The Hooter Kittitas Audubon March 2018

All Audubon meetings, held on the 3rd Thursday of each month at the Hal Holmes Cen-

ter next to the Library, September through May (except December), are open to the

public. Please come and meet with us. A brief business session precedes the program.

Stay afterwards for juice, treats, and conversation.

Many thanks to the Ellensburg Public Library for sponsoring our meetings here!

Membership Meeting - Thursday, March 15th, 2018

“Anomalies or the New Normal...what’s a bird or a being to do?” presented by Barry Brunson & Jim Briggs

7:00 PM at Hal Holmes Center next to the library ~ 209 Ruby Street

Disasters such as floods, fires, droughts, and hur-

ricanes are not new. Animals have gone extinct in

the past, including mass extinctions. The climate

has changed over time, many times, often quite

extensively. Why should we make a big deal

about claims that we are facing a climate change

crisis today?

Well, what is new is that we are experiencing

more and more of much more severe such disas-

ters, and that things are on track to continue get-

ting worse. What is new is the rate at which con-

ditions are changing that affect the climate.

The threat of extinction looms large for increasing

numbers of species that will be unable to adapt to

the changing climatic conditions on the horizon,

including over half of North American bird species

within the 21st Century. The Earth itself will be

just fine, regardless of what we do.

How people will fare, and the civilization we en-

joy, and the children and grandchildren we treas-

ure ~ that’s quite another matter.

But we should continue to be optimistic about the

future. In spite of denials and obstructions at the

federal level, we are seeing state and local gov-

ernments, other organizations, and individuals

acting to make a difference. This is not a “red vs

blue” issue. It is one of paying attention to the science.

(Continued on page 3)

Jolly Mountain Fire 2017

Anomaly, or the next normal?

Photo by Judy Hallisey

Page 2 The Hooter

Board Notes by Gloria Baldi

Members of KAS are invited to participate in tree planting on the Reecer Creek Floodplain on March 3rd. Be at the Dollarway entrance at 9:00 AM. This is to improve wildlife habitat.

The January board minutes and treasurer’s reports were approved.

We have two new members and five renewals.

Under the leadership of Rose Piccinini, our new Pro-gram Chair, the board is discussing some changes to the club meeting format. Things like refreshments at the beginning. Rose is also pursuing programs on lead poisoning and Yakima Training Center Sage Grouse.

Publicity Chair, Meghan Anderson, is working up dis-plays for upcoming home shows.

Members of the Climate Change Committee met with Representative Tom Dent and Senator Judy Warnock at Climate Lobbying Day and were well received. Tom Dent was also sent copies of our native plant material.

Judy Hallisey has applied for a mini-grant from Audu-bon Washington to support our native plant initia-tive. Plans are to present our printed materials at the Yakima River Bird Fest, the Spring Fair and the Earth Day Family Festival.

We have signed on to a letter to the Icicle River Work-ing Group. The intent is to ask for public hearings in Seattle to let people know about changes to the wil-derness area.

Send in your stories & photos!

The Hooter is the

newsletter of Kit-

titas Audubon,

published monthly

except for July.

~~~~~~~

Submissions from readers are most welcome and encouraged!

The editor reserves the right to edit for

space, grammar, and/or suitability.

Email text and/or photos to bobcat(at)

kvalley.com or snail mail to Jan Demor-

est, Hooter Editor, 712 E 2nd Ave, El-

lensburg, WA 98926. Submissions

need to be in by the 20th of

the preceding month.

KAS BOARD MEMBERS President – Judy Hallisey 270-792-9188

Vice President – Barb Masberg 509-406-3104

Secretary – Jim Briggs 933-2231

Treasurer – Sharon Lumsden 968-3889

Conservation – Norm Peck 933-4233

Education – Steve Hall 925-4877

Field Trips – Steve Moore 933-1179

Historian – Gloria Lindstrom 925-1807

Programs – Rose Piccinini 509-631-0591 Publicity – Meghan Anderson 253-987-7629

Scholarship – Gloria Baldi 933-1558

Climate Change–Barry Brunson: 270-792-9186

Past President – Tom Gauron 968-3175

*Newsletter – Jan Demorest 933-1179

Membership – Kris Kaylor 509-304-4103

*Bluebird boxes – Jan Demorest 933-1179

*Social Greeter – Kay Forsythe 925-2356

*Christmas Bird Count–Phil Mattocks

*non-voting members

KAS Board Meetings are held at 4:30

PM ~ 1st Thursday of each month at

the Methodist Church across from

The Ellensburg Public Library. These

meetings are open to the public and

all Audubon members; please come

and join in the discussions. Meetings

adjourn by 6:00 or 6:30, then we all go

out for a sociable dinner ~ NO busi-

ness discussion allowed!

Spring Fair is the continuation of KEEN’s e3 Winter Fair. The goal of the event is to showcase local organi-zations, companies, agencies and in-dividuals that support and enhance our community’s educational, eco-nomic, and environmental sustaina-bility. March 10th, 11 am to 3 pm at the Armory

An environmental and educa-tional community showcase!

Children’s Environmental-themed activities

Free face painting

Spring nature activities

Local vendors & organizations

Local & sustainable food vendors

Bring the whole fami-ly for an afternoon of

fun learning!

Field Trip Reports Page 3 The Hooter

February 3rd ~ First Saturday Bird-

walk, Rinehart Park ~ A total of 9 bird-

ers from both lower and upper county had

a cool day with filtered sun – February this

year has been like that! We found 17

bird species. The winter usuals were at

home and active: many good looks at

Downy Woodpeckers of both genders; a

few redtails, an adult eagle and a kestrel,

flickers and chickadees, and a Belted King-

fisher along the river – the last of these

has been harder to spot in our 3-hour walk

in recent months. A Pied-billed Grebe was

the solitary occupant of the upper pond;

great to record this one again, but we

don’t seem to see large flocks of winter

ducks so much now, perhaps because the outer trail is being used

more often and early by runners and dog walkers. Specialties on

this day were a good look at a Hairy Woodpecker, and the high-

light of the morning was not, as you might expect, a rare bird:

three otters were fishing and playing and joyously munching their

slippery catch in the first pond by the picnic area. They put on an

extended show for us, first being sighted in the second pond along

the bank near the new culvert that now connects the two ponds.

They slipped through the culvert and popped up to check us out,

then set about their morning breakfast party. We watched for 10

minutes, I think, almost missing the Bald Eagle perched regally in a

bare tree just on the south side of the ponds’ crossover point. He

allowed us to get rather close for a fine photo-op by Kay Mabry from

Upper County.

~ Steve Moore & Jan Demorest

Barry Brunson will present evidence for the reality of

climate change, describe its consequences, and make

suggestions for a way forward. Jim Briggs will discuss

implications of a changing climate on specific local bird

species, including the Ruffed Grouse and Gray Jay. The

audience will have to ask themselves what they can do

next.

We hope you will join us for this timely educational

and enlightening presentation. Open to all!

(Continued from page 1) Program/Meeting

US Drought Monitor 2015

Anomaly, or the next normal?

On February 7th, Kittitas Audubon’s

publicity chair, Meghan Anderson, par-

ticipated in this 2-hour event that fea-

tured speakers, a panel of experts who

answered questions from those attend-

ing, and displays by local groups that

promote good gardening practices and

new ideas. Many people were interest-

ed in the information on solar panels

and heat pumps.

The KAS display included detailed infor-

mation about native plants to

grow in your backyard to bene-

fit birds and bees, bats and

butterflies (and moths). This

brochure, created by Judy Hal-

lisey, now KAS president, can

be found on our website at:

kittiasaudubon.org

Many thanks to Meghan for her

enthusiasm and hard work get-

ting the word out about KAS,

solar energy, and native plants!

Page 4 Hooter Queen of Spades “Extend Your Growing Season” Event

Year of the Bird ~ March

What can you do to participate in Year of the Bird this

month? Plant bird-friendly plants!

Birds often rely on plants in our yards, balconies, and other outdoor spaces for habitat and food ~ the best plants to pro-vide this are those native to your area. To know the best plants for your area, search Audubon’s native plants database by your zip code. You can even search based on the birds you want to attract and the type of plants you want in your gar-den.

By growing the best bird-friendly plants for your area, you will attract and protect the birds you love while making your space beautiful, easy to care for, and better for the environ-ment—and this month is the perfect time to get started. Learn more and find your plants here.

You can also check out the KAS website where you’ll find a link to the reference booklet of native plants for Kittitas County, created by Judy Hallisey, now president of KAS! www.kittitasaudubon.org This includes listings of plant nurseries that sell our local native plants.

Northern Yakima County Conservation District also has a na-tive plant sale. Order soon! Find the order form here:

http://northyakimacd.wordpress.com/

Show off your native-plants yard! By donating $25 or more to National

Audubon, you’ll receive this sign to plant in your yard ~ spread the word!

Visit this link: https://www.audubon.org/native-

plants Click on Search—go to bottom of

page.

Photos by Barb Masberg

Announcements, Actions, Anomalies! Page 5 The Hooter

Olympic Birdfest, April 13-15, 2018. Enjoy guided birding trips, boat tours, live auction & raffle, gala banquet, and more. Our featured speaker: nature guide/photographer Claudio Vidal. Join our festival pre-trip: a three-day, two-night birding/sightseeing cruise of the San Juan Islands, April 10-12, 2018. Register separately at

www.pugetsoundexpress.com/audubon.

Extend your festival with our Neah Bay post-trip on April 16-17, 2018: two days exploring north-west coastal Washington. BirdFest registration at

www.olympicbirdfest.org.

2018 Audubon Photography Awards! You’re crazy about birds and

photography. Now combine

your twin passions by entering

your best bird photos in the

2018 Audubon Photography

Awards. You could win a cash

prize or, if you’re our Youth

winner, a special trip that will

help you become an even bet-

ter bird photographer. Winning

photos will be published in a

future issue of Audubon and in

Nature’s Best Photography

magazine, and displayed with-

in the 2018 Nature’s Best Pho-

tography Exhibition at the

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

Entry period: January 8, 2018–April 9, 2018

Follow this link for entry details and more photos from previous years:

http://www.audubon.org/photoawards-entry

Wood ducklings; 2016 youth award by Christopher Schlaf

21st Annual Othello Sandhill Crane Festival

“H2O Birds on the Go” March 23, 24, 25, 2018

http://sandhillcranefestival.org/

Talks, field trips, workshops, exhibits!!!

Page 6 Hooter Report from Blue Mountain Wildlife Rehab Center - Pendleton, OR

January 7th: A lead test is always one of the first orders of business when an eagle is admitted, espe-cially when there are no obvious signs of injury. The LeadCare II machine we use gives a High reading if the lead level is above 66 micrograms/deciliter. We had to dilute the eagle's blood twice in order to get the lead level low enough to register on the machine, and then do some math to get a final reading. It was 813 micrograms/deciliter, the highest lead level we have ever measured. The eagle is very dehydrated, but not underweight. I’m hoping that means the lead poisoning is acute (very recent), and will quickly re-spond to chelation.

January 14th: We have dropped the juvenile Bald Eagle’s blood lead level from 813 micrograms/deciliter to 130 mcg/dl. Although that is an amazing reduction, it is still a very toxic amount of lead. The other good news is she has managed to pass the lead particles in her gut. They are no longer visible in an x

-ray. She is still an incredibly ill bird, but we can’t

help being hopeful that she will beat the odds and recover.

January 28th: After three courses of chelation, the eagle’s blood lead level is 13.7 micrograms/deciliter, down from 813. She is now able to keep liq-uids down, but still has no interest in solid food. As she begins her fourth week of treatment, we have a glimmer of hope that she will recover. At this point, there is no way of knowing the extent of the damage caused by the high level of lead.

February 4th: The juvenile Bald Eagle that we have been treating for lead toxicity for a month con-tinues to very slowly improve. She is now able to eat several small bites of food once or twice a day with-out regurgitating. Her lead level was more than five times higher than the Golden Eagle who died. We don’t know for certain why the two eagles responded to treatment so differently, but suspect it has to do with the way in which they were exposed to lead, chronically for the Golden Eagle, smaller amounts of lead over a period of time, verses acute for the Bald Eagle, a large amount of lead that made her sick very quickly. Undoubtedly, there are other factors as well.

February 25th: The juvenile Bald Eagle with lead

poisoning continues to beat the odds. She is enthusi-astically eating cut up pieces of rat and quail (yum!)on her own. We are still giving her oral fluids once a day. The next step will be to see if she can tear apart and eat whole rats and quail.

The Whole Story ~ This young eagle had ingested this lead through eating carrion meat from an ani-mal killed using lead ammunition. If a coyote, or a rabbit or other animal is shot and then left, or runs off to die alone and hidden, eagles and other raptors may find the carcass and by eating this meat will ingest the lead shot. The best solution is to use non-lead ammunition for all purposes!

Blue Mountain is a non-profit, volunteer facility.

http://bluemountainwildlife.org/

Membership Thanks!!!

Vicki & Gene Potts ~ family membership renewal

Jean S. Clark ~ individual membership renewal

Kay Mabry ~ individual membership renewal

Steve Arkowski ~ individual renewal & nestboxes

donation

Tammy Waddington ~ individual membership renewal

Keyna Bugner ~ individual renewal and field trips

donation

Will & Willie Markey ~ new family membership

Miranda Nash ~ new individual membership

Membership Form ~ Kittitas Audubon Society

Please make checks payable to: Kittitas Audubon Society, P.O. Box 1443, Ellensburg, WA 98926

Name __________________________________________Phone___________________________

Address_________________________________________________________________________

City___________________________________________State________Zip___________________

Email Address____________________________________________________________________

Is this a renewal or a new membership? New_____ Renewal______

Would you like to receive occasional emails related to Audubon issues? Yes ___ No___

Join with any of these Annual Membership Options: (check your option below)

Kittitas Audubon Society Individual Membership $20 ____ Family Membership $30 ____

Premium Memberships: Bluebird $50 ____ Kestrel $75 ____ Hawk $100 ____

Lifetime Individual Membership: $300 ____ Lifetime Family Membership $500 ____

Business Membership $200 ____ Business Lifetime Membership $1000 ____

Make a Charitable Donation: What interests you? We want to know!

Please enter dollar amount donation below:

Scholarship Fund $______________ Nest Boxes $_____________

Bird Surveys $_______________ General Interest $______________

Community Education $_______________ Special Committees $______________

May we list your name in The Hooter to acknowledge your membership/donation? Yes ___ No___

Your generous donation to a specific project is symbolic. Kittitas Audubon is a chapter of National Audubon Society serving the communities of Kittitas County, Washington. Go to kittitasaudubon.org for more information. KAS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation.

Give the Gift of Kittitas Audubon for a year! This gift membership is for:

Name ________________________________________Phone_____________________

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You may join National Audubon Society separately by visiting their website at: http://www.audubon.org

YES: I want to 'Go Green' by receiving The Hooter Newsletter online version only

Choosing the online newsletter option saves KAS $15 Annually in printing/mailing costs!

Go Green and enjoy the online version in Color!

Upcoming KAS Field Trips

March

3rd ~ Saturday ~ First Saturday BirdWalk, Irene Rinehart Park. Meet at 8 AM at Irene Rinehart parking lot for a 3-hour walk. A hint of spring weather may bring noisy wrens, nesting redtails, wailing Killdeers, and maybe a swallow or two poking around the woodpecker holes in the cottonwoods. Leaders Jan Demorest and Ju-dy Hallisey. Please call 509-933-1179 for info.

8th, Thursday ~ Fort Simcoe and Top-penish NWR. This is a reschedule of a weather-cancelled trip from last month. Highlights are raptors and riparian brush in the farmland south of Wapato, woodpeckers in the oak woodland around the attractive grounds of the Fort (a State Park), and waterfowl in the wetlands south of Toppenish. Bring a bag lunch for this all day trip. RSVP Steve, s.moore(at) kvalley.com or 509-933-1179 and plan to meet at 8 AM at Super One parking lot. Car-pooling encouraged!

April

7th ~ Saturday ~ First Saturday BirdWalk, Irene Rinehart Park. Spring birding and a 3-hour walk in our riverside park. The birdwatching is good in the cottonwoods before the leaves come out. Spring migrants arriving include os-preys, vultures, kinglets, warblers, maybe a shorebird. Leader TBA.

Kittitas Audubon

P.O. Box 1443

Ellensburg WA 98926

The Hooter ~ March 2018 The Newsletter of Kittitas Audubon - http://www.kittitasaudubon.org

THANK YOU…..TO KITTITAS COUNTY BUSINESSES SUPPORTING KAS! Inland Internet, Roslyn ~ donates Internet service for our Website: http://www.kittitasaudubon.org

Old Mill Country Store, Ellensburg ~ Provides a discount on bird seed to KAS members.

Get your bird seed here!

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