Field Trips
Audubon of Martin County
Photo courtesy FP&L
November 22, Saturday. FPL Nu-
clear Electrical Generation Plant
and site of proposed wind tur-
bine project: Meet at AoMC office
to leave at 7:30 am. We‟ll car-pool
to the FPL Hutchinson Island site,
where we will visit Walton Rocks
Beach and the FPL staff and their
avian consultant will escort us to
the site of the proposed turbines.
We will then go to the Energy En-
counter facility where staff will pre- packed lunch.
sent and discuss the results of their
bird migration studies. Bring a
packed lunch.
December 13, Saturday.
Viera Wetlands: Meet at the
Knights of Columbus* at 7:00 and cial and interesting trip
plan to carpool to Ritch Grissom
Memorial Wetlands aka Viera Wet- est continually working
lands. These wetlands are a part
of Brevard County‟s water reuse
system; a constructed wetland of
approx 200 acres providing sanctu- Cay and Wakodatchee Wetland
ary for many bird, plant and aquatic in PBC. Meet
species. The entire perimeter of
the wetlands has been seeded with of Columbus* at
Florida wildflowers. Great photo
ops. This will be a “from the car”
experience; you can walk if you
prefer. Bring a packed lunch.
2 Audubonmartincounty.org
January 17, Saturday. Pelican
Island NWR.: Meet at the Knights
of Columbus* at 7:00 and plan to
carpool to Indian River County and
Pelican Island National Wildlife
Refuge, our nations‟ first NWR.
Bob Montanaro will meet us and be
our guide to the refuge with an up-
close and personal
view of
Photo courtesy SFWMD
plants and flatwoods we‟ll
animals of visit the pro-
the refuge. We may also have time posed Martin
to stop by Jack Island in St Lucie
County on our way back. Bring a
January 31, Saturday
ADAMS RANCH
Meet at the Knights of
Columbus* at 7:00.
Join us for a very spe-
to one of Florida's old-
cattle ranches estab-
lished in 1937. Visit
the lands that demonstrate multi-
ple use management for cattle
and native wildlife species.
Bring a pack lunch—we will eat
lunch there!
February 21, Saturday. Green
at the Knights
7:00 am. Green
Cay is a 100
acre reclaimed
water con- Photo by Peter Schultz
Field Trips
structed wetland with 1.5 mile ele-
vated boardwalks and a natural
chickee pavilion. We will also visit
the Wakodahatchee wetland which
is located across the street in west-
ern Boynton Beach.
March 21, Saturday. Allapattah
Flats and Martin Grade Scenic
Roadway: Meet at the Knights
of Columbus* at 7:30. We‟ll
car-pool to Allapattah Flats. Af-
ter several
hours of bird-
ing at the pine
Bob Shelton
Grade Scenic
Highway Corridor. Bring a packed
lunch.
April 18, Saturday. Stormwater
Treatment Areas (STAs) in
Palm Beach County.
Meet at the Knights of Co-
lumbus* at 7:00. STAs are
owned and operated by the
SFWMD. They are vast
constructed dikes, flow-ways
and wetlands that use vege-
tation to naturally clean the
water within the Everglades foot-
print before
it reaches
Florida
Bay.
These
shallow
wetlands Photo by Jay Paredes
are perfect
foraging areas for waterfowl,
wading birds and raptors. See
the beauty just beyond the edge
when we visit the STAs. Please
register at AoMC ahead to re-
serve a space on the trip.
2008-2009
audubonmartincounty.org  772-288-2637
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Audubon of Martin County
Whether you are new to the area and want to see some of our October 18, Saturday. Lake “O” at
local treasures or are eager for more distant travel, Audubon of Port Mayaca Locks and Kissimmee
Martin County has a field trip designed to appeal to all ages, levels
River Cruise. Fee $45.00 pp reserva-
of birding and natural history knowledge.
tions required. Meet at the Knights of
Take a break from yard work, the humdrum indoor activities and
Columbus* in time to leave at 7:30 am.
enjoy getting outside when you will rediscover the „Real Florida‟.
You just might see something unusual and stunning. Part #1 Explore the Kissimmee River at
We encourage you to accompany us on multiple field trips and Riverwoods, Florida Atlantic University‟s
enjoy seeing birds and other wildlife interacting in their natural habi- Center for Environmental Studies Field Lab.
tat; it is the best way to understand the world in which we live. Loisa Kerwin, of FAU, will be our guide on
the pontoon vessel “Kissimmee Explorer”.
* MEETING LOCATION: Unless otherwise noted, the meeting
location for our car-pooling field trips is at the NORTH end of the
We will take a first-hand view of the Resto-
parking lot of the Knights of Columbus, located in the north- ration Project illustrating the inter-
east corner of Kanner Highway (SR 76) and Cove Road on disciplinary nature of environmental science
Gaines Avenue. The times indicated on the field trips are the and management. We will learn about the
time we will leave the meeting location. watershed as we explore the biological
WHAT TO BRING: Binoculars, sun block, reference books, wa- habitats of the river to see the birds, gators
ter, camera, bug spray, comfortable walking shoes, sunhat or other and fish rebounding. Part #2 We will car
protective wear and a sense of adventure. At times you may want pool with Audubon‟s Paul Gray to Lake “O”
to bring a bag lunch. and investi-
FEES: The fee for most trips is $5.00 for Audubon members, gate the bird
$10 for non-members, with proceeds going to the Chapter. life along
Additional fees are charged for boat excursion costs or loca-
Hoover Dike
tions where entrance fees or other fees are involved. Please
consider a donation to the person in whose car you ride—gas
and learn
about the
costs more these days.
changing en-
PHOTOS: We appreciate the field trip participants who take
digital photos during our outings and share them with us. Pho- vironment of
tos are often used to accompany field trip summaries in our
monthly newsletters.
Email Distribution List: Let us know if you‟d like to be added to Lake Okeechobee
our email distribution list for field-trip related information. and the Kissimmee
Field trip Chairperson: Bev Poppke has graciously agreed to
River watershed.
be our organizer this season. Bev also is Co-chair of the Education
Wear field clothes
Committee, Librarian and a docent at our office one day a week.
and pack your own
She can be contacted directly at poppkeblt@bellsouth.net or (772)
lunch. We expect to return to Stuart about
286-0061. That is what we call dedication!
5P. For more information about the River-
woods Field Lab and The Kissimmee River
Sign up and Reserve your Seat for trips by Restoration Project online:
Calling the Audubon Office
at (772) 288-2637 or at our Program Meetings. http://riverwoods.fau.ces.edu
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