Northern Harriers flying over

the marshes. On the road to Meadow Pond we found a nice

flock of passerines including a late season Black-throated

Green Warbler and our first Yellow-bellied Sapsucker of the

season. We finished the day with 74 species. Photo White-

tailed Deer taking the plunge at the end of Egret Pad.

Oct. 29th: Today was cold and windy but the birds were very active with a lot of mi-

grants coming in from the north. Some of the highlights from today were large flocks of

Franklin's Gulls soaring over the refuge with at least 2000 observed. It is very difficult

to estimate numbers on these soaring flocks of gulls. Next early on, large flocks of

American White Pelicans starting coming in and settling in the marshes and they were

hungry because they started feeding right away. Snow and Ross's Geese are starting

to arrive and quite a bit of the planted wheat has come up and is starting to grow so

hopefully the heavy rains that are predicted will not wash it away. We sure don't need a

repeat performance of the flooding we had late last year. Sparrows are starting to ar-

rive and we found them near the Hagerman Cemetery and on the sides of the road on

the way to Meadow Pond past the long bridge. Sparrows seen today included, White-

throated, Vesper, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp and Dark-eyed Juncos. But the

big story of the day was the ducks. We saw huge rafts of ducks out in the lake and be-

cause of the poor visibility they were difficult to identify as to species, so we had over

6000 unidentified ducks. Species identified were, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shovel-

er, Gadwall(large numbers at Meadow Pond), American Wigeon, Mallard, Northern

Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Ruddy Duck and Lesser Scaup. We also saw 4 Hooded

Mergansers. On the way to Meadow Pond we saw 5 Wild Turkeys, 2 Pileated Woodpeckers and 3 Red-headed

Woodpeckers. We also saw a pair of Belted Kingfishers at Deaver Pond. We finished the day with 82 species and it

was a day of the most bird activity in recent memory. Today's photos are Western Meadowlark and American Kes-

trel. The Western Meadowlark was singing so loud that everyone thought someone was playing the song in the van.

Birding with Jack (Continued from Page 5)

The Refuge Roundup: A Big Success! As the Friends of Hagerman celebrated National Refuge

Week, participants enjoyed fantastic weather, walks and crafts in the gorgeous butterfly garden, butterfly

tagging demonstrations and the Blackland Prairie Raptors.

“Everyone keep your eyes peeled

for a new refuge eagle nest to be

under construction soon” — Kathy Whaley, Refuge Manager

Volunteer of the Month: Pamela Flaming

Thank You Pamela Flaming

Friends of Hagerman NWR Foundation

6465 Refuge Road Sherman, TX 75092

Phone: 903-786-2826

friendsofhagerman@gmail.com http://www.friendsofhagerman.com

www.facebook.com/FOHNWR

Thank You To Our Contributors: Jack Chiles, Bert Garcia, Laurie Sheppard, Donna Rogers, Jean Flick, Sue Abernathy, Randall Patterson, Renny Gehman Refuge Manager: Kathy Whaley Refuge Liaison: Paul Balkenbush General Biologist: Courtney Anderson

Would you like to join our team of volunteers

at Hagerman NWR? Check out the many

ways to become involved by clicking here, or

contact us by visiting: HelpHagerman.org

P. 7

Pamela Flaming is involved in planning, prep, and presenting at Refuge Rocks programs for the younger group. She just started going to 2nd Sat. bird walks and is happy to be learning to identify birds. She has been volunteering since she first got involved in Master Naturalists in late 2014. When asked about her favorite part about the refuge, she stated, “I love it that we have such a huge and varied habitat for wildlife.” Her Fun Fact: My sister and I love to play piano together. We call it "dreadful duets". The volunteer of the

month is chosen based on years of volunteer service at Hagerman (at least one year), frequency of volun-

teering (at least twice per month) and must have made a standout contribution.

Click here to for detailed information about our volunteer opportunities or contact

friendsofhagerman@gmail.com to learn how to join our team!

Second Saturday Program:

Alligators With Tim Patton

Saturday, November 9th, 10:00am

Please see Page 9 for details

Would you like to join our team of volunteers

at Hagerman NWR? Check out the many

ways to become involved by clicking here, or

contact us by visiting: HelpHagerman.org

This incredible photo was taken on the refuge

by Randall Patterson

Snow Goose 31 Ross's Goose 35 Snow/Ross's Goose 50 Greater White-fronted Goose 9 Canada Goose 29 Blue-winged Teal 3 Northern Shoveler 20 Gadwall 179 American Wigeon 4 Mallard 50 Northern Pintail 9 Green-winged Teal 104 Redhead 10 Ring-necked Duck 2 Lesser Scaup 13 Hooded Merganser 4 Ruddy Duck 5 duck sp. 6100

Estimate large raft ex-tending for hundreds of yards.

Wild Turkey 5 Pied-billed Grebe 6 Eurasian Collared-Dove 1

Mourning Dove 22 American Coot 818 American Avocet 30 Killdeer 30 Dunlin 1 Least Sandpiper 10 Long-billed Dowitcher 17 Wilson's Snipe 4 Greater Yellowlegs 13 Franklin's Gull 2000 Ring-billed Gull 50 Forster's Tern 6 Double-crested Cormorant 20 cormorant sp. 145 American White Pelican 609 American Bittern 1 Great Blue Heron 15 Great Egret 18 Snowy Egret 1 Cattle Egret 7 White-faced Ibis 5 Black Vulture 12 Turkey Vulture 19 Northern Harrier 3 Sharp-shinned Hawk 1

Bald Eagle 2 Red-shouldered Hawk 1 Red-tailed Hawk 2 Belted Kingfisher 2 Red-headed Woodpecker 3 Red-bellied Woodpecker 4 Downy Woodpecker 1 Pileated Woodpecker 2 Northern Flicker 4 Northern Flicker

(Red-shafted) 1 Red wing linings clearly visi-ble in flight.

American Kestrel 7 Eastern Phoebe 11 Blue Jay 1 American Crow 101 Carolina Chickadee 7 Tufted Titmouse 4 Tree Swallow 5 Barn Swallow 10 swallow sp. 20 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1 House Wren 1 Carolina Wren 2

Bewick's Wren 2 European Starling 8 Northern Mockingbird 1 Eastern Bluebird 33 American Pipit 100

Estimate large flock fly-ing.

American Goldfinch 10 Dark-eyed Junco 4 White-throated Sparrow 5 Vesper Sparrow 3 Savannah Sparrow 19 Song Sparrow 5 Lincoln's Sparrow 8 Swamp Sparrow 3 Western Meadowlark 8 Eastern Meadowlark 8 Western/Eastern

Meadowlark 96 Red-winged Blackbird 22 Brown-headed Cowbird 60 Yellow-rumped Warbler 13 Northern Cardinal 4

P. 8

October 25, 2019: The Butterfly Garden is very active now and the southern strays are arriving. Unusu-

al finds this week included Southern Dogface, Mallow Scrub -hairstreak, and a county record Northern

Sicklewing. The most plentiful species visiting the garden are various hairstreaks, Painted and Ameri-

can Ladies, Monarchs, Queens, and four species of skippers. Seen recently in the garden:

Visit www.friendsofhagerman.com/BirdSurvey for the most recent Bird Census results!

Thank you: Jack Chiles, Gailon Brehm, Mike Petrick, Terry Goode, Carrie Steingruber

Each Tuesday a team of expert birders, led by Jack Chiles, take a refuge Bird census by recording the

birds they encounter throughout the refuge. They report their findings to The Cornell Lab of Ornithology,

for use in research.

American Lady

American Snout

Bordered Patch

Clouded Skipper

Cloudless Sulphur

Common Buckeye

Common Checkered-Skipper

Dainty Sulphur

Eastern Tailed-Blue

Eufala Skipper

Fiery Skipper

Gray Hairstreak

Great Purple Hairstreak

Gulf Fritillary

Little Yellow

Mallow Scrub-hairstreak

Monarch

Orange Sulphur

Painted Lady

Pearl Crescent

Phaon Crescent

Pipevine Swallowtail

Queen

Red Admiral

Red-banded Hairstreak

Sachem

Sleepy Orange

Southern Dogface

Variegated Fritillary

Viceroy

White-M Hairstreak

Northern Sicklewing

Plants in Bloom on October 25th:

Tuberous Vervain (Sandpaper

Verbena)

Mealy Blue Sage

Texas Lantana

Blackfoot Daisy

Horseherb

Zexmenia

Gaura

Frogfruit

Rock Rose

Gregg’s Mistflower

Turk’s Cap

Flame Acanthus

Autumn Sage

Obedient Plant

Datura (Angel Trumpet)

Boneset

Prairie Fleabane

Prairie Verbena

Texas Kidneywood

Big Bluestem

Frostweed

Maximillian Sunflower

Goldenrod

Lindheimer Muhly

Gulf Muhly

4-Nerve Daisy

Coral Honeysuckle

Crossvine

Rain Lily

Black Fountain Grass

Roosevelt Weed

Purple Coneflower

Carolina Wolfberry

Bitterweed

Fall Aster

Lindheimer’s Senna

Friends of Hagerman November 2019 Event Sheet For more information please email: friendsofhagerman@gmail.com Calling All Gardeners: Volunteers Needed to help with Butterfly Garden Come and help us add plants, weed and mulch our beautiful butterfly garden. Email for more infor-mation: friendsofhagerman@gmail.com

Outdoor Crew: Tuesday, November 5 th and Saturday, November 23rd Do you enjoy working outside, mowing, sprucing up hiking trails, trimming and removing brush and general cleanup? Join the Outdoor Crew at Hagerman NWR. Email friendsofhagerman@gmail.com for details and to join our team. Early Bird Guided Walk: Saturday, November 9th Master Naturalist Jack Chiles will lead our early bird walk, weather permitting. Meet at the Visitor Center. Bring bin-oculars or borrow ours. Return in time for the Second Saturday program. Free and open to the public. Second Saturday: Alligators With Tim Patton, Saturday, November 9 th 10:00-11:00 AM Tim Patton, an Arkansas native, has a BS in Fisheries and Wildlife Science from Arkansas Tech University, and MS and PhD degrees in Zoology and Physiology from the University of Wyoming. After graduate school, he worked as a research associate for the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, with a research emphasis on native fish, amphibians and reptiles in Wyoming. 10th Annual Nature Photography Contest: Winners Announced – Saturday, November 9 th 11:00AM Following the 2nd Saturday program, the Winners of the 10th Annual Hagerman NWR Nature Photography Contest will be announced. The winners will be presented with a Ribbon and the First-place entries will receive a cash award of $50. The Best in Show winner will receive a $100 cash award. Please join us to recognize this year’s winners. The Refuge Rocks: Talkin’ Turkey, Saturday, November 16 10:00-11:30 Two Groups With Age Appropriate Activities: Ages 4-6 and Ages 7-10 Did you know that Benjamin Franklin wanted the national bird to be a wild turkey rather than a bald eagle? He did! Ben voted for the turkey, but was outvoted, so our national bird is the regal bald eagle! You might eat turkey at Thanksgiving, but did you know that lots of turkeys live in the wild. In fact, they're commonly called wild tur-keys and live all over the United States, including here at Hagerman NWR. In our Talkin’ Turkey class, the youth will discover what the real lives of wild turkeys are like. They’ll learn about hens, toms, caruncles, wattles, and snoods. Children will even learn how to do the turkey strut and learn the turkey call! Each student will make a terrific turkey craft to take home and have fun participating in turkey games and activities. Come join us on November 16 for a free class to learn all about our resident wild turkeys! To sign up - call the refuge at (903) 786-2826 or sign up on the web at www.friendsofhagerman.com/contact. Nature Photography Club meeting – Saturday, November 16 th 1:00-2:00 PM Do you love to photograph nature at Hagerman NWR? Join us for the Photo Club meeting. The Nature Photography Contest winning photos will be presented. The meeting program is still pending. Please check the Friends of Hager-man website for latest information. The meeting is free and open to the public. Adopt-A-Nestbox: Sunday, December 1st through January 31st, or while supplies last. Help the plight of the Eastern Bluebird while learning all about their nesting habits! For a small donation, your adopt-ed nestbox will have your name on it and you’ll receive an email every week with a picture of the inside and an expla-nation of everything happening in the nestbox. Great Christmas gift, especially for children. For more information call (903)786-2826 between the hours of 9 am - 4 pm Monday - Saturday or 1 - 5 pm on Sunday. Refuge Van Tours: Come and See the Geese! Enjoy a 60 – 90 minute tour along Wildlife Drive at the Refuge. Learn about the history of the displaced town of Hagerman while watching for wildlife. Lots of stops for bird-watching and photography. Free (donations accepted). Guided tours are of-fered at 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, weather permitting. Seating is limited: please call (903)786-2826 between 9:00am and 4:00pm, Mon-Sat, for reservations. Standbys are accepted if space permits. Tours are recommended for age 6 - adult.

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