Membership Meeting - Thursday, October 17th @ 7:00 PM

“Rare Bird ~ Pursuing the Mystery of the Marbled Murrelet” presented by the author, Maria Mudd Ruth

at Hal Holmes Center ~ 201 N Ruby St. ~ Ellensburg, WA

“This chunky little seabird stole my heart.” So confesses Maria Mudd

Ruth, who first encountered the Marbled Murrelet in 1999 while living in

Virginia, and became swept up in its strange story. This winged curios-

ity flies like a little brown bullet at up to 100 miles an hour and lives

most of its life offshore—only seen near land during breeding season,

when the female lays a single egg high on a mossy tree limb in ancient

coastal forests.

Olympia writer and “accidental naturalist” Maria Mudd Ruth will share

her story of the endangered Pacific Coast seabird that is the subject of

her book, Rare Bird: Pursuing the Mystery of the Marbled Murrelet -

just reissued in paperback by Mountaineers Books. Known as “the

enigma of the Pacific” in the 1950s, this robin-sized bird kept its breed-

ing behavior and nest sites a secret until 1974 when a tree trimmer ac-

cidentally discovered the first nest on a wide branch 148 feet up a

Douglas-fir. Once the murrelet’s survival was linked to the large trees growing in the mature and old-

growth forests, the battle began to protect what was left of this valuable habitat to save this species

from extinction. The Audubon Society of Portland led the charge and worked with other Audubon

chapters to have this species protected under the Endangered Species Act.

Despite listing as a federally threatened species since 1992 and state listed in 1993, the murrelet

populations decline at an alarming rate—30% between 2001 and 2010. In addition to the removal of

their nesting habitat by logging and development, the murrelet suffers from a suite of problems in-

cluding habitat loss and fragmentation, oil spills and pollution, depletion of forage fish, gillnetting, and

high rates of nest predation.

Though you may never see or hear a Marbled Murrelet, Maria’s slide program and stories will inspire

you to protect this rare bird, and others that may be endangered in Washington state. Copies of her

book can be purchased at the meeting.

The Hooter Kittitas Audubon October 2013

All Audubon meetings, held on the 3rd Thursday of each month at the Hal Holmes Center next to the Library, September through May (except December), are open to the public. Please come and meet with us. A brief business session precedes the program. Stay afterwards for juice, treats, and conversation.

Many thanks to the Ellensburg Public Library for sponsoring our meetings here!

Little owl at top of page: woodcut owl - Jacques Hnizdovsky 1964

Page 2 The Hooter

Wow!!! What a way to

start off the year. Gerry

Sorensen counted 125 peo-

ple at our September meet-

ing. Nothing like live raptors to draw a crowd. Steve

Siebert , from Yakima did a great job and I think we all

learned new things about raptors and falconry. For exam-

ple, he explained why they don’t use owls in falconry. Be-

cause owls are ambushers, not pursuers, so the falconer

would spend most of the night (that might be a clue too)

just sitting there waiting for something to happen. He

also said that falcons and hawks are being used in what he

called “bird abatement” where they chase birds away from

places like airports and orchards and vineyards. But the

best news is that one of his cohorts, Maggie Briggs (509-

952-9334), is in the process of opening a bird rehabilita-

tion center in Selah. When she finishes all the paperwork,

which is substantial, that is. It will be great to have

somebody to turn to when we get those calls about injured

birds. Oh yes, and you could hear 125 collective gasps

when they brought in their surprise guest, an adult male

Golden Eagle.

Next month we have an avian treasure hunt. Maria Mudd

Ruth will chronicle the 150 year search for the nesting

place of the Marbled Murrelet. I met her at the National

Audubon meeting and she is looking forward to showing

us where these seabirds nest and why they are threatened

in the southern part of their range.

Thanks to a timely reminder by our Treasurer, Sharon

Lumsden, I was able to announce our search for a new

vice-president. I even cornered a few people in the audi-

ence to see if they would like to try. It was pointed out

that being vice-president is not a pathway to president.

So, please give it a thought. We will miss Bud Rechter-

man at our board meetings but hope to see him around.

Our new Conservation Chair, Beau Fairchild, will be at-

tending the Audubon Council of Washington (ACOW)

meeting along with Gloria and Jeb Baldi. They will keep us

informed about state policy.

Jim Briggs, President

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Send in your stories & photos!

The Hooter is the newsletter of

Kittitas Audubon, published

monthly except for July.

~~~~~~~

Submissions from members &

other readers are most wel-

come and encouraged! The editor reserves the right to edit

for space, grammar, and/or suit-

ability. Email text and/or photos to

bobcat@kvalley.com or snail mail

to Jan Demorest, Hooter Editor,

712 E 2nd Ave, Ellensburg, WA

98926. Submissions need to be in

by the 20th of the preceding month.

KAS BOARD MEMBERS President – Jim Briggs 933-2231 Vice President – VACANT Secretary – Diane Bullock 968-3175 Treasurer – Sharon Lumsden 968-3889 Conservation – Beau Fairchild 435-602-2767 Education – Judy Hallisey 674-6858 Field Trips – Steve Moore 933-1179 *Newsletter – Jan Demorest 933-1179 *Historian – Gloria Lindstrom 925-1807 Programs – Jeb Baldi 933-1558 Publicity – Gerry Sorenson 968-4857 Wildlife Habitat – Joe Meuchel 933-3011 *Bluebird boxes – Jan Demorest 933-1179 Past President — Gloria Baldi 933-1158

Membership – Tuck Forsythe 925-2356

*Christmas Bird Count – Phil Mattocks 962-2191 Social/Greeter – Kay Forsythe 925-2356 *NON-VOTING POSITIONS

KAS Board Meetings are held at 4:30

PM on the 1st Thursday of each

month on the third floor of the CWU

Science Bldg, Room 301 (above the

elephant desk). These meetings are

open to the public and all Audubon

members; please come and join in the

discussions. Meetings adjourn by 6:00

or 6:30, after which we all go out for a

sociable dinner ~ NO business discus-

sion allowed!

The mission of Kittitas Audubon is to develop an appreciation of nature

through education and conservation, with a focus on birds.

September 7th ~ First Saturday Bird Walk ~

Nine post-fair/rodeo birders gathered at Rhinehart

Park, including one woman walking her dog who

may become a member. We didn't see many

birds, but had a great time, beginning with a

Steller's Jay and Osprey. Next was a kingfisher,

flying along the irrigation ditch beside the road.

They had shut off the water to the ditch, so the

bird was probably looking for trapped fish.

Along the road we got a great view of a Black-

capped Chickadee and small flycatcher. Nobody in

the group could identify it. We needed Cricket or

Steve. Lots of starlings.

We caught a glimpse of a Great Blue Heron and

then watched a Downy Woodpecker work over a

cottonwood tree. Next was a Northern Flicker,

Black-billed Magpie, and finally, a flock of Brewer's

Blackbirds, which I call “Costco Birds”.

We went under I-90 to the Reecer Creek restora-

tion where you can see shorebirds at low water.

Unfortunately (for birding, at least) the three-hour

thunderstorm two nights earlier had turned Reecer

Creek into

that scene in

“The African

Queen" when

Bogey and

Katherine

Hepburn fi-

nally enter

Lake Victoria.

In other

words,

lots of

flooded

channels

but no

mudflats.

We didn't

see a single bird there. Also there were no water-

fowl on the lakes, possibly because people and

their dogs were already staking out their places

along the shores.

On my way home, I detoured by Sorensen's Pond

and saw a couple hundred Canada Geese and a

huge covey of California Quail. Then along Bull

Road there were hundreds of Tree Swallows cover-

ing the power lines. One Red-tailed Hawk perched

near Dusty's Nursery. ~ Jim Briggs

Field Trip Reports Page 3 The Hooter

Bird sightings at the Baldi’s as the Hooter

goes to press...

This week at the end of September has been

cooler in temperature; raptor activity is in-

creasing and migration is continuing.

Just watched about thirty-five Violet-green

Swallows hawking bugs and heading south out

of the valley. A female Northern Harrier

has hunted our field all week and yesterday she

snatched a rather large rodent. Ms Cooper’s

Hawk (female judged only because of the large

size) is back and patiently sits on the rail fence

deciding suddenly to dive into the yew bushes

for a delicate small bird dinner. As she comes

out empty-handed (clawed?), she

shakes.........and then walks in and out of sev-

eral bushes continuing to hunt. Rather comical

to watch, but we are always delighted when

she is successful.

Black-capped Chickadees and male Red-winged

Blackbirds are devouring the seeds on the ma-

ture sunflowers. White-crowned Sparrows are

on the ground under the feeders, on the move

to warmer climates. Each day brings its new

bird activity…...and it never fails to bring

us joy.

~ Gloria Baldi

Juvenile Cooper’s Hawk

The African Queen with no

mudflats!

Page 4 Hooter News and weather

“Bellingham Bird Adventure” Saturday - Sunday ~

October 26th - 27th Exploring the northwest corner of the state (that is, the NW Central section), we’ll scout habitats from the shore of Puget Sound in the Bellingham area, to urban fall color, including Semiahmoo Spit, Birch Bay, and city parks and trails. Motel overnight in Bellingham; location TBD. A sumptuous dinner to reward our efforts and celebrate our sightings. Early Saturday departure. We’ll plan to carpool with ideally a max of 4 people per vehicle (the better to see the birds from the car). Call Steve Moore for info, 933-1179. Space limited, so call early!

...and from Sorenson’s Barn…

We have had 3 or 4 Barn Owl

chicks in the hay barn. They

made their first flight the night

of the big rain and thunder

storm last week.

~ Gerry Sorenson

“I knew by the signs it would be a hard winter. The

hollies bore a heavy crop of berries and birds stripped

them bare. Crows

quarreled in reaped fields

and owls cried in the

mountains, mournful

as widows. Fur and

moss grew thicker than

usual. Cold rains came,

driven sideways through

the trees by north winds,

and snows followed.”

~~ Sarah Micklem, Firethorn

Mysteries of Migration Page 5 The Hooter

Are your birds southbound, just arriving, or

homebodies?

Many of us backyard birdwatchers are witnessing the

change of the seasons this month, with hummingbirds no longer visiting our flowers or nectar feeders and large groupings of other birds moving out.

But is it just goodbye to migrants and a familiar nod to year-round residents?

Is that chickadee you've been watching flit in and out of a nestbox all summer the same one you'll see at your winter feeder a few months down the road? When you look at that "year-round range" map stretching from Alaska to the southwest U.S. in your

field guide, do you wonder if your summertime chicka-dee is beating wings to New Mexico for the winter, and

the ones you see this fall just moved in from British Columbia?

Are your backyard birds heading south, just arriving from parts north, or are they homebodies hanging out 24-7-365?

Chances are, it's a little bit of all three, depending on the species using your backyard wildlife habitat.

As experts at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology say, mi-

gratory patterns vary by species and sometimes within the same species.

Short distance migrants often include species that are permanent residents in most of their range, but with migratory tendencies on the edges or in pockets

of their range.

Hairy woodpeckers are primarily non-migratory, per-manent residents throughout their breeding range. However, northernmost populations display irregular and unpredictable wandering in winter. Local post-

nesting short-distance movements take place in some areas. In some situations individuals breeding at higher altitudes seem to disperse to lower altitudes during non-breeding season or from inland to coastal locations.

This may be the migrating pattern category that fits

one of our most common backyard winter feeding sta-tion visitors - the Black-capped Chickadee.

Medium distance migrants tend to exhibit a variety of irregular patterns of north/south migration but re-

main in North America.

Jays in general tend to fit this pattern, although much remains a mystery. Here in the Pacific Northwest, some Steller's Jays are present throughout the winter in all parts of the range. Young jays may be more likely to migrate than adults. Some individual jays may migrate south in one year, stay north the next winter, and then migrate south again the next year.

Many who feed birds in their backyard may be seeing one population of jays in the winter and an entirely different population of jays in the summer.

The northernmost breeding population of White-crowned Sparrows migrates from Alaska and the Yukon to the southern plains of the United States and into northern Mexico. A different subspecies breeds farther south, ranging from British Columbia to north-

ern California. These White-crowns migrate a shorter distance to the lowlands of central and southern Cali-fornia. A third subspecies is a permanent resident in parts of coastal California.

Killdeer are classified as medium-distance partial mi-grants, another way of saying their movements are complex and poorly understood. Banding records sug-gest general southward fall migration in North Ameri-

can birds, with no strong directional orientation. Some

killdeer migrate through western North America and Central America while others winter in the coastal and wetland areas of California.

Some wrens, Red-winged Blackbirds, House Finches, goldfinches, juncos and Evening Grosbeaks may fit this category, too, breeding in Canada or here in Washington, and some wintering here or in Oregon,

California, and other southwest states or Mexico.

(Continued on page 6)

STARTING FROM SCRATCH

After forty years of indulging in

an oasis of wildlife I am

turning it over to another

family to wonder at the variety

and abundance of critters.

I am moving to a house

surrounded by that great

American desert - a lawn.

I will try to write a little each

month of my experience

turning this into a

yard that, at

the minimum,

qualifies as a

NWF Backyard

Wildlife

Habitat. Let's

see what can

become of a corner lot on a

busy town street.

First on the schedule will be

bird feeders and water. Over

the winter maybe birdhouses

and a low fence for a

background for native

pollinators. I'll be

starting another bird

sighting list, too.

Any ideas, plants, and/

or help would make the

project faster, and a whole lot

more fun.

~ Marianne Gordon

Page 6 Hooter This & That…

And then there are the really mysterious movers - Red Crossbills and Pine Siskins, whose ranges are de-

scribed in many field guides as highly irregular, irrup-tive, erratic or wandering, probably due to fluctuations in food sources.

Long distance migrants undertake migratory jour-neys that can take weeks to complete and cover thou-sands of miles. Some 350 species are considered "neotropical" migrants, from "neo" referring to new and the new world of the Americas, and "tropical" de-

fined as the latitudinal region between the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere.

These birds breed in the United States and Canada and winter in the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America. Neotropical migrants include rap-tors, vultures, waterfowl, shorebirds, and passerine (perching songbird) species such as hummingbirds,

thrushes, warblers, orioles, and tanagers.

Some species do not migrate at all because they are able to find adequate supplies of food throughout the winter in the same place they breed and rear young. Crows, quail and pheasants definitely fall into this category. Some owls and nuthatches might also be permanent residents.

"Songbird Journeys - Four Seasons in the Lives of Mi-gratory Birds," a book by Miyoko Chu, science writer

at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, delves into more detail on bird migration. The following is from a Lab description of the book:

"One of the world's most extraordinary wildlife migra-tions passes unseen within hundreds of feet of our own neighborhood--the night flights of millions of

songbirds. By dawn, these colorful migrants descend to our backyards, urban parks, and forests, either to replenish themselves for the rest of their trip or to settle in for the summer and raise their young.

Until recently, little

was known about the lives of songbirds dur-ing their travels from autumn until spring. Aided by modern tech-nology, however, sci-entists have docu-

mented mass migra-tions over the Gulf of Mexico, identified the

voices of migrants in the night sky, and showed how songbirds navigate using stars,

polarized light, and magnetic fields.

Miyoko Chu explores the intricacies underlying the ebb and flow of migra-tion, the cycle of seasons, and the interconnectedness between distant places. "Songbird Journeys" pays homage to the wonder and beauty of songbirds while revealing the remarkable lives of migratory birds and

the scientific quest to answer age-old questions about where songbirds go, how they get there, and what they do in the far-flung places they inhabit throughout

the year."

For more information, see http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/studying/migration/sbj/document_view (copy and paste this into your browser)

~ from WDFW Crossing Paths News Notes Sept 2013

...Bird Migration (Continued from page 5)

Welcome New Members! Gary Manning

Susan V. Campbell

Thanks for renewing! Jo Ellen Richards

Janet Nelson

Jeb & Gloria Baldi

Page 7 Hooter

Darling Bird Studios, ©2007 UNA

Membership & other news!

BECOME A KITTITAS AUDUBON MEMBER!! (Or renew your membership)

Receive The Hooter ~ help support education and conservation activities and projects!

Two options are available:

OPTION 1: Membership in National Audubon includes a subscription to the magazine, Audubon, membership in the local chapter (KAS), and KAS monthly newsletter, THE HOOTER

____ Join as a new National Audubon member $20 (includes KAS membership)

____ Renew a National Audubon membership $35

Make check payable to: National Audubon Society Include this form and mail to: Membership Data Center, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235

Name ___________________________ Address __________________________________________

City _____________________________ State, ZIP _________________________________________

Chapter Code COZY220Z

OPTION 2: Membership in only the local chapter, KAS, includes the monthly newsletter, THE HOOTER

____ Join the local Kittitas Audubon Society (KAS) chapter $20

____ Renew your KAS membership $20

____ Make a donation to KAS $______ (amount)

Make check payable to KAS and mail to: KAS, P.O. Box 1443, Ellensburg, WA 98926

Name ____________________________________ Phone __________________________________

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State, ZIP _________________________________ Would you like to receive The Hooter electronically?

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renewing, or donating member? Yes ___ No ____

Kittitas Audubon is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational society.

All memberships and donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.

Membership forms are also available on our Web site: Kittitasaudubon.org.

For membership information contact Membership Chair, Tuck Forsythe ~ forsythe@fairpoint.net

Check out BirdKitt!! Get the latest news on bird sightings in Kittitas County from our very own regional “BirdKitt”, an online “listserve” for all persons inter-ested in bird sightings in Kittitas County. You can post your own sightings and sign on to have new postings sent directly to your email address.

If you are not already signed up, here’s how to do it: send an email

to subscribe@yahoogroups.com . Reply to the first email about Bird-kitt that you receive from “yahoogroups”. To unsubscribe: send email to birdkitt- unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com . If you have difficulty, contact Chris Caviezel chris.caviezel@gmail.com

This is a great resource for finding places

to look for birds in the valley.

GET “THE

HOOTER” ONLINE

Save paper, printing,

postage. If you would

prefer to receive the

electronic version,

send your name, mailing address, &

email address to:

info@kittitasaudubon.org

At the beginning of each month,

we’ll send you an email with a quick

link to the new Hooter.

Upcoming KAS Field Trips

THANKS TO KITTITAS COUNTY BUSINESSES SUPPORTING KAS!

Inland Internet, Roslyn, donates Internet service for our Website: http://www.kittitasaudubon.org

Old Mill Country Store, Ellensburg ~ Provides a discount on bird seed to KAS members

and prints our county bird lists. Get your bird seed here!

Kittitas Audubon

P.O. Box 1443

Ellensburg WA 98926

October

5th, Saturday ~ First Saturday BirdWalk,

Rinehart Park. It’s the tail end of the migrant

songbirds of summer, but October is a good time

to spot a few ducks and grebes arriving, and

perhaps an unusual hawk. 2-3 hour walk.

Meet at the Irene Rinehart riverside parking

lot off of Umtanum Rd at 8 AM. Gerry

Sorenson will lead.

26th-27th, Saturday-Sunday ~ Bellingham

Adventure. Exploring the northwest corner

of the state, we’ll scout habitats from the

shore of the Sound to urban fall color, includ-

ing Semiahmoo Spit, Birch Bay, and city parks

and trails. Motel overnight in Bellingham; lo-

cation TBD. Early Saturday departure. Call

Steve Moore for info, 933-1179. (See page

4 for more info) Call soon—space is limited.

November

2nd, Saturday ~ First Saturday BirdWalk,

Rinehart Park. Leaves have turned, and the

first Bald Eagles are arriv-

ing. Juncos are back

in the woods after a

summer absence, and

creepers and wrens could

be active. 2-3 hour walk

(before you have to go

home and rake leaves.)

Meet at the Irene Rinehart

riverside parking lot off of

Umtanum Rd at 8 AM. Jeb

and Gloria Baldi lead; 933-

1558 for info.

The Hooter - October 2013 The Newsletter of Kittitas Audubon - http://www.kittitasaudubon.org

“Autumn Landscape” painting by

William James Neatby (1860-1910)

From the book, “A Day with Keats”