MARK YOUR CALENDARS

FOX TALES

Volume 28, #1, Winter, 2002-03

OXFORD AUDUBON SOCIETY

P.O. Box 556

Oxford, OH 45056

http://www.orgs.muohio.edu/OxfordAudubonSociety

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Unless otherwise noted, all meetings are held at the Lebanon Citizens National Bank, 30 Park Place West, Oxford. Carpool--Bring A Friend!

Monday, December 9, 2002, 7:30 PM. Bill Hegge, “The Fish & Wildlife Service, Present Directions and the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program.”

Bill Hegge is the Ohio Lands Coordinator for the Department of the Interior. He will discuss the role of the Fish and Wildlife Service in conserving important lands in Ohio with special emphasis on the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program in Ohio.

Saturday, December 14, 2002, 7:00 AM, Ecology Research Center, Somerville Road. Christmas Bird Count. See article inside for details.

Saturday, January 11, 8:00 AM, depart 8:15, Wal-Mart Parking Lot, Oxford.

Short-eared owls, Long-eared owls, & Saw-whets. Oh My!—During the winter, Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area hosts some of the more rarely seen owls found in Ohio. Join us as we go in search of these and many other over-wintering species. Contact Dave Russell (765-458-5975)

January 15, 2003. Rosie Bloom Scholarship application due. See article inside.

Friday, January 17 - Monday, January 20, 2003, Niagara Falls.

Do you REALLY like birds? If so, then join us for this three-day excursion to the north to brave the icy cold winter weather and look for a variety of winter gulls around the Niagara Falls. Leave early Friday evening and return Monday evening. Pre-registration and a $50.00 deposit are due by Saturday, December 14th. Limit: 20 Contact Casey Tucker 513 664-4011.

Monday, January 20, Martin Luther King, Jr., Day Hike, Hueston Woods Lodge Porch, 9:00 AM. Enjoy the woods AND learn about the American Discovery Trail. See article inside for details.

Monday, February 3, 2003, 7:30 PM. Thane Maynard, “Tales from the 90-Second Naturalist.”

Thane Maynard is on the staff of the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. He is nationally known as the "90-Second Naturalist," providing insights into nature and critical conservation issues weekly by radio. Thane is first and foremost an educator who delights in sharing his knowledge of both animals and places and how they enrich our lives. Don’t miss this program!

Saturday, February 8, 2003, Voice of America Park. See VOA article inside.

An early evening/late afternoon trip to search for Short-eared owls. This area boasts a large grassland area perfect for over-wintering short-eared owls, northern harriers, American kestrels, rough-legged hawks, and other grassland birds. Contact Chuck Holliday, (513) 863-6223 for details.

Thursday, February 13, Mike Fay, Hefner Lecture. Time & Place TBA.

Mike Fay is the internationally known leader of the Megatransect project in West Africa. Read a summary from US News and World Report at <<usnews.com/usnews/doubleissue/heroes/fay.htm>>.

Thursday, February 13, Grand Re-Opening of the Hefner Museum. See article inside for details.

Great Backyard Bird Count, February 14-17, 2003. See article inside for details!

NAME CHANGE:

A Letter from OAS President

The name “Oxford Audubon Society” has a long and proud history. But we have long outgrown the “Oxford” part having members in Butler and Preble Counties and even in eastern Indiana. We are working hard to include all of our members in activities throughout the year.

Some of us have felt for quite a while we needed a more inclusive name. At our planning sessions this spring, your Board of Directors agreed that it was time to revisit this issue. Over the past several months, the Board has considered many names that might better reflect who we are. We discussed names based on geography, names derived from historical traditions, including Native American names, and names that just sounded good. We even discussed a few that no one could spell, no one could pronounce, or no one could say with a straight face!

After long and careful consideration, your Board proposes that the name of our organization be “Audubon Miami Valley.” This name emphasizes our Audubon connection while identifying us as a Southwest Ohio organization. It better reflects our wide scope and is more welcoming to all of our members throughout the vicinity.

A change of name requires a vote by the membership at a regular public meeting. Accordingly, we will vote on this new name at our meeting on February 3, 2003.

--Bill Heck, OAS President

RAINBARREL

This morning I was sweeping ‘round the woodstove with a broom from nearby. No matter how many pots of water a person keeps on top of that woodstove, nearby brooms get dry and their straws fall out. I instinctively thrust it into a bucket of winter-plant-watering-rainwater … and remembered my grandmother.

“Stick it in the rainbarrel” was Grandmother’s cure-all. When brooms got dry, they went into the rainbarrel for a good soak. If your hair wasn’t doing right, you washed it in the rainbarrel so it would be shinier and healthier. If your skin was dry or chapped from ravages of weather, you took baths in the rainbarrel so skin would soften and heal (to this day I make rainwater soap). Plants, both indoor and out in the garden, were always doused with rainwater; neither wellwater, city nor county water would do as well. Our dirty boots really added to the inherit supply of nutrients washed into that big old rainbarrel!

In the spirit of conservation--and because Grandma taught me that it works--I still collect rainwater. It doesn’t take much effort to set five gallon buckets under the eaves or drainpipe. Every five gallons of rainwater used from a bucket of runoff are five gallons of water NOT pumped by electricity. Your plants will thank you, and so will future generations.

--Debra Bowles, OAS Member

THANKS TO:

The Elizabeth Wakeman Henderson

Charitable Foundation

and

International Paper, Hamilton Mill

for supporting OAS projects.

% CLIP & SAVE WITH YOUR HOLIDAY SUPPLIES:

P Give useful gifts that enable the recipient to help our environment year round: Compact fluorescent bulbs save energy and money. Cloth shopping bags reduce resource use and save landfill space. Homemade Carpool Certificates can let an elderly neighbor know you are available for a ride to the grocery or other errands. Send a contribution in your friend’s name to an environmental organization, animal shelter, or a charity of interest to him or her.

P Save decorative bags and product packaging for use as future wrapping paper. Other good sources are seed catalogs and atlases.

P Old greeting cards make great hang tags for packages. Cut (or tear, for an interesting edge and look) into decorative shapes following some design of the card. Use hole-punch in a corner and tie onto package with pretty ribbon. Larger cards can have the front completely torn off and creased to make a folded tag.

One Easy way to STOP SPRAWL

Trail sprawl, that is. Why make footpaths into two-lane highways? Hueston Woods, Glen Helen, John Bryan, and just about every other well-visited park are suffering from trail sprawl where hiker feet crush the life out of the trail-edge flora, decreasing plant diversity and increasing soil erosion. The easy solution: Walk in the middle of the trail and teach your companions why.

WEBS OF THE WEEK:

When does old age begin if you’re a hummingbird? See http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbl/homepage/longvlst.htm

Need to chat about a chat? See Oxford Audubon Discussions at

http://unixgen1.mcs.muohio.edu/~shermalw/wwwboard4/wwwboard/wwwboard.html

GOOD EARTHKEEPING HINTS:

Try saving ALL the envelopes you receive in the mail, including the return address ones for one month . . . WOW! That’s a lotta paper. Then see what you can do with them:

The backs make great notepapers.

Carefully cut a very thin strip off a short end and use vertically to store small items such as seeds, stamps, credit card receipts, etc. It’s easy to write on them and file alphabetically or by month.

My grandmother used to twist them in the middle like a bow and wire them altogether into a wreath.

The effort and resources involved with doing all this could be debated, of course, but this is one of the areas in our society that I really wonder about: All those envelopes-all dressed up with really no place to go. Anybody have more ideas for putting them to use???

--Debra Bowles, OAS member

Ed: Envelopes are recyclable with office paper.

GIVE A GIFT THAT GIVES ALL YEAR: AUDUBON MEMBERSHIP!

An Audubon Society membership is a great gift for any occasion. And it’s always the right size and color!!! You support national conservation projects and give your friends and loved ones six issues of the acclaimed magazine, Audubon. PLUS he or she gets four issues of Fox Tales and helps local conservation and education efforts. What a bargain!

[ ] Individual, first time rate, $20.00!

Recipient _________________________________

Address _________________________________

City __________________ State ____ Zip _______

Your Name _______________________________

Address __________________________________

City ___________________ State ____ Zip ______

Make check payable to the National Audubon Society and send to:

Liz Woedl, Membership

Oxford Audubon Society

6505 Buckley Road

Oxford, Ohio 45056

Results of the Christmas Bird Count, 2025*

150 License Plate Cardinals

5 Rooster Wind Vanes

192 Plastic Flamingos

6 Bronze Cranes

9 Hummingbird Wind Chimes

75 Mailbox Chickadees

* If we don't improve habitat, conserve resources, and educate others.

ROSIE BLOOM SCHOLARSHIP AVAILABLE

Need a break this summer that will reinvigorate you and increase your science teaching repertoire? Apply NOW for the Rosie Bloom Memorial Scholarship that can send you to one of the National Audubon Society camps. Options in the past have included studying the natural history and environmental issues of Wisconsin wetlands, Connecticut tidal pools and forests, Maine sea life, and Wyoming mountains. Simply mail a letter indicating your role as an educator, your previous experiences in conservation issues, and how you intend to utilize your camp experiences. DUE January 15, 2003. For more information contact Kathi Nickel at mailto:bknickel@gte.net or (513) 524-4027. Send applications to Education Committee, Oxford Audubon Society, P.O. Box 556, Oxford, OH, 45056. See <<www.audubon.org/educate/cw/>> for camps operating this year.

Rosie Bloom, a charter member of the Oxford Audubon Society, freely shared her enthusiasm for nature with young and old. She devoted much time and energy to help the OAS get off to a good start. Her example is remembered and celebrated with the Rosie Bloom Scholarship Fund, which for each of the last fourteen years has sent one or more educators to camp. They in turn have inspired and influenced hundreds of young people. To help spread this enthusiasm and caring for our environment, send tax-deductible contributions to the Oxford Audubon Society, earmarked "Rosie Bloom Scholarship," P.O. Box 556, Oxford, OH 45056.

Nature does not judge, does not discriminate, and allows us to be mentally at peace within it.

TEACHERS: ENERGY EDUCATION PROGRAMS AVAILABLE

Thanks to the Butler Rural Electric Cooperative, teachers in its service area can extend their students’ knowledge of energy, resources, and conservation. The Environmental Mobile Unit (EMU) will involve your students in hands-on investigations, such as experiments with heat and electricity for third graders and solar energy experiments for sixth graders. Kindergartners explore ways animals keep warm (or cool, depending on the season) in “Keep the Heat/Beat the Heat.” First graders teach the “Energy Hogs” how to help our environment by not wasting energy. Teachers can contact EMU at (513) 523-9849 or <<sledward@brecnet.com>>.

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., HIKE

The first MLK Day hike around Acton Lake was in 1993. I’d hoped that the holiday would provide Miami students a chance to circle the lake all in one day. The Hefner and Limper Museums were recruited as sponsors with Joe Marak providing shuttle service for those who only wanted to walk halfway. We have had all kinds of weather but have never canceled yet although we have had as few as four hikers.

There is no charge for our hike, but those who want Volksmarch credit are asked for a small fee, and a donation is expected for the lunch the Volksmarchers provide.

Early birds meet in the Lodge dining room at 8 am for breakfast. The hike begins at 9 from the Lodge porch and follows Mud Lick, Cabin, Pine Loop, and Sycamore Trails and Loop Road to Park HQ. After lunch we follow Hedge Apple, Big Woods, Sugar Bush and West Shore Trails and Loop Road to horse trails from where the power line crosses the road and follow these to the Lodge. Each hiker can proceed at his or her own pace. Parts of the route are on the coast to coast American Discovery Trail.

This is a fitting way to honor the memory of the Reverend King, who, like Gandhi, walked for justice and changed the world.

--Paul Daniel, OAS Member

CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT THIS DECEMBER 14th

Join us for a day of counting birds, visiting with old friends, making new friends, and eating chili (yum!). We will meet at the Miami University Ecology Research Center at 7:00 a.m. Contact Larry Sherman (mailto:Shermalw@muohio.edu or 523-2458) for details. Dress for the weather and serious walking or join a car-tripping team. Bring your own silver or plasticware, bowl, and/or cup for lunch! Bring a friend!

The CBC began on Christmas Day, 1900, when Frank Chapman and 26 other conservationists made a statement. As an alternative to the typical holiday “side hunt,” which involved everyone shooting the most birds and small mammals as possible, Chapman’s group COUNTED all the birds they saw.

Today the count is important in the contributions made by citizen-scientists recording birds from much broader areas of the US, Canada, Central and South America, Bermuda, the West Indies, and Oceania than professional scientists could cover. Bird populations can be monitored better with more complete data, and so the health of their--and our--environment can be tracked better as well.

Last year more than 50,000 volunteers counted every individual bird and bird species seen during one 24-hour calendar day. More than 1,800 individual count circles are covered during the two-and-a-half week official count period. Each group has a designated circle 15 miles in diameter - about 177 square miles - where they try to census as much ground as possible within a day.

Count results can be found at Audubon's website <<http://www.audubon.org/>> and Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology site <<http://www.birdsource.org/>>.

WEST NILE VIRUS

--Condensed from “Statement from Audubon’s Dr. Frank Gill on West Nile Virus, National Audubon Society”

The West Nile virus affects people, horses, small mammals including bats, and native birds. Less than 1% of cases in humans are dangerous. People with weakened immune systems should take special precautions to use insect repellent, wear long pants and socks, and stay indoors during dusk and night.

The most effective and safest means to control the mosquitoes which carry the virus is Integrated Pest Management. Recommended IPM measures include eliminating mosquito breeding habitat (old tires, litter, illegal dumps, clogged gutters, tarps) and replacing chemical larvacides with bacteria-based products, which kill mosquitoes but not beneficial insects, such as dragonflies, amphibians, and fish that prey upon mosquitoes.

National Audubon Vice President of Science Frank Gill reports "Aerial spraying of pesticides has been shown to be less effective than targeted, localized spraying. If pesticides are to be employed, a focused, limited, and timely response works best. Combining this approach with the use of highly effective bacterial larvacides and community and home cleanup of standing water is the most effective and efficient use of our states' energies and limited resources."

Birds have been hit the hardest by the virus. Crows, jay, hawks, and owls appear to be the most common fatalities, although their size and habits could increase their likelihood of being found.

Paper for this newsletter donated by: International Paper

Hamilton Mill

20% Post-Consumer Recycled Content

OHIO WORST FOR WEST NILE VIRUS

Condensed from ODNR press release, “Last Summer’s Raptor Die-Off Across Ohio Attributed to West Nile Virus.”

Hundreds of Ohio hawks and owls died this year presumably from West Nile virus, which is spread by mosquitoes. Thousands of other raptors were infected but did not die. This unprecedented die-off swept the raptor populations in the Midwest in late summer. Ohio’s case count was the highest.

With the cold weather killing off the mosquitoes, the number of infected and dead birds has diminished lately. For additional news, check the ODNR Press Room at <<Ohiodnr.com>>.

AND ONE MORE FIELD TRIP

Saturday, February 22, 2003, meet at the Oxford Wal-Mart parking lot at 8:30 AM. Carpool to Brookville Lake to spend part of the day exploring the nooks and crannies of one of our larger local lakes. A good opportunity to discover some of the best bird-watching sites around Brookville Lake, and depending on the weather there’s a chance to find a variety of ducks, gulls, and even a bald eagle or two.

WEST NILE VIRUS AT GLEN HELEN

The Raptor Clinic at Glen Helen’s Outdoor Education Center received between 50 and 70 suspected cases of West Nile virus from July to September of this year. Great horned owls were hit the hardest, followed by red-tails. Most of them died or had to be euthanized. Although many in the wild probably survived it, many others didn't but were never found. We have released a few but also have some that we think are permanently neurologically impaired.

It was the worst period we have ever had here, and that was true of all other raptor rehabilitation facilities in the state. Not only was it physically exhausting but emotionally draining. Most of us lost some of our education or display birds, which are of course, like family. We lost 3 great horned owls, one 28-year-old, and two 13-year-olds, our merlin, and a short-eared. Our bald eagle, Solo, and three red-tails were also affected, but seem to have recovered. We have many other education and display birds, even very elderly ones, that were not affected. There are still more questions about West Nile Virus than there are answers, but we are hoping the worst is over and will never be repeated.

--Betty Ross, Director, Raptor Clinic, Glen Helen

Contributions can be sent to Raptor Clinic, Glen Helen Outdoor Education Center, 1075 Route 343, Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387.

GREAT BACKYARD BIRD COUNT

During last year's GBBC, co-sponsored by Cornell University and Audubon, more than 47,000 participants contributed to the documentation of the whereabouts of 593 species. It's easy - just count the birds you see at your feeder, a park, a habitat, or other favorite backyard any time during February 14-17, 2003. Then submit your observations to BirdSource at <<www.birdsource.org/gbbc>>. Participation is free, and you can spend as much or as little time as you want observing, but record how much time you spend. Everyone can participate regardless of expertise. Check the Birdsource site also to see last year's population trends in Ohio. Teachers can also find ideas at birdsource.org/gbbc/learning/involvekids.html.

Here are some tips for counting:

Don’t try to follow a preprinted list unless you’re already familiar with it.

If you’re counting from inside, increase your viewing area by slowly stepping closer to the glass and looking up in the trees, down on the ground, and around in the bushes.

One way to count:

On a piece of paper, write down the species of bird you saw, for example: blue jay. Make a little mark like a fence post for each blue jay you saw in that one glance. Add more marks only if you see a greater number of blue jays in the next glance.

Record your total counting time for the day such as “Started at 9 am & counted for 2 hours.”

At the end of the day, enter on paper or the computer, only the greatest number of each species seen in any one glance. Follow the directions at <<birdsource.org>> to enter your observations and watch results come in from all over the country and beyond.

--Dave Osborne, osborndr@muohio &

Debra Bowles mailto:studios@artallover.com,

OAS GBBCcoordinators

NEW & IMPROVED HEFNER ZOOLOGY MUSEUM

The Hefner Zoology Museum is once again open to visitors following an extensive multi-year renovation. New exhibits incorporating the museum's extensive collection of specimens and artifacts have been installed that highlight the animal diversity of Southwest Ohio. In addition to other topics, visitors will learn about vernal pools, bird migration, and regional fossils. Several of the exhibits are interactive and all have been designed to appeal to visitors of all ages.

The museum welcomes school groups--please call Mike Wright at (513) 529-6084 to schedule a visit. The museum is located in room 100 Upham Hall on Miami's Oxford campus and is open 9:00 to 5:00 Monday through Friday. The museum will also be open 1:00 to 5:00 on Sundays beginning November 3, 2002.

WAYS TO SPREAD THE WORD

Instead of throwing away your next Fox Tales newsletter:

Leave it for others at an office, library or business;

Post it on a bulletin board;

Share it with a friend who might also support Audubon’s mission;

Read it to a kid;

Wrap a gift with it;

Use it to start a fire in the woodstove or fireplace.

Give an Audubon membership to someone who wants to learn about and conserve birds.

Get involved with your local Audubon Chapter’s conservation efforts.

Just talk with interested souls about Audubon’s efforts to create a culture of conservation!

ATTENTION COFFEE LOVERS

If you’re like me, you just don’t fully wake up in the morning without that first cup of coffee. Whether you like the taste, or, like me, are addicted to caffeine, a morning just isn’t complete without the ritualized task of obtaining a cup of coffee. What you may not realize is that cup of coffee you drink every morning may affect thousands of neotropical migrant birds. Neotropical migrants are those species that breed in North America in the spring and summer, but migrate to Central and South America for the Winter. Much of the coffee that we drink is grown in Central and South America (Latin America), and there are two ways in which coffee can be grown. One way is like an apple orchard where coffee bushes are planted in rows exposed to direct sunlight.

The second way is to plant coffee under the existing canopy of a larger tropical forest where sunlight, soil moisture, and heat are regulated by the existing forest plants. Additionally, the existing forest provides stability and nutrients, in the form of decaying leaves, to the soil in which the coffee is grown. This latter method is known as shade-grown coffee (because the coffee is grown in the shade of other trees).

Shade-grown coffee farms provide habitat for a variety of resident tropical birds and other wildlife and are important for over-wintering neotropical migrant songbirds as well. Researchers have found that many such migrant species overwinter in shade-grown coffee farms as well as they do in native forests. Granted, shade-grown coffee farms can never fully substitute for native tropical forests; they can at least help offset many of the negative impacts of deforestation and habitat loss.

Unfortunately, many coffee farmers are making a transition from shade-grown coffee to coffee plantations because they can get a higher yield of coffee crop, but at the cost of the environment. Coffee bushes in open plantations require more fertilizer and chemical treatments and create a greater potential for soil erosion. Interestingly, shade-grown coffee has a better flavor, so farmers that do sell shade-grown coffee can receive a premium price for their bean crops. Additionally, because of the environmental buffer that the native forest provides to shade-grown coffee plants, farmers have a more sustainable practice, and therefore a more reliable income, from their crop, from year to year.

So, if you haven’t already, think about making the transition to shade-grown coffee. You’ll be able to look out at the birds on your feeder and know that you’re contributing to conservation each day just by brewing that first pot of coffee in the morning.

If you want to help, shade-grown coffee can be purchased locally at Starbucks in Oxford. You can also purchase shade-grown coffee on-line at the following web-sites: American Birding Association: americanbirding.org/abasales/

International Migratory Bird Day: birdday.org/bdstore/index.cfm

Counter Culture Coffee: counterculturecoffee.com/shophome.htm

Big Pockets: bigpockets.com/

Wild Bird Centers: Wildbirdcenters.com/

You can learn more about shade-grown coffee at the following web-sites: Rainforest Alliance: rainforest-alliance.org

Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center: natzoo.si.edu/smbc/

National Audubon Society: audubon.org/local/cn/99winter/coffee.html

& audubon.org/bird/cafe.html

--Casey Tucker, OAS member

TOP 10 INVASIVE SPECIES CONTEST

It’s time for another contest! This one is for the TOP TEN WORST INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES to come to North America. Our contest will be judged by botanical experts, or at least the one who agreed to do it. So submit your list with a brief rationale for why that species made your list to <<sledward@brecnet.com>>by February 1, 2003. Or write to PLANT CONTEST, Oxford Audubon Society, P.O. Box 556, Oxford, Ohio 45056. Someone may win a fantastic prize!

Help OAS conservation and education projects by sending your gift to Oxford Audubon Society, P.O. Box 556, Oxford, OH 45056.

Oxford Audubon Society is a tax-deductible, 501(c)3 organization.

Thank you!

VOICE OF AMERICA PARK

At first sight the Voice of America Park near I-75 in West Chester is not much to look at: Soccer fields, ball diamonds, three ponds, a few trees, an odd-looking building with a tower sticking out of it. However, the beauty of the VOA lies in the grass; and there is a lot of grass at the VOA.

True, the only native grass at the site is broom-sedge (Andropogon virginicus), and the majority of the grasses are cool-season species typically used for animal forage. There are also a number of invasive weeds. But this habitat was suitable during 2001 and 2002 for upwards of twenty or more pairs of bobolinks, approximately twice that number of eastern meadowlarks, as well as numerous savannah sparrows, American kestrels, sedge wrens, visiting grasshopper sparrows and upland sandpipers, and wintering short-eared owls. In 2002, Henslow’s sparrows were added to the list of the VOA’s breeding birds.

From 1943 to 1994 the U.S. government transmitted radio broadcasts throughout the world from the Voice of America. In the late 1990s, the majority of the property, roughly 525 acres of grassland, was turned over to West Chester Township and Butler County MetroParks (BCMP). The government sold off the southwest corner of the property for commercial development (a Target is being built there), and another parcel along Cox road next to Target is owned by Miami University. Of the 525 remaining acres, West Chester owns 325, and Butler County MetroParks owns the northern 200. To meet community recreational needs, West Chester will turn the majority of its VOA land into athletic fields. BCMP is planning to create a thirty-acre fishing lake and leave the rest of the undeveloped property in grass. Between West Chester and BCMP there could be 150 to 200 contiguous acres of grass left when their respective development plans are complete.

The VOA was discovered by local birders on 20 May 2001 when Charles Holliday found a willet on a flooded softball diamond, as well as more than two dozen bobolinks and a number of savannah sparrows in the adjoining grassy fields. West Chester was planning to mow the undeveloped portions of their property during late-May and June, but once they learned of the possibility of nesting birds, they decided to hold off mowing until late summer. They continue to follow “bird-friendly” mowing practices.

In 2001 and 2002 there was a weekly summer bird survey of the VOA. Additionally, the softball diamond where Holliday found the willet attracted a white-faced ibis in May 2002, which was filmed by an ODNR employee for just the eleventh Ohio record of this species. (We haven’t found where exactly the rare bird magnet under softball diamond “A” rests, but we know it’s there, somewhere.) In spring the flooded area around this ball diamond attracts Wilson’s snipe, woodcock, blue-winged teal and even sora.

To visit the VOA take the Michael A. Fox Highway to the Cincinnati-Dayton Road exit. Head south on Cincinnati-Dayton Road to Hamilton-Mason Road. Turn east onto Hamilton-Mason. You’ll cross over I-75, after which, take the first right onto Cox Road. The VOA entrance will be on your left, approximately a quarter mile down the road. Please note that Cox Road is under construction but should be open this fall. If Cox is still closed at Hamilton-Mason, take Hamilton-Mason east to Butler-Warren, turn right (south) on Butler-Warren, then right (west) on Tylersville. Take Tylersville to Cox, turn right, and the entrance will be on your right, just past the Target site.

--Mike Busam, West Chester Dad & Birder

PROGRAMS PROGRAMS PROGRAMS

Planning for next year's program has begun. Please forward suggested speakers and contact information to Hardy Eshbaugh at <<mailto:eshbauwh@one.net>>. Are you interested in making a presentation to the chapter? If so what is your topic? This is your

program: Let us hear from you.

MUSCATATUCK FIELD TRIP A SUCCESS

Oxford Audubon joined forces with Aullwood and several other birding groups on November 23, 2002, for a look at the avian populations at Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge near Seymour, Indiana. This 7,724-acre refuge provides wetland and upland habitats for more than 270 species of birds. We tallied 51 species, seven shy of our spring record of March 18, 2000. Seventy-three percent were breeders; nine species of ducks and grebes were tallied. Always a delight are the otters swimming and frolicking among the buttonwood; we were entertained by 12 this year. And then there was a lone coyote foraging in an adjacent field.

Our most rewarding find were three adult red-shouldered hawks near Hayden, Indiana, one of which was leap-frogging for food along the roadside power line. It provided excellent photographic opportunities for Bill. Other avian delights included a solitary pintail, a common loon, a screech owl holed up in a nest box, a family of bald eagles circling the visitor's center while we were chowing down, and, of course, the ever elusive Canada goose.

--Dave Osborne, Bill Wilson, Erin George

HAVE YOU THE WRITE STUFF?

Stretch those creative brain cells by becoming the next Fox Tales editor! You’ll get all the news FIRST and can have fun chopping up other people’s articles to fit the space. Think of it as a jigsaw puzzle you do only four times a year! Contact Sharon Edwards at (513) 523-9849 or sledward@brecnet.com for details.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

· A team of researchers from England reported recently in Nature that local house sparrow extinctions were due to new agricultural practices of switching cereal sow times from spring to autumn and increasing bird proof storage of grains. Such practices have effectively decreased the winter supply of food and in some cases prevented dispersals between populations.

· A party of Griffin Vultures was denied boarding their plane enroute to the 14th International Scavanger Conference in Rodekill, Romania. Each was carrying two dead opossums. Flight attendants reminded them that Air Rumen allowed only one carry-on.

BIRD BIOLOGY HOME STUDY COURSE

Learn about birds from the experts at your own pace in your own space! From bird id to bird behavior, this well-illustrated text is written by leading ornithologists with the latest findings. For more information: 1-800-843-2473 or <<http://www.birds.cornell.edu/homestudy>>.

EAGLE WATCH IN FEBRUARY

Fourwinds Resort in Bloomington, Indiana, is hosting Indiana Department of Natural Resources’ Eagle Watch February 7, 8, and 9. Seminars, eagle-viewing caravans, and live bird demonstrations are among the events. For details contact Jeff Riegel, IDNR Division of State Parks and Reservoirs, 812-837-9967, or Emily Burkle, Hirons & Company, <<eburkle@hirons.com>>.

HIGHLAND NATURE SANCTUARY HIKE SHOWCASES LAND PRESERVATION TREASURES

Take a Holiday Trek into Lavondyss on Sunday, December 29, 2002, from 10:00 to 4:00 (hike will end with hot wassail and an open house at Ravenwood). Visit the enchanted forest of Lavondyss with Larry Henry, volunteer naturalist with the Highlands Nature Sanctuary and a Lavondyss-devotee. Please wear sturdy shoes and be sure to carry water and lunch. It is recommended that you bring a small tarp or something waterproof to rest upon for lunch. Be advised we will be doing some stream crossings -- however, regular hiking boots will work out just fine. We will probably be covering 2 1/2 miles altogether, including some uphill hiking -- moderate to good hiking ability will be necessary to enjoy the day. This will not be an easy hike -- we will be hiking cross-country. You will see stunning rock formations, the shining waters of Sad Song Creek, and spectacular vistas of Eastern Highland County. There is no better scenery anywhere in Ohio. No fee. To register and get directions, please call Lori at 937-365-1935.

The Greater Noctule Bat of Spain feeds on night-migrating songbirds in mid-air.

WHO SAID IT?

Why do people volunteer? Why do some people KEEP ON volunteering? How do people become involved in Oxford Audubon Society? Guess which board member said this:

“When we dropped in on an Audubon meeting 20 years ago, we were greeted by Liz Woedl, who was so friendly that I got hooked. The OAS has given me the opportunity to do my small part to promote environmental awareness and conservation.”

Answer in next newsletter.

Hint: It isn’t Liz Woedl.

RECYCLED BREAD PUDDING

You can save old bread for the crumb bucket destined for next holiday’s stuffing. You can throw

it to the birds in snowy weather. Or you can recycle it in pudding!

Put old bread into a clay or glass bowl.

Mix 1 egg per cup of milk- enough to cover the bread. Let it soak for several hours or until you can chop the bread into bite-sized pieces. I use the kitchen shears and just cut through it all.

Mix in a pinch of salt, a big pinch of spice, and honey to sweeten. Grandfather used to eat it out of the bowl at this point. (It’s just already-cooked-bread in eggnog.)

Set it in a cold oven and turn thermostat to 300 degrees F.

Depending on the amount, it may take a couple hours for the center of the pudding to “set” and puff up so that a knife inserted clear to the bottom comes out clean.

This is a pleasant late-winter-afternoon’s project, and if you also stick in a skillet filled with meat and jacketed potatoes with nails, it could all be ready for supper in your warm cozy kitchen.

What a yummy way to maximize energy consumption inside and outside the oven!

--Debra Bowles, OAS Member

OXFORD AUDUBON SOCIETY

A CHAPTER OF THE NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

P.O. BOX 556

OXFORD, OH 45056

Published quarterly by the OXFORD AUDUBON SOCIETY, P.O. Box 556, Oxford, Ohio 45056.

FOX TALES deadlines are the 15th of February, May, August, and November. Send contributions to Sharon Edwards, OAS Ed., P.O. Box 556, Oxford, Ohio 45056.

WINTER, 2002

NEWSLETTER, FOX TALES

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

OXFORD AUDUBON SOCIETY

OFFICERS and CHAIRS

President Bill Heck mailto:heckwc@muohio.edu

Vice-Pres. Jim Reid mailto:reidyou@aol.com

Treasurer John Blocher mailto:jonblocher@aol.com

Secretary Diana Deaton mailto:deatondl@muohio.edu

Members Chris Parker mailto:crsprkr@infinet.com

At Large barbara_mailto:eshbaugh@hotmail.com

Chuck Holliday mailto:chuck76029@aolcom