Just A Chirp

Grosse Pointe Audubon Spring 2018

Cry4 — the secret to bird migration

From The President
It’s all because of Cry4.
No, Cry4 is not the name of some far away
solar system or the name of some new Hip Hop
artist. It’s the name of the protein that many
bird species have in their eyes that allow them
to — are you ready for this? — see the Earth’s
magnetic field.
The discovery was made by scientists in
Sweden and Germany and has finally unlocked
the mystery of how birds navigate during
migration. We knew from previous studies that
long-distance migrants were aware of and
sensitive to the Earth’s magnetic field, and we
had speculated that birds migrated at night
because they could navigate by stars. But the
discovery of Cry4 in the eyes of certain bird
species revolutionizes our knowledge.
Cry4 is in a class of proteins that are
particularly sensitive to the blue wavelength in
the light spectrum. According to an article on
forbes.com written by the geologist Trevor
Nace,
“The ability to see Earth's magnetic field,
known as magnetoreception, relies on the
presence of specifically the blue wavelength of
light. The complex process involves ‘radical’
intermediate molecules which are sensitive to
Earth's magnetic field. The Earth's magnetic
field, as it relates to the direction the bird is
facing, could alter the intermediate radical
molecules differently, giving the bird a sense for
More on Page 2

Spring Schedule
  Cut out this schedule and put it on your refrigerator to help you remember
these important dates.

April 16 — “Birding Colorado” Colorado is well-known for its Rocky Mountain splendor, but it is
also a place to see some amazing birds! Join Seven Ponds Nature Center executive director Daryl
Bernard as he shares the birds and wildlife encountered on a recent tour. Locations included are
Pawnee National Grasslands, the foothills around Boulder and Ft. Collins, Arapaho National Wildlife
Refuge in North Park, and Rocky Mountain National Park. Come along as Daryl recounts an
extraordinary week in "Colorful Colorado."This meeting will also serve as Grosse Pointe Audubon’s
Annual Election for Board of Directors and Officers.
April 24, May 1, 8, 16, and 22 -- Bird walks at the Country Club of Detroit. Meet at 6:30 a.m.
on the service road near the tall trees. The walks will end by 8 a.m. Dress appropriately for the
weather, but be sure to wear waterproof footwear.
May 2 -- Grosse Pointe Birding Challenge. See Page 2 for more information.
May 3 -- Bird walk at Patterson Park, Grosse Pointe Park. Meet in the parking lot at 8 a.m. Dress
appropriately for the weather. This walk will last approximately 90 minutes.
May 15 -- Bird walk at Patterson Park, Grosse Pointe Park. Meet in the parking lot at 6 p.m. Dress
appropriately for the weather. This walk will last approximately 90 minutes.

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 JUST A CHIRP SPRING 2018

From The President, from Page 1 forecasts to predict where and how many birds
will be on the move over the following three-
where it is facing in relation to the Earth's day period. That last feature is going to be great
magnetic field.” for busy birders who are trying to figure out
Thus, certain species are able to tell the how to maximize their time in the field.
difference between north and south — or at The radar map can be found at
least our concept of north and south. What’s birdcast.info. For an in-depth explanation of
even more astounding is that researchers found Cornell’s system, go to https://
levels of Cyr4 in European Robins increased www.allaboutbirds.org/heres-how-to-use-the-
during migration season. new-migration-forecast-tools-from-birdcast/.
This breakthrough has me wondering
about bigger questions: If birds are sensitive to April Meeting
the blue wavelength, could birds be repelled by Our April meeting will feature Daryl
a different color in the spectrum? If so, can we Bernard, the new executive director of Seven
use that wavelength color to prevent migrating Ponds Nature Center. I know of Daryl from a
birds from flying into the windows of tall birding Listserv, but like most of you it will be
buildings and communication towers or guide the first time I have met him. You all know of
them through safe corridors? our long relationship with Seven Ponds. I would
love to keep that connection, even if it is only a
Follow migration on radar social one.
For more than two decades, scientists have This month’s meeting will also serve as our
been tracking Annual Meeting.
North American To keep GP
bird migration on Audubon strong,
NEXRAD, the we need to
same radar that continually build
meteorologists new leadership
use to warn you of among our
rain. Now, the membership.
Cornell Lab of Let’s face it, our
Ornithology is officers and
taking the members of the
information Board of
gained from years Directors won’t
of viewing be holding their
migration on positions forever.
radar to create a The birdcast.info migration map for the evening of April 6. So, if you would
new, easy to The red line shows sunset; migrating birds tend to take off like to step up
understand 30-45 minutes after sunset so migration in the your involvement
system for folks southeastern United States was well underway. in Grosse Pointe
like us to track Audubon, please
migration. email Judy Florian
Cornell’s system has three new features: a color IMMEDIATELY at jflo@ comcast.net to let
spectrum will indicate how many birds are in her know. We need at least one candidate for
flight, arrows will show the general direction of Board of Directors provided each officer
bird movement, and the site will use weather decides to continue in their current position.

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JUST A CHIRP
Birding for Glory
Set your calendar now, and join Grosse
Pointe Audubon on Monday, May 2, for the
annual Grosse Pointe Birding Challenge.
Teams will be scouring the Grosse Pointe
communities for as many bird species as they
can count. Tabulation takes place at noon
sharp at Panera Bread in the Village, and the
winner takes home a trophy and a feeling of
smug superiority. Join a team for the entire
morning or just for an hour. See the GP
Audubon blog for official rules.
Tuesday morning birders
Our Tuesday morning walks at the
Country Club of Detroit will get underway on
April 24 and will continue every Tuesday until
May 22. We’ll start at 6:30 a.m. and finish by 8
a.m. Enter the Country Club’s driveway, turn
left in front of the clubhouse and go down the
service road. We’ll meet at the woods. This
location has been good for warblers and
thrushes. And, for a month at least, we’ll be
able to monitor the growth and development
of the Bald Eagle chicks.
Bird Walks at Patterson Park
Join us for two bird walks at Patterson
Park in Grosse Pointe Park. (The entrance to
Patterson Park is on Essex between Bedford
and Three Mile.) On May 3, we will meet in
the parking lot at 8 a.m. and on May 15, we will
meet at 6 p.m. Both walks will last about 90
minutes. Of all the parks along Lake St. Clair,
Patterson is by far the best for birding. We’ll
likely find terns, swallows and orioles. In years
past we’ve had hummingbirds, tanagers, and
rare warblers. No registration is required.
Dress for the weather, of course, and
consider wearing waterproof shoes, even if it
hasn’t rained in a couple of days.
The word from Washington
Last December, just before Christmas, the
Trump Administration quietly announced it
PAGE 3
SPRING 2018
was reinterpreting the Migratory Bird Treaty
Act of 1918 and it would no longer punish
businesses that unintentionally cause millions
of bird deaths.
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act committed
the United States, Canada, and Mexico to
cooperate in the preservation of migratory
birds on the North American continent. The
legislation passed at a time when many bird
species were threatened by commercial trade
for both food and fashion. Since the 1970s,
U.S. Department of Interior has interpreted
the statue also applies to business and
industries that cause unintentional bird deaths
as a way of incentivizing businesses to find
ways to cut unintentional bird deaths.
The December opinion was issued by the
head lawyer for the U.S. Department of the
Interior and said that the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service would no longer have
jurisdiction to act against non-intentional
deaths of migratory birds. In order to punish a
business for bird deaths, the Fish and Wildlife
Service would have to find that the bird deaths
were intentional.
Think for a second what that would have
meant if this policy were in effect during the
Deepwater Horizon well blowout in the Gulf
of Mexico in April 2010. That blowout and
resulting oil spill is considered to be largest
industrial disaster in the world. The oil spill is
estimated to have killed at least 600,000
birds. (Source: http://www.sciencemag.org/
news/2014/10/seabird-losses-deepwater-
horizon-oil-spill-estimated-hundreds-
thousands.) In May 2016, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service reached a $20.8 billion
settlement with BP, essentially holding the
petroleum giant responsible.
National Audubon is asking its members
to show support for the Migratory Bird Treaty
Act. We can all easy notify our congressional
representatives by visiting http://
www.audubon.org/takeaction and filling in the
form.
JUST A CHIRP SPRING 2018

About Grosse Pointe Audubon

Bill Rapai, president, (313) 885-6502 or BRapai@aol.com

Mark O’Keefe, vice president, (313) 884-7472 or imokruok2@aol.com
Trina Bresser Matous, treasurer, tbressler@aol.com
Anna Wuerfel, secretary, anna.wuerfel@att.net
Board of Directors: Mike Florian, Joanna Pease
Joanna Pease, representative to Seven Ponds Nature Center, strixvaria@sbcglobal.net
Edward McHale, Facebook chief

Go to www.gpaudubon.blogspot.com for an online copy of Just A Chirp, membership

form, rules for the G.P. Birding Challenge in the spring, and more.
 
Keep up with other Grosse Pointe birders (and Like us) on Facebook!
 
Grosse Pointe Audubon meets in the Annex of the Pointe Unitarian Church at 17150 Maumee,
between St. Clair and Neff in Grosse Pointe. Social hour starts at 7 p.m. and the meeting starts at
7:30. Our meetings are free and open to all, so bring a friend!

Grosse Pointe Audubon

443 St. Clair
Grosse Pointe, MI 48230