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Just A Chirp

WINTER 2017

Happy New Year


fence. Surprise! Its a Carolina. A Carolina! But its call
sounded NOTHING like a Carolina's ringing teaketttleI got my first birding lesson of the 2017 unusually
teakettle-teakettle-tea song or the descending trill that
early. It was about noon on Jan. 1. I was at Neff Park when
sounds like someone sliding their fingers down a comb.
I heard a bird -- singing. Okay, what birds sing this time of
How did this Carolina come up with that song? Sensing my
year? Robins on rare occasion. House Finches once in a
embarrassment, Rosann politely reminds me that its a
while. Carolina Wren on a sunny day. Its unusual but not
learning moment and I hang up the phone with a fair
unheard of for these species to sing in the dead of winter,
amount of chagrin.
but this bird sounded like none of those. Is someone on the
other side of the privacy fence playing a bird tape to mess
So the lesson ismore of a reminder, reallyto stay
humble. After 30+ years of birding, that little wren made
with me or something? This was beyond unusual.
me realize that I don't know as much as I think I do.
As I approach, I see a small, brown bird sitting on a
Message from the President

telephone wire. Its a wren! But what kind? I am familiar


with the songs of both Winter and Carolina Wrens, which,
given the time of year are the two most likely suspects.
Now I'm getting puzzled and excited. So, with the song
fresh in my braina couple of introductory chips followed
by a brief trillI get out my phone and compare his song
to other wren songs on the app on my phone. I dont bother
to check the songs of House, Winter and Carolina because
I know its not one of those. This bird has to be a rarity. I
decide on Sedge Wren. I
close the app and immediately call Rosann Kovalcik.I tell her that I
think its a Sedge based
on song but I have been
unable to get a good
look at the little devil.
Mountain Blue Bird, page 2

Just then the bird


pops out of the hedge
and flies to a nearby

Postscript: I posted a version of this tale to the Birders


email listserv and quickly received a reply from Steve Santer, one of Michigans top birders. He said some years ago,
some birders in Pennsylvania thought they heard a perfect
Bewicks Wren song coming from an area with no access.
Finally, someone was allowed to enter the area and catch
and band the bird. It turned out to be a Carolina Wren!
You never know.
Other Bird News
Two recent developments that you might have missed.
First, the Free Press (1/2/17) reported recently that because
of the work done by birders, the Federal Aviation Administration is changing its lighting standards for new cell
phone towers to make them more bird friendly. Currently,
the towers can use either a continuously burning light or a
flashing light. The continuously burning light is much
more likely to attract and confuse a migrating bird, which
will die from striking the tower. The
More on Page 2

Winter Schedule
Cut out this schedule and put it on your refrigerator to help you remember these important dates.

Jan. 23 (Fourth Monday) Cuba: The Land, the People, the Birds. Learn more about Cuba how the
people live, their government, their history as well as bird species encountered on this isolated and
enchanted island in late winter. Presenter: Jim Hewlett, CAAS Chapter Historian
Feb. 27 (Fourth Monday) The Vision for a Bird-Friendly Michigan, and How Our Chapters Can Help.
Heather Good, Executive Director of Michigan Audubon
March 20 To Be Announced

change would require all new communication towers to use makes it a living laboratory for the study of wildlife. The
endemic bird species include Bee Hummingbird, which the
flashing lights.
worlds smallest bird, Fernandinas Flicker, which is the
At the same time, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Sergenetic parent of all of
vice is working to persuade the owners of existing towers
North Americas woodto turn off the continuously burning lights or switch to
pecker species, and Cuban
flashing lights to prevent bird deaths.
Tody, which is a charming
These changes are based on the work
little sprite.
of Joelle Gehring, who started this
research when she was a post doctorI know the Obama
ate researcher at Central Michigan
Administration has eased
travel restrictions between
University.
the United States and CuCuban Tody
The other development comes from
ba, but who knows what
a paper accepted for publication in
the new Trump Administration might do? It could tighten
Ibis, the journal of the British Ornithose restrictions again or, it might encourage populating
thological Union. The paper, written
the Bay of Pigs with high rise buildings. Either way, I urge
by four German researchers, chalyou to visit Cuba before we ruin it.
lenges the idea that birds that migrate at night are more
prone to being killed by the giant blades on rotors that generate electricity in wind farms. The researchers tracked
birds on radar during fall migration in a migration corridor
in northern Germany. Once they confirmed a good movement of birds through the wind farms, they search the area
underneath the rotors for dead birds. Based on their data,
they concluded that night migrating birds are no more or
less likely to be be killed by the blades than birds that migrate during the daytime hours.

In February, we get a visit from the Mothership!


Heather Good, the new executive director of Michigan
Audubon, will visit to talk about her vision for a bird
friendly Michigan. That vision includes enlisting local
chapters for various projects. I hope you are ready to get
your hands dirty because we may have a new purpose in
life!

The study brings some clarity to the issue, but the


news is both good and
bad. It means that our
fears that night migrants
are being wiped out by
these wind farms may be
unfounded. It also means
that one more hurdle has
been cleared by the utilities that want to put a
wind farm in Lake Erie just offshore of Magee Marsh and
the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge. Even though this
study concluded that night migrating birds are not more
vulnerable, I would still prefer the utility not site a wind
farm at this location for one reason: no wind farm = no bird
deaths.

Join Rosann Kovalcik for bird walks at the Edsel and


Eleanor Ford House on Feb. 11 and March 11. There is a
fee to participate, and reservations are necessary. Call
(313) 884-4222 to reserve your spot.

Winter Programs
I asked Jim Hewlett to come down from Lansing to
give his presentation on Cuba later this month because I
was lucky enough to visit Cuba back in 2004 and have
been fascinated by that isolated and enchanting island ever
since. Vast areas of the island remain undeveloped, which

Bird Walks

Pay your dues


If you have paid your dues for the 2016-17 year,
please ignore this
YOU! THATS RIGHT, YOU! SEE THE ALL
CAPS? THATS RIGHT, ON SOCIAL MEDIA I
WOULD BE YELLING AT YOU! PAY YOUR DUES!
(Smiley face emoji.)
Printer cartridges
If you got em, bring em. We are still collecting
them.
Sightings
Many people had a chance to see a rarity, a Mountain
Blue Bird, at Harvey Ensign Memorial / DNR in December.

PAGE 2

We hope you joined us at our 50th


anniversary celebration at Windmill
Pointe Park, held on September 19th.
The food and cake were wonderful,
the presentation and games were fabulous, and the prizes were DELIGHTFUL. We had a really good turn out of
members, with former Seven Ponds
Director Mike Champagne and his
wife, Gayle, as our special guests.
Photos by Mike Florian

PAGE 3

JUST A CHIRP

WINTER 2017

About Grosse Pointe Audubon


Bill Rapai, president, (313)-885-6502 or BRapai@aol.com
Mark OKeefe, vice president, (313) 884-7472 or imokruok2@aol.com
Trina Bresser-Matous, treasurer, tbresser@aol.com
Anna Wuerfel, secretary, wuerf2@netzero.net
Joanna Pease, board member, and representative to Seven Ponds Nature Center,
strixvaria@sbcglobal.net
Annie L. Crary, board member, andrea.l.crary@gmail.com
Michael Florian, board member, mflorian@comcast.net
Ed McHale, Facebook chief

Keep up with other Grosse Pointe birders (and like us) on Facebook!. Go to www.gpaudubon.
blogspot.com for an online copy of Just A Chirp newsletter, a membership form, rules for
the G.P. Birding Challenge in the spring, and more.
Grosse Pointe Audubon meets in the Annex of Grosse Pointe Unitarian Church at 17150
Maumee, between St. Clair and Neff in Grosse Pointe. Social hour starts at 7 p.m. and the
meeting starts at 7:30. Our meetings are free and open to all, so bring a friend!
Grosse Pointe Audubon is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

Grosse Pointe Audubon


443 St. Clair
Grosse Pointe, MI 48230

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