Fall 2009 Mobile Bay Audubon Society Newsletters

8/9/2019 Fall 2009 Mobile Bay Audubon Society Newsletters

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Mobile BayAudubon SocietyA Chapter of the National Audubon Society Since 1971

Fall 2009

Volume XXVIII No. 2

Fran Morley

A walker strolls along the recently opened Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry rail in Orange

Beach. Te trail is featured on a new guided tour for the 2009 Alabama Coastal BirdFest.

The Alabama Coastal BirdFestAdds New Tour Sites

The 6th annual John L. Borom Ala-bama Coastal BirdFest, Oct. 15-18,2009, will include tours to two newsites on the Alabama Coastal Bird-ing Trail, said BirdFest NestkeeperFran Morley.We have a new trip Saturday toOrange Beach that includes therecently opened Hugh S. BranyonBackcountry Trail, and a trip on

Sunday that includes a stop at Wil-liam Brooks Park in Chickasaw.The Backcountry Trail is unique

because it goes through one of thelast remaining maritime forests onthe coast and yet it is a wide, pavedtrail, which makes it accessible foreveryone. The 2009 BirdFest alsoincludes daily boat trips on WeeksBay and in the Mobile/Tensaw RiverDelta and repeats of popular pasttrips to Bayou La Batre, Fort Mor-gan, Dauphin Island, Spanish Fort

and other locations.The Hugh S. Branyon BackcountryTrail is a collaborative effort among

the City of Orange Beach, Gulf StatePark, and property owners alongthe trails route. The trail includes7.8 miles of boardwalks and asphaltpaths, and another 1.75 miles ofunpaved trails, with more planned.It winds through coastal forests, wet-lands, and scrubby dunes, passing inpart along a high ridge and provid-ing a variety of birding opportuni-

ties. In May 2009, U.S. Secretary ofthe Interior Ken Salazar designatedthe trail as part of the National Rec-reation Trails system.BirdFest includes 19 guided tours,two evening speaker events, and afree, daylong Bird & ConservationExpo, held on Saturday, Oct. 17,on the grounds of Faulkner StateCollege in downtown Fairhope. The

Expo includes speakers, films, livesnakes and raptor demonstrations,touch tanks, exhibits, kids gamesand activities, vendors, artists, andmore.To register for this years AlabamaCoastal BirdFest or to learn more,visitwww.AlabamaCoastalBirdFest.com.


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Board of DirectorsJohn Borom, Ph.D., President

P O Box 432

Fairhope, AL 36531

990-0423(B)

928-5219(H)

Elizabeth Williams

3616 Pepper Ridge Drive

Mobile, AL 36693

643-7257

Chester McConnell, Vice President

8803 Pine Run

Daphne, AL 36527

626-7804 Celeste Hinds

112 Lake Ridge

Fairhope, AL 36532

928-6526

Eleanor Livaudais, SecretaryP O Box 492

Point Clear, AL 36532

928-8967 Bob Ridgeway 14127 River Wood Road

Citronelle, AL 36605

866-5968

Ottilie Halstead, Treasurer and

Membership

33 Paddock Drive

Fairhope, AL 36532

928-9537

Anita Byrant Salinas, Junior

Audubon Sponsor & Audubon

Adventures

109 Black Oak Way

Daphne, AL 36526

422-5161

Delane Small, Editor

1 Fiesta Drive

Spanish Fort, AL 36527

460-2400(B)

626-9700(H)

Judy Lovell

14750 County Road 66

Loxley, AL 36551

964-5387

John Dindo, Ph.D.2651 Hillcrest Road

Mobile, AL 36695

861-7558(B)

666-8226(H)

Cookie DarawichHospitality

2664 dIberville Dr. W

Mobile, AL 36695 633-7472

John Porter, Ph.D, Dauphin Island

Audubon Sanctuary

P O Box 848

Dauphin Island, AL 36528

861-2120 Ex Officio Members

Nancy Hora

416 LaBorde

Mobile, AL 36609

342-6824

Edwina Mullins, Publicity

4606 N Sunset Drive

Mobile, AL 36608

344-1175

Edith McClinton

170 N Lafayette Street

Mobile, AL 36604

432-4898

Elizabeth French, Ph.D., Field Trips36 Ridgeview Drive

Chickasaw, AL 36611

452-1121 Garland Sims, Special Projects100 Laurel Street

Fairhope, AL 36532

928-6772

Roger Clay, Field Trips

P O Box 247

Daphne, AL 36526

626-5474(B)

928-9047(H)

Larry Borg

1654 Darwoood Drive

Mobile, AL 36605

471-2284

The 2010 calendars have arrivedand they are beautiful as always. TheMaslowskies have outdone them-selves with their prints of backyardbirds. Many are common in ourarea. Even the aggravating Blue Jaylooks impressive! Well, he reallyis a beautiful bird! Each print hasan interesting note about habitat.

At $5.00 they are a bargain. If youwould like 5 or more, call Elizabeth(643-7257). She will put them asidfor you. They make great stocking-stuffers at Christmas.They will be for sale at each meetinand at the Birdfest. The supply islimited, so get yours early.

2010 Calendars$5.00


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Audubon Fall Birding Field Trip Schedule2009

Sep 30 State Docks be sure your permission application has been mailed. Depart Fairhope Unitarian Felowship parking lot at 7:30 or from ACBT Site 25 about 8:00. Lunch at Eds on the Causeway.

Oct 14 Ft Morgan bird banding, etc. Depart Unitarian parking lot at7:30 take sack lunch.

Oct 28 Dauphin Island the usual spots. Depart Unitarian parking lot at 7:30 or Site 25 about 8:00. Sacklunch. Will make mid morning coffee stop at The Bakery on D.I. Depending on the weather, someof us may take the ferry back across to Ft. Morgan.

Nov 11 Bayfront Jackson Oak - Depart Unitarian parking lot at 7:30 or meet at Bayfront about 8:00.Lunch at Moes on Bayfront.

Nov 25(Skip)Thanksgiving week no field trip.

Dec 9 Maeher Park / Battleship Park. Leave Unitarian parking lot at 7:30 or Site 25 about 8:00. Lunch atBimini Bobs Site 25.

Drive you own car or join a carpool at the departure spot. If you ride with someone please help with cost of fuel. $for local trips $4 otherwise. There are entrance fees at Battleship Park, Maeher Park and Ft. Morgan so take a few$1 bills. There is no charge for joining the field trips. Participants and guests are welcome but are expected to beresponsible for their own safety and to conform to the rules of good birding.

The Unitarian parking lot is located on Fairhope Avenue across from Fairhope Satellite courthouse. Spring and fallwe often take a sack lunch. In cold or hot months lunch at restaurants.

ACBT stands for Alabama Coastal Birding Trail. This guide is being revised so watch for new ones at Audubonmeetings. Site 25 is located behind the Daphne Shell Station and next to Bimini Bobs Restaurant.

Field trips go rain or shine. If in doubt call one of the leaders. Some of us have limited walking capability so thereusually a small group who bird near the vehicles.

Access the State Docks permission slip at AOS/StateDocks.

Elizabeth French may organize additional field trips to the Mobile area.

Leaders: Celeste Hinds 928-6526 cell 233-3369.Kris Lindquist 625-8550 cell 209-1019Nancy Martin 625-2160 cell 751-5679Ann McLaurin 929-1877 cell 402-1742


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In MemoryBeverly Hendricks Winn

1936-2009Bev, nature lover, conservationist, birder extraordinaire, wife of John, mother of Leslie and Allison, soared with herbeloved birds on Sunday, May 17. John and Bev have been active members of the MBAS since the beginning in1973. For many years they were field trip chairmen. Their special mission was to be sure that everyone saw every-

thing. A special delight was teaching new birders how to recognize each flutter of wings. I was one of the fortunatenew birders to be taken under their teaching wing. John and Bev were active members of the Alabama Ornithologi-cal Society.After retiring from the US Corps of Engineers, John and Bev became serious world birders, traveling from Antarc-tica to the Bering Sea and to many countries around the world130 countries on every continent. Their world listnumbers 5,500 species. For many years John and Bev have shred their travels with us at the December meeting.Our thoughts and prayers go out to John and the family.Happy birding, Bev, we will miss you.

Elizabeth Williams.

We all make pilgrimages to Dauphin Island. We spend money on registration, gas, good, lodging, etc. The opera-tive word here is spend. What we now spend can result in investments, investments by developers and individualsclearing land and constructing housing units, with little regard for the birds or birders. With each development, thenumber of birds the island can support is reduced and our access is further restricted.How much longer can we be assured of great birding on the Island? How long before we will settle for good birding?How long before we have to settle for hardly worth the effort? When will we have to go to Texas or South Florida,hoping they still have birds?Conversely, we can do our own INVESTING in birding habitats, ensuring that they will endure. We can invest inour shared passion. If we own the land, the birds will always be welcome and they will always welcome us. A fewyears ago, Beverly and I invested $50,000 in land acquisition, which helped in the acquisition of the Goat Trees.This is a continuation of that effort.Beverly died from Acute Leukemia in May of 09. I have established a Donor Advised Charitable Fund, with aninvestment of $100,000, titled Beverly Winns Fund for the Birds through the Community Foundation of South

Alabama. Their motto is for good for ever. My motto is for good birding for ever.A am seekingmatching donationsin funds or real estate for my $100,000. With your help, Dauphin Island willcontinue to be one of the ten best birding sites in the US and one of the best 100 birding sites in the world.

John Winn4179 Lantern Lane SMobile, AL 36693Telephone 251-666-1317; cell 251-463-3909;e-mail [email protected]

Participation in the fund will provide you with a tax deduction. Donations can be given or sent to me at the addressabove or directly to Beverlys Birds c/o the Community Foundation, P O Box 990, Mobile, AL 36601-0990.

Lets Keep the Birds Flying Our Way!


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Fellow Hummer Lovers,In the Southeast this winter, Ibanded 128 hummingbirds ofeight species. Those included 60Ruby-throated, 31 Rufous, 16Buff-bellied, 11 Black-chinned, 6Calliope, 2 Allens, 1 Broad-tailed,and 1 Broad-billed. I caught 30returning hummingbirds I bandedpreviously at or near the same loca-tion. Of the 19 returning Rufous,9 were back for the second winter,3 were back for the third winter, 4were back for the fourth winter, 1was back for the sixth winter, and2 were back for the seventh win-ter. 4 Ruby-throated were back forthe second winter, 2 for the fourth

winter, and 2 for the fifth winter. 1Buff-bellied was back for the secondwinter and 1 for the third winter.The only returning Black-chinnedthis winter was back for the fifthyear.There were nine recaptures at otherlocations of previously bandedhummingbirds:11/25/08 In Covington, GA ahome owner found dead a female

Ruby-throated I banded 11/29/07in Tallahassee at John Armstrongshome.12/07/08 In Fairhope at thehome of David & Carrie Dortch, Icaught a female Buff-bellied banded1/13/08 in Lafayette, LA.

12/15/08 A Georgia hummerbander caught a female Rufous inGood Hope, GA, near Atlanta, thatI banded 1/11/08 in Tallahassee atthe home of Martha & Ed North-cutt. On 1/29/09 I caught the birdback in Tallahassee at the North-cutts home.

12/30/08 In Covington, LA, aLouisiana bander caught, for thesecond year, a female Rufous Ibanded in Foley, AL at the home ofKathie Farnell 2/05/06.1/19/09 South of Fairhope at thehome of Harry & Nancy Anderson,I caught a female Ruby-throated Ibanded 1/04/08 in Fairhope at thehome of David & Carrie Dortch.

1/29/09 - In Tallahassee at thehome of Bob Gorman, I caughta male Buff-bellied I banded12/07/08 in Fairhope at the homeof David & Carrie Dortch. In amonth and a half, that bird moved215 miles further east during thesame winter.1/31/09 A bander in Biloxi, MScaught a female Rufous I banded inLillian, AL at Jim Dickersons home

12/16/06.2/18/09 In Panama City at thehome of Connie Rew, I caught a fe-male Ruby-throated I banded at thehome of Odessa & Donald Kelleyin Panama City Beach 12/02/08.2/20/09 In Mobile at the home

of Mickey Davidson, I caught afemale Rufous banded 12/23/06in Vancleave, MS.Comparisons with the previousfive winter seasons are:03/04 - 181 banded with 22 re-turns and 10 foreign recaptures04/05 - 225 banded with 36returns and 8 foreign recaptures05/06 - 174 banded with 27returns and 8 foreign recaptures06/07 - 201 banded with 25 re-turns and 12 foreign recaptures

07/08 156 banded with 38 re-turns and 6 foreign recaptures08/09 128 banded with 30 re-turns and 9 foreign recapturesTotal number of hummingbirdsbanded declined for the second con-secutive year. The main factor inthat decline was decreasing numbers

of Rufous hummingbirds. Over thepast eight years, I have banded anaverage of 90 Rufous each winter.Last winter that number droppedto 61 and continued down to only31 this winter. That decrease inthe number of Rufous has beenobserved by most winter bandersin the Southeast. I hope we see arebound in Rufous next winter.

Good news was the unprecedented16 Buff-bellied hummingbirds thiswinter up from an average of lessthan 5 per season. Ruby-throatedhummingbirds continue a slowincrease and were the most oftenbanded birds this winter. Othergood news is continuing strongreturns with 22 hummers back forbetween 3 and 7 years. Those in-clude two wonderful female Rufous

back for the seventh winter, and Iexpect to have at least one of thosebirds break my longevity recordnext winter.Great news for me is that a re-search paper on ten years of mywinter hummingbird bandingin the Southeast is scheduled forpublication in the June edition ofthe Journal of Field Ornithology.When it becomes available on line, Iwill include a link if you would liketo read it.Thanks,FredFred Bassett1520 Katrina PlaceMontgomery, AL [email protected]


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CalendarSeptember8 General Meeting East Africa-Tanzania, 2009Ngorongoro Conservation Area World Heritage Site and

Biosphere Reserve, Lake Manyard National Park, Ruaha National Park and Zandibar, presented byJohnBorom. Five Rivers Delta Resource Center 7:00 p.m. Bring a friend.

October

13 General Meeting Plastic Bags and Our Environment, presented byTom Herder, Science Communica-tor, Mobile Bay National Estuary Program. Five Rivers Delta Resource Center; 7:00 p.m. Bring a friend.

15-18 Alabama Coastal BirdFest For more information about tours and events, go to www.weeksbay.org andclick on Alabama Coastal BirdFest or to www.alabamacoastalbirdfest.com. Registration is open.

November10 Guest Lecture Series Dauphin IslandAmericas Birdiest Coastal City and the Dauphin Island Bird

Sanctuaries, Inc. presented byDr. John Porter. Five Rivers Delta Resource Center 7:00 p.m. Bring afriend.

December

8 Christmas Party Five Rivers Delta Resource Center 7:00 p.m. Bring a friend and a dish of your specialholiday goodiesfinger food only. Program TBA.

BirdathonA happy success story

Many, many thanks to everyone who donated to our 2009 Birdathon. What fun Elizabeth and her team of EdithMcClinton, Ann McLauren and Genny McClinton had looking and listening to reach the 104 species. WOW!$1,564.00 was raised which will be used to place Audubon Adventures Science Kits in classrooms in Mobile andBaldwin Counties. Your donation will help to build environmental awareness in students. Student conservation-ists today will be adult conservationists tomorrow.Our generous donors include:

Barbara Perry Terry Hartley Celeste Hinds

Ottilie Halstead Patricia Portier Judy Lovell

Edwina Mulins Dr. Elizabeth French Peggy RainersJane McPherson Chester McConnell Nadine Lovell

Kathy Friedline Ralph Stemp Vince Kilborn

AK20 Nobel, Inc. Sirmon Lee Erin Wheeler

Doug Dugat Charlie Bailey Amelia May

Tom Lawrence Dr. John Borom Maud Skiba

Tom Sterling Ed Waldron Col. Bill Brierly

Dr. John Porter Eleanor Livaudais


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Once again this past May I was

able to attend the Birmingham

Audubon Societys Mountain

Workshop in Mentone, Alabama.

And once again it was incredible.

In addition to being an excellent

learning opportunity it is an

excellent opportunity to just be in

nature and enjoy all that nature has

to offer.

The camp is well run, the food is

good, and the accommodations

tolerable (still have a problem with

the bunk beds). The instructors are

leaders and their fields and very

knowledgeable on the subjects they

teach. Its nice to know that these

people are willing to donate their

time to help educate others in these

various fields.

This year my daughter-in-law

and granddaughter went with

Mountain Workshop

Hot dogs, hamburgers, good

weather, Audubon friends and the

beautiful area around the Lovells

pond in Loxley all came togetherfor a great picnic on Saturday, May

16. The Lovells (Nadine, Britch

and Judy), are gracious hosts who

share this bit of Mother Nature

with us. The resident peacocks

always put on a show for us. The

Canada geese paraded and swam

with their babies. Other feathered

friends were sighted to the delight

of our avid birders.

Of special interest was Judys

homemade pitcher plant bog that

she has created with much TLC

orchids, sundews and severalvarieties of pitcher plants.

Great food, great fun, great

fellowship! Put it all together

and you have a great Audubon

picnic. When you miss an Audubon

outing, you always miss a great

time. Check the calendar and join

us for scheduled events.Elizabeth Williams

Picnic

me. Having my granddaughter

added a new dimension to the

experience. The Workshop offers

a Young Naturalist program that is

as beneficial to young people as the

other programs are to adults. Butall the young people really know

is that its a lot of fun! They hike,

canoe, play games, see movies.

My granddaughters favorite thing

though was the square dance on

Saturday night. In addition to the

two workshops a day, one in the

morning and one in the afternoon,

night activities are usually planned.

Thursday and Friday night consist

of a program presented by guest

speakers. Saturday night there is

a picnic followed by a live Blue

Grass band playing square dance

music. The first hour children are

allowed to participate after which

they are taken to a special Young

Naturalist program and the adults

are left to continue square dancing.

And even though I still had to sleep

in a young persons bunk bed, it isoverall an awesome experience that

I hope I will be able to continue

every year for years to come.Delane Small


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I was asked to write about my July bird-

ing experiences while visiting in WesternNew York State. Youd be surprised athow often I have to explain to otherwiseintelligent people that New York is aState as large, or larger, than Alabamaso much for the geography lesson.The first day, a Robin woke me singingoutside the motel window. They reallyhave a beautiful song. But Ive onlyheard it once here in the south. Theyare everywhere in NY. One pairper yard with many of this years

young. HouseSparrows are the normbut I also saw a few other varieties. Wevisited an old friend who has a 4 acrenaturalized gardencarved out of thewoods. There I saw Black cappedChickadees, Bluebirds, Blue Jays, NFlicker, RT Hummers, and Titmice(not really Common there, in spite ofwhat the books say). I saw a pair ofPheobe sitting on the volleyball net inthe yard of our old house. The newowners must be nature lovers becausetheyve maintained the garden andadded other things to attract birds andbutterflies. She actually had a wholebed of Milkweed for the Monarchs tobreed on. I dont care what the bookssay, Mockingbirds are NOT common inthe north. I rarely saw one when I livedthere and I didnt see or hear a singleone this trip until we hit Tennessee onthe way home.A survey of Dunkirk harbor on Lake

Erie turned up Herring gulls and afew Ringbills. I searched hoping tofind some mature Black Backs, butcouldnt find a single one. Its unusualto not find any. I saw an enormous gullthat looked like a Glaucous but after do-ing some research I concluded it was animmature Greater Black Backed. Hehad an all dark beak and I havent found

any photos of Glaucous immatures who

have that. He was darkly mottled allover which is why I thought first of theGlaucous. I dont remember the darktail band but it might have been there.I stood about 15 feet from him on thebeach. Black Backs are pretty arrogantand bold but I dont know about Glau-cous in that regard. Both are seen inthat area. Whichever species he was, hestood nearly as tall as the Canada goose.Thats one BIG baby gull. I suspectthere were more of him but they were

farther away down the beach, each inhis own personal territory.There was one Caspian Tern hang-ing out with gulls on the beach. Nodoubt about his beak colorred as afire engine. A Pied Grebe was swim-ming with the Mallards in the marina. Iasked the marina manager, Don Ryan, ifanything notable had been seen this yearand he described a mature male RuddyDuck ..... and Oh yeah, a White Peli-can is hanging out on the outer breakwall this summer Probably an old birdwho decided not to go any farther norththis year.I found the remains of two commonLoons on a remote section of rock beachbehind the power Plant. Its not com-mon to see them there except in migra-tion so, again, they either didnt makeit home in good shape or the botulismkilled them.Canada geese are breeding everywhere

... no surprise there. Id forgotten howlarge the crows are. Theyre about 40%larger than whats here and theyre ev-erywhere in large numbers. Same withthe Turkey Vultures soaring on constantroad kill patrol. Red Tail Hawks wereplentiful, both light and dark phases.I didnt see any Osprey or Bald Eagles,but friends have seen them. Every

ditch and field was thick with Barn

and Tree Swallows snapping up in-sects. They outnumber the Martins byfar.There were some Great Blue Herons, asusual, but not nearly as common as herein Baldwin County. Red winged blackbirds were plentiful as were Grackles,BH cowbirds and Starlings. Saw onlyone Cardinal. They never have beenas plentiful there. Another friend had aHouse Wren nesting in the yard. I hadhoped to see our Goldfinch friends in

their best yellow but didnt happen to bein the right place at the right time. Lat-er on they will flock together and beeasier to see. Gray Catbirds were in sev-eral locations. Mourning Doves are notas Common but the common Pigeons(Rock Doves) filled in the space. Theyline up on barn roofs. What reallystruck me and left me feeling hopefulwas the vast unmolested habitat stillavailable there. The heavily taxed folkswho live there dont just clear off woodsand fields to build McMansions. Verylittle housing development going onat all. Im not sure if its deliberate oraccidental, but people just dont seemto be into mindless habitat destructionas happens here. They continue to livein and maintain old houses, some builtas far back as 1800. The old farms arestill old farms and the woods are stillwoods. The grape vineyards, apple,pear, peach and cherry orchards are still

in production. The pastures, fields andditches are lush and left to nature, forthe most part. Its such a hard placeto live in the winter that it has neverbecome crowded and over built. If thebirds can make it back there from theirmigrations, they have a potential para-dise in which to raise the next genera-tion.

SUMMER BIRDS IN WESTERN NEWYORK STATE

by Kristina Lindquist


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DURHAM, N.C. -- Why are somebirds simple singers and others vocalvirtuosos? Researchers at the NationalEvolutionary Synthesis Center (NES-Cent), the Cornell Lab of Ornithology,and McGill University suspect thatinconsistent climates may play a role.A large-scale study of mockingbirdsin diverse habitats reveals that spe-cies in more variable climes also singmore complex tunes. As environmentsbecome more variable or unpredictable,song displays become more elaborate,

said Carlos Botero, a postdoctoralresearcher at NESCent in Durham, NC.NESCent is an NSF-funded collabora-tive research center operated by DukeUniversity, the University of NorthCarolina at Chapel Hill, and NorthCarolina State University.Local climate patterns are good indica-tors of how challenging life is in a givenlocation, Botero said. Survival andreproduction become more complicatedwhen weather patterns are unpredict-

able because you dont know when foodwill be available or how long it will bearound, he explains. Whats more, theconsequences of picking a mediocremate are magnified in harsher climes.In really difficult or demanding envi-ronments you would expect females tobe choosier, he said.Male mockingbirds sing primarily toimpress mates, said Botero. Superiorsinging skills are a cue that a male is

a good catch. Complexity of songdisplay how many song types a birdsings, how hard the songs are is a goodpredictor of the quality of the indi-vidual, said Botero. Males that singmore complex songs tend to carry fewerparasites, and have offspring that aremore likely to survive.Songbirds arent born knowing theirsongs, however: they have to learn themover time. Since birdsong is a learned

behavior, Botero and colleagues suspectthat song-learning ability may also bea display of learning ability in general.The bird equivalent of sparkling con-versation, complex songs may indicatewhich males have not only brawn, butalso brainpower. Birds that sing betterare telling others, at least indirectly:Hey, Im a good learner, said Botero.More importantly, singing skills may bea sign that males are clever enough tocope with iffy environments. Individu-

als that are more intelligent tend to bebetter able to compensate for the dif-ficulties of unpredictable climates. Forexample, if some individuals are able toinvent new foraging techniques, thenthey are going to be better at survivingharsh winters than the poor guys whoonly know one way to forage, Boterosaid. The more intelligent you are, themore resourceful you are, and the morecurve balls youre able to handle.

To see if there was a correlation betweenclimate and song, Botero searchedsound archives around the world andembarked on a solo tour of the southernhemisphere to record bird songs in thewild. Armed with supersensitive record-ing equipment, Botero trekked his waythrough desert, jungle, scree and scrubin search of mockingbirds in song. Bot-eros recordings nearly 100 tracks from29 mockingbird species will enhance

pre-existing sound archives by filling ingaps for species for which high-quality

recordings werent previously available.Back in the States, Botero used comput-er programs to convert each sound re-cording a medley of whistles, warbles,trills and twitters into a sonogram, orsound graph. Like a musical score, thecomplex pattern of lines and streaks ina sonogram enables scientists to see andvisually analyze sound.Botero and colleagues then painstak-ingly analyzed each snippet of song and

compared their patterns to a database oftemperature and precipitation records.The researchers found that speciessubject to more variable and unpredict-able climates had more elaborate songdisplays.The connection between birdsong andclimate is new and somewhat surprisingBotero explains. Were connecting twodots that were far away before.For Botero and his colleagues, the nextstep is to see whether this pattern holds

true for other animals. By studying ani-mal communication, Botero ultimatelyhopes to shed light on how languageevolved in humans. You cant help butwonder what is it about humans thatmade our vocal communication so in-credibly complicated compared to otheranimals, Botero said.It has long been hypothesized that onereason why humans have such exagger-ated displays not just language, butmusic, art, and even math is becausefemales have selected for signals of intel-ligence, explains Botero.What we have now is a nice arena outside of humans where we can testthese ideas and start understanding pro-cesses that are fundamentally importantfor our own species.The teams findings were published on-line in the May 21 issue of the journalCurrent Biology.

MOCKINGBIRDS IN FICKLECLIMATES SING FANCIER TUNES


10/10

10NationalAudubonSocietyMobileBayAudubonSocietyPOBox483Fairhope,AL36532www.mobilebayaudubon.org

Non-ProfitOrg.USPOSTAGE

PAIDFairhope,ALPermitNo.24

A 1-year subscription (3 issues, one per quarter, excluding summer) of our chapter newsletter. Automatic membership in National Audubon Society, and a 1-year subscription (4 issues, one per

quarter) of Audubon, its award-winning magazine. Admission to Audubon Centers across the country.

A 10% discount on products at select Audubon Nature Stores and more!

Mobile Bay Audubon Wants You!Every membership supports Audubons vital efforts to protect birds, wildlife and natural habitats.

As a member, youll become an important part of our dynamic chapter and receive a host of benefits

Make check payable to National Audubon Society and mail to: National Audubon Society,Membership Data Center, P O Box 422250, Palm Coast, FL 32142-2250

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Fall 2009 Mobile Bay Audubon Society Newsletters

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Transcript of Fall 2009 Mobile Bay Audubon Society Newsletters