september-october 2008 avocet newsletter tampa audubon society

8/9/2019 September-October 2008 Avocet Newsletter Tampa Audubon Society

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T A M PA A U D U B O N S O C I E T Y

Volume XX, Issue 1 www.tampaaudubon.org September/October 2008

To conserve anrestore natural ecsystems, focusinon birds and othe

wildlife for the

benefit of humaniand the earths bilogical diversity.

CAROLYNS CORNERCAROLYNS CORNERCAROLYNS CORNERCAROLYNS CORNER

Message from the President([email protected])

NEW MEETING PLACE

Century Buick Training Room

3308 W. Hillsborough Ave.S.W. corner of W. Hillsborough Aveand Lincoln Ave.

Second Thursday of the month7:00 PM

September 11th - Tampas Lowry Park Zoo

Animal Ambassador Department will presentsome animals one might encounter while on a fieldtrip in Florida. Some of the feathered variety, some

not. This will be lots of fun.

October 9th - Tampas Future, In Our

HandsJan Platt, Former County Commissioner, and JanSmith, President of the Countys Environmental LandsReauthorization Steering Committee, will present thereferendum language and reasons why the Environ-mental Lands Acquisition and Protection Programshould be authorized by voters, its accomplishments

over the last 20 years, the 44,000 acres of preservespurchased to date, and the 50,000 acres of environ-mentally critical land approved but yet to be pur-chased. In addition, representatives from One Bay willspeak about planning for years to come, creating a vi-sion for Hillsborough County that protects our qualityof life.Its a great time to be thinking about the future.

I have been honored to work with your Board of Directors in the past two months to set annual goals for ourchapter for this year, as well as, hammer out a workingbudget. Our Field Trip Committee, under the capableleadership of Mary Keith, has worked hard to present aschedule of outings that will surely offer items of interest to everyone. Be sure to check field trip opportunitieon our web site for the latest information. I encourageeveryone to take advantage of these opportunities toenjoy the many and varied wonders of nature the stateof Florida has to offer, as well as, the expertise of trip

leaders. Program Committee Chair, Ann Paul, has donan excellent job of setting up a slate of interesting pro-grams for our monthly general meetings. Let me remineveryone of the change in locale and time of ourmonthly general meetings. We meet at 7:00 pm the second Thursday evening of each month at Century Buick3308 W. Hillsborough Ave. This location is two blockseast of Dale Mabry Hwy. Turn right onto Lincoln Avenext to the dealership, then immediately right into theparking lot. Inside the building, proceed upstairs viastairs or elevator, and watch for signs for meeting roomCentury Buick has been most gracious in allowing us

use of their facilities so that we can offer evening meetings at a more central location. Our next meeting, Sep-tember 11th, promises to be lots of fun, as Tampa'sLowry Park Zoo's Zoo Ventures Program will presentsome animals we might encounter on a Florida fieldtrip. Mark your calendars, making plans to attend everymeeting, enjoying an interesting program, light refresh

ments, and door prizes!


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September/October Field Trips

Sat. Sep 13, Lettuce Lake Beginning Birders, Carolyn McKinney, 884-0578,[email protected]. Meet at 9 am at the Lettuce Lake Visitors Center. We will walk the

trails and/or boardwalk, we will be done by 11:30 am.

Sat. Sept 20, Coastal Cleanup Day, contact Ann Paul, [email protected]. to participate,

various locations. 626-2051.

Sat. Sept 27, Butterfly Adventure, Russ and Gail Kruetzman, [email protected], 986-1033.9 am, meet at the Visitor Center at Lettuce Lake, then go to MOSI and native plant gardens inThonotosassa. Spot and identify local butterflies and the plants they use, to help you set up your ownbutterfly garden. Bring water and lunch.

Sunday, Sept 28, Saddle Creek, Lakeland, Mary Keith, 935-6115, [email protected]. 7:30am, IHOP on Fowler, 1 block west of I-75. Will carpool to the park. This is one of the best areas forfall warblers, 10 - 14 species a day is not unusual. Bring water and insect repellant. About 1.5 mileeasy walk.

Oct. 3-5, Florida Ornithological Society, Ann Paul 626-2051, [email protected]. DaveGoodwin 727-365-4943, [email protected]. Meeting will be in St. Augustine, contact leaders formore information.

Sat. Oct 11, Lettuce Lake Beginning Birders, Bill Lamoureux 839-2742 [email protected] am, in front of the Visitor Center at Lettuce Lake. Will walk the boardwalk and Trails looking forwater birds and migrating warblers, done by 11:30.

Sunday, Oct 19, Cypress Creek ELAPP, Dave Bowman, 948-8516, [email protected] Creek is between I-75 and I-275 north of Bruce B. Downs Blvd.

Sat. Oct 25, Cockroach Bay, Mary Keith 935-6115, [email protected]. 8am McDonalds on Rt.60 just west of I-75, will car pool to south of Ruskin. Walk ELAPP restored areas, fall water birds,possibly watch bird banding operation.

GO GREEN

DITCH THE PAPER TOWELS! Instead, pickup micro-fiber cloth towels to use around thehouse. Thousands of tiny fibers grip and holdonto the dirt and bacteria. Besides, they aremachine-washable. You can use them over andover again. Just spray a surface with non-toxic,all purpose cleaner, and wipe away with themicro-fiber towels.

Need help with bird Identification?

e-mail Bill Lamoureux at:

[email protected]


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ARC at the Park

Visitor Center at Lettuce Lake Park

Letter from Lettuce Lake

Audubon Volunteer

Roger Sheets,photos by Roger

One of the neat things about volunteering is meeting people. Some of the people I meet when Im on duty and a lotwhen I am just in the park.

I recently met a nice couple and talked about the wetlands in the park and its uniqueness. It turns out that the fellow isthe professor who is teaching the first Wetland Ecology class at USF. In that same vane, I noticed a couple admiring theplants and being a birder, not a botanist, I was a little out of my area. I told them about Resurrection Fern and how Icould tell it hadnt rained for several days. The fellow told me the Latin name and said they were looking for orchids. I

should have asked him for a tour!

Over the past year, I have met a birder from Colorado who does owl research. I asked how they do things like countchicks when the nest is 40 feet up in the tree. She said they have a long extension pole with a small camera makessense. I met a couple from Ireland who were visiting their mother in the United States. I gave them a little tour of theboardwalk. Ive even met my daughters high school calculus teacher.

Art Linkletter used to have a TV show called Kids Say the Darndest Things. I want to share a few of the kids Ive met.I was at the tower and a girl was taking a picture of a pop can floating in the water. I asked why she was taking a pictureof that. She said she was going to put the picture on MySpace and show people how dumb littering is. There is a family Imeet every once in a while a mother 2 boys and a girl with an occasional friend. I have them guide me. Theyve shownme a small camouflaged praying mantis and a small spider with a dot of iridescence.

Im typically not a people person but being a volunteer has helped me become more outgoing. Theres a wonderful feel-ing when you can show a tree frog to a little girl whos dad is holding her up to see and give her a lady bug stamp onher hand to remember it. If we have a few more volunteers we can double up. Then we can give short tours when peopleask. Its also good to have 2 people from different backgrounds on shift. At times I really could use a plant person part-ner.

It doesnt take much to be a volunteer only 4 hours a month. It helps to have knowledge of nature and a willingness toshare it. If you are interested there is a volunteer sign-up sheet at the park.

Volunteer training is available for those who are willing to invest four hours a month to staff the Visitor

Center. The only skills you need are a love of the environment and a friendly smile for the visitors.

Visit the ARC or e-mail: [email protected]

Limpkn Swamp Lily Red-shouldered hawk


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The birds in the forty-one bluebird boxes at FlatwoodsPark have fledged a record number of babies in 2008.Total number of fledglings (includes bluebirds, Carolinchickadees and titmice) has grown from 111 in 2005 to

152 in 2008, with 119 bluebirds this year compared to74 bluebirds in 2005. The higher number of fledglingsthis year could be attributed in part to the boxes beingbetter maintained and each one mounted on its own poswith a predator guard, which prevents snakes and othercreatures from raiding the boxes.

Flatwoods Park, located on Morris Bridge Road innortheast Hillsborough County, has had a bluebird trailfor over 20 years. However, it has only been monitoredweekly for the past four. Mary Miller began monitorin

the boxes in 2005 and quickly set up a spreadsheet totrack the birds on a weekly basis during the nesting season, which begins in March and ends in August. Herhusband John, maintains the boxes, builds new oneswhen necessary, and installs them on their own postcomplete with a predator guard. Fran Wright assistsMary on her weekly monitoring route and substitutes foher when necessary.

Next year a video spy cam will be installed in one ofthe boxes, and visitors at the park will be able to see the

activity in that box on a TV screen in the ranger stationThe County park staff is very happy to partner with theAudubon Society in this project, helping the bluebird,once headed for extinction, rebound to a healthy population.

Submitted by Mary Miller

Photo by John Miller

Bluebirds Fledge in Record Numbers

at Flatwoods ParkFeatured Hero

Mary Miller has qualified for Audubons

Togethergreen environmental hero

Four years ago, the Tampa Audubon Society

was seeking a volunteer to monitor their exist-ing Eastern Bluebird trail at Flatwoods CountyPark. Even though the trail existed for over 20years, the nesting boxes alongside it had neverbeen monitored past a yearly cleaninguntilMary Miller came along.

With the help of her husband John, Mary vol-unteered to monitor, clean and repair the blue-bird nesting boxes along the trail on a weeklybasis. She moved all the boxes to their own

individual posts and even added predatorguards.

Bluebird populations declined seriously in the1960s and 1970s throughout their range due toa combination of habitat loss, pesticide use,and nest-hole competition by House Sparrowsand European Starlings. By the mid-1990s,bluebirds status was critical. These eye-catching, energetic birds were in danger ofvanishing from the wild.

Thankfully, Marys dedication to the TampaAudubon Societys program has paid off.Since she began volunteering in 2004, thenumber of bluebird fledglings has increasedfrom 74 to 119.


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Want to go on a Birding

Fieldtrip?

Follow us on the trip to Orlando Wetlands Park

on May 18, 2008 Led by Mary Keith

Fieldtrip Report by Carolyn McKinney,TAS President, Fl. Master Naturalist

As we left Tampa, keeping a wary eye on the rain clouds, we hoped for sun and lots of birds. In route, manycattle egrets, red-shoulder hawks, and American kestrel whet our appetites for more. As we pulled into theparking lot to sign in, the heavens began to release much needed rain. We donned rain gear, determined tomake a day of it. We were soon rewarded by dozens of black-necked stilts, some of whom were sitting onnests. A beautiful purple gallinule added to our joy as it darted in and out of water plants among a group ofglossy ibis.

We noticed a large soft-shelled turtle just ahead on the right bank of the levy. We feared it would be break-fast for a large gator, which, instead crossed the levy and slid deftly into the water for a swim. As Maryquickly set up her scope and camera, another, smaller gator, once again ignoring the turtle, crossed the levyand decided to bask in the now warm sun. Suddenly, to our great surprise, the turtle raced across the levy be-hind the second gator. The shocked gator plunged into the water, apparently amazed to have been taken bysurprise by this fast moving turtle!

The excitement now over, we rounded a turn to discover a least bittern that was watching us from the reedsjust off shore. In the distance, a juvenile red-shouldered hawk loudly called and called alerting every livingcreature for miles to its presence. Two stands of hole-riddled palms were hosts to a flock of purple martinswho were gleaning bugs in flight and skimming the surface of the water. They put on quite a show for us. An-

hingas were everywhere drying out wings or just perching and looking around. We found it interesting towatch the osprey, as they would make dive after dive until finally catching a fish to take home to share withthe chicks. Meanwhile, a lovely swallow-rail kite showed us its elegant, graceful command of gliding at tree-top level, swooping and diveing again and again.

Are those really ducks? - - - Shaped like a duck, but red-bills and pink legs and feet? Doesnt sound like aduck, but whistle? Yep! Black-bellied whistling ducks, sitting atop snags, flying and swimming about withcoots and moorhens, flashed us with those bright white wing patches in flight!

Despite intermittent sprinkles, it was a terrific birding day!

For a great birding trip - Visit

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

The Sanctuary has a wonderful shop full ofbooks, stationary and nature related gifts.

Now online at :

http:www.corkscrewnaturestore.org

Welcome Web Master Tim LaDuca

Tim graduated from Jesuit High School andattended USF. He is a wildlife photographer and

has built his own weather station web site.

Tim owns a freelance computer support business.


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Photos by Gary Krotz

Even with an overcast sky, 21 nature lovers joined together at J.B. Starkey Park to search for native plants,birds and butterflies. We saw more varieties of butterflies than numbers of them since the area normally filledwith the nectaring wonders had been severely mowed back from the road. We did get good looks at PalamedesSwallowtail; Black Swallowtail; Cloudless Sulphur; Dainty Sulphur; Orange Sulphur; Little Sulphur; ZebraHeliconian(Longwing); Phaon Crescent; Pearl Crescent; Ceraunus Blue; Fiery Skipper; and Horace's Dusky-wing .

We also found great specimens of host and larval plants that made it obvious why the winged wonders werethere. The turkey tangle fog-fruit (phyla nodiflora) was saved from the mowers since its a low growing plant.The Duskywings and Little Sulphurs enjoyed the expanse of it nearly along the entire walk. There were alsovisitors to the bright purple Butterfly-pea (Centrosema virginianum), a climbing vine, the trumpet vine(Campsis radicans) with its large tubular red flowers, Innocence (Hedyotis procumbens) with its tiny solitary

white flowers, Spanish Needle (Bidens alba), St. Johns Wort (Hypericum tetrapetalum), Evening primrose(Oenothera biennis) yellow, Dancing ladies (Gaura augustifolia), Hawkweed, Goldenrod, Beautyberry(Callicarpa) covered with little green berries not yet to their ripe fuschia color, Pokeweed (Phytolacca), PinkRoserush (Lygodesmia), Milkweed and more common plants totaling 23 that we could identify.

We continued our nature theme with a treat from Pizza Hut when they generously provided us lunch

with a preview of their natural crust pizzas with organic tomatoes and natural pepperoni and herbs.The comments were all positive as we socialized and discussed the new style pizza by trying all of the

various combinations.

As we finished our lunch, a few of us headed to our last stop, the boardwalk. When Heather and BettyHeadrick reached the middle of the boardwalk, they immediately saw a Turkey hen with two chicks in tow.

Knowing how important that sighting would be to all of us, they quickly raced back to the rest of the group sowe could get a glimpse too. We did before they scooted off into the forest.

Our last bit of nature was to study several large female spiders such as the Golden Silk spiders and the Blackand Yellow Argiope spiders with their males overhead in their webs. It was a fun rainless day not only seeingsome beautiful living creatures in nature but also sharing the morning with new friends.

A special thanks to Barb Van Weelden for helping to guide us through some of the closed areas of the park, JimTear for helping with the tally and identification of the plants, Carolyn McKinney for identifying and keeping alist of our buterflys and Barb and Gary for helping with our photos.

J. B. Starkey Park

Butterfly and Nature Walk, August 2, 2008

By

Jo Anne Hartzler

SUMMER FIELD TRIPS


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Lake Park, June 2008

Beginner Birder and Childrens Bird WalkBy Jo Anne Hartzler

With rain clouds threatening overhead, it might have appeareda bad day for the Lake Park bird walk. Just the opposite cametrue. Children and adults, veterans and beginning birders had achance to venture through part of several trails while BobwhiteQuail and Great Crested Flycatchers serenaded the group

We started with a quick lesson on ways to find and recognized

birds through their appearance, the sounds they make and theirbehavior. We practiced on a few objects with what were newbinoculars to many reminding the group to look at the subjectwith your eyes, bring the binoculars to your eyes while keepingyour eyes on the target and then adjust the focus to see the subjectclearer. Its an easy tip to save precious time when trying to fo-cus on a subject that might fly at any second.

The first lake gave us sights of Red-winged Blackbirds, callsof Common Moorhen, Fish Crows and Cattle Egrets flying over.We heard Tufted Titmouse along the trails along with songs andgreat looks at male and female Northern Cardinals and CarolinaWrens. The Northern Parula sang for us in several locations butwas typically very shy.Bill Gehres brought us a recent photo he took of the Parula foreveryone to see who was making the trill sound in the tops of thetrees.

We investigated some of the flora along the trails such as na-tive Passionvine and Blackberry bushes interspersed among somenon-native plants that we agreed were also important to recog-nize.

The 2nd pond had two beautiful Wood Ducks and several but-terflies nectaring on the Buttonbush. As we left the last trail, twoof the boys were lucky enough to spot an Eastern Garter snakethat wasnt afraid of the impending storm.

Our walk finished on time with the clouds bursting open justas we reached our cars. It was a good day with much cooler con-ditions than we might have expected in the middle of June in

Florida.

Century Buick

Use of their facilities forAudubon Meetings

Pizza Hut

Supplied lunch for theAugust 2nd fieldtrip to J.B. Starkey Park

Sara Sherman - $25.00A long time member

Tampa Breakfast Sertoma Club

$250.00In Memory of Sue Southers,

a lover of wild birds

Jeffrey Rubinstein

Tim LaDuca

Paul Carroll

Eva Figueroa

Lesa & Andrea WhalenGreat Horned Owl chicks

Chinsegut Hill House, March 2008

Photo by Jim Tear


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JOIN TAMPA AUDUBON

Join in on all the good times. When you join Tampa Audubon Society, you auto-matically become a member of the National and Florida AudubonSocieties as well.Your membership supports vital conservation issues on the national, state and

local levels. As a member, you will receive the bi-monthlyAudubon magazine, thequarterly Florida Nautralistmagazine and our local, bi-monthly newsletter, The Avo-cet.

Introductory Membership $25

Name:__________________________________________________________

Address:________________________________________________________

City:____________________________ State: _________ ZIP Code:________

Phone: ___________________Email:_________________________________

Please make your checks payable to: Tampa Audubon Society

Mail to:

Tampa Audubon Society

P.O. Box 320025Tampa, FL 33679

I would like to include an additional contribution of $________ to the Tampa Audubon Society.

( ) I would like to help my local chapter. I have a special interest and/or skills in:( ) Local conservation issues ( ) Membership promotion( ) Education/Audubon Adventures ( ) Exhibits at fairs/festivals( ) Publicity/Fundraising ( ) Website/Computers

National Audubon occasionally makes its membership list available to carefully

selected organizations. To have your name omitted from this list please check here: ( )

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september-october 2008 avocet newsletter tampa audubon society

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