Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
audubonmartincounty.org 772-288-2637
December 2009
2 7
Bluebird Nest Box Project changes, there‘s flocks of Ibis, Cattle Egret,
JOIN Audubon of Martin County Write your check payable to ―Audubon‖ and Bev Poppke been about a and Vultures. A perfect end-
Mail to: Audubon of Martin County They say if you build it they will come. 60% decline in ing to a perfect day was when
Name Attn: Membership So we did, and hopefully they‘ll show up. the nationwide the group stood back to look
621 SE Palm Beach Road Bluebird popula- at the completed project and
I‘m talking about the Florida Eastern Blue-
Stuart, FL 34994 tion, but data has there, soaring above was a
bird.
Address Select your Membership level: A group of AoMC bird lovers met on shown where Bald Eagle.
O Individual or family…………………….$20 Fox Brown Road in western Martin nest boxes have A big thanks to Wren Un-
O Senior (over 62) or Student……………. $15 County to install six new Bluebird nest been installed, derwood, Ollie Davis, Becki
City State Zip
O Scrub Jay Newsletter only……………...$15 boxes. With post hole diggers, shovels, Bluebirds are making a recovery. Audu- Dowd, Greg Stewart, Nancy & George
and rakes we went to work. The surround- bon of Martin County‘s goal is to revisit Price, Jay Levitt, Louise White, Barbara
Phone Email Chapter Code: C92E260Z ing area seems perfect for the little bird— the boxes this spring, hopefully to see our Nafpliotis, Tom Fritz, who built the boxes,
short grass pastures with old pine trees little friends building a nest, laying eggs, Amanda Farinos from Sustaining Lands,
scattered about. We chose this area be- and tending to their chicks. We need to and a big, big thanks to Dave Sweetay
cause of sightings we‘d had earlier this make sure the right bird is in the box, and from Fl Fish & Wildlife Commission.
Audubon of Martin County Sponsorship Become an Audubon of Martin County year. Bluebirds are cavity nesters and with that there are no surprises in there. You too can help. If you would like to
Levels and Benefits Sponsor the changing environment, many of our old Although it wasn‘t a birding trip, we help monitor the boxes, call me at the
Yes! I want to be an AoMC Sponsor trees have been destroyed due to clearing saw several Caracara dancing around the AoMC office: (772) 288-2637 and leave a
In addition to the basic membership, $ 500 Osprey Your tax deductible contribution will help us sustain of land for development. With the side of the road, feeding on roadkill. Big message, or join me on Facebook.
you can become an AoMC sponsor. our programs, projects and conservation efforts.
Sponsorship provides funding for pro- Wood Stork benefits plus a natural
grams, projects, field trips and history tour led by an AoMC Board
AoMC’s important conservation work.
member to the nesting colony at Bird
Name Retrofit
$ 50 Great Blue Heron Island in the Indian River Lagoon. Select your sponsorship level:
Congrats! Work on our habitat enhancement and watershed improvement work
Special recognition in the Scrub Jay and O Scrub Jay $ 5,000 Congrats to Jensen Beach resident Eric Kuykendall at Possum Long is about to shift into a higher gear, as we prepare to do
a certificate of appreciation. $ 1000 Bald Eagle O Bald Eagle $ 1,000 some re-contouring of the land surface in the northerly-most part of the
who recently was awarded the rank of Eagle Scout.
Osprey benefits plus a natural history O Osprey $ 500 property that has been over-run with invasive pest plants. In what is
$ 100 Roseate Spoonbill After many years of involvement in scouting during
tour led by an AoMC Board member to a O Wood Stork $ 250 scheduled to be a several month period we‘ll be removing the pest
Recognition in each Scrub Jay , a local birding destination of your choice.
which he earned merit badges in a variety of activi-
O Roseate Spoonbill $ 100 ties, Eric selected birds and AoMC as the beneficiary plants, excavating to create an open-water feature and then re-planting
certificate of appreciation, an AoMC
O Great Blue Heron $ 50 of his Eagle Scout Project. with wildlife friendly native plants.
t-shirt and one complementary member- $ 5000 and more Scrub Jay
O Other $ With just a little mentoring As part of the project, we‘re planning to install an osprey-nesting
ship for a person of your choice. Bald Eagle benefits plus a natural history
tour led by an AoMC Board member to from AoMC, Eric made a platform, and hoping we‘ll be able to attract these birds to the property.
$ 250 Wood Stork Enclose your donation with this form and mail to:
Everglades National Park, Merritt Island dozen wood duck nest Progress continues to be made on various parts of the property during
Spoonbill benefits plus one copy of the Audubon of Martin County
National Wildlife Refuge, Ding Darling boxes, and with assistance weekly work days. If you‘ve got some time to help and don‘t mind get-
Sibley Field Guide to Birds and a lunch- Attn. Treasurer
National Wildlife Refuge or Arthur Mar- from AoMC properties ting a little dirty, please consider giving us a hand.
eon briefing with the AoMC President or 621 SE Palm Beach Road, Stuart, FL 34994
Executive Director.
shall Loxahatchee NWR. chairman Jim Kearman and
other members of Troop
811, several of the duck Christmas Bird Count
boxes were installed at stra-
Field Trip Report: DuPuis We then drove to and strolled along the tegic areas where we all AoMC‘s CBC coordinator Liz Hailman is busy organizing teams for
Wildlife Management Area cypress boardwalk. Multiple species of Bird List: hope they‘ll be used to help the Stuart CBC, which is scheduled for Saturday, January 2 nd. On that
birds were encountered here. We also increase our local population of these cavity-nesting day, our teams will be heading out to count and identify every individ-
The alarm blared at 3:30 am so we heard the call of more RCWs at the time. birds. ual of every species of bird that we can find within our count area.
Red-cockaded Osprey
could get to the DuPuis Visitors Center by We then caravanned to an oak hammock Woodpecker Bald Eagle (heard) We‘re looking for a few AoMC members who Thousands of CBCs are held throughout the country, and it is by com-
5:30 am. Are we crazy or what for sched- forest and walked the grounds of a large Red-bellied Red-shouldered would now take this project a step further – to do the paring the results over a many year period that a lot is learned about
uling such an early field trip? Valerie boy scout campground. The oaks were nest box monitoring to see if they get used during the changes in bird populations. All count areas are
Woodpecker Hawk
Sparling, DuPuis Wildlife Biologist, met beautiful but the birds were quiet. We spring 2010 nesting season. Give us a call at the of- 7.5-mile radius circles, and the center of ours is
ended our field trip near a fishing pond at Downy Barred Owl(heard) the Roosevelt Bridge. AoMC has now been
us at the Visitor Center. Twelve brave fice 772-288-2637 if you‘d like to help.
the end of the auto tour route. Several Woodpecker Belted Kingfisher doing the CBC in this area for over 40 years, and
souls then caravanned to the Red-
wading birds and alligators greeted us as Yellow-bellied Eastern Phoebe each year is a little different. Some changes are
cockaded Woodpecker nesting site. As
we waited for the birds to awaken, Valerie we scanned the area. Was it worth wak- Sapsucker Blue Jay certainly for the good (e.g., increases in bald
Double-crested Gray Catbird Thanks!
provided us with a lengthy description of ing up so early? You bet it was. eagles); others reflect the reduction in numbers
the history of the RCW and their reintro- Cormorant Northern Many thanks to FWC biologist Valerie Sparling for and diversity that relate to the conversion of
duction into DuPuis. We waited…and Anhinga Mockingbird her presentation at AoMC‘s November program meeting thousands of acres from natural habitat to urban
waited…then we heard them call and then Great Blue Heron Eastern and field trip. We enjoyed hearing about the Red- areas.
we saw them leave their nesting holes for Snowy Egret Meadowlark cockaded Woodpecker re-introduction at DuPuis and it When was the last time you saw House Wrens, Eastern Towhee,
the day to forage in the forest. We had Green Heron Pine Warbler was great that the early risers got to see a couple of the White-eyed Vireos and Common Yellowthroats in your back yard? How
absolutely spectacular views of the two Great Egret Palm Warbler infamous RCWs on the trip. Our thanks to FWC, DuPuis about Northern Bobwhite, Carolina wrens, or spot-breasted orioles?
RCWs as they flitted from tree to tree Glossy Ibis Yellow-rumped Manager Bert Trammell and all the folks who are help- These and others used to be common here.
(one bird/one nesting hole). Besides the Wood Stork ing re-establish a population of this species in Martin A pre-count seminar will be held at the AoMC office on Thursday,
Warbler
RCWs we saw various other warblers and Black Vulture County. Habitat restoration isn‘t easy—but it does work! Dec., 10th beginning at 7 PM. Please give Liz a call at 561-746-7293 if
woodpeckers in the area. you are interested in helping.
Photo by Paul Yorke Carolina Wren
6 3
As owners of over 100 eran‘s Day - November Taxidermy
Conservation Corner acres of conservation lands 11th. With patriotic music
in the South Fork of the St.
Lucie River, AoMC has
playing in the background,
veterans and other Eagle- Thank You Sponsors We‘ve just received several ‗new‘ bird specimens that have been
added to our reference collection of salvaged birds. With support from
long had concerns about the ecological impacts of the ‗proposed‘ Watchers took the opportu- our members who let us know about re-
Indian Street Bridge. Bridge pilings aren‘t proposed to be in- nity to get their pictures Roseate Spoonbill Sponsor cently-deceased birds and excellent work by
stalled on our property. However, the bridge will be so close, taken with our national Rick Macklem, our Port St. Lucie based
that our property will be adversely impacted. So you can imagine symbol. The increase in taxidermist, we‘ve been able to add a ring-
the further insult when we reviewed the recently-submitted per- our local population of Kathy Petteruti
necked duck, a red-eyed vireo, a yellow-
mit application for the bridge and learned that ecological mitiga- bald eagles has paralleled rumped warbler, a great egret and a female
tion for the project to proposed to be done dozens of miles away increases throughout Flor- common yellowthroat to our inventory. Our
Photo by Greg Braun
– a tough pill to swallow that sets up other areas to improve while ida and much of the lower state and federal permits allow us to salvage
the South Fork suffers. We‘ve voiced our concerns to the permit- 48 states, and AoMC does deceased specimens (provided we don‘t Photo by Greg Braun
ting agency, and hope that fairness prevails – if the bridge is to be its part by monitoring eagle nests at locations throughout Martin have anything to with the cause of death), so
built, the very least that should be done is to have the ecological County. it is often a challenge for Rick to repair/conceal damage from fatal car
mitigation benefit the South Fork ecosystem. Enhancing existing Several new EagleWatch participants signed up and we‘re
strikes, window collisions and other problems.
publicly-owned lands elsewhere in the County is a worthwhile organizing teams and trying to secure approval to access remote
endeavor, but not appropriate as mitigation for this bridge. Unfortunately, preserving the specimens, which are typically used in
areas so that additional nests can be monitored.
our Bird Identification classes and other presentations in the community,
Our thanks to all who participated, particularly AoMC Eagle-
is a drain on our budget. We‘re trying to raise $1,000 to offset these
EagleWatch watch coordinator Clare-Rue Morgan, EagleWatcher/docent
costs – if you share our interest in this project, we encourage you to
Veterans and Sparky the Eagle were the center of attention at Linda Wishney and staff at Jonathan Dickinson State Park. If
make a tax-deductible contribution.
AoMC‘s recent Eagle & EagleWatch orientation session pre- you‘d like to become involved but missed the orientation semi-
sented by Greg Braun at Jonathan Dickinson State Park on Vet- nar, contact Clare-Rue at 772-286-9833.
Congratulations!
Congratulations to our Youth Liaison, Jessie Green, for being named Riverside National Bank’s Hometown Hero for
“How are you? I am fine. North American nesting grounds these vireos consume fruits and 2009! Riverside recognized Jessie for her ongoing dedication to the environment and community service.
Bird of the Month How are you? I am fine.‖ This berries.
is the description I invented Courtship for the Red-eyed Vireo is not something Martin
by years ago to help me remem- County birders will observe unless they take a field trip to north-
Susan B. Whiting ber the redundant song of the ern Florida or further north. The male vireo hustles the female by
Red-eyed Vireo. It is obvious approaching her with his feathers flattened to his body and it around. So, don't plant it and
from the name of this small woodland denizen that it has red swinging his head from side to side. Her reaction, if interested, is
If You Build it they ……………… !
remove/kill it. Beautyberry is non
eyes. But what is a vireo? to fluff up her feathers. Then both vireos vibrate their wings at (Part two) by Laurie Odlum
-invasive and equally enjoyed as
Vireos are small rather blah birds that belong to a group of the same time and consummate their bond. The female chooses is Dahoon Holly which even has
birds know as songbirds (Passerines). There are close to fifty the nest site between five and thirty feet up in a tree or shrub. Protecting habitat is sometimes just not enough - it is hard to red berries.
different species of vireos all found only in the New World Both vireos build the cup shaped nest into which the female de- protect what is not there. Take your yard for example (Yard = 2) Provide food that is actually eaten
(North, Central and South America). Vireos are not prone to posits three to five pale blue or greenish white eggs spotted at the greenspace around where you live) being close at hand can make - Birds like bugs so keep your
form flocks the way American Robins or Tree Swallows do; they thick end in purple or brown. About two weeks later the young it easier to protect. These green areas can be turned into busy and insecticide spraying to a mini-
are solitary. Difficult to see, vireos usually perch in hatch and are fed by both parents until the young safe sanctuaries for residential birds and migrating flocks. Take mum especially during migration.
the middle of thickets and sing their monotonous Red-eyed Vireo fledge ten to twelve days later. some time right now to review what your green space provides To help migrating birds, be sure
Suet feeders — use in winter
tune over and over. Vireo olivaceus Red-eyed vireos are in decline. Their numbers for birds. Shrubs and bedding plants need to provide not only your garden produces flowers and only here in Florida
Only six inches in length, the Red-eyed Vireo is a have decreased by almost 80% in the last 65 years. color and texture interest to your landscape (humans enjoy that) seeds during Fall or Spring to
combinations of olive green (back and tail) and dirty white (belly It is easy to blame the Brazilians for cutting down the Red-eyed but provide seeds, berries, nectar, bugs, and protection (birds support the hungry visitors. Berries and seeds provide the
and under tail). This vireo sports a black eye stripe over its red Vireos‘ winter habitat, but we have lost about half of hour north- enjoy that). Take a critical look at what is really happening in carbohydrates the migrating species require to fuel their trip.
eyes and a white supercilium above that. Unlike other passerines ern forests in the last hundred your yard – do you see any birds or wildlife? 3) Provide species-specific food. Learn what your favorite
there is very little plumage change in the Red-eyed Vireo be- years. So the decline is a combi- When you evaluate your yard consider adding plants that pro- birds like and then plant those plants that will draw them
tween their breeding and winter plumages which makes it easier nation of losses in both the Red- vide for the needs of wildlife and consider increasing the size of in. Offering supplemental food from feeders is a great way
for birders to identify them during fall migrations. eyed Vireos nesting and wintering your "flower beds" (I prefer to call them banquet areas) to ac- of providing specific seeds, fruits and protein (mealworms)
Red-eyed Vireos do not breed in Martin County but migrate grounds. commodate the varied needs of our residential for the flying yard jewels. For example:
through in the spring headed for northern climes where they raise Although the Red-eyed Vireos and migrating guests. Also consider increasing Goldfinches prefer black oil sunflower seeds
their families of three to five young. Unless there are strong just pass through Martin County the size of your shrub area and less lawn. and painted buntings enjoy seeds in fall and
westerly winds in the spring we may miss seeing these vireos on and are a challenge to find, the Whether you prefer native or non-native plants, winter when they both visit. Bluebirds really
their northward trip. September and October are the months that results are well worth it. just be sure they meet some simple criteria: like mealworms.
the Red-eyed Vireos can be more easily seen in Martin County as 1) Choose non- invasive species - Have you
they wing their way to points south. This vireo winters mainly in ever noticed how the Robins just love the Now, be patient. If you built it they will
the western section of the Brazilian State of Amazonia. See our Red-eyed Vireo from our seeds on the Brazilian Pepper Schinus tere- come, eventually.
Red-eyed Vireos have an interesting diet. Spring, summer and stuffed bird collection on page 5 binthifolius? Well, that is a very invasive
during migration they are carnivores feeding on insects, spiders plant and the Robins with their ravenous ap-
and small snails. During the winters and while returning to their petites during migration are happy to spread Dahoon Holly Ilex cassine
4 5