The Limpkin Times

Apalachee Audubon Society Mission Statement:

Protecting the rich biodiversity of the Florida Panhandle through education, appreciation, and conservation.

December 2022

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Redheads at St. Marks NWR, photo by Karen Willes

 In this Issue:

Species Rediscovery

Chapter Programs: Upcoming dates and recordings

Chapter Outings 

• Sat. December 3, Birding Social at Lafayette Heritage Trail Park

• Sun. December 11, Overwintering Ducks at St. Marks NWR

Events of Interest

• Weds. December 7, Winter Social with Big Bend Sierra Club 

Ben Fusaro Conservation Grant



It’s FeederWatch Season!

Mega-rarity! White Wagtail in Tallahassee, photos by Eliza Hawkins

President's Message

BREAKING NEWS: We have two exciting bird announcements! 1) A White Wagtail--native to Europe and Asia and RARELY seen in North America outside of Alaska--was first sighted at Lake Elberta Park in Tallahassee on Thanksgiving Day, but identified by AAS member Juli deGrummond on November 27. As of November 30, it's been showing up every day at the park and another nearby pond, and here's hoping it will stay a while! For more information and updates about the bird visit our web blog. 2) A species on the other side of the globe, lost to science for 140 years, has been rediscovered; more information in the article below.

Young Birders Holiday Field Trip: We may be leading an informal, kid/family-oriented birding tour at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge during the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, December 26-30. Interested in participating? Please email us. Date, time, and schedule to be determined. If you don’t have binoculars, we have loaners available. 

Memorials: Last summer, we were deeply saddened when two past presidents of Apalachee Audubon, Ben Fusaro (98) and Elizabeth Platt (82), passed away within a week of each other. I am pleased to announce that they are being well remembered with memorial donations of $3,325 to our chapter. Our heartfelt thanks to all those who contributed.

Elizabeth Platt

Elizabeth Platt’s family donated her spotting scope to AAS, which we are using with our After School Bird Club at Pineview Elementary, and will use for other education outreach activities. I think Elizabeth would be very pleased. Her love of helping others began in her twenties when she joined the Peace Corp and served in Tanzania. Fluent in Swahili, she was beloved by the local African community where she was known to many as Aunt Eliza.

A young Ben Fusaro

Ben Fusaro is being remembered by his family with annual funding for our chapter's conservation grant, renamed in his honor. Last year, board member Heather Levy organized and implemented this grant to award $500 to any individual or group in our chapter coverage area wishing to conduct bird-related research or habitat improvement projects. We liked two of the applications so much that we decided to award grants to both of them! Ben’s family is now funding this grant for two awards each year, so we’ll be able to sustain that level! We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity to support conservation projects in our area. See the article below for details.

Best wishes for the holidays, and Happy Birding!

Sincerely,

Kathleen Carr

President, Apalachee Audubon

Black-naped Pheasant-pigeon caught on camera.

Image from video: Jason Gregg/American Bird Conservancy. 

Rediscovered!

A species lost to science for 140 Years, has been rediscovered! The pheasant-pigeon (Otidiphaps nobilis) is a large ground-dwelling pigeon found only in the rainforests of Papua New Guinea and its nearby islands. There are four subspecies, two of which are species of least concern and a third considered vulnerable. The fourth, the Black-naped Pheasant-pigeon, unseen by Western scientists since it was first described in 1882, is considered critically endangered.

This year, an expedition set out to determine if the birds were still present on Fergusson Island, the birds' only known habitat, located near the east coast of Papua New Guinea. They were encouraged by sighting reports from members of the island's indigenous community, who know the bird by the name Auwo. While they were unsuccessful in seeing any pheasant-pigeons in person, on September 22, 2022 a motion-triggered camera documented a bird that was unmistakably a Black-naped Pheasant-pigeon. Read more and watch video of the bird, and video of the researchers celebrating the moment of discovery.

Chapter Programs

We do not have a program meeting in December, but you can stop by the AAS YouTube Channel and catch up on any programs you’ve missed this year.

Next program: Thurs. January 19: Emily Duval, Manakins—Rethinking Sexual Selection. Visit Apalachee.org for the rest of this year’s program schedule.

Ducks at St. Marks NWR, by Karen Willes 

Chapter Outings

(Note that this month’s outings are a week earlier than usual.)

Please use the sign up email link to register for each outing so we can keep you updated with any last minute changes. Be sure to include your mobile phone number in your email. Thank you!

Saturday, December 3, 8:00-11:00 AM

Birding Social at Lafayette Heritage Trail Park 

Sign up for this trip

Sunday, December 11 8:00 AM-2:00 PM (afternoon is optional): 

Overwintering Ducks at St. Marks NWR, with Don Morrow

Sign up for this trip

Save the Date

Saturday, January 7 Time TBA. New Years Birding Social at Apalachicola

Bluffs and Ravines Preserve - Garden of Eden Trail.

Sign up for this trip

Sunday, January 15, Guided walk. Sunday, January 15, Guided field trip with Michael Dayton at Elinor Klapp-Phipps Park.

Sign up for this trip

Socializing at Waterworks

Events of Interest

Winter Social 

Wednesday, December 7, 6:00-8:00 PM

(Date has changed!)

Waterworks, 1133 Thomasville Rd, 

Tallahassee, FL 32303

Apalachee Audubon & Big Bend Sierra Club Social. You are invited to come out and socialize with fellow Tallahassee nature lovers. Light appetizers provided. Beverages available for purchase. No need to RSVP, just show up! 

Eastern Bluebird nest box provided by the 2021 conservation grant 

Ben Fusaro Conservation Grant

We are excited to announce a name change, and a new funding source, for the AAS Conservation Grant. It is now the Ben Fusaro Conservation Grant as a memorial to former AAS President and longtime Audubon member, Ben Fusaro. Originally funded by chapter general funds, we’re pleased to announce that Ben's daughter and son-in-law, Amelia Fusaro and Bill Everitt, are funding the grant with an annual donation of $1,000, enough for two awards each year. The grant provides up to $500 to individuals or groups wishing to conduct local scientific research, habitat improvement, and environmental education and outreach within any of the six counties Apalachee Audubon serves (Leon, Jefferson, Wakulla, Gadsden, Liberty, and Franklin). 

Last year, Leon County Parks & Recreation received funding for 8 Screech Owl nest boxes with interpretive signs, and 12 Eastern Bluebird nest boxes. The Jefferson County UF/IFAS Extension Office received funding to buy plants for a new pollinator garden. Read more on our website.

In addition to his many educational, athletic, and humanitarian achievements, Ben was a passionate conservationist and steward of the earth. From his obituary,

“In the late 80s, Ben created a “Man and Nature” series to raise awareness for earth ethics and galvanize action. He cast a wide net, bringing together top scientists, journalists, artists, Native American leaders and many more for engaging lectures, field trips, exhibits and discussions. The series was nationally acclaimed and sparked local action to protect nature and improve the quality of people’s lives. In his decades-long environmental work he passionately believed in a global, holistic perspective to inform meaningful, quantifiable real-world results. He worked on innumerable projects receiving awards for his service. The consummate educator and explorer, he never missed an opportunity to walk in the woods, slog through a swamp or sample a wild harvested plant or mushroom. He was fiercely driven by intellectual curiosity, physical fitness and high ethical standards which he pursued his entire life—not just to achieve excellence but expansion. He loved and embraced life.”

The wonderful environmental and wildlife conservation opportunities we fund locally will honor Ben’s incredible life and mission to raise awareness of environment issues. The application period is January 1-February 15 and grantees will be announced by March 10. 

Please visit the grant webpage for more information and details on the application process and requirements. 

It’s FeederWatch Season!

If you have bird feeders in your yard and want to make your bird observations to make a difference, try out FeederWatch, a winter survey run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This focuses on tracking and counting birds that visit feeders, baths, or natural food and water sources from November-April. Erica Dunn established its precursor, the Ontario Bird Feeder Survey, in the mid-1970s. Since it started up in snow country, it focused on yard feeders as a location for bird counts since that was a reliable place to observe birds throughout the winter. In 1987, it was expanded to include all of North America with help from the Cornell Lab. There’s an annual participation fee of $18 ($15 if you’re already a Cornell Lab member), but those fees go directly to the program, which is supported almost entirely by its participants.

From the website: "Project FeederWatch turns your love of feeding birds into scientific discoveries. FeederWatch is a November-April survey of birds that visit backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. You don’t even need a feeder! All you need is an area with plantings, habitat, water or food that attracts birds. The schedule is completely flexible. Count your birds for as long as you like on days of your choosing, then enter your counts online. Your counts allow you to track what is happening to birds around your home and contribute to a continental data-set of bird distribution and abundance.”

You can sign up at any time, even after the counting season has started. Give it a try! It’s a great excuse to spend time watching your birds and the information you provide will help scientists track changes in bird populations.

Land Acknowledgement Statement

Apalachee Audubon acknowledges that the region it serves is located on the ancestral and traditional homelands of the Apalachee Indians of the Talimali Band, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, the Seminole Tribe of Florida and the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. We pay respect to the resiliency of their tribal members, past and present, and to all Indigenous peoples. We encourage all to learn about the significance of Indigenous peoples in this region and throughout this continent.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS: 2022-2023

Officers:

President: Kathleen Carr

Vice President: VACANT

Treasurer: Harvey Goldman

Secretary: James Carr

Directors:

Cindy Baisden

Charlie Baisden

Caleb Crow

Howard Kessler

Peter Kleinhenz

Heather Levy

Rob Williams

STANDING COMMITTEE CHAIRS

Conservation            Peter Kleinhenz

Education                 Bryan Danford

Field Trips                Heather Levy

Membership             VACANT

Program                   VACANT

Publications and Publicity     Kathleen Carr

+ Newsletter             Chris Grossman

+ Web Team             Elizabeth Georges, Kathleen Carr

+ Annual Report        (President)

OTHER COMMITTEES & CHAPTER ACTIVITIES

Bookkeeper               Adrienne Ruhl

Birdathon                   Harvey Goldman

History                      Caleb Crow, Karen Wensing

September Coastal Cleanup   Donna Legare

Wildlife-Friendly Yards Tour    Tammy Brown

Lake Elberta Park      Alexis Smith

Volunteer Coordinator VACANT