Below are two reports of the May, 2007 Spring Meeting, accompanied by some pictures taken then by Tim Keller. Try to identify each bird before looking at the next page with the captions.
Spring Meeting Canoe Trip Springs a Leak
By Carl Wilms
This past Spring Meeting at Mary Gray hosted a canoe trip on the beautiful Whitewater River. Fifteen hearty souls mustered on the cool, cloudy morning to traverse the full, but clear, swift moving waters in hopes of catching an osprey or even an eagle hunting its water. Excitement of another nature was waiting however. The livery canoes were less stable than many as their hulls were rather V-shaped as opposed to flat bottom. This tipsy characteristic provided us with the first overturned craft within 200 yards of the put in. After correcting this situation, the dampened crew headed downstream with me following. I was beginning to question the wisdom of paddling on a river that is a delight to me - but a true challenge to those less experienced on the twisting channels and frequent timber obstacles.
A short while later, I was paddling bring up the rear of the pack and I rounded a turn to notice a canoe stationary in the current. A quick glance with my trusty waterproof binoculars revealed that the canoe was not empty, but was occupied by two women who were hunkered down between the gunnels and holding on with some seriousness. As I approached Betsy and Serin's boat, it was obvious that they had reason to be concerned. Their canoe was balanced on a boulder in the middle of a swift and narrow shoot that flowed directly into a steep bank, abruptly turned to the left, and flowed into, and under, one of the fallen trees that line the river's banks. If the canoe tipped and emptied its contents into the fifty degree waters, these two ladies could have been swept into a dangerous situation.
I quickly grounded my craft and abandoned my cell phone and binoculars. Wading into the current, I was reminded of the strength of the waters as the thigh depth water was effortlessly pushing me off of my feet and downstream. When I reached their canoe, their wide eyes relayed the concern of the occupants. While stabilizing their precarious position, I noticed observers up the 60 foot embankment. Realizing that assistance would really be useful and possibly essential, I called for the woman to phone the police. Although I could not hear her response over the rushing current, she indicated she understood and ran to her phone. Moments later she returned holding up two fingers. I took this to mean that help would be there almost immediately.
Sure enough, three squad cars and a fire truck were there within moments. By this time I was becoming quite chilled and realized that I needed to get out of the situation just as importantly as they did. As two officers climbed and slid down the steep embankment, I devised a plan of action. I told the closest officer that I would like to dislodge the canoe in such a fashion that the boat would be carried directly into the shore. I wanted him to catch the canoe there and retrieve the women. He acknowledged that he understood and he got into position.
Hanging onto the stern of the canoe, I lifted the stern and the bow caught the water pulling it directly towards the shore. As the water pulled the canoe downstream, I released from the boulder and the canoe followed the shoot and hit the shore. The police officers successfully secured the canoe as I hung onto the stern. At that time, the ladies decided they had "enjoyed" enough of the river and they elected to walk up the bank and head back to Mary Gray. A helpful onlooker volunteered to pilot the canoe down to the scheduled pull out location. A fireman offered me a security line to hold onto while I re-crossed the river to return to my boat. On step away from the shore, I was granted a full body baptism as the bottom of the river disappeared. The life line was a welcome comfort. The ladies later reported that they think they were stranded for about twenty minutes prior to my arrival. I estimate that I was in the water for an additional fifteen. By the time I rejoined the other canoeists downstream, we were all glad that it resolved so successfully. Only one other capsizing was endured as the IAS President, Becky Lewis and her crewmate/sister, Jill McAtee parked their craft upside down and against another tree snag.
Bird-wise I saw a little green heron and a huge nest in the crook of a lovely sycamore tree that I am certain belongs to a stray condor. Other members of the trip reported 67 species.
Note: The rescued women relayed to me back at Mary Gray that the woman that phoned for help and gave them a ride back to the Sanctuary was especially grateful for the opportunity to be of assistance. She reported that two of her family members had perished in the Whitewater River the previous fall. Being able to help our outing in such a significant manner provided a release that helped her to wrestle with her tragic loss.
Spring 2007 Meeting A Success
by Amy Wilms
The Indiana Audubon Society's 2007 Spring Meeting is now over. Looking back at the first meeting I have organized as Vice President of the Society, I feel relief, exhausted, and proud of the fine folks who were willing to help make the weekend a delightful success.
Friday evening provided attendees an up close look at an eagle rescue that took place on Brookville Reservoir. The evening talk was given by professional photographer, Jim Chagaras who shared his photographic journey with three eaglets whose nest was destroyed last spring. Jim had spent hours watching the eagles raise their young when one day he checked on the nest and found that it had fallen before the eaglets were old enough to fledge. Through his quick action, and several volunteer efforts, the eaglets were captured, banded, and returned a newly built home. Jim shared with attendees the amazing habits of the eagles and some wonderful photographs he was able to take.
Bright and early Saturday morning, early birders enjoyed the cool spring sunrise. It is always such a joy to hear and see the spring warblers moving through the sanctuary along with all of the resident birds. Only days earlier, both the feeders at the resident homes welcomed Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and hummingbirds.
A hearty breakfast was served by our trusty Rushville Kiwanis club readying all of us for the events to come. Becky Dolan started the morning off with a delightful wildflower walk on the Wildflower trail while others departed for a canoe trip (see other article). Becky shared with the group how to identify the spring burst of blooms. In preparation for the walk, Becky has scouted out the sanctuary a few days before and delighted attendees with a full list of species she had found. I am sure her list will be used in the future to ensure we help sustain this important resource.
Speaking of resources, Alan Bruner hosted two programs about the IAS archives. The IBRA strives to serve as a central source of information that provides published evidence of bird species in Indiana and when and where the species have occurred. Changes in historical patterns of occurrence are revealed by research into these archives.
This project began at the turn of the century when a summary of birds seen the previous one-hundred years (1900-2000) seemed to be a worthwhile project. But it was apparent that observations, photographs, field notes, specimens, etc. were scattered all over the state in various institutions or personal files of many individuals. It was impossible to find needed information without considerable time and effort. It was realized that much information had already been lost or would soon be lost if it was not collected and preserved in some form. This was especially true for specimens that have been destroyed, lost, mislabeled or loaned.
While there are some sources of the history of bird reports available, those sources often provide only basic information that is often second-hand at best. The IBRA provides original field notes provided by observers as well as any substantiating physical evidence available.
Participants in Alan's workshop learned what information can be found in the IBRA and also gain an understanding of the need for an archive. Participants also learned how anyone can contribute to the archives and the birding history of Indiana by providing original material that can be made available for inclusion in the study.
Participants were able to have access the historical documents and photos concerning rare Indiana bird species, some of which have not been observed since early in the last century. Please contact Alan if you are interested in helping him with this major undertaking!
The afternoon program proved to be fun and interactive as Dr. Dave Russell shared jokes with the group and talked about how to bird by ear. Dr. Russell taught offered hints to attendees about how to selectively listen to the spring sounds. After a short program inside, the group walked outside to quietly listen to bird songs in an attempt to identify what they were hearing. I am quite sure everyone walked away with a smile after listening to Dave's enthusiastic teaching abilities. (I know I did)!
The evening program started off with our reintroduced photo contest. Rebecca Fallat, owner of the Blue Heron Art Gallery, judged the event and gave out three awards. Congratulations go to Alan King for his beautiful landscape photograph. Tim Keller won two awards for his entries in the animal and bird categories. After the official awards, I offered an additional thank you to Tim and Pamela Keller for all of their hard work at the MGBS and their work with IAS. Tim and Pamela are always behind the scenes helping in ways members don't always see. They deserve a huge thank you for all that they do!
The evening ended with second informative program by Dr. Dave Russell. Dave shared with attendees his passion for the program Birds Without Borders which is a collaborative endeavor between Miami University, in conjunction with the non-profit organization Avian Research and Education Institute, Inc., and the University of Tamaulipas in Mexico. The specific goal of the program is to have pairs of students, one from each school select a bird from a list of species known to winter in Tamaulipas and nest or pass through Ohio. The students then work together in Mexico and Ohio, in various investigations relating to the observation, banding, and conservation of "their" bird. This is truly a unique opportunity for students to see different aspects of a migrant bird's life. This experience not only teaches the students about bird biology and conservation, but also shows the short-term and long-term benefits of international scientific collaboration. To learn more about AREI, please go to www.avianinstitute.org.
Saturday night ended with a wine and cheese open house at our home. We were delighted to open our doors to all of our new found friends. We hope everyone will come back often!
Sunday morning started off with folks hiking up to the Yellow Brick house to watch Dave and his wife Jill Russell band birds. Along with their volunteers from AREI, the Russells amazed onlookers as they walked the mist nets and brought back "presents" for us all to see. Everyone was amazed at how educational this event was and I am sure we will all be talking about our favorite bird for years to come. The folks from AREI taught us about how banding is done, and what kind of information is gathered during the banding process. Lucky participants were able to hold the birds and release them. Smiles abounded!
After another warm breakfast served by the Rushville Kawanis, some folks gathered at Brooks Hall to watch the award winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth, by Al Gore. Walking down to lunch, I could tell we all started thinking about what we could do to make a difference to help stop global warming. If you haven't seen the movie, please take the time to rent it. You will not be disappointed.
Our Spring Meeting ended with a presentation by Carl Wilms about the exciting Audubon Science Adventure (ASA) program that will be starting at MGBS this summer. To find out more about this program, please read Carl Wilms' article.
All in all, we had a wonderful weekend full of birding activities. If you were unable to attend, you were missed and we hope you will come see us in the fall!
Happy summer birding!