SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AUDUBON SOCIETY NEWSLETTER
September 2003 - Volume 10, No. 8
Richard and Lucinda LaSalle will share slides from their last trip to Western Scotland in a program for SIAS on September 26th, starting at 7:30 p.m.
Richard and Cindy invite you to travel with them to three of the southernmost islands of the Inner Hebrides. Roughly fifteen miles off the coast of western Scotland, these Islands offer the visitor absolute serenity. Slides to be shown include some of the common birds and other wildlife that inhabit the coves and heathered hills of Islay, Jura, and Colonsay as well as ancient architecture, the remote farmhouse where "Ricky and Lucy" stayed, and a few of the most famous whiskey distilleries in the world. "Come to Islay and say goodbye to care."
The program will be held in the Fellowship Hall of First United Methodist Church, 214 W. Main St., Carbondale. The public is invited to attend. A parking lot is located on the west side of the church and can be accessed from University Avenue or Main street.
- - - - - - - - - - - -Speaker: John Magera on The Middle Mississippi National Wildlife Refuge.
Speaker: John Schwegman on "Birds I Have Photographed".
with potluck, election of officers, silent auction and program.
Speakers: James & Eleanor Smith on Edgewood Farms, IL Land & Water Reserve.
* * * * * * *Jody Shimp knows where to find kudzu in Illinois. Matter o' fact, Jody has documented locations of all the kudzu in Illinois. As part of his job as a Regional Natural Heritage Administrator for the Illinois Dept. of Natural Resources (IDNR), Jody keeps tabs on kudzu in Illinois and coordinates its eradication.
Kudzu, Chinese yam, oriental bittersweet, Chinese stilt grass, and royal princess tree are all recognized as invasive exotics. Under the IL Exotic Weed Act purple loosestrife, Japanese honeysuckle, multi-floral rose, kudzu, and European buckthorn, are unlawful to buy, sell or distribute without a permit from IDNR. Water hyacinth is considered one of the most problematic water plants in the world. Federal law prohibits it from being transported across state lines and restrictions its propagation.
Jody stated that in the past 200 years, 50,000 foreign plants have become established in the U.S. One in seven are considered invasive. Invasion by introduced species has been recognized as the second greatest threat to global diversity, second to the loss of habitat. Nearly half of federal endangered and threatened species are at risk due to invasive exotics. Jody added that exotics can alter natural succession, change fire and nutrient cycles, degrade soil structure, and effect hydrological change.
As for kudzu, evidently 85 million seedlings were distributed by the Soil Erosion Service in the 1930s to landowners for erosion control. Jody said that kudzu now covers 7 million acres of land, spreading by 120,000 acres per year. Kudzu is a bean, related to soy beans. Local disbursal suggests it produces viable seed,.but the real problem lies in the fact that kudzu can grow nearly 1 foot per day. It can root at individual leaf nodes that, if severed from the leader, will grow a new plant. The weight of its dense growth can bring down a full sized tree. It engulfs the canopy preventing light from getting to the understory, choking out understory vegetation. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture deemed kudzu a federal noxious weed in 1970.
According to Jody there were originally 430 acres of kudzu identified in Illinois but that is now down to 100 and should drop to 40 by years end. IDNR was entered into an interagency agreement to eradicate kudzu in IL. The IL Dept. of Transportation, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the IL Dept. of Agriculture, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service are working together to eradicate kudzu. It was determined that the use of herbicide would be the most effective and economic method of eradication. Herbicide is being applied to all kudzu except kudzu on Forest Service land. Jody showed several slides of before and after control efforts that have taken place, exhibiting how diverse plant life returns to areas after kudzu eradication.
Jody also discussed Chinese yam, one of IL's most invasive plants, found in nearly ever watershed and ever nature preserve. It produces aerial potatoes disbursed by gravity and water, germinating along stream banks and terraces. Herbicides are being used against Chinese yam. Jody added that garlic mustard has become a problem in the Shawnee Forest were it is being spread into the forest along equestrian trails from the nearby riding camps.
It was a very informative program. SIAS thanks Jody for educating all on the history, adverse effects and current control practices for these invasive exotic species.
The SIAS Fall Bird Seed Sale will be held at Dillinger's Feed Store, 109 S. Washington St., Carbondale, on Saturday, Oct. 25. To preorder seed, use the form in this newsletter. Forward your order, along with a check payable to the Southern Illinois Audubon Society, to Laraine Wright, 194 Peachtree Lane, Carbondale, IL 62902. You may also place your order directly by either calling Laraine at 457.8769, or sending an e-mail to her at imabirder@earthlink.net.
Orders must be received by Monday, Oct. 20. Orders are to be picked up at Dillinger's the day of the sale, between 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. If you want to purchase seed but cannot pick up your order the day of the sale, please call Laraine to make arrangements for delivery or for later pick-up at Dillinger's. As in the past, part of the proceeds of the sale will go to Free Again.
Your help is needed at Dillinger's the day of the sale. Please call Laraine at 457.8769 if you can help with the sale. Thanks in advance for your seed order! Come by Dillinger's to pick up your seed, purchase new bird feeders and thank Alysa Gullett, owner of Dillinger's, for generously hosting our sale again this year.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *SIAS donated $300 to the Illinois Audubon Society (IAS) Land Acquisition Fund. In a thank you card from IAS, Marilyn Campbell, Executive Director of IAS, stated that the donation would be put to good use as IAS continues to add grassland and wetland habitat for permanent protection.
To help support the conservation and education programs of the Illinois Audubon Society (IAS) consider joining. Annual dues are $25 for individual or $30 for family. To join, mail your name, address and check to
Thursdays Evergreen Park, Carbondale
On Thursdays from 12 noon till
l p.m., birders meet informally to eat lunch, watch birds, and chat at
Carbondale water treatment plant off McLafferty Road.
Dare to venture on a 4-mile section of the River to River Trail to
explore Max Creek and the infamous vortex phenomenon at night, from
6:00-9:00 p.m. The hike is moderately difficult. Bring flashlights,
walking stick and waterproof boots. Meet at the intersection of US
Route 45 and Taylor Ridge Rd, 3.2 miles north of I-24 on US Rt. 45.
For more info phone the Cache River State Natural Area at
634.9678.
Illinois Audubon Society's 106th annual meeting, Springfield. Check http://www.illinoisaudubon.org for registration information, field trip sites, and programs.
Join the IL Nature Preserves Commission (INPC) in the celebration
of their 40th anniversary! It is to take place at the new Henry
Barkhausen-Cache River Wetlands Visitor Center, located south of
Whitehill on IL Rt. 37. The event starts with a program at 9:30 a.m.
which will be followed by field trips.
For more info phone INPC's Judy Faulkner Dempsey at 687.1169.
SIAS will have an informational display set up at the event. Volunteers are needed to help. If you can help a few hours, phone Vicki Lang at 549.8390.
This trip is being lead by Dan Kassebaum and Keith McMullen and is
open to all but there will be a $20 fee to cover the boat rental and
gas.
For more info or to place your reservation with $10 deposit,
contact Keith McMullen, 1405 DeSoto, O'Fallon, IL 62269;
warbler@intertek.net; 632.1057. Space is limited.
Dan Woolard will be banding ducks this morning and has invited SIAS to join in on the process. Contact Outings Chair Trevor Hinckley at 529.0250 for details. (Carpool from Murdale Shopping Ctr. in Carbondale.)
John A. Logan College is sponsoring this 2-day event, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. There will be activities for the whole family, dedicated to teaching ethics, safety, and conservation for the outdoor experience. As part of this event, SIAS will have an informational display set up both days. Volunteers are needed to help at the display booth. If you can help a few hours, phone Vicki Lang at 549.8390.
Come meet the trees of the forest. Discover why leaves change color in the fall. Learn the ways we identify trees as their leaves disappear. For more info phone the Park Visitor's Center at 457.4836.
Giant City State Park hosts a fall series of astronomy viewings.
Astronomers with the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois will
guide all on a journey through the night sky. Join in at the parking
lot of the Giant City Visitors Center any time between the hours
listed; viewing the moon, deep space, and more. No reservations
required. Bring a blanket or reclining lawn chair for full viewing
pleasure! All programs are weather permitting.
2003 program days and times:
For more info, call 457.4836.
Crab Orchard NWR will again host their self-guided auto tours every Sunday through October. Contact Crab Orchard NWR at 997.3344 for more info.
Outings Chair Trevor Hinckley will lead a shore-birding trip around
Rend Lake. The trip will include visits to Ward Branch and Nason
Point. Meet under the sign at Murdale Shopping Ctr. in Carbondale at
7:30 a.m. for carpooling. Bring water and a sack lunch. Return home
late afternoon.
For more info or to meet the group on site call Trevor at
549.0250.
The Tunnel Hill Fall Bicycle Ride will begin in Harrisburg and end
at the Cache River Wetlands Center near Karnak (45 miles). A $20
registration fee is required if you sign up before the bike ride. A
$25 registration fee will be applied on the day of the ride.
For more info or to preregistration, phone the Cache River State
Natural Area at 634.9678.
The BIG SIT! is like a Big Day, or a Bird-a-thon in that the
object is to tally as many bird species as can be seen or heard within
24 hours. Every circle must be registered before the event.
For more info on the Big Sit (participate from the comfort of
your home) visit the website at:
http://members.aol.com/nhbirdclub/bigsit.htm
Laraine Wright will bring a scope to the top of the Giant City State Park water tower from 9 a.m. to early afternoon on Sunday the 12th and Monday the 13th to watch for migrating hawks and falcons. The tower is also a good place to see the last of the migrating songbirds from a "bird's-eye" view as well as kettles of vultures and cormorants. Rain cancels. Call 457.8769 for more info.
Celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week!. Contact Crab Orchard NWR at 997.3344 or Cypress Creek NWR at 634.9678 for their schedules of events.
Wrap up a long weekend with a relaxing hike through the Cache
River State Natural Area on Oct 13. A morning hike at 9:00 a.m. to
Heron Pond highlights the natural and cultural history of the area, and
features a boardwalk that winds through a pure stand of bald cypress
trees. At 1:00 p.m. a hike to Wildcat Bluff and Little Black Slough
will meander along an exposed sandstone shelter bluff and continue to
Boss Island, the site of a cypress cabin that dates back to 1853.
For more info phone the Cache River State Natural Area at
634.9678.
Feed the birds this winter by stocking up at the annual SIAS fall bird seed sale, our biggest fund-raising event of the year. Please use the order form enclosed in this newsletter. Pick up seed at Dillinger's in Carbondale on Saturday, 10/25, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.
John Utgaard, Professor Emeritus in Geology at SIUC will lead
with stops at Kinkaid Lake Spillway, Fountain Bluff, Grand Tower, La
Rue - Pine Hills, Trail of Tears, Alto Pass, and Cobden to examine the
Paleozoic sandstones, shales, and limestones and modern depositional
environments. The outing will look at the rocks for evidence of the
paleoenvironmental conditions under which they were deposited.
Meet under the sign at Murdale Shopping Ctr. in Carbondale at
8:30 a.m. for carpooling.
The Fifteenth Annual Acorn Round-Up is planned for 11/8-9 at Horseshoe Lake Conservation Area. Seed collected during previous events has provided much of the plant material used to plant over 21,000 acres of trees in the Cache River Watershed in recent years. Maps of the watershed conservation effort will be available at the event. Patches will be provided and tee-shirts will be available for sale at the collection site. More info to follow. Phone Conservation Technologies at 201.1694.
Reserve your spot on the 2004 John A. Logan College Central
American Adventure and spend eight January days in a tropical paradise.
This trip will start at the Talamanca Highlands and Cerro de la Muerte
for Volcano Junco, Timberline Wren, Quetzals and Guans. Other stops
include Las Cruces OTS Station, Wilson Botanical Garden, and the rain
forest of the Osa Peninsula. Expert Costa Rican naturalist/guide
Raphael Campos will accompany the group on field trips.
This trip is a must!
The price of $2650, includes airfare, lodging, all meals, and
field trips. Contact Nelda Hinckley, Professor of Biology, John A.
Logan College, Carterville, at 457.7676 ex. 8323 or 549.5588.
Did you ever wonder how birds like the Tennessee and Nashville warblers and the Mississippi kite got their names? If you guessed that the person who named them first saw them in those places, you would be right. All three were named by Alexander Wilson, who listed them in his nine-volume American Ornithology, published from 1808 to 1814. He is sometimes called "the Father of American Ornithology," and he applied geographic proper names to a number of other birds in his travels throughout the eastern United States. They include the Kentucky, Connecticut, and Cape May warblers and the Savannah sparrow, the last named not for the tree-studded prairie we call savanna but for Savannah, Georgia, where Wilson first saw the bird.
Most of the other birds with geographic place names got them because they breed or migrate through or winter in those places. Among these, moving from north to south, are the Arctic loon, Iceland gull, Hudsonian godwit (named for the bay), Canada goose and warbler, Philadelphia vireo, Oregon junco (now a subspecies of the dark-eyed), California gull, and Louisiana waterthrush and heron (now called tricolored heron). The Carolina wren and chickadee are so named because Carolina was in colonial days a loose name for "south" in the language of naturalists.
I've saved several others for special mention.
Ernest Choate, in his Dictionary of American Bird Names, says of the Virginia rail, "its range does not justify its name," this in spite of the fact that it probably migrates through the state and may winter along its Atlantic coast, but as dedicated birders know, it is extremely rare everywhere. Of the Baltimore oriole Choate says, "Mark Catesby, in his The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands published in 1731, made a plate of the bird which he called the Baltimore-Bird. He so named the bird because its colors were the same as those of the Baltimores, the colonial proprietors of Maryland. It is interesting that Catesby did not call the bird an oriole in either the common or scientific names he gave it... It is now a subspecies of the Northern Oriole."
How the Bohemian waxwing, a northern cousin of our cedar waxwing, got its name is a mystery to Choate since the bird's range comes nowhere close to Bohemia. Could it be that its erratic wanderings led someone to apply the name to its lifestyle, as we do with human bohemians of Paris and Carbondale? Finally, there is the Manx shearwater, a seabird that visits our eastern coastline but breeds in the north Atlantic and at one time (before 1800) on the Isle of Man, from which it gets its name, as does that odd, short-tailed cat we call the Manx.
-David Kvernes
Carmen Arendt reported seeing 7 or 8 kites (4 juveniles and 3/4
adults) hunting from quite near Cedar Lake down through Echo valley
to my
house southwest of Carbondale during the week of 08/25.
* * * * * *
On 08/30 Steve Juhlin, Don Mullison and Rhonda Rothrock visited
Rend Lake in search of the Marbled Godwit seen there previously by
Don. At
Ward Branch the threesome spotted the Godwit at as it flew away but
were
lucky enough to have it fly directly over-head as it returned.
Other
species they found included Stilt Sandpipers and Caspian and Black
Terns.
At Nason Point among the shorebirds they found were American Golden
and
Black-bellied Plovers, Buff-breasted Sandpipers, and a Wilson's
Phalarope.
* * * * * *
David Kvernes, Mike McNerney and Don Mullison visited Rend Lake
on
09/06 locating some of the same species as Don (et.al.) had on
08/30.
Marbled Godwit was the bird of the day but also noteworthy were
Sanderling,
Northern Pintails, and Sora Rail.
* * * * * *
This from Frank Bennett on 09/07,
"The latest weatherfront finally brought cooler temperatures and migrating passerine to Southern Illinois. Yesterday I located a couple small pockets of warblers around my property, mainly Black-throated Green Warblers, Redstarts, and Black & White Warblers. This morning (Sunday) I encountered three separate migrating groups of mixed species while walking around about 15 acres of various habitats. The first group I encountered was the largest in number of birds and species. It took over a hour to pick through everything in the first grouping which contained; 1 Yellow-throated Vireo, 2 Warbling Vireos, 1 Red-eyed Vireo, 6 White-eyed Vireo, and 8 Golden-winged Warblers (highest number I have ever observed in one day, much less one spot). Highlight of the warblers was a beautifully plumaged Lawrence's Warbler, I got some really close looks, the bird could actually be identified by eye. No binocs needed. It had a Blue-winged Warbler's body and a Golden-winged Warbler head. The white stripes on the face/head were yellow, except for a fine line a white above the eye."
Other warbler species Frank spotted: Magnolia, Nashville, Blackburnian, Chestnut-sided, Northern Parula, Black-throated Green, Black & White, and Kentucky. Frank also saw: American Redstarts, Ovenbirds, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Baltimore Orioles, Common Yellow-throats, Summer Tanager and Red-eyed, Yellow-throated and Warbling Vireos. Frank added, "Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Carolina Wrens, Yellow-billed Cuckoos, Indigo Buntings, Hairy, Pileated, and Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Blue Jay, Blue and Gray Gnatcathers, and Northern Cardinals were also seen or heard in the general area. Definitely my best morning of fall migration warblers and vireos on my property."
-< -< -< -< -< -< -< -< -< -< -<"Build it and they will come". But evidently that is not a good thing in suburbia where the manicured lawns, landscaped golf courses, and open lake shorelines have lured flocks of Canada geese into planting roots in these areas. Canada geese are now taking up permanent residence in suburban areas were the landscaped rolling lawns provide perfect goose grazing and the lawns and open shorelines offer clear areas for nesting, landing and watching for predators. Suburbanites and other are complaining to the USFWS. The USFWS is currently accepting comments on a resident (non migratory) Canada Geese management plan.
See USFWS article that follows in this newsletter or visit: http://news.fws.govIronically, as folks in northern IL and other locations across the U.S. are trying to rid their areas of resident Canada geese, a local southern IL goose hunting constituency is working to acquire permits to establish local resident populations of Canada geese. These resident geese would provide hunters with quarry in years where good weather up north (and all the good habitat in suburbia) keeps geese from needing to migrate this far south for open water and food.
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recommended that Marion be permitted to dam Sugar Creek for a 1,172-acre reservoir to serve as the city's water source. As part of their report the EPA states that a dam and reservoir on Sugar Creek plus a 16 mile pipeline is the economical option for Marion. They have opened an anti-degradation comment period for the case with the deadline for comments being 09/22.
Comments should be sent to:
Mr. Bruce Yurdin, Manager
Watershed Management Section, Illinois EPA, Div. Of Water
Pollution Control, Permit Section 15,
1021 North Grand Ave.
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, IL 62794-9276.
The Sierra club is questioning how a dam on Sugar Creek, and related pipeline construction, could cost less than the option of connecting to Rend Lake, requiring only a 2 mile pipeline. They are requesting that the comment period be extended on the bases that that the EPA and the City of Marion have not been very forthcoming in sharing the information the public needs to be able to make comments and are encouraging that others do the same. http://illinois.sierraclub.org/shawnee/index.htm
Legislation in South Dakota just removed mountain lions from the state's endangered species list and has identified them as big game.
A new organization, the Black Hills Mountain Lion Foundation, believes that removing these cats from the endangered species list is premature as not enough long-term research has been conducted to identify trends in lion population. For more info visit http://www.blackhillslions.org.
On 08/21, the Service proposed providing State wildlife agencies more flexibility in controlling resident Canada goose populations. Under a proposed rule, the Service would hand over much of the day-to-day management responsibility to States while maintaining primary authority to manage these populations. The proposed rule would authorize population control strategies such as aggressive harassment, nest destruction, gosling and adult trapping and culling programs, increased hunter harvest, or other general population reduction strategies. The rule will also offer guidelines for other activities such as special take authorization during a portion of the closed hunting season; control for the protection of airport safety, agriculture, and public health; and the take of nests and eggs without permits.
The rapid rise of resident (non migratory) Canada goose populations has been attributed to a number of factors. Most resident Canada geese live in temperate climates with relatively stable breeding habitat conditions and low numbers of predators. They tolerate human and other disturbances, have a relative abundance of pre-ferred habitat (such as mowed grass in urban/suburban areas), and fly relatively short distances for winter compared with other Canada goose populations. The virtual absence of waterfowl hunting in urban areas provides additional protection to those portions of the resident Canada goose population.
Presently, State Fish and Wildlife agencies or their authorized agents, such as the USDA's Wildlife Services division, need a Federal permit issued by the Service to control resident Canada geese. This new rule would provide for opportunities to eliminate the need for most individual permits for resident (non migratory) Canada goose control activities.
The Service has also reopened the public comment period for 60 days. The public may inspect comments during normal business hours in Room 4107, 4501 N. Fairfax Dr., Arlington, Virginia. You may obtain copies of the draft environmental impact statement from the above address or from the Division of Migratory Bird Management web site at < http://migratorybirds.fws.gov.
Comments should be sent by October 20, 2003, to Chief, Division of Migratory Bird Management, USFWS, Dept. of the Interior, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, MBSP-4107, Arlington, VA 22203 or canada_goose_eis@fws.gov.
For more info on this and other USFWS news releases visit their website at: http://news.fws.gov OR phone 202.208.5634.
Griggsville, IL is lauding the Purple Martin as America's Most Wanted Bird. Griggsvillians have painted a giant likeness of the bird on a building, proclaiming the bird to be the most wanted and stating that martins, "can eat 2,000 mosquitoes a day." Townsfolk have also erected a towering Purple Martin housing complex made up of over 32 multi-unit martin houses.
Thanks to John Utgaard for providing the tip on this story.
Governor Blagojevich, in August, used his amendatory veto power to protect IL State Parks and other public lands from the threat and destruction caused by dirt-bikes and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs).
As passed by the General Assembly, SB 1521 limited the Off-Highway Vehicle Trails Fund dollars to be spent on enforcement, safety, and administration to 15% annually. Governor Blagojevich proposed allowing up to 30% of the funds to be spent on enforcement of safety laws as well as administration of the Trails program. SB 1804 would have allowed state funds to be used to build tracks for ATVs in existing state parks. Governor Blagojevich vetoed this dangerous proposal, and instead proposed that funds could be used only in newly acquired "recreation areas."
Thanks Governor!!
Please write your Senator and Representative and urge them to uphold the Governor's amendatory veto of SB 1521 and SB 1804.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *In January SIAS will be electing new officers and the Board is looking for volunteers for the Nominating Committee. If you can serve, please contact Richard LaSalle, SIAS President, at 687.3023. AND if you have the time and interest to be on the Board, please speak up.
Gardening Rule: When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant.
Southern Illinois Audubon Society P.O. Box 222, Carbondale, IL 62903-0222
Affiliate of the Illinois Environmental Council and the Illinois Audubon Society
(Written on a contantly reused computer! Are you using recycled paper?)
:-)