We will have a speaker from MNR leading us through the life of the American Badger.

Several of you were not at our meeting last night. And I want to share the attached message and attachment with everyone regarding the subject within. If you were not at the meeting and wish to support the petition attached, please do so. Or we will have the petition at our November meeting too for you to consider. If you want to send it in directly to the address at the bottom, that is fine.

Joe

Begin forwarded message:

From: Bernie Solymar <solymar>

Subject: FW: snapping turtle petition

Date: 10 October, 2011 8:34:26 AM EDT

Hi everyone,

I hope you are all doing well and are having a great Thanksgiving weekend!
I’ve attached a pdf of a petition to request the MNR prohibit the hunting of snapping turtles. Although they have been listed as a species at risk for two years, it is still legal to catch 2 per day with a possession limit of 5, for the purpose of personal consumption. We’d like to end this unsustainable practice. I hope that you’ll be able to print out a few of these and round up some more signatures!

Thanks,

Bernie Solymar
President, Norfolk Field Naturalists

frostpetition.pdf

Our annual Astronomy Night is Saturday, August 27th starting at 8:30pm.

Location: Monarch Landing about one mile east of Port Burwell on Lakeshore line where we have a good view of the sky and horizon over the lake.

Bring your lawn chairs, binoculars, flashlight (but used sparingly) and scope if you have one. Ray Stickney will have his star/deep space scope there too.

Bring your own snacks and drinks too.

If the weather is inclement it will be cancelled. But if there are some scattered clouds, it will go on!

Hope to see you there,

Joe

Note the Chimney Swift Blitz in this BSC Newsletter.

Joe

Begin forwarded message:

From: Bird Studies Canada <BirdStudiesCanada>

Subject: BSC Latest News – 22 July 2011

Date: 22 July, 2011 11:39:45 AM EDT

To: “bsc” <bsc>

Reply-To: Bird Studies Canada <BirdStudiesCanada>

This Week’s Highlights International News Searching for Sandpipers National News Birdathon Deadline Regional News Swift Blitz! L’Atlas du Québec/Quebec Atlas LPW Opening Archives Bird Studies Canada Main Page
		22 July 2011 Download a Printable PDF Version
	INTERNATIONAL
	Searching for Spoon-billed Sandpipers Photo: John Sullivan/RSPB 12 July 2011 – Searching for the critically endangered breeding Spoon-billed Sandpiper in the vast coastal expanses of Arctic Russia is like looking for a needle in a haystack. So, when Heritage Expeditions passengers, guides, and crew discovered a previously unknown breeding population of these rapidly declining waders on Russia’s Chukotka coast, they were thrilled. “We were absolutely stunned when we came across the first bird,” said Chris Collins – Heritage Expeditions tour guide and member of the survey team that found the nesting birds. “Seeing a breeding plumaged Spoon-billed Sandpiper walk towards us and settle on to its nest was undoubtedly one of my all time top birding moments and everyone on this expedition was equally excited when I radioed in the news that our survey had been successful.” Through BirdLife’s Preventing Extinctions Programme, new surveys have been designed to look for breeding birds in coastal areas where scientists predicted they should be present but had previously been unable to explore. As the only access to these remote areas is by sea, the costs of mounting searches have been prohibitive in the past. Along came Heritage Expeditions – a New Zealand travel company specializing in worldwide natural history expeditions for small groups of discerning travelers. Heritage Expeditions became a Species Champion for the Spoon-billed Sandpiper and an opportunity unfolded. With careful planning in conjunction with BirdLife and Birds Russia, Heritage Expeditions’ vessel – Spirit of Enderby – has provided the ideal access solution. Heritage’s passengers and experienced guides, travelling ashore in zodiacs, are valuable and enthusiastic participants searching for these rare birds under the guidance of experts from the Spoon-billed Sandpiper Task Force. The conservation breeding team, led by Birds Russia, the Spoon-billed Sandpiper Task Force and the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, is working with colleagues from BirdLife International, the RSPB (BirdLife in the UK), British Trust for Ornithology, and Moscow Zoo to protect this species, which would most likely become extinct within a decade without urgent action. To find out all the latest news on Spoon-billed Sandpipers, select this link. Return to Top of Page
	NATIONAL
	Birdathon – Deadline for Prize Eligibility Nearing For those of you who have raised funds for the 2011 Baillie Birdathon, be sure to get your pledge money in by the August 1st deadline to be eligible for some fantastic prizes! Prizes available range from birding books and gear to an all-inclusive guided birding tour generously provided by Eagle Eye Tours. For the full list of prizes select this link. To read all about the birding adventures of our 2011 Guest Birder team, Dick Cannings in British Columbia and Blake Maybank in Nova Scotia, select this link. The efforts of these two birders this past May netted a total of 255 species for the Bi-Coastal Birdathon list. There is still time to pledge your support for their Birdathon. Return to Top of Page
	REGIONAL
	Ontario-Wide Chimney Swift “Blitz” 22 July 2011 – Each evening as dusk approaches, you may notice small birds chirping overhead, circling tall chimneys. If these birds are cigar-shaped, with relatively long pointed wings and a quick, jerky flight – and if they dive at (and then into) a chimney around sunset – you likely have just observed Chimney Swifts, a federally Threatened species whose population has declined in Canada by 96% over the last 40 years. Bird Studies Canada would like Ontario residents to help look for Chimney Swifts as part of a province-wide “blitz.” This is part of a larger nation-wide blitz happening across Canada designed to identify national population trends of Chimney Swifts. You can help investigate Ontario’s Chimney Swift population, and identify critical Chimney Swift habitats, by committing to three nights – July 24th, July 28th, and August 1st, and watching a chimney where swifts may roost. Start your monitoring period 20 minutes before sunset, and continue until the last bird has been seen entering the chimney. Record your findings using the Ontario SwiftWatch OntarioSwiftWatch. In addition to the monitoring blitz, there are two upcoming SwiftWatch workshops, Wednesday August 10th in Chatham, Ontario and Tuesday August 16th in Brockville, Ontario. If you are interested, please contact OntarioSwiftWatch for more details. BSC gratefully acknowledges Environment Canada’s Habitat Stewardship Program, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources Species at Risk Stewardship Fund, and TD Friends of the Environment Foundation for supporting Ontario SwiftWatch. L’Atlas des oiseaux nicheurs du Québec : une autre nouvelle espèce pour la province et une offre d’emploi Eurasian Collared-Dove Photo: Ron Ridout 22 juillet 2011 – info. The Québec Breeding Bird Atlas: Another New Species and a Job Opportunity 22 July 2011 – info. The Inaugural LPW Community Appreciation Day Photos: LPW 22 July 2011 – Long Point Waterfowl (LPW) invites you to attend the first annual open house at their Research and Education Centre (REC) on Saturday, August 27th from 10am until 4pm. The day will include presentations from LPW staff and graduate students on wetlands and waterfowl research in the Great Lakes region, interpretive walks along the new nature trail, a free-flying raptor display, waterfowl calling and decoy carving demonstrations, as well as many youth games and other activities. Food and refreshments will be available throughout the day. There is no charge for this event. The REC is located at 546 Turkey Point Road, approximately one kilometre south of Highway 24 near Turkey Point, Ontario. For more information and/or to confirm your attendance, please contact Katelyn Weaver by email atrec, or by calling (519) 428-2866. LPW, founded in the 1980s, is a non-profit, non-governmental organization dedicated primarily to the study and conservation of waterfowl and wetlands throughout the lower Great Lakes. LPW established the REC in 2007 to help further its outdoor educational mandate. The five main buildings located on the REC’s 40-acre property are currently used to provide seasonal and year-round accommodations and office space for LPW staff, undergraduate students, graduate students, technicians, volunteers, and visiting scientists. Return to Top of Page
	To subscribe or unsubscribe to Latest News, follow this link. If you receive duplicates of this email, or if you do not wish to receive it, contact BirdStudiesCanada. For questions about the news items or for media inquiries, please email communications@birdscanada.org. Ce courriel a été envoyé depuis l’adresse BirdStudiesCanada. Si vous recevez plus d’une copie de ce message, ou si vous voulez que l’on retire votre nom de la liste d’envoi, veuillez communiquer avec nous. Nous nous excusons du fait que ce message ne soit pas disponible en français.

From: “David Yarnold, National Audubon Society” <AudubonConnect@audubon.org>
Date: June 17, 2011 12:30:34 PM
Subject: American birds in decline — How you can help

	Eastern Meadowlarks were once commonplace, but these yellow-bellied beauties are suffering steep declines in numbers as their grassland habitats become increasingly scarce. Raise your voice for birds — by donating to Audubon today. Your gift will be matched dollar for dollar. Dear Joe, There’s nothing common about the Eastern Meadowlark. Its melodic four-note call is the epitome of Spring birdsong. With its showy brilliant yellow breast emblazoned with a black V, the Eastern Meadowlark has been a dependable and beloved resident of grasslands and meadows throughout the Eastern United States and Canada. Until now. Once classified as “common” by field biologists, this lovely bird is suffering a precipitous decline in numbers. Four decades ago, there were an estimated 24 million Eastern Meadowlarks in the wild. Today that number has fallen to fewer than seven million. Please raise your voice for birds like the Eastern Meadowlark by donating to Audubon’s Summer campaign. Between now and June 30, your donation will be matched dollar for dollar, so your gift will go twice as far. The Meadowlark might be an indirect victim of American dependence on oil. As oil prices have skyrocketed, farmers have switched over their fields to grow vast mono-crops of corn for ethanol. And cornfields make poor Meadowlark habitat. Thanks in part to data provided by birdwatchers and other citizen scientists, Audubon has identified more than 20 other “common” birds that are in trouble. In addition to the Eastern Meadowlark, these birds include: The Rufous Hummingbird, a West Coast native, whose numbers have declined 60 percent over the past four decades. The Northern Pintail, a slender and elegant duck, once abundant throughout North America. Changes in farming practices in the Pintails’ breeding habitats have contributed to a steep 71 percent decline since the mid-1960s. The Northern Bobwhite, a meadow-dwelling bird, whose signature two-tone whistle is the first song many young birders learn. Bobwhite populations have plummeted by more than 80 percent since the mid-1960s. Donate to help save these birds and your donation will be matched dollar for dollar. For more than a century, Audubon has been a champion for conserving birds and their natural habitats in America Our work has brought the Brown Pelican and our national symbol, the Bald Eagle, back from the brink of extinction. We are working intensively to restore the magnificent California Condor. And more recently, Audubon was on the front lines of responding to the massive Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, assisting in oiled bird rescue and recovery, helping to assess ecological impacts of the spill, and setting new directions for the long-term environmental health of the region. Beyond the inspiration birds offer, we humans understand innately that their fate is linked with our own. Ultimately, by raising our voices for birds, we are raising our voices for all life on Earth. Sincerely, David Yarnold President and CEO, National Audubon Society P.S. If you are new to Audubon, welcome! As a new member, your gift of $20 or more will entitle you to full membership privileges including our award-winning photo-packed bi-monthly magazine.
Audubon 225 Varick Street, New York, New York 10014 (212) 979-3000 | AudubonConnect@audubon.org Change your contact information | Manage your communications | Unsubscribe

http://www.stateofthebirds.org/SOTB_20110509-1200-WEB.pdf

Date: May 10, 2011 11:43:35 AM EDT

To: OVN Members

Subject: OVN Wednesday Evening Outing at 6:30 pm

OVN Wednesday Evening Outing at 6:30 pm

Go to Google Maps at this link:

Where it says the words “Howey’s Line” south of Eden and east of Planck Road is the start location.

Hope to see you there at 6:30 pm sharp.

Copy & paste this link for a map to the park:

We will meet at the Park Visitor Centre at 8:00am this Saturday. Follow the park directions when you arrive to find the Visitor Centre. There is a parking lot there. There is a park entry fee for each vehicle.

We will start on the Tulip Tree Trail first which is near the Visitor Centre parking lot. For those who wish, this can be an all day outing, and we will cover other trails too. It is easiest to bring your own picnic lunch. For lunch, we will meet in the picnic area near the “traffic circle” which you can see if you zoom in on the google map.

The park has over 3000 hectares of natural spaces.

Let’s hope for good weather.

From: Kathryn Boothby <kmboothby>

Date: May 6, 2011 1:35:17 PM EDT

Subject: OVN in T’burg News

Lots going on with Otter Valley Naturalists
Tillsonburg News

Click above link for full story. KB