Feb 2010 CAWS Newsletter Madison Audubon Society

8/9/2019 Feb 2010 CAWS Newsletter Madison Audubon Society

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/feb-2010-caws-newsletter-madison-audubon-society 1/8Madison Audubon is a chapter of the National Audubon Society

222 S. Hamilton St. / Madison, WI 53703 / 255-2473/ www.madisonaudubon.org February 2010

Free Public Program

Who: Brad Hutnik and Mark CuppWhat: Lower Wisconsin RiverwayWhen: Tuesday, February 16, 2010

7:30 p.m. – ProgramWhere: New Location!

Capitol Lakes RetirementCommunity333 West Main St., Madison

Parking: Free – ramp across the streetLower levels – must useunmarked spaces or thoselabeled “DNR”

“Yet there remains the river, in a few spots hardly changed since PaulBunyan’s day; at early dawn . . . one canstill hear it singing in the wilderness . . .Perhaps our grandsons, having neverseen a river, will never miss the chance toset a canoe in singing waters.”

We still have the chance to set a canoein the lower Wisconsin River, much asit was when Aldo Leopold wrote. In anage of rapid development, how has itretained the qualities Leopold admired?Why isn’t the river lined with condos?

Thank the Lower Wisconsin StateRiverway (LWSR) created 20 years ago.The Riverway’s boundaries extend92.3 miles from below the dam atPrairie du Sac to the confluence withthe Mississippi River near Prairie duChien, encompassing 79,275 acres. TheRiverway seeks to protect and preservethe scenic beauty and natural characterof the river valley, manage area resources

for the long term benefit of Wisconsincitizens, and provide a quality public

recreational area in a manner consistentwith the resource and aesthetic protec-tion goals and objectives.

Brad Hutnik and Mark Cupp willreview the Riverway’s background, itsunique aesthetic regulations, and landmanagement options. They will focus on

bottomland forests, upland oak forests,and birds .

Since 2002, Brad Hutnik has been theWI-DNR Lower Wisconsin RiverwayForester. Within the LWSR, he coordi-nates forest management for state land

and advises private landowners aboutecologically sound, sustainable forestry.

Mark Cupp is executive director of theLower Wisconsin State Riverway Board,one of the smallest state agencies inWisconsin, charged with administrationof a unique set of regulations designedto protect and preserve the scenic beautyand natural character of the final 92miles of the Wisconsin River.

You are invited to join our speaker,MAS board members and friends atthe pre-program dinner at Paisan’sRestaurant (131 W. Wilson St.) begin-ning at 5:15 p.m. Please call the officeat 608/255-BIRD (255-2473) if you havequestions.

March program: In place of the regularMarch meeting, we will hold our WingsOver Madison Banquet on Tuesday,March 30.

Aesthetics and Land Managementin the Lower Wisconsin Riverway

Horicon Marsh:Did You Know?

Bill Volkert will speak about the past,present and future of Horicon Marsh atthis year’s Wings Over Madison spring

banquet on Tuesday, March 30. Volkert isthe natural resource educator and natu-

ralist at Wisconsin DNR’s Horicon MarshState Wildlife Area. Did you know . . .• Effigy mounds can be found near

Horicon Marsh. In the 1850s, IncreaseLapham, Wisconsin’s first state geolo-gist, mapped over 500 mounds aroundthe marsh.

• Potowotomis and Winnebagos(Ho-Chunk Nation) had settlementsat the marsh. White settlers at first

called the area “The Great Marsh of theWinnebagos.”

• In 1846, a dam was built in the townof Horicon to power the first sawmill.The dam held back water in the marsh,raising it nine feet. The flooded marsh,dubbed Lake Horicon, was called thelargest man-made lake in the world.

But wait, there’s more!Tap into Bill Volkert’s vast wealth of

interesting Horicon Marsh facts, figuresand photos. Mark your calendar now, tell

all your friends, and plan to attend the banquet. Invitations will be mailed in lateFebruary.

Horicon Marsh/DNR photo


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Things To do

February 12-14: Wisconsin PublicTelevision Garden Expo at the AlliantEnergy Center, Madison. Choosefrom more than 100 educationalseminars, including “Gardening forHummingbirds” with Kathi and

Michael Rock at noon on Saturday,Feb. 13 and 11 a.m. on Sunday, Feb.14.View demonstrations on gardening,lawn, and landscaping topics andenjoy hundreds of exhibitor booths.www.wpt.org/gardenexpo

February 12-15: Great BackyardBird Count. It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3 toparticipate.

(1) Count birds for at least 15 minuteson one or more days of the count—Friday through Monday; (2) Countthe greatest number of individualsof each species that you see together

at any one time; and (3) Whenyou’re nished, enter your resultsthrough the GBBC web page. www. birdsource.org/gbbc

March Field TripSaturday, Mar. 6: Early SpringMigrantsSteve Thiessen will lead this earlymorning field trip to Mud Lake inMcFarland. Mud Lake is usually thefirst body of water to thaw in our area,

so it attracts good concentrations of spring migrating waterfowl. We willmeet at 7 a.m. at the south end of LewisLane in McFarland. Bring a scope if you have one. For more informationcall Steve at (608) 873-3323.

March 12-14: Canoecopia annual pad-dlesport exposition. Alliant EnergyCenter, Madison. www.rutabaga.com/canoecopia

March 26: Wisconsin Bird ConservationInitiative Conference: The Powerof Partnerships. All Wisconsin BirdConservation Initiative (WBCI) partnersand the public are invited to this year’sconference/annual meeting, to be heldin Milwaukee on Friday, March 26. ThePower of Partnerships theme parallels the

2010 International Migratory Bird Daytheme. In addition, 2010 marks the 20thanniversary of Partners in Flight.

This year’s focus will be the State of Our Birds and how we can partner tohelp them. Dr. Stan Temple will describethe present state of the birds, and look 40years into the future. Terry Rich, NationalCoordinator for Partners in Flight, willdiscuss the power of partnerships, fol-lowed by a number of WBCI partners tell-ing their success stories. Attend the con-ference to learn how to become involved

in such projects as Bird City Wisconsin, bird research and monitoring efforts, win-tering grounds conservation, TrumpeterSwan recovery, grassland bird conserva-tion, and more.

To make a difference for the birds welove, WBCI (all 167 partners and you!) isworking hard to initiate and coordinate

bird conservation efforts that requirea committed partnership. The WBCISteering Committee encourages you toattend and help chart a path for bird con-servation into the future.

For more information as it becomesavailable, including the exact location of the conference, please check the WBCIwebsite, www.wisconsinbirds.org, or con-tact Karen Etter Hale, WBCI Chairperson,[email protected] or 608-255-BIRD(2473).

April 20-21: Earth Day at 40—ValuingWisconsin’s Environmental Traditions,Past, Present, and Future. TheUW-Madison Nelson Institute forEnvironmental Studies invites everyoneto its fourth annual Earth Day Conferenceto be held at the Monona TerraceConvention Center, Madison. The confer-ence will celebrate the 40th anniversariesof Earth Day and the Nelson Institute,and explore lessons learned over the pastfour decades and pathways to environ-

mental sustainability in the 21st century.Featured appearances include Robert F.Kennedy Jr., Margaret Atwood, WilliamMeadows, John Francis, William Cronon,and many others; an evening concert

by the Ecotones: A Musical Ecology of Wisconsin; and other special activities.For more information, watch the NelsonInstitute website, www.nelson.wisc.edu/earthday40

April 24: “Orioles and Ocelots:Wisconsin’s Connection to Costa Rica,”a new international collaboration, will

be unveiled by The Natural ResourcesFoundation of Wisconsin, in partnershipwith the Wisconsin Bird ConservationInitiative. Tropical ecologist and authorDr. Adrian Forsyth headlines an eveningevent at the Milwaukee County Zoo forWisconsin’s migratory bird conservationefforts on Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula,one of the most biologically denseplaces on earth. For more information:Craig Thompson, (608) 785-1277, [email protected]

February 20102The Audubon CAWS

From the PresidentBy Brand SmithThe Madison Audubon

Society participated in astrategic planning retreaton December 4-5, 2009,facilitated by Carol Mayesand Sara Wilson of MayesWilson & Associates. The retreat was

attended by MAS Board of Directors,staff and volunteers. Mayes Wilson com-menced the planning session with a dis-cussion of MAS’s mission, with the objec-

tive of determining whether the currentmission still describes the organization’score purpose.The facilitated discussion indicated that

the mission still describes the organiza-tion’s core purpose. Retreat participantsonly desired to make slight revisions tothe wording of the mission, primarily touse more compelling language.

This exercise was very important because the mission is the organization’s“North Star” —it guides the organizationin all of its work. When new projects orprograms are suggested, the Board should

ask, “Is this project in alignment with ourmission?” and “Does this program/proj-ect help us achieve our mission, and if so,how?” As soon as the Board of Directorsapproves the mission statement, I will besharing it with you.The retreat also generated many goals

that the organization will be working onand you will hear about these often. We

are working with Mayes Wilson on thenext steps to start moving toward a newthree- to five-year strategic plan.I will be writing more in the future as

information becomes available.

Red-breasted Nuthatch/Pat Ready


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Notes From FavilleGrove

Why a Hungry PlanetNeeds More Prairie

Anyone involved in prairie restorationhas heard it repeatedly: You’re takinggood farmland out of production! Theidea that land should produce food forhuman use is so deeply ingrained in ourculture that even those who appreciatethe environmental benefits of prairierestoration may at times find themselvesfeeling conflicted on this point, so here’sour take on the issue.First, let’s put things in perspective.

The American Farmland Trust reportsthat, “every single minute of every day,America loses two acres of farmland.From 1992-1997, we converted to devel-oped uses more than six million acresof agricultural land—an area the size of

Maryland.” Assuming that we continueour recent pace of prairie restoration atFaville Grove of roughly 40 acres per year,it will take us 150,000 years to convert asmuch farmland as the nation’s develop-ers did in five! And there simply aren’tenough other prairie restorationists outthere to bring that timeframe down to ascale that is meaningful to civilization.

Furthermore, land lost to developmentis lost essentially forever. It will take theadvance and retreat of another glacierfollowed by millennia of prairie growth

to restore the productive potential of most developed land. Land in prairie,on the other hand, is land in the bank,and the interest rates are far better thananything you’ll find at your local creditunion. Prairie built our most productivesoils, and prairie can continue to buildthose soils, removing carbon from theatmosphere every year and putting it intohumus, improving the land’s agriculturalpotential should it be needed in the future(see sidebar). Additional interest is paidalong the way in the form of wildlife

habitat, groundwater and surface waterprotection, and human enjoyment.But just the same, prairie restoration

does take land out of production andthere are hungry people in the world, sothe question still nags: Is it morally rightto remove any land from agriculturalproduction in a hungry world? To answerthis, we need to look at how the food cur-rently produced is put to use.At least 20% of the corn grown in

Wisconsin goes to ethanol for fuel.Heavily subsidized by the government,

ethanol productionfrom corn produceslittle or no, or evennegative, net energy,depending on whoruns the numbers.The amount of landremoved from foodproduction for etha-nol dwarfs even the

acreage taken bydevelopment, whichin turn dwarfs theacreage put back toprairie.Furthermore,

some 70 to 80% of grain producedin the United States is fed to livestock.Nationwide, 157 million metric tons of cereal and vegetable protein is used toproduce 28 metric tons of animal protein,representing an even greater waste of human food than ethanol production,with annual global meat production pro-

jected to more than double from 229 mil-lion tons at the beginning of the decade to465 million tons in 2050.Waste, even on this scale, might be toler-

able if the wasted food were producedsustainably, but it is not. Livestock pro-duction is currently responsible for 18%of global greenhouse-gas emissions asmeasured in carbon dioxide equivalent,and a stable climate is essential to future

food production. Modern agriculturerequires huge inputs of fossil energy fortillage and transport. It degrades soil orwashes it downstream faster than the soilcan rebuild. Carbon previously storedin soil by prairie plants is oxidized andreleased into the atmosphere. As soilfertility declines, farming relies increas-ingly on fertilizer and pesticides, bothof which require enormous additionalenergy input. Phosphorus, an essentialplant nutrient, is mined, and global sup-plies could be depleted in about a century

at current rates of consumption, about thetime that the human population is pro-

jected to peak. As these chemical inputsmake their way downstream, they wreak environmental havoc the whole way.In short, the food we squander today

represents a degraded environment andreduced agricultural productivity in thefuture. With this perspective, the moralimperative becomes clear: We need tostop wasting food while destroying thevery resources needed to produce it.Ending this prodigality would allow us

to remove vast stretches of land fromagricultural production and put it back inan interest-bearing account in the prairie

bank. It’s long past time to turn the tableson the developers. Current and future

generations would find themselves better fed if restorationists could convert farm-land to prairie at the rate of two acres perminute every single minute of every day,while developers make do with 40 acresper year, here and there, for a change.

Conservation easements andfuture food needs

Madison Audubon generally placesrestrictive covenants on sanctuary lands

that prohibit agricultural and other uses“in perpetuity” – a term that causes muchunnecessary consternation. These cov-enants are generally in the form of con-servation easements sold to the federalor state governments under programsintended to retire flood-prone or erosion-prone land from agricultural productionor to improve wildlife habitat and pro-vide any of the other public benefits asso-ciated with ecological restoration. Giventhat global human populations are pro-

jected to peak by the end of this century,

such covenants could, on a tiny scale, tiethe hands of future generations as theydeal with this crisis. But legal restrictionsare only as permanent as the laws uponwhich they are built. While we sincerelyhope that the situation will never warrantsuch drastic action, congress does havethe authority to change the laws regard-ing conservation easements, and thepresident does have the power to issuean executive order overriding such cov-enants, and the prairie could once againmeet the plow.

Buddy's Prairie was planted in 1994 on highly eroded crop-

land. This damaged soil once again is improving every year.


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/feb-2010-caws-newsletter-madison-audubon-society 4/84 February 2010The Audubon Caws

2009 Local ChristmasBird Counts By Mark and Sue Foote Martin

Counts reported and coordinators areMadison (MAD) Aaron Stutz; Cooksville(COO) David and AnnaMarie Huset;Poynette (POY) Mark and Sue Martin;Sauk City (SC) Karl and Dorothy Legler;

Baraboo (BOO) Scott Swengel; and MountHoreb (MTH) Ken Wood. The compilerswould like to thank all of the participantswho contributed their time and effort tomake the counts successful, especiallythose that participated on a number of counts.

The Christmas Bird Counts help docu-ment changes in bird numbers over time.This can be important when analyzingsuch problems as West Nile Virus, towhich Blue Jays and American Crows arehighly susceptible. Blue Jay numbers onthe Madison count from 1996-97 to 2000-01 averaged 235/year. Last year 151 Blue

Jays were found and this year 413 jayswere counted. Blue Jay numbers werealso higher on other counts.

This year, 102 species were found onall counts compared with 98 speciesfound last year. Species not found on anycounts included Ruffed Grouse, NorthernBobwhite, Short-eared Owl, and CommonRedpoll. Overall, winter finch numberswere lower this year.

The Madison Count had a record num-

ber of 115 field observers that helpedfind record numbers of the following:1,433 Tundra Swans, 175 Wild Turkeys(who would have guessed 30 years agothere would be large number of turkeyson the Madison count?), 39 Bald Eagles,29 Cooper’s Hawks, 229 Red-belliedWoodpeckers, 386 Downy Woodpeckers,1,616 Black-capped Chickadees (SamRobbins was impressed with counts thathad over 1,000 chickadees), 35 TuftedTitmouse (the old record was 28 in 1958),

435 White-breasted Nuthatches, 101Brown Creepers, 7 Carolina Wrens, and902 Northern Cardinals.

The New Year’s Day Cooksville Countfound an impressive number of 31 SongSparrows and an uncommon RustyBlackbird.

The Poynette count had heavy snowin the afternoon that shortened thecount and reduced the number of birdsfound. CAWS editor Pat Ready and Jeff Knickmeier got their vehicle stuck in the

snow and headed home after being pulled

out by a farmer with a tractor.The Sauk City count had a very rare

Yellow-headed Blackbird during thecount week. Other interesting finds were41 Eastern Bluebirds, 1 Yellow-rumpedWarbler, and 1 Eastern Towhee.

Scott Swengel provided comments onthe the 30th year of the Baraboo countwhere record high numbers were found

for 18 species (including 3 goshawks).There were high numbers for 6 of the 7woodpecker species. Other record highswere for birds that are mostly permanentresidents and use yards. Because mostyard species seem to be doing okay in ourarea, a gradual increase in our countingeffort makes a certain number of recordhighs inevitable. But the big story forthe Baraboo count was birds of prey: 9species of hawks, 5 species of owls, withgood numbers for most of them and forNorthern Shrikes. Bald Eagle numbers

broke the old record by an amazing 90%.Saw-whet Owls doubled their record.Observers also found Sandhill Cranes

before the count. Uncommon findsincluded Carolina Wren, Townsend’sSolitaire, Golden-crowned Kinglet,Yellow-rumped Warbler, Fox Sparrow,White-throated Sparrow, and LaplandLongspur.

The Mount Horeb Count foundan impressive number of 513 WildTurkeys, 26 Red-headed Woodpeckers,and a very rare Vesper Sparrow.

2009 Goose PondChristmas BirdCountBy Mark Martin

Jim and Marci Hess, Bill Waltersand I had the pleasure of surveying

birds around Goose Pond as part of the Poynette Christmas Bird Count onDecember 26. It is rewarding to see the

results of our habitat restoration. Wecounted birds on about 2.5 square miles(1,600 acres) and ended up walking withsnowshoes about 4.5 miles.

Twenty four species were found on thecount day and 6 additional species werefound during count week (cw): CanadaGoose (cw); Ring-necked Pheasant (102);Northern Harrier (1); Bald Eagle (cw);Cooper’s Hawk (1); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Rough-legged Hawk (1); AmericanKestrel (cw); Ring-billed Gull (cw); Rock Pigeon (40); Mourning Dove (93); Great

Horned Owl (2); Red-bellied Woodpecker(1); Downy Woodpecker (3); HairyWoodpecker (1); Blue Jay (4); AmericanCrow (12); Horned Lark (cw); Black-capped Chickadee (9); European Starling(50); American Tree Sparrow (263); SongSparrow (2); White-throated Sparrow(1); Dark-eyed Junco (83); Snow Bunting(80); Northern Cardinal (8); Brown-headed Cowbird (cw); House Finch (41);American Goldfinch (4); and HouseSparrow (120).

Birds were counted at 3 houses with birdfeeders. At our residence we had a goodvariety of birds including, 77 MourningDoves, 38 Tree Sparrows, 1 White-throated Sparrow, 2 Song Sparrows, and17 Dark-eyed Juncos. On Christmas therewere 3 Brown-headed Cowbirds at thefeeders. Thanks to customers of MoundsPet Food Warehouse, who purchase bagsof bird seed for Goose Pond Sanctuaryand keep our feeders brimming with seed.

We found 212 Tree Sparrows in the

prairie restorations, with most of thesein older restorations. A pleasant surprisewas seeing 80 Snow Buntings at Sue AmePrairie when it was snowing heavily. Wealso found a fair number of rabbit tracksin the prairie restorations. We flushed onecoyote, which in turn helped with thecount by flushing 10 pheasants. Most of the pheasants were found in or near cornfood plots. Deer normally leave GoosePond for wooded cover in the winter,however this year we found two does antwo fawns that were feasting on standingcorn.

The seven species of raptors recordedis due to the large amount of prey avail-able. It appears to be a good year for smamammals. The day after the count wesaw a flock of 40 Canada Geese migratingsouth. On the hill to the south we also sawan adult Bald Eagle that was keeping fivecrows away from what it was eating. Thenext day I hiked to the spot and found thremains of a Canada Goose.

Snow Buntings/Pat Ready


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SPECIES MAD COO POY SC BOO MTH

Cackling Goose 9

Canada Goose 2,511 848 276 761 82 249

Mute Swan 6

Trumpeter Swan 5

Tundra Swan 1,433

Wood Duck 2

Gadwall 61 8 2

American Black Duck 4 1 4 1

Mallard 1,737 275 205 240 341 48

Northern Shoveler 163

Green-winged Teal 2

Canvasback 23 2

Redhead 6 3

Ring-necked Duck 3

Lesser Scaup 26

Long-tailed Duck 1

Bufflehead 99 1

Common Goldeneye 482 5 176 44 18Barrow’s Goldeneye 1

Hooded Merganser 34 1 1 1

Common Merganser 1,463 9 40 263 152

Red-breasted Merganser 5

Ruddy Duck 103

Ring-necked Pheasant 3 5 116 15 11

Wild Turkey 175 102 181 367 154 513

Common Loon 3

Pied-billed Grebe 1

Red-necked Grebe cw

Great Blue Heron 1 1 1 1

Black-cr. Night-Heron 1

Bald Eagle 39 1 12 48 85 7Northern Harrier 1 1 2 1

Sharp-shinned Hawk 4 3 2 2 1

Cooper’s Hawk 29 1 2 6 3 5

Northern Goshawk 3

Red-shouldered Hawk 2 1 3

Red-tailed Hawk 88 44 41 92 85 89

Rough-legged Hawk 4 3 12 33 23 15

American Kestrel 2 3 2 8 5 4

Merlin 2 cw 1

Virginia Rail 4

American Coot 786

Sandhill Crane cw

Wilson’s Snipe 1 1Ring-billed Gull 1,116 9 33 4

Herring Gull 496 4 124 28

Thayer’s Gull 1

Lesser Black-backed Gull 2

Rock Pigeon 562 300 461 460 358 500

Mourning Dove 799 177 357 565 321 360

Eastern Screech-Owl 23 8 1 4 7 3

Great Horned Owl 17 9 5 10 6 12

Barred Owl 7 2 2 2 4

Long-eared Owl 1

N. Saw-whet Owl 1 9 1

Belted Kingfisher 6 1 cw 4 1 1

Red-headed Woodp. 1 1 2 26

SPECIES MAD COO POY SC BOO MTH

Red-bellied Woodp. 229 28 66 119 127 155

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1 1 3 1

Downy Woodpecker 386 59 134 209 156 248

Hairy Woodpecker 108 21 45 93 57 83

Northern Flicker 17 20 17 13 3

Pileated Woodpecker 1 2 15 15 9

Northern Shrike 5 2 3 6 2

Blue Jay 413 111 364 469 362 488

American Crow 1,060 188 521 1,050 729 841

Horned Lark 16 76 36 249 22 270

Black-capped Chickadee 1,616 165 348 768 597 697

Tufted Titmouse 35 8 53 65 59 125

Red-breasted Nuthatch 29 3 27 14 42 10

White-breasted Nuthatch 435 39 115 220 222 231

Brown Creeper 101 7 2 33 5 5

Carolina Wren 7 1 1

Winter Wren 1

Golden-crowned Kinglet 7 1 2 2Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1

Eastern Bluebird 6 22 41 10 5

Townsend’s Solitaire 1

Hermit Thrush 2 1 1

American Robin 489 23 223 323 85 95

Brown Thrasher 1

European Starling 2,233 1,580 590 642 625 1,146

American Pipit 1

Cedar Waxwing 433 15 173 183 65 95

Yellow-rumped Warbler 1 1

Eastern Towhee 1

American Tree Sparrow 545 70 809 249 193 417

Vesper Sparrow 1Fox Sparrow 6 1 2 2 5

Song Sparrow 14 31 2 6 4

Swamp Sparrow 13 cw 2

White-throated Sparrow 30 1 1 2 3 10

White-crowned Sparrow 1

Dark-eyed Junco 1,092 478 1,515 1,259 862 1,128

Lapland Longspur 1 3 38 7 1 56

Snow Bunting 27 165 2 30

Northern Cardinal 902 133 229 435 201 389

Red-winged Blackbird 62 15 1 24

Yellow-headed Blackbird cw

Rusty Blackbird 1

Common Grackle 1 3Brown-headed Cowbird 4 3 2

Purple Finch 3 58 29 32 27

House Finch 944 125 281 306 202 135

Pine Siskin 7 2 4 8

American Goldfinch 892 141 315 446 440 426

House Sparrow 2,479 468 692 1,295 502 860

Count Day Species 92 52 57 69 58 53

Individual Birds 27,046 5,631 8,767 11,686 7,339 9,859

Field Observers 115 9 25 27 20 60

Parties 24 6 11 16 11 24

Feeder Observers 13 0 21 4 16 24

Date 12/19 1/1 12/26 12/26 12/29 12/27

2009 Christmas Bird Counts ResultsResults below are for six Madison-area Christmas Bird Counts. Areas reported are Madison (MAD), Cooksville (COO), Poynette(POY), Sauk City (SC), Baraboo (BOO), and Mt. Horeb (MTH). Species labeled count week (cw) were spotted in the area three days

before or after, but not on the count day. Madison Audubon Society provided funding for the Madison and Poynette counts so thatthe results could be included in the National Audubon report. See http://www.audubon.org/bird/cbc/ for more information.


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Donations Made inDecember 2009

ACRE MAKER Abigail and Lynn Christiansen Jerry Martin

David Musolf In Memory of E. Weston and Jane H.Wood and Amy Wood

Tom Wolfe and Pat Powers

HALF-ACRE MAKER Tom and Kathie Brock John Feith

Jim and Marci Hess Dorothy Klinefelter

QUARTER-ACRE MAKER Peter and Marsha Cannon

James and Liesa KerlerRon and Dorothy Persche

Mareda Weiss In Honor of Ken WoodLevi and Janet Wood

MY OWN VISION Loraine Adkins

David and Linda BalsigerCindi BanninkPatricia BeckerCaroline BeckettDavid and Roberta BillingKathryn CartwrightJames Clum

Barbara and Ted CrabbWilliam and Jean DammFrederick and Mary DavisLarry and Nancy DeweyPatrick EaganBradley EichhorstMark EvansMartin and Teresa EvansonPeter FinchEllen Fisher

Milt and Jacki FriendDorothy Gertsch and Dale BeskeDaniel Gomez-Ibanez and Mary SwisherRobert and Georgia GravesGerald GundersonThomas and Linda HansonLes and Susan HoffmanMargaret JoyceTodd and Ann Kiefer

Joyce Clark KnutsonJim KoltesJoel LarsonMichael and Linda LeggettArthur and Susan LloydGabriele LubachDan and Julie MeltonFrank and Helen MyersDavid Nelson and Brook Chase SoltvedtChristine OlgrenJeffrey OlsenPeter OppeneerSusan Paskewitz and William Barker

Wayne and Jackie PaulyBernadine PetersonDebbi PetersonNancy PollockNolan PopeWilliam PschorrElizabeth and Robert RagotzkieS. B. RandallPat and Debra ReadyWilliam and Joyce ReederScott SauerCharles SmithMarion Smith

Nancy Sugden and Robert NewberyEdward TaylorCharles ThomasTom and Sandi VandervestRose VrtisNancy Washburn and Mark SpringSally and Ben WashburnMarie WeinsteinEve Wilkie

Allen and Lindy WilsonEugene and Marlene Woehler

GIFTS IN MEMORY OF A PERSON In Memory of Evelyn Batchelor Clifford and Colleen Germain Lee and Rosemary Jones

Mondays Quilt Group Joseph and Marlys Sloup

In Memory of Susan E. Bergquist Jon Bergquist In Memory of Betty Bunge

Ken Wood In Memory of Jenni and Kyle Geurkink

Sally Wilmeth and Terry Geurkink In Memory of Larry Many Hats

Susan KenneyIn Memory of Sara Nesson

Michael and Linda BlakeJoanna GwinnMargaret Kiss John and Jessie Stange

In Memory of Frank Slapnick Susan Slapnick

In Memory of Andrew WallenBob and Sue Wallen

GIFTS IN HONOR OF A PERSON In Honor of Roma Lenehan Elsie Ham In Honor of Sally Martin; Brad and Pam

Hext; Brad, Terri, and Michael Hext;Dan, Kristen, Hunter, and Emma Hext;and Roland and Lynn Manthe

Mark Martin and Sue Foote-Martin

In Honor of Mary H. YeakelVirginia Metcalf

In Honor of everyone who makes orwho has made Goose Pond possibleTim and Linda Eisele

GIFTS IN MEMORY OF A FRIEND In Memory of Chiron

Tess Meuer

Raptor Program Presented byFriends of Rose Lake

The Friends of Rose Lake will pres-ent a speaking program at the HoardHistorical Museum in Fort Atkinson onTuesday, February 16 at 6:30 p.m. Thepresenter will be Dianne Moeller whois a raptor rehabilitator and educatorfrom near Milton, Wisconsin. Moelleroperates a non-prot organization calledHoo’s Woods. It was founded in 1998and dedicated to the public educa-tion of birds of prey species. Moelleris a federally licensed raptor educator,rehabilitator, eagle handler and master

falconer. She presently serves on the board of directors of the North Ameri-

can Falconers Association and will shareher knowledge with the audience. Thatevening she will bring a Golden Eagle,Rough-legged Hawk, and a Barred Owlfor her presentation.

This will be a wonderful program forall ages and parents are encouraged to bring their children. The program is freeand will be held in the Jones Gallery atthe museum. NASCO will have someowl pellet kits available for some young-sters. You will have to attend to nd outabout owl pellets!

The Friends of Rose Lake is a groupof volunteers that helps in various ways

at Jefferson County’s Dorothy CarnesPark, which is located on Rose Lake justnorthwest of Fort Atkinson. These taskshave included the control of invasivespecies, erecting duck nesting houses, bluebird and martin houses, birdingwalks, erecting signs noting various species of plants, conducting a ChristmasBird Count and, of course, sponsoring ayearly speaker to educate the public innature knowledge. If there are any questions you may call Dick Wanie at (920)563-6274.


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THE AUDUBON CAWS is published

September through June by:

Madison Audubon Society,

222 S. Hamilton St., Madison, WI 53703,

(608) 255-2473.

Birding hotline, 255-2476.

[email protected]

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The mission of the Madison Audubon

Society is to educate our members and

the public about the natural world and the

threats that natural systems are facing,

to engage in advocacy to preserve and

protect these systems, and to develop and

maintain sanctuaries to save and restore

natural habitat.

MADISON AUDUBON SOCIETY

President: Brand Smith

Vice-president: Debra Weitzel

Goose Pond resident managers:

Mark and Sue Martin

Faville Grove Sanctuary managers:

David Musolf, Roger Packard

Editor: Patrick Ready

[email protected]

Graphic design: Patrick Ready

[email protected]

CAWS printer: Roemer Printing

Submissions for the March/April CAWSare due February 1.

Madison Audubon Wishlist • Quality binoculars

• Digital (LCD) projector

• Mule utility vehicle• Rider mower/snow blower in

working condition

• Energy efcient washingmachine

• Household/deck furniture

NEW MEMBERS WELCOME!

Join Madison Audubon Society, or give agift membership.

TIME TO RENEW?

Check your Madison Audubon CAWS ad-dress label to determine your renewal date.Please renew two months before that dateto keep your membership current and avoidmissing any issues of the CAWS.Tip: Renewing through the MAS ofce

directs more of your donation to local

activities and conservation projects.

Update: We now send an annual renewalnotice. In the future we plan to offer a re-newal option via the MAS website.

MAKE A DONATION

Help make Madison Audubon’s vision areality. We offer education about the natural

world, opportunities to advocate for the en-vironment, and two wildlife sanctuaries withnatural habitat where you can learn aboutthe beauty and value of nature.

MAIL TO:MADISON AUDUBON SOCIETY222 S. Hamilton St., Suite #1Madison, WI 53703

Madison Audubon Society, Inc. is a tax-exempt, not-for-prot organization under

Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue

Code. Donations are tax deductible to theextent allowed by law. Madison Audubon’snancial statement is available upon

request.

Membership, Renewal and Donation Form

MY NAME _________________________

Address ______________________________

City __________________________________

State_____ ZIP _________________________

Day phone: ( ) ______________________

E-mail ________________________________

YES! I want to___ Join Madison Audubon

Society

___ Give a gift membership to:

Name ________________________________

Address ______________________________

City __________________________________

State_____ ZIP _________________________

Day phone: ( ) ______________________

E-mail ________________________________

___ Renew/upgrade my membership

___ Make a donation

[ ] In memory of _______________________

[ ] In honor of _________________________

Please send notication of this gift to:

Name ________________________________

Address ______________________________

City __________________________________

State_____ ZIP _________________________

Day phone: ( ) ______________________

E-mail ________________________________

[ ] Please do not acknowledge my

Gift in Madison Audubon CAWS.

PAYMENT INFORMATIONNew membership

[ ] $25 New or Gift $_________ Renewal _________

[ ] $25 Student/senior [ ] $60 Family[ ] $40 Renewal

[ ] $20 CAWS newsletter Only(non-member)

Over and Above Member _________

[ ] Patron $1,000[ ] Benefactor $500[ ] Partner $250[ ] Contributor $100Donation _________

[ ] Acre-Maker, $2,500 or morecan purchase and restoreone acre of land

[ ] Half-Acre-Maker, $1,250-$2,499[ ] Quarter-Acre-Maker, $625-$1,249

[ ] Adopt-an-Acre, $100 a year for three years ($300 total). Here ismy rst installment.

[ ] Nest Egg, $50 a year for threeyears ($150 total). Here is myrst installment.

[ ] My Own VisionTotal enclosed/charged $_________Please make check payable toMadison Audubon Society,OR please charge my

[ ] VISA [ ] Master Card

Name on card _______________________________

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Expiration date _______/ _________

Signature __________________________________


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/feb-2010-caws-newsletter-madison-audubon-society 8/8The Audubon Caws 8 February 201

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Madison Audubon Society, Inc.

Brand Smith, President

222 S. Hamilton St. Suite #1

Madison, WI 53703

Non-profit organization

U.S. Postage Paid

Permit No. 1831

Madison, Wisconsin

Is it time to renew your membership?See form on page 7 and help MAS.

Return Service Requested

Aesthetics and LandManagement in the Lower

Wisconsin Riverway

see page 1

MAS Calendar ata Glance

EvEnTs

Feb. 12-14: WPT Garden Expo

Feb. 12-15: Great Backyard BirdCount

March 30: Wings Over MadisonMAS Banquet

April 20-21: Earth Day is 40!

FiEld Trips

Mar. 6: Early Spring Migrants

2010 Summer Internships: Orientation toRestoration Ecology FieldworkOverview: As an intern in this supervised practical experience, you will spend the sum-mer in the field where you will learn by doing a number of tasks in broad-scale landscaprestoration and management, including work in prairie, savanna, woodland, and wetlandhabitats. The primary focus of activities is the control of invasive species, but some timewill be spent on seed collecting and endangered species monitoring. The internship willgive you the opportunity to become familiar with both native and alien plants and to learabout their life cycles and ecological requirements; to observe what natural conditionsand processes have been altered in a landscape; and to gain an understanding of restora-tion and management goals and objectives. Interns work in small groups at sites within30 miles of Madison. Two teams will be hired for the summer of 2010: one to work atMadison Audubon’s Faville Grove Sanctuary east of Madison, and one to work at severasites north and west of Madison. Applicants will be considered for both teams unless otherwise requested.

Dates: This is a full-time commitment from May 24 through August 13, 2010.

Stipend: $4,320 for the summer.

Eligibility: For some intern positions, applicants must be continuing students, or acceptefor enrollment, as undergraduates or special students at a University of Wisconsin Systeminstitution. Academic credit may be available for participation in this program; eachintern is responsible for making academic credit arrangements with her/his university.Applicants must be able to perform sustained physical work outdoors.

Other: Interns are responsible for their travel, housing, and other living expenses, andare encouraged to carpool between home and worksites. Sturdy work boots, gloves andclothing, as well as sun, rain and insect protection are required. All tools will be provided

How to Apply: Application deadline to ensure consideration is Friday, March 5, 2010.Later applications may be considered. Apply by e-mail. Please attach a single file thatincludes a cover letter describing your interests and background, including any relevantcoursework, followed by your resume. Begin the file name with your last name. MadisonAudubon Society, Inc. E-mail: [email protected] Phone: 608-327-0129

Madison AudubonSocietyServing Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Iowa,

Jefferson, Richland and Sauk Counties

Inside This Issue

President's Message ..................... 2

Things To Do .................... ............ 2

Notes From Faville Grove .......... 3

Christmas Bird Counts .............4-5

Donations ..................................... 6

Rose Lake Raptor Program ......... 6

Membership Info ..........................7

Feb 2010 CAWS Newsletter Madison Audubon Society

Documents

Transcript of Feb 2010 CAWS Newsletter Madison Audubon Society