In response to the COVID-19 virus, some of our general meetings are being held at the Padilla Bay Interpretive Center while others will be available on Zoom only. Hybrid meetings are not currently offered. Please check the monthly program description for meeting details. As with our hikes and field trips, only vaccinated, symptom-free individuals should attend meetings in person.
“Diurnal Raptors of Skagit County”
Presented by: Sue Cottrell
Tuesday, Oct. 10th at 7:00 pm
7:00 Meeting Begins
6:00 Social Hour Begins
Please join us at the Padilla Bay Interpretive Center, 10441 Bayview-Edison Rd., Mt. Vernon for a program on the diurnal (daytime) raptors of Skagit County. This meeting will be in-person only (no ZOOM attendance). The meeting begins at 7:00 pm and will be preceded by a social hour starting at 6:00 pm. Photo: Rough-legged Hawk by Joe Halton
Are you looking for a way to become more involved with Skagit Audubon Society? The important position of Secretary has become available. The primary duty is recording the minutes from the monthly Board meetings (Sept.-June) and the general meeting in June (elections). Questions – please contact President John Day (president@skagitaudubon.org) or Vice President John Farnsworth (vicepresident@skagitaudubon.org).
The Big Sit, a free community birding event open to individuals and teams all over the world, returns on Saturday, October 7th. Due to the closure at Wiley Slough for dike restoration work, the Skagit Audubon Big Sit will be held from 8 am-4 pm at Rosario Head in Deception Pass State Park.
Rotating cadres of observers in two-hour shifts will seek to identify as many species as possible from a single location at Rosario Head over the eight-hour period. In previous years, generous SAS members have taken the initiative to pledge $1 or more per species seen by the team in support of the Skagit Audubon Society Environmental Conservation Scholarships awarded through Skagit Valley College.
Also, you are encouraged to conduct your own Big Sit and participate from wherever you want (backyard, park, public wildlife area, etc.). Visit www.thebigsit.org to learn more about the event. To volunteer for two-hour shifts at Rosario, to bird your own backyard, or donate to the SAS Big Sit, contact Colleen Shannon at fieldtrips@skagitaudubon.org. Colleen will sign up the teams prior to Oct. 7th and she will be at Rosario from 8 am-4 pm on Big Sit Day. Visitors are welcome to stop by.
by Tim Manns
Page two of each Skagit Flyer issue quotes Skagit Audubon’s purpose: “Our mission is to conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s biological diversity.” This statement guides which conservation issues and activities Skagit Audubon takes on with written comments, testimony at public hearings, co-signing letters by other conservation groups, recruiting volunteers, and more.
Note that Audubon’s mission isn’t restricted to birds; hence, our chapter’s long membership in the Friends of the North Cascades Grizzly Bear, supporting this species’ restoration to the North Cascades in accordance with the Endangered Species Act. Scanning the list of current issues in Skagit Audubon’s Conservation Notes (https://skagitaudubon.org/~dpnhwzgi/conservation/notes) you will see that the majority are about protecting habitat. Climate change can degrade habitat on a large scale. National Audubon calls it the single greatest threat to birds. Locally, land use planning and decisions on development projects often have potential to affect wildlife habitat.
by Tim Manns
Padilla Bay Christmas Bird Count 2023
This year is the 124th for the Christmas Bird Count (CBC), sponsored by the National Audubon Society and the nation’s longest-running community science bird project. Each year between December 14 and January 5, volunteers across the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Latin A
merica, and the Pacific Islands count bird species and individuals in almost 2,500 count areas. Each area is a 15-mile diameter circle. Skagit Audubon’s role in this large effort is organizing the Padilla Bay Christmas Bird Count, named for the location of the count circle’s center on the March Point peninsula by Padilla Bay.
The 2023 Padilla Bay Christmas Bird Count will take place Saturday, December 30th. Because the CBC is such a long-running project its data makes an important contribution to avian science. Rather than a birding field trip, the CBC is a project to collect the most complete and accurate data possible on the birds within the count circle. We particularly need the help of experienced birders. For information about participating in this all-day, rain or shine survey birders should contact Tim Manns (conservation@skagitaudubon.org or 360.333.8985. Photo: Red-breasted Sapsucker by Mary Sinker
The American Golden-Plover Southbound Migration Project
American Golden-Plovers make one of the longest migration journeys of any bird. Follow these birds equipped with 3.5-gram PinPoint GPS Argos tags (the world’s smallest GPS Argos tags) from Alaska's Western Arctic through Canada's Boreal Forests, across the Atlantic, and on to South America. Learn about the experts, communities, and the importance of migratory bird habitats along the way.
https://www.tulliksodyssey.org/?emci=2577e2a7-2036-ee11-a3f1-00224832eb73&emdi=0a140ed2-cd36-ee11-a3f1-00224832eb73&ceid=1621356
HAVE YOU SEEN A BANDED BIRD OR FOUND A SICK OR INJURED BIRD?
To report a bird with a federal band or color marker, please visit the USGS’ Bird Banding Laboratory website.
In addition to reporting collars to the USGS Bird Banding Lab, please report swan collars to Northwest Swan Conservation Association.
To report other bands or tags for local projects, please visit the Washington Ornithological Society’s Research page to view current projects, the types of markers they use, and how to report them.
SWANS
All swans that are dead, sick, or injured need to be reported to the WDFW hotline by calling (360) 466-4345, ext. 266. Swans should be taken to the Whatcom Humane Society Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. Their phone number is (360) 966-8845. Please let them know if you need assistance with transporting a swan.
SICK OR INJURED BIRDS
Contact one of these organizations if you are sure the bird requires rescuing:
The Education Committee needs volunteers to help with a number of adult presentations coming up in the next several months. These Power Point presentations are scheduled at libraries and private organizations/clubs in the area. If you can help give part of a presentation (already written), that would be great; or, you can assist with the computer and help answer questions from the audience. If you can lend a hand, please contact Committee Chair Jeff Osmundson at education@skagitaudubon.org.
Read The Skagit Flyer, Our Newsletter
Skagit Audubon Society holds monthly meetings on the second Tuesday of each month except for the months of July and August. We meet at 7:00 pm at Padilla Bay Interpretive Center (Google map), 10441 Bayview-Edison Rd. Mount Vernon. Meetings are open to all.
The board of directors meets at the same location at 7:00 pm on the first Tuesday of each month, except for the months of July and August.
Donate to Skagit Audubon
