n e w s l e t t e r file3 twenty-three bcdc members visited rushton farms banding station on...
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The Birding Club of Delaware County is a birding club located in Delaware
County, Pennsylvania, with the purpose
of expanding individual interest in and
study of wild birds.
The Birding Club of Delaware County is
open to birders and bird watchers of all
skill levels.
Membership is from September through
August.
Meetings are held the 2nd Wednesday of
each month from September through June at the Marple Township Library Meeting
Room. Meetings begin at 7:30PM.
Visitors are always welcome.
For additional information regarding
membership, please contact John
D’Amico at 610-566-1461
or email [email protected].
Websites
BCDC: www.bcdelco.org
RTPHW: www.rtphawkwatch.org
All materials, illustrations and photos are copyrighted 2011, by the Birding Club of
Delaware County, all rights reserved.
November 2012
Volume 15, Issue 2
1 Programs
2 Field Trip Schedule
3 Photo and announce-
ments
4 Delco Bluebird report
Alice Sevareid
N E W S L E T T E R
Inside This Issue
Wednesday, November 14
Ruth Pfeffer - Migration
Ruth will enlighten us about the twice-annual ordeal that is bird
migration – something that delights us, but poses a real challenge for
the birds themselves. The presentation will incorporate her original
video footage.
Wednesday, December 12
Movie Night at BCDC!
Join us at our regular meeting for a bird-related film. There will also
be a fun bird-related movie quiz to test how closely you pay attention
when birds show up in films. This is our traditional holiday get-
together, so feel free to bring a small quantity of your favorite
munchies to share. The club will supply paper goods and soft drinks.
This would be a good meeting to bring a guest.
Wednesday, January 9
Amy and Chris Langman - Panama Adventure
Our own Amy and Chris Langman will present a program from
their sojourn at the Canopy Lodge and Tower in September 2008.
For those of us who have never birded the tropics, come get a taste of
what rainforest birding offers.
Programs November - December
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UPCOMING BCDC FIELD TRIPS
Saturday, November 17 A new and interesting outing! Al Guarente and Gary Becker will
lead a “mini-pelagic” in the Delaware Bay. Participants will board
the Cape May-Lewes Ferry in Cape May at 9:30 AM and cross
the bay as foot passengers , leaving Lewes to return to Cape May
at about 12:45 PM. With luck, participants will score scoters, gulls,
kittiwakes, loons and maybe alcids or a Fulmar. If you like, you can
take a car (reservations recommended) and just do half this trip,
starting at either terminal (observe departure times, please).
See info on the ferry at: http://www.capemaylewesferry.com/
Round-trip fare is about $18 for foot passengers.
BE SURE TO DRESS WARMLY FOR COLD AND WIND!!!
Al: 610-566-8266 or [email protected]
Saturday, November 24 Conowingo Dam. Meet in the main parking lot for eagles,
gulls, and other early winter species. Leader - Tom Reeves
610-361-8027 or 267-879-0000 (cell) or [email protected]
Sunday, November 25 Lakes of Chester County with Holly Merker. Meet at Exton Mall
Boscov’s parking lot at 7 AM. BRING LUNCH! This trip will
concentrate on waterfowl. 610-733-4392
Saturday, December 15 Glenolden/Delaware County Christmas Count
Contact Dave Eberly for info on volunteering and coverage areas.
610-565-8484 or [email protected]
Saturday, January 12, 2013 Al Guarente’s New Year’s trip to Delaware.
PLEASE NOTE!!! All field trips are subject to last-minute changes. It is your responsibility to be sure the trip is being held as planned. Contact trip
leader if you have questions. Plan to arrive about 15 minutes early.
Please check our website at www.bcdelco.org for updates.
Field Trip Coordinators: Amy or Chris Langman, 610-566-4091 or [email protected]
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Twenty-three BCDC members visited Rushton Farms banding station on
September 15 to observe the banding of warblers, thrushes and catbirds.
Thanks to club president Doris McGovern for organizing this outing.
A note regarding the BCDC Newsletter
The club must use significant resources in sending out newsletters
to members who request it. We will continue to do so for those who
require it, but we would like to encourage members to either read
the newsletter online at: http://www.bcdelco.org/news/index.html
or pick up a copy at the monthly meeting. Reading online will give you
a richer experience, as we intend to include many more links to various
aspects of the newsletter’s content, and getting your hard copy at
the meeting will enable the club to use its limited resources for other things.
Please notify any club officer if you no longer require delivery.
Thank You!
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Be sure to check out the BCDC blog at: http://bcdc-pa.blogspot.com/
Guest blogging is welcome. Contact Al Guarente at:
Bluebird nestbox results for the Delaware County Monitoring Group
Submitted by Alice Sevareid
The bluebirds of Delaware County had a splendidly productive summer. More than thirty of us tended 285
boxes that fledged 406 bluebirds. The last time we had numbers over 400 was in 2008. We had 57 more birds
this year than last. This was after a worrisome spring, when we lost enough nestlings to think we might have
an epidemic. A call to Cornell reassured us that what we were seeing was not a problem.
While the bluebirds flourished, the Tree Swallows did not do as well. Two hundred fifty-one fledged this year.
Their numbers have decreased from 291 in 2009, 282 in 2010, 261 in 2011 to this summer’s 251.
In the summer of 2011, Philadelphia area had record breaking heat and rain. This year it had more record
breaking heat but less rain. The bluebirds seemed not to have been troubled by that. Who knows why the Tree
Swallows were not as successful? It might be a peculiar effect to our birds. The fall issue of Bluebird, the
magazine of the North American Bluebird Society, said that populations of flying insect eaters, including Tree
Swallows, have been dropping “at an alarming rate” in the Northeast. But the Tree Swallows have been found
to be increasing in other areas of North America. Bluebird Magazine did not specify where those areas are,
and the article says it is not yet known what the problem is for these birds. It is under study.
We had four new monitors this year. They are Sarah and Isadora Boucas-Neto who took over at Ellis Preserve,
Newtown Square, and Frank Steinmiller and Margaret Bue at Delaware County Community College. The
properties they took over are very big with many boxes. It is often difficult to get volunteers as interested and
loyal as they have been.
Thanks to all of you who helped produce such a fine group of bluebirds. What a joy it is to see bluebirds in the
summer and on a cold wintery day! Get out and enjoy them when you can.
Bird Trivia
What global news organization evolved from a carrier pigeon service between Brussels and Aachen?
Answer: Reuters