Fall 2006 Drumming Log - Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art · Robert M. “Bob” Pennell Gerald “Gerry” Putt ... Smith Center for Nature and Art Inc. and is mailed ... Fall

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F R O M T H E D I R E C T O R

emories of the old tele-vision adventures of Fred Bearand Marlin Perkins — incred-ible wildlife, danger, scenicrivers and oceans, majesticmountains, and places wherenature was wild and we weremere visitors — driftedthrough my mind as my fam-ily launched into a recent21-day Alaskan Odyssey.And, “The Last Frontier” didnot disappoint.

Day 1, July 30: Juneauand the Dog Salmon. It didn’ttake us long to break out the fishing equipment and pay a visit to the hatchery onGastineau Channel for some practice. My concerns for our two boys, Michael, 12,and Kevin, 10, quickly vanished as they showed some true grit sparring with several25-pound chum, or dog, salmon. The salmon numbered in the thousands. Otherthan chasing a tuna once in the Atlantic, I had never felt anything fight so much.(Michael and Kevin became our hunter-gatherers, providing us with fresh fish forthe table for the remainder of the trip.)

Day 3, August 2: Diminishing Glaciers. A visit to the Mendenhall Glacier, whichI had visited four years earlier on a brown bear outing, was an eye opener. If I hadnot seen it myself, I would not have thought such a noticeable change to be possiblein just four years. The issues of receding glaciers warrant our attention and action.

Day 8, August 7: Denali Park’s Hunting Origins. Buses are the only way to accessthe far reaches of the national park and we, of course, opted for 12-hour trip to theend. Our decision was rewarded with a sighting of three brown bears so close that we

could hear them breathing andmunching on ripe berries, alongwith large numbers of Dall sheep,massively antlered caribou and amother wolf with pups.

The park of more than 6million acres was started in1906 by a Dall sheep hunternamed Charles Sheldon, whowanted to conserve the sheepfrom market hunters and leave

Alaska, Is It Still a Wild Place?

Ned Smith Center Executive Director Jerry Regan visits DenaliNational Park and Preserve,Alaska. Photo: ©Janice Regan

(From left) Kevin, Jerry, Michael and Janice Regan proudly display the day’scatch: sockeye (red) salmon from the Upper Kenai River.

F R O M T H E D I R E C T O R

space for them to roam. The success of his vision rein-forces how important it is to permanently conservehabitat for wildlife and future generations to enjoy.

Day 10, August 9: Pinks of Montana Creek. Thelocals frequent this fishing hole, where the clear watersof the Montana merge with the murky green glacierwaters of the Susitna River. The pink salmon, or hump-ies, were running strong, and the coveted silvers werejust beginning. The sun was shining, and we were in acreek loaded with salmon, which we battled all after-noon. After catching and releasing for several hours, wekept four pinks and two silvers for the smoker.

Day 12, August 11: Hood-winked in Anchorage. After a brief stay in the smallcity of Anchorage and two visits to the Ship River Salmon Derby, we headed for theKenai Peninsula, where fishing is king. By this time, my wife was wondering if shehad been hoodwinked on a fishing trip under the false pretenses of a sightseeingadventure. But, you just can’t come to Alaska without wetting your line, and myonly defense rests with the well-being of our children who couldn’t seem to getenough fishing. We did also witness caving glaciers, thousands of nesting birds, theIditarod sled dogs, museums, artists and one of the most picturesque drives you canimagine.

Day 20, August 19: Reds in Cooper’s Landing. We ended our Odyssey with aguided, flyfishing float down the Upper Kenai River in pursuit of the favoriteAlaskan delicacy, the red or sockeye salmon. The sockeyes are smaller salmon butcontain more fat, which adds to their flavor. And, I can assure you from our bruisedknuckles on the reels that they have plenty of spirit.

An adventure like this not only sends one back to the office with all the juicesrestored but also with a new commitment to wild things and wild places.

Fondly submitted,Jerry ReganExecutive Director

An adventure like this not only sends one backto the office with all thejuices restored, but alsowith a new commitment

to wild things and wild places.

A view while hiking to MusselCabin outside Juneau, Alaska.Photo: ©Janice Regan

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

INSIDE COVER From the Director3 Center Hosts Youth from Nativity School4-7 COVER STORY:

TurkeysDespite a Few Down Years,Turkeys Are ‘Booming’ in Pennsylvania

8-9 Lefty Kreh and the 2006 Art Auction

10-11 Bioblitz 2006 12 Highlights from Festival13 Upcoming Sibley Events14-15 Discovery Pages16-17 Coming Events18-19 From the Gift Shop;

Membership Information20 Great Fall Foliage Sites in the State21 From the Collection

NED SMITH CENTER FOR NATURE AND ART176 Water Company Road

P.O. Box 33Millersburg, PA 17061 Phone: (717) 692-3699

[email protected]

Fax: (717) 692-0977

Gallery and Gift Shop Hours: Tues.–Sat., 10 a.m.–4 p.m.Office Hours: Mon.–Fri.,

8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

STAFFEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR:

Jerry ReganBUSINESS MANAGER:

Jane LahrOUTREACH & PROGRAM COORDINATOR:

Angie ZimmermanEDUCATION COORDINATOR:

Beth SandersADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTS:

Kathy Balsarick, Kathy Mull, Janet Shaffer, Dareene Titus

GIFT SHOP COORDINATORS:Bonnie Kabonick, Sue Shade

EDITORIAL COMMITTEE: Marcus Schneck, Editor

Jerry ReganMichelle Drager

Patrick von KeyserlingScott WeidensaulNEWSLETTER DESIGN:

Susquehanna Design & Printing

BOARD OF DIRECTORSPRESIDENT:

Jim DragerFIRST VICE PRESIDENT:

Wayne KoberSECOND VICE PRESIDENT: Blaine Steensland

TREASURER: Mary Johnston

SECRETARY: J. Bruce Walter

Randall K. ClineScott Dunkelberger

Linda EndersThomas Ford

Greg GrabowiczJeff Haste

Elaine HoweC. Ted LickDee Marra

Walter E. MeshakaRobert M. “Bob” Pennell

Gerald “Gerry” PuttGlenn ResslerAllen Shaffer

Patrick von KeyserlingSteven Wilds

Drumming Log is published quarterly by the NedSmith Center for Nature and Art Inc. and is mailedto the Center’s members and supporters. Repro-duction of any part of Drumming Log withoutwritten permission from the publisher is prohibited.

The Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art is a501(C)(3) nonprofit organization, operating underthe provisions of the Internal Revenue Service. It is

dedicated to bridging the worlds of the natural sci-ences and the arts. The Center is located at 176Water Company Road, 2 miles east of Millersburgoff Route 209. Its galleries are open to the public10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.Administrative offices are open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30p.m. Monday through Friday. The Ned Smith Cen-ter lands are always open for hiking and outdoorenjoyment. Trail maps are available at the Center.

FRONT COVER: ©John Ford / National Wild Turkey Federation

Photo: ©Joe Blake /National Wild Turkey Federation

E D U C A T I O N

nner-city youth got a taste of the greatoutdoors on a recent visit to the Centerby 33 boys from the Nativity School ofHarrisburg, an independent middleschool for boys of low-income familiesfrom the city.

“For most of the students, visitingthe Center and experiencing hands-on,discovery-based learning was a memo-rable adventure,” noted Beth Sanders,education coordinator at the Center,who led the youth through their visit.

Each boy made a nature journal, oneof the trademark projects at the Centerand something Sanders plans to incorpo-rate into future work with the youthfrom Nativity.

Among the nature activities sheshared with the students were the animalidentity clue and guessing game; the WhoAm I? game, with each boy given an ani-mal identity and photo of that critter onhis back for him to identify through aseries of yes-no questions; and the OhDeer! game of whitetails and habitat.

The boys’ day at the Center alsoincluded some sensory awareness activi-ties to become more attuned to theoutdoors. And, naturally, Sanders alsointroduced the group to the late NedSmith, artist, writer and naturalist, andto the four basic habitat needs of all liv-ing things: food, water, shelter and space.

Launched in September 2001 byprominent Harrisburg professionals andthe Joshua Group, an inner-city youthdevelopment program in Harrisburg,Nativity quickly outgrew its “one-roomschoolhouse” and moved to the Educa-tion Building of St. Francis of AssisiChurch at 1453 Zarker St.

A single class of sixth gradersexpanded to nearly three dozen boys insixth, seventh and eighth grades, and

graduates at Bishop McDevitt HighSchool, Harrisburg High School, Harris-burg SciTech High, Harrisburg Academyand Milton Hershey School.

The staff of two grew to include full-time teachers for each grade plus interns.

Following the principles of theNativity Network of schools throughoutthe United States, Nativity-Harrisburgprovides a rigorous academic programwith small classes while focusing on thepersonal, moral, spiritual and socialdevelopment of each student.

Fall 2006 Drumming Log 3

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Nativity School youth admire a red-tailed hawk display at the Center. Photo: ©Duane Good / Upper Dauphin Sentinel

Center Hosts City Kids

4 Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art

Turkeys,Turkeys, TurkeysA Few Down Years Do Not a Busted Boom Make

Although the past few years havebeen a bit tough on wild turkeys in Penn-sylvania, in a long-term historical contextthe bird is booming, and not just itsresounding gobbling in mountain forestsand valley woodlots across the state.

Yes, several years of below-averagereproduction, a hard winter in 2002 andsometimes spotty mast crops havereduced the turkey population’s ability toreplace birds lost to hunting and otherfactors with recruitment of young birdsinto the flocks. However, on woodedsites ranging from the Ned Smith Cen-ter Lands on Berry’s Mountain to theBig Woods of the state’s northern tier towoodlots separated by fields and housingdevelopment in southeastern Pennsylva-nia, the turkey is roaming Penn’s Woodsin numbers unheard for most of the pasttwo centuries.

Mary Jo Casalena, wild turkey biologist for the Pennsylvania GameCommission, noted, “What has occurredisn’t unnatural, won’t ruin Pennsylva-nia’s wild turkey hunting and surely willchange just as soon as a warm, dryspring paves the way for increased turkeyreproduction.”

Temporary dips aside, Pennsylvaniacontinues in the midst of the “good olddays” for turkeys. At the turn of the cen-tury in 2000, the state’s wild turkeypopulation was estimated at more than400,000, a far cry from the few thou-

sand estimated to be found in the statein the early 1900s.

The current success of wild turkeymanagement in the commonwealth isdirectly related to increased protection inthe early 1900s; the restoration offorested habitat over the past century;aggressive range expansion fostered bytrap and transfer work; and conservativefall harvest management strategies thatprotected the wild turkey population’sbreeding base.

Pennsylvania’s wild turkey popula-tion restoration wasn’t accidental andhad nothing to do with luck. It was theresult of trial and error, making adjust-ments and shaking free of tradition. Itwas a deliberate, albeit somewhat indi-rect, approach to restoring wild turkeysto Penn’s Woods.

As European colonists moved intoPennsylvania in the late 1600s and early1700s, the big birds were seen as a wel-come source of meat and rapidlydisappeared in the eastern reaches of thestate, mostly from unregulated huntingand trapping, but also, as a result ofhabitat destruction.

As settlers went west, turkey popula-tions correspondingly dropped. In theearly 1800s, John James Audubonobserved that turkeys were in trouble.

“They are becoming less numerousin every portion of the United States,

CONTINUES


Photo: ©Hal Korber / PGC

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Pennsylvania’s wild turkey populationrestoration wasn’t accidental and had

nothing to do with luck. It was the result of trial and error, making adjustments

and shaking free of tradition.


even in those partswhere they werevery abundant 30years ago,” hewrote.

Turkeys wereextirpated from the New Englandstates and NewYork by the early1850s, according toornithologist W.E.Clyde Todd. Thebirds also wereabsent throughoutmost of Pennsylva-nia, although theymaintained some-thing of a strong-hold in the south-central ridge andvalley region

through the latter 1800s and into thenew century.

In 1888, Pennsylvania ornithologistB.H. Warren, in his book, The Birds ofPennsylvania, wrote, “This noble gamebird, although rapidly becoming extir-pated, is still found in small numbers inthe wooded, thinly populated and uncul-tivated districts of this commonwealth.”

By 1900, while only a few thousandwild turkeys remained in the state,turkey hunting seasons and limitsremained liberal, and logging operationswere plowing ahead with the deforesta-tion and fragmentation of Penn’s Woods.

With the creation of the GameCommission in 1895 and the beginningsof forest regeneration in many parts ofthe state, the stage was set for the bird’srecovery. Gradually, legislators were per-suaded to lend additional protections tothe turkey, including banning the use ofdogs by turkey hunters, making turkeyblinds unlawful, making it illegal to pur-chase wild turkey meat, eliminatingnighttime hunting for roosting turkeys

and making the use of turkey calls illegal.(Decades later, when recovery was a cer-tainty, restrictions were reduced, allowingonce again for the use of turkey calls andmore recently blinds.)

In 1914 and 1915, turkey huntingwas closed statewide for the first time,and again in 1926.

The Game Commission beganexperimenting with stocking pen-raisedbirds, and with trapping wild turkey onrefuges in the state and transferring themto areas without turkey. The agency alsowas adding lands to its developing stategame lands system, including muchimportant wild turkey and ruffed grousehabitat, and began employing shorterseasons in some counties where popula-tions needed a boost.

A new era in turkey managementbegan in the early 1940s, when the com-mission began doing meaningful wildliferesearch, a direct benefit of receiving fed-eral Pittman-Robertson Fund money,which was the product of an excise taxon sporting arms and ammunition.

In the late 1950s, the agency beganin earnest to trap and transfer wildturkeys as a way to accelerate rangeexpansion into areas where they had notyet re-established themselves.

Over the next 20 years, the success

Photo: ©Joe Kosack / PGC

Photo: ©Joe Blake /National Wild Turkey Federation

With the creation ofthe Game Commis-

sion in 1895 and thebeginnings of forest

regeneration in manyparts of the state, thestage was set for the

bird’s recovery.

of trap-and-transfer with the more adapt-able wild birds, and repeated examples ofthe lack of success with pen-raised birds,made it increasingly clear that the for-mer was the way to proceed while thelatter was just a waste of scarce funds.The commission’s turkey farm was con-verted to the production of ring-neckedpheasants in spring 1981.

Another critical milestone in thedevelopment of today’s enormous turkeypopulations came in 1975 with thefounding of the Pennsylvania StateChapter of the National Wild TurkeyFederation, a non-profit wildlife organi-zation established in 1973 andconcerned with the wise managementand conservation of the wild turkey.

The Pennsylvania NWTF, its morethan 80 local chapters and more than

20,000 members (mostly hunters) haveraised and spent more than $4 million onwild turkeys in Pennsylvania, largelythrough projects with the Game Com-mission and other partners. Thoseprojects have included $2.1 million worthof habitat improvement on more than268,000 acres, $300,000 on land acquisi-tion and $260,000 on turkey research.

The massive trap-and-transfer workwas ended in 1987, after the path hadbeen set for the self-sustaining wildturkey populations that now occupymost suitable habitat in the state. Someadditional trap-and-transfer work wasperformed in the mid 1990s and inmore recent years to establish popula-tions in the suitable, but fragmented,habitat found in Pennsylvania’s south-eastern counties.


Turkey follower factsTurkey harvests by hunters in tightly regu-

lated, sustainable seasons have been 23,300 infall 2005 and 38,320 in spring 2005, 25,868 in fall2004 and 41,017 in spring 2004; and 27,400 infall 2003 and 43,900 in spring 2003. In the early1900s, the total annual harvest was estimated at1,000 turkeys. An estimated 1,636 turkeys werebagged in the state’s first spring gobbler season,a six-day affair held in 1968.

Each year, more than 230,000 hunters — orabout 20 percent of the state’s licensed hunters —head afield to hunt turkeys.

In 1973, when the National Wild Turkey Feder-ation was founded, there were an estimated 1.3million wild turkeys and 1.5 million turkey hunters.Thanks to the work of wildlife agencies and theNWTF’s many volunteers and partners, today thereare nearly 7 million wild turkeys and nearly 3 millionturkey hunters. Since 1985, the NWTF and its cooperators have spent more than $202 millionupholding hunting traditions and conserving more than 9 million acres of wildlife habitat.

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A R T A U C T I O N

Legendary Fly-FishingExpert Lefty KrehShares His ‘Ned Story’

Lefty Kreh, a living legend in theworld of fly fishing, will be adding a spe-cial dose of excitement to the Center’s13th annual wildlife art auction Satur-day, Oct. 7, at the Visitor Center of thePennsylvania Game Commission’s Mid-dle Creek Wildlife Management Areanear Kleinfeltersville.

The internationally known fly-fish-ing instructor and author of 28 booksand countless articles in most majoroutdoor magazines, who has fished andtaught in nearly every fishable spot onthe globe, will be offering an originalacrylic work by the late Ned Smith.

The 9-by-12 painting shows a small-mouth bass — Kreh’s favorite freshwaterfish — rising to a Lefty’s Bug, a poppinglure that the famous angler designed andthat’s been used by anglers nationwide,including Kreh and Smith on some oftheir many outings on the Susquehannaand Potomac rivers.

According to Kreh, Smith presentedthe painting to him as a gift on one ofthe many visits he and his wife, Marie,made to the former’s homes in Miamiand later in Cockeysville, Md.

Kreh recalled, “AsNed handed it to me,he said, ‘I am goingto the hospital tohave a pig valveplaced in my heart.The doctors tell methat it is a 50-50chance I won’t makeit, but I have to try. Ialways wanted you,as one of my closestfriends, to have oneof my paintings. So, Idid this one for you

of a smallmouth with your bug.’“I can tell you, I was speechless. At

that time, Ned was getting good moneyfor his work.

“Amazingly, that pig valve kept Nedalive for 14 years.”

Kreh plans to also include in theauction a letter on his personal stationeryrelating the above tale to accompany thepainting.

In addition to his writing accom-plishments, Kreh has been acknowledgedfor Lifetime Achievement by the Ameri-can Sportfishing Association; LifetimeContribution by the North American Fly

13th Annual Art AuctionSaturday, Oct. 7 at the Visitor Center of the Game Commission’s Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area, Kleinfeltersville9:30 a.m. - Viewing of works9:30-11:30 a.m. - Silent auctionNoon - Live auction begins

“As Ned handed it to me, he said, ‘I amgoing to the hospital to have a pig valveplaced in my heart. The doctors tell methat it is a 50-50 chance I won’t make it,but I have to try. I always wanted you,as one of my closest friends, to have oneof my paintings. So, I did this one for youof a smallmouth with your bug.’”–Lefty Kreh

New Twist for Art Auction

A R T A U C T I O N

Tackle Trade Association; Angler of theYear by Fly Rod & Reel Magazine; andinduction into the International GameFishing Association Fishing Hall ofFame, Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame,Fly Fishing Hall of Fame and Catskill FlyFishing Center and Museum FishingHall of Fame.

He’s served as senior adviser for anumber of terms for Trout Unlimitedand the Federation of Fly Fishers; con-sultant to Temple Fork Outfitters, BassPro Shops and Scientific Anglers; pho-tography instructor for the NationalWildlife Society; and photo consultantfor L.L. Bean.

In addition to Kreh’s painting, theauction this year will feature “the largestselection of original art that we’ve everhad, including more Ned Smith originals

than at any time in the past,”according to Carl Graybill Jr.,chairman of the auction for theCenter.

(No Ned Smith work offeredat the auction is drawn from theCenter’s collection. All pieces areeither donated to the Center forthe auction or handled on con-signment for private collectors.)

Overall, he expects the 2006edition of the event to see 150-160 works in the live auction,

including a Smith Dutch Country Blue-birds print, and another 50-60 in thesilent auction, which is about average.

The full auction list was being com-pleted as this issue of Drumming Logwent to press, but it will be posted onthe Center’s website at www.nedsmith-center.org. Absentee ballots arewelcome if you cannot attend.

Doors at the Visitor Center willopen at 9:30 a.m. for viewing the worksavailable in the live auction and for tak-ing part in the silent auction. The silentauction will end at 11:30 a.m., and thelive auction will begin at noon.

The auction remains one of the pri-mary fund-raising events for the Center,having raised more than $300,000 sinceits beginning.


Last year’s auction drew nearly 100 bidders and raised morethan $51,000 for the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art.

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n the kick-off biological inventory ofthe 600 acres of land and water con-served by the Center along theWiconisco Creek and Berry Mountain,in mid-August scientists and naturalistsfound and identified 34 species of butter-flies and about 180 species of moths.

The exact count on moth speciesfound on the Ned Smith Center Lands isyet to be finalized as moth experts arestill working to identify a few of themoths that were found.

The public was invited to thebioblitz base camp at the Centerthroughout the event to observe theexperts in action as they searched for,trapped, collected and attempted to iden-tify the insects. Demonstrations of

specialized collecting methods, for bothday and night activities filled the bioblitzperiod.

The first bioblitz at the Centerfocused on moths and butterflies, butsubsequent events could develop similarinventories of plants, fungi, birds, mam-mals, reptiles, amphibians, fish andmore.

The rapid-assessment inventoriessupport the Center’s stewardship of thelands and waters, and all the species —perhaps thousands — that make theirhomes there, as well as the Center’smission of hands-on education.

B I O B L I T Z 2 0 0 6

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BIOBLITZ2006That’s a Lot of Gossamer Wings

Photo: ©Dean Snyder

Photo: ©Joe Hovis

A volunteer nabs a butterfly for study. Photo: ©Joe Hovis


B I O B L I T Z 2 0 0 6

Who’s in charge here?Many species, including butterflies and moths, have no state agency responsible for their conservation inPennsylvania. Although the lines have been blurred agreat deal in recent years, agency responsibilities arelaid out as follows by state law.

s The Pennsylvania Game Commission is responsiblefor birds and mammals.

§ The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission isresponsible for fish, reptiles, amphibians andaquatic invertebrates.

_ And, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservationand Natural Resources is responsible for plants.

Volunteers workdiligently to identifysome of the 34 but-terfly species and180 moth speciesgathered during theNed Smith Center’sfirst bioblitz. Photo: ©Angela Zimmerman

Underwing mothsmounted for identification andrecord keeping. Photo: ©Duane Good /Upper Dauphin Sentinel

This is a special setup near base camp. The lights reflect off the white sheets. At

night, moths fly to the white sheets wherethey are collected by bioblitz participants.

Photo: ©Jerry Hassinger


F E S T I V A L 2 0 0 6

Scenes from the 2006 Ned Smith Center

Natureand ArtsFestival

Crowd favoriteJack Hubleytalks about hisfragrant littlefriend.

Ned Smith Center BoardPresident Jim Dragerexplains the science of retrieving dogs.

Members ofTwin Valley

Players performa number from

their summerproduction of

Footloose.

Two Otters (FrankAngelo) involves theaudience in a NativeAmerican dance.

The Mid-Atlantic Disc Dogshad a high-flying time.

Parachute fun and face painting were two of many activitiesavailable for children.

Photos: ©Ned Smith Center


D A V I D S I B L E Y

Although The Life, Art and Birdingof David Allen Sibley will be on displaythrough the end of the year in theOlewine Gallery, the highlight of theexhibit will be a visit by the artist him-self the weekend of Nov. 3-5.

Sibley will be the featured speaker ata gala dinner on Friday evening, Nov. 3,at The Country Club of Harrisburg,beginning with cocktails at 6:30 p.m.The event will feature both a silent andlive auction for items including two ofhis original paintings, as well as remar-qued artist’s proofs of his Long-eared Owlprint issued by the center. Seating is lim-ited, with the deadline Oct. 27. Ticketsare $150 per plate, or $250 per couple.Absentee auction bids will be accepted;please contact the Center.

On Saturday, Nov. 4, the artist willdo a series of events at the Center, start-ing with two free hour-long gallery talksand book-signings — one from 10:30-11:30 a.m., and the second from 11:30

a.m. to 12:30 p.m. — during which Sib-ley will be discussing many of the morethan 80 of his works of art in the exhibit.

From 2-3:30 p.m., budding wildlifeartists will have an extraordinary oppor-tunity to take part in a workshop andlecture, led by Sibley, into how he drawsbirds. Space is limited, and the workshopfee is $50 for members and $75 for non-members; bring your own sketchpad ornotebook and pre-registration is required.

Public gallery hours at the Centerwill be extended to 10 a.m. through 5p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4.

Call the Center at (717) 692-3699for information.

Big Sibley Event in NovemberDavid Sibley EventsExhibit: Through Dec. 30 in the Ned Smith Center for

Nature and Art’s Olewine GalleryGala Dinner: Nov. 3 at the Country Club of HarrisburgGalleryTalk/Book-Signing: Nov. 4 at the CenterBird-Drawing Workshop: Nov. 4 at the Center

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Riddle: Guess What Animal I Am Describing

This activity creates a wonderfulsense of fun and mystery for you andyour child. In this activity of discovery,the answer to the riddle graduallybecomes more obvious as the clues areread out loud by the adult. It’s a great wayto capture the enthusiasm of an inquisi-tive child and actively engage him or herin a fun fact-learning process.

The adult will read the 10 clues, andthe child will guess its identity, waiting toshout out the answer until all clues havebeen read, but signaling as soon as hethinks he knows.

To maintain the child’s enthusiasm,a silly secret sign should be devised forhim or her to display as soon as he thinkshe knows the animal’s identity. Choosinga silly sign such as the child placing a fin-ger on top of his or her head, or puffingup his or her cheeks, adds more fun tothe activity. Acknowledge the sign whenthe child displays it, but keep readinguntil all 10 clues have been read out loud.Allow the child to take back the sign if hesuspects that he displayed it prematurely

before the true identity of the animal isknown. The clues are a little tricky andenthusiastic players often “jump the gun”before all of the clues have been read.

Clue No. 1: I have keen vision andalthough my ears lack external flaps, Ihave excellent hearing and can pinpointsounds from long distances.

Clue No. 2: I am a shy resident ofPennsylvania’s woods and mountains. Ican be found throughout the state, exceptin highly urbanized areas.

Clue No. 3: My diet consists of ten-der greens (stems and leaves), fruits(grapes, cherry, dogwood, etc.), seeds, seedheads, flowers, buds, nuts (acorns, beech-nuts, walnuts, etc.) insects, spiders, snailsand slugs.

Clue No. 4: I may walk several milesa day in search of food and water.

Clue No. 5: In an emergency, you willbe amazed to learn, I have been known toswim, but I prefer to run away to escapefrom danger. I can also fly 40-55 milesper hour for short distances.

Clue No. 6: At night, I prefer to fly upinto trees to spend the night with severalother members of my flock.

Clue No. 7: Females lay 8-15 palebuff eggs with reddish brown spots in aleaf-lined depression on the ground.

Clue No. 8: As an adult male I amcalled a tom or gobbler. Females are calledhens. The young are called poults. And,juvenile males are called jakes.

Clue No. 9: During courtship, a gob-bler will display by fanning his tail andtucking his head back against his body.

Clue No. 10: We can make many dif-ferent sounds including yelps, whistles,clucks and purrs, but as a tom, I am bestknown for my loud gobble.

Do you know what animal I am?The wild turkey.

(This activity has been adapted a bit for our needs here atthe Center from Joseph Cornell’s book Sharing Naturewith Children.)

D I S C O V E R Y P A G E

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Wild Turkeys by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent J Little Tom Turkey by Frances Bloxam J14

LearningFun forKids!

BY BETH SANDERS, Education Coordinator

READ MORE ABOUT IT: You are invitedto read the books about turkeys and otherPennsylvania and North American wildlifelisted around the border of these two pageswith your child. Happy reading! NOTE: Anasterisk (*) denotes books available in theNed Smith Center Gift Shop.

D I S C O V E R Y P A G E

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J High Ridge Gobbler by David Stemple J All About Turkeys by Jim Arnosky

Make Your Own

TurkeyCallHave fun imitating different turkey

sounds using your own homemade turkeycall. By following the directions below,you can learn more about how turkeyscommunicate with each other. You aresure to have a lot of fun practicing differ-ent turkey calls, and the more youpractice, the better you will sound.

Supplies and MaterialsJ 1 empty film canister (available at

photo processing facilities)J 1 hollow plastic coffee stirrerJ drill with a small bit, or an ice pickJ recordings of turkey calls (optional)

DirectionsRemove and recycle the top of the

film canister.With the help of an adult, punch a

hole in the bottom of the film canisterusing an ice pick or a drill with a smallbit. Make the hole just large enough toinsert the coffee stirrer.

Place the coffee stirrer up to your lips, and cup your hands around the film

canister. Suck air inthrough the tip of thestraw, pursing your lipsas if for a kiss.

Move your handsaround the bottom ofthe canister to experi-ment with differentsounds until you makea sound likethe turkey’scluck.

Aftermastering the cluck, try makingthe more difficult yelp sound.

Consider making severalcalls so each family member hastheir own turkey call, and havefun practicing as one large flock.

The film canister turkey call is reprinted withpermission from the Council forEnvironmental Education andthe National Wild Turkey Fed-eration. It’s copyrighted by theNational Wild Turkey Federa-tion and appears in FlyingWILD: An Educator’s Guide toCelebrating Birds published bythe Council for EnvironmentalEducation.

15

A Big Thank You!The Center is grateful to Harold Daub,members of the Lykens Valley Longbeardsand the National Wild Turkey Federationfor their donation of a multitude of educa-tion materials including a Wild About

Turkey Education Box. “As we continue to expand the educa-tion program here at the Ned Smith Center, I am very excitedabout implementing the Wild About Turkey Education Box andeducational support materials to our current conservation pro-gram,” Education Coordinator Beth Sanders said. “The box isbrimming with a variety of support materials that I am excitedto utilize with students visiting the Center.”

Photo: ©Ned Smith Center

C O M I N G E V E N T S

Saturday, Oct. 7. 13th annual BenefitWildlife Art Auction at the Pennsylva-nia Game Commission’s Middle CreekWildlife Management Area VisitorsCenter near Kleinfeltersville. Doorsopen at 9:30 a.m. for art viewing andsilent auction. Silent auction ends at11:30 a.m. Live auction starts at noon.(See pages 8-9.)

Thursday, Oct. 12, 7-8 p.m. The His-tory of Our Mountains program byretired Upper Dauphin Area scienceteacher Jack Biddle, who will revive thehistory of the mountain chains in theupper Dauphin County area. He willlead an exploration of how the moun-tain chains formed (geomorphology) andwhy the mountains outside our backdoor are unlike any other ridge and val-ley mountain system in the world.

Saturday, Oct. 21, noon-4 p.m. FallFamily Fun Day. The Center and TwinValley Players present a celebration ofthe seasonal changes of autumn with apumpkin patch, interactive theateractivities, hands-on education stations,art stations, music and face painting.

Saturday, Oct. 28, beginning at 8 p.m.Halloween Owls program with expertson the nighttime raptors detailing thefacts and shattering the myths surround-ing those marvelous creatures. Certifiedbird-banders from the Center’s NorthernSaw-whet Owl Banding Project, will pro-vide owl banding demonstrations anddiscuss the Center’s participation in theNorth American effort to gather moreinformation on the tiny birds thatmigrate through Penn’s Woods on cold,fall nights. Participants also will meetlive owls from Penn State University’sShaver’s Creek Environmental LearningCenter.

Friday, Nov. 3, at The Country Club ofHarrisburg, 401 Fishing Creek ValleyRoad, Harrisburg. President’s CircleGala Dinner with David Allen Sibley,featuring a dinner, auction and pro-gram by David Sibley, author andillustrator of The Sibley Guide to Birdsand others. $150 per person or $250per couple. (See page 13.)

Saturday, Nov. 4, Gallery Tour andProgram with David Allen Sibley.The Center’s Olewine Gallery is fea-turing the exhibit, The Life, Art andBirding of David Allen Sibley, throughDec. 30. (See page 13.)


Something for Everyone in the Coming MonthsEvery member of the family will find something just right for their interests among the

Center’s upcoming programs and events. Unless otherwise noted, all events are held atthe Center, 176 Water Company Road (off Rt. 209), east of Millersburg, and you should call

the Center at (717) 692-3699 to register in advance.

Thursday, Nov. 9,7-8 p.m. TheBackroads ofPennsylvaniaprogram by Mar-cus Schneck,outdoor andtravel writer forThe Patriot-News,and author ofmore than twodozen books onnature, travel,gardening and theoutdoors. He’ll

share experiences from his life criss-crossing Pennsylvania in search ofunique experiences in nature and spe-cial tourist destinations.

Monday, Dec. 4, 6-9 p.m. The Cen-ter’s Volunteer Appreciation Banquet— a night of entertainment, fine din-ing and cheer, to pay tribute to theCenter’s loyal volunteers — at Kevin’sPlace, Lykens.

Saturday, Jan. 6-Saturday, Jan. 13.The Center will have a booth at thePennsylvania State Farm Show inHarrisburg.

Saturday, Feb. 3-Sunday, Feb. 11.The Center will have a booth at theEastern Sports & Outdoor Show inthe State Farm Show Complex, Harris-burg. The drawing for the Ned SmithCommemorative Model 99 SavageRifle (and other prizes) will be on thelast day of the show.

Friday, Feb. 23-Saturday, Feb. 24.The Center will have a booth at theIcebreaker Sportsmen Show, ChristWesleyan Church, Milton.

Sunday, March 11, 8 a.m.-1 p.m.13th Annual Waterfowl Survey of theCenter, led by Scott Bills of the Penn-sylvania Game Commission at the oldMillersburg Gun Club at the mouth ofWiconisco Creek in Millersburg. Spot-ting scopes and refreshments will beprovided.

Friday, May 4, 5-7 p.m. Members-Only Native Plant Sale Presale.

Saturday, May 5, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.Ninth annual Native Plant Sale of theCenter.

Friday, July 27-Saturday, July 28.14th annual Ned Smith Center forNature and Arts Festival, MYO Park,Millersburg.


C O M I N G E V E N T S

Photo: ©Ned Smith Center

N E D S M I T H G I F T S H O P

Birch Bottom Buck 20”x28”

Moonlight Buck 19”x11”

Unfinished Business 24”x16”

Snow Shoe Hare15”x21.75”

Spring Time Grouse 19”x14”

Autumn’s Last Harvest(giclée) 16”x22.5”

Sting of the Hook 14”x18”


NedSmithprintsmakegreat gifts!

holidaysGet ready for the


Pleasecutoutorphotocopy

thisform

.Quantity TotalVisit the Ned Smith Center Gift Shop at

176 Water Company Road, Millersburg, Pa., or call (717) 692-3699. Hours are Tues.-Sat.,

10 a.m.-4 p.m. www.nedsmithcenter.org

MEMBER PRICESNED SMITH PRINTS Framed UnframedAutumn’s Last Harvest giclée $895 $595 ____ ______Birch Bottom Buck $275 $180 ____ ______Moonlight Buck $300 $200 ____ ______Spring Time Grouse $239 $144 ____ ______Snow Shoe Hare $275 $180 ____ ______Sting of the Hook $235 $135 ____ ______Unfinished Business $250 $150 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($20.00 per unframed print) $20.00 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($22.00 per framed print) $22.00 ____ ______

Long-Eared Owl by David Sibley Requested print #:_________Print Only (unframed) Issue Price $95.00 ____ ______

Member Price $85.00 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($20.00 per print) $20.00 ____ ______Framed Print (framed/mat) Issue Price $170.00 ____ ______

Member Price $160.00 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($22.00 per framed print) $22.00 ____ ______Frame options (please select one): o Walnut/tan o Rustic/greenArt Exhibit Catalogue Issue Price $11.95 ____ ______

Member Price $10.70 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($5.00 per catalogue) $5.00 ____ ______

Ned Smith’s Game News Covers BookRegular Edition Issue Price $24.95 ____ ______

Member Price $22.00 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($5.00 per book) $5.00 ____ ______Special Cloth Edition Issue Price $54.95 ____ ______

Member Price $49.95 ____ ______Shipping/Handling ($5.00 per book) $5.00 ____ ______

Ned Smith Center Membership Categories o Individual $25 o *Family $40 o *Supporting $50o *Patron $100 o *Benefactor $250 o *Naturalist $500o *President’s Circle $1,000 (*household family members included)

Subtotal: (must include shipping) $ ______Plus 6% tax: (Pa. residents only) $ ______Membership: $ ______TOTAL: $ ______

Name__________________________________________Address ______________________________________City _________________________State_____Zip ______Daytime Phone __________________________________E-mail ________________________________________

METHOD OF PAYMENT: Make check or money order payable to“Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art” and mail with this form to

176 Water Company Rd., P.O. Box 33, Millersburg, PA 17061.

o Check / Money Order Enclosed o VISA o MasterCard Card # ________________________________________Exp. Date ____ / ________________________________Signature ___________________________ Date ______

Long-Eared Owlby David Sibley

Its camouflage betrayed by its strikingyellow eyes, this gouache of a long-eared

owl is one of David Sibley’s favoriteworks—and now, this beautiful painting

is available exclusively through the Centeras a fine art print, in a limited edition of300. The image size is 12 by 18 inches.

Proceeds will support the Center’sgroundbreaking Sibley exhibition.

Ned Smith’s Game News Covers:

The Complete CollectionA new book with an introduction by

Scott Weidensaul. A special cloth editionof 250 books also is available. Each copyis numbered, signed and sealed. Orderyour copy today, before they sell out.

Not responsible for typographical errors. Prices subject to change.

As fall color overflows the state, theofficial Fall in Pennsylvania website(www.fallinpa.com) offers many primetree-gawking driving tours.

Northern Zone: Rt. 6 from Milfordto Kane, about 285 miles; PennsylvaniaGrand Canyon loop, Rt. 660 west fromWellsboro to Leonard Harrison StatePark, then Rt. 660 east to Rt. 362 to Rt.6 east back to Wellsboro, 20 miles;Susquehanna Country, I-81 from Hall-stead to East Benton, 32 miles; TiogaRiver Drive, Rt. 15 from Liberty toTioga, 30 miles; Cherry Springs Drive,Rt. 44 from Coneville to Oleona, 40miles; Longhouse Scenic Drive fromWarren east on Rt. 6 to Rt. 59 to Long-house Scenic Drive to Rt. 321 and backto Rt. 59, 60 miles.

Central Zone: Coal Mining Country,Rt. 940 from I-81 Exit 40 to WhiteHaven, 16 miles; Penn State Drive, Rt.26 from State College to Huntingdon,32 miles; Rt. 42 from Eagles Mere toMount Carmel, 57 miles; Rt. 322 fromClearfield to Potters Mills, 55 miles; Kit-tanning Path, Rt. 422 from Kittanning toEbensburg, 57 miles; Allegheny River,Rt. 62 from Tidioute to Oil City, 33miles; Lincoln Highway, Rt. 30 fromIrwin to Bedford, 76 miles; Susquehan-nock State Forest, Rt. 120 fromEmporium to Lock Haven, 75 miles;

Shikellamy, Rt. 15 south from Mont-gomery to Sunbury and then Rt. 61 eastto Elysburg, 41 miles; Valleys of theSusquehanna, Rt. 104 from Mifflinburgto Mount Pleasant Mills, then Rt. 35 toMcAlisterville, 32 miles.

Southern Zone: Fall Harvest, Rt.234 from Biglerville to West York, 26miles; River Road, Rt. 611 from Eastonto Kintnersville, then Rt. 32 to NewHope, 35 miles; Amish and DutchCountry, Rt. 772 from Gap to Manheim,40 miles; Bedford to Gettysburg, Rt. 30from Bedford to Gettysburg, 84 miles;Harrisburg to Bowmanstown, Rt. 443from Fort Hunter in Harrisburg throughPine Grove to Rt. 895 to Bowmanstown,82 miles; Mt. Alto to Landisburg, southon Rt. 233 from Landisburg to Mt. Alto,51 miles; Reading to Cochranville, Rt. 10from Reading to Cochranville, 37 miles;Purple Heart Highway, Rt. 45 fromLewisburg to Boalsburg, 50 miles.

A couple other great websites relat-ing to fall foliage are the following.

The Foliage Network twice a week inSeptember, October and November sum-marizes the observations of more than500 foliage spotters throughout the north-eastern U.S. at www.foliagenetwork.com.

The U.S. Forest Service updates fall foliage information regularly atwww.fs.fed.us/news/fallcolors.

Dipping into the Palette of Fall


Timber Baron (with preliminary sketches) watercolor, 1980

“In Timber Baron, the setting is the mountainous, big-woods country of northern Pennsylvania, on an autumn day when thesugar maples and oaks have reached their peak of color. When Ned Smith began his art career, wild turkeys were scarce inPennsylvania, largely restricted to the remote Allegheny Plateau.Today they are common in the East, appearing in suburban neighborhoods and farmland woodlots, but Smith’s turkey paintings often conveyed a lingering sense of the wildernesscharacter this largest of upland gamebirds once represented.”

–Excerpt from The Wildlife Art of Ned Smith by Scott Weidensaul(available for purchase at the Ned Smith Center’s gift shop).

From the collection…

Documents

Fall 2006 Drumming Log - Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art · Robert M. “Bob” Pennell Gerald “Gerry” Putt ... Smith Center for Nature and Art Inc. and is mailed ... Fall