From rbdoeker at yahoo.com Mon Apr 2 16:12:18 2007 From: rbdoeker at yahoo.com (Randi Doeker - Chicago) Date: Mon Apr 2 16:12:40 2007 Subject: [BCNnet] April 9 COS Program Announcement Message-ID: <001301c7756b$99b4c560$4001a8c0@rbde5348707dc8> Please join us for an informative and useful discussion on the impact of weather on migration. April 9 - Monday COS Program Panel Discussion - Birds and Weather Notebaert Nature Museum - Lincoln Park, Chicago 7:00 p.m. COS is pulling together a panel of local birders - many of them self-acknowledged data heads - to pool their knowledge and experience about the impact of weather on bird migration. Every birder knows that weather has a huge impact on migration patterns, but it's hard to get a handle on exactly where to look for birds when the wind is blowing hard from the northeast or a front is coming in. Our panel of seasoned observers will share their bird lore and drawing from their extensive bird sightings records, will help you learn to read the weather and what it means for birds - and birders - during spring and fall migrations. A short session on using Dopplar radar as a predictive tool also will be offered. The panelists are: - Vic Berardi, who heads the Illinois Beach State Park Hawk Watch and self-diagnosed hawk nut; - Annette Prince, director of Chicago Bird Collision Monitors and mistress of the group's large data base of rescue and salvage bird records, which offers a surprising glimpse into migration patterns; - Douglas Stotz, a conservation ornithologist at the Field Museum, has done thousands of hours of field work in tropical locales, but he also birds extensively in Grant Park and around Illinois; - Geoffrey Williamson, who participated in on-the-ground bird surveys for a study of bird migration using Doppler radar and who is compiling Lincoln Park bird sightings for a future book. The program will include presentations from each panelist, followed by a question and answer session. The evening is designed to be interactive and your questions are encouraged! Sigrid Schmidt COS President Chicago -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://screamer.ece.iit.edu/pipermail/bcnnet/attachments/20070402/82f4b1e8/attachment-0001.html From donniebird at yahoo.com Wed Apr 4 15:20:32 2007 From: donniebird at yahoo.com (donniebird@yahoo.com) Date: Wed Apr 4 15:22:40 2007 Subject: [BCNnet] The latest from NABCI Message-ID: <008701c776f6$b4dc3030$0200a8c0@DONNIERTMEJESV> For what's going on with bird conservation at the national level pasting this into your browser will give you great information. Donnie Dann Highland Park, IL donniebird@yahoo.com http://www.nabci-us.org/aboutnabci/bulletin0407.pdf -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://screamer.ece.iit.edu/pipermail/bcnnet/attachments/20070404/5b064f1c/attachment.html From casresearch at comcast.net Sun Apr 8 22:14:51 2007 From: casresearch at comcast.net (casresearch@comcast.net) Date: Sun Apr 8 22:15:02 2007 Subject: [BCNnet] reminder: Wed. deadline to register for next Saturday CAS Environmental Awards Banquet honoring 10 Message-ID: <040920070314.14160.4619AFAA000BF044000037502200761394080C9D0E0A9C0A9D9C0E0C@comcast.net> I promise this will be the last notice on this, but just wanted to mention that Wednesday is the last day to sign up for the bi-annual Chicago Audubon Society Environmental Awards Banquet, to be held next Saturday, April 14. See details below. -- Alan B. Anderson, casresearch@comcast.net , Des Plaines, Cook Co. [ps: the CAS trip to NE Ohio on May 18-20 only has two spots left] ----------------------------------------------------- The Chicago Audubon Society is honoring ten individuals/groups (all have said they would be there - see below) for their work and service in nature and bird conservation at our bi-annual CAS ENVIRONMENTAL AWARDS BANQUET on the evening of Saturday, April 14th. The always exciting and entertaining evening is open to everyone interested in birds and birding, conservation and protection of the environment. Featured speaker at this year’s Awards Banquet will be Douglas Stotz, distinquished Ornithologist at Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Doug's topic is "Changes in our Avifauna Over Time", discussing how bird species have fluctuated in abundance and distribution over the years in northeast Illinois. Doug will also cover some of the reasons for this fluctuation, and some of the hazards bird populations have faced over the years, now and in the future. Remember, you don’t have to be a CAS member to attend this fun event! All interested in nature are welcome to the casual dinner to be held at the Silver Stallion Restaurant, 1275 Lee/Mannheim Road in Des Plaines, Illinois (just south of Algonquin Road). To sign up for the banquet (or for more info), contact me via email at casresearch@comcast.net or phone at 847-390-7437. Dinner details can be found at http://www.chicagoaudubon.org/pages/2007/vol21_1/environmentalAwards.shtml The ten award recipients (and categories for which they are honored) for 2007 are as follows: 1) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT – EDUCATOR John Banaszak, Save the Prairie Society 2) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT - POLITICAL SERVICE Larry Suffredin, Cook County Commissioner (13th District), [Forest Preserves Board] 3) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT - SINGLE ACT (INDIVIDUAL) AVOCATION Lee Ramsey - BCN E-Bird 4) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT - SINGLE ACT (INDIVIDUAL) VOCATION Eric Secker – ‘Habitat Project’ Bird Population Trends 5) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT - SINGLE ACT (GROUP) Willowbrook Wildlife Center, DuPage County Forest Preserve District 6) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT – AVOCATION Jerry Garden – Chicago Audubon Society 7) PROTECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT – VOCATION David Willard, Field Museum of Natural History, Collections Manager-Bird Division 8) SERVICE TO CHICAGO AREA BIRDERS Urs Geiser - DuPage Bird Club 9) FIRST FRIEND OF CHICAGO AUDUBON Thrivent Financial for Lutherans (helping with Skokie Lagoons restoration) 10) CAS GOOD BUSINESS NEIGHBOR Eagle Optics *For detailed information on each award recipient go to http://www.chicagoaudubon.org/pages/2007/vol21_2/cas_award_winners.shtml or www.chicagoaudubon.org and click on the link to the article about the Award Recipients Banquet Details: ($30) Reception & Cash Bar: 5:30pm to 6:30pm Dinner: 6:30pm Presentation of Awards Program: Douglas Stotz - "Changes in our Avifauna Across Time" Events to conclude by 9:00pm -- Alan B. Anderson casresearch@comcast.net Des Plaines, Cook Co. Vice-President, Chicago Audubon Society www.chicagoaudubon.org -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://screamer.ece.iit.edu/pipermail/bcnnet/attachments/20070409/4c66ae35/attachment.html From donniebird at yahoo.com Sun Apr 15 08:45:29 2007 From: donniebird at yahoo.com (donniebird@yahoo.com) Date: Sun Apr 15 07:47:25 2007 Subject: [BCNnet] FW: [Birdwire] ACT NOW! Stop the Deaths of Millions of Migratory Birds at Communications Towers Message-ID: <000301c77f64$558bc930$0200a8c0@DONNIERTMEJESV> Skipped content of type multipart/alternative-------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/jpeg Size: 9831 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://screamer.ece.iit.edu/pipermail/bcnnet/attachments/20070415/549a86e0/attachment-0008.jpe -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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Name: not available Type: image/jpeg Size: 1413 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://screamer.ece.iit.edu/pipermail/bcnnet/attachments/20070415/549a86e0/attachment-0015.jpe From casresearch at comcast.net Tue Apr 24 18:36:14 2007 From: casresearch at comcast.net (casresearch@comcast.net) Date: Tue Apr 24 18:36:25 2007 Subject: [BCNnet] help needed (more than usual!) for Spring Bird Count, May 5 Message-ID: <042420072336.18529.462E946E00002302000048612206424613080C9D0E0A9C0A9D9C0E0C@comcast.net> The Illinois Spring Bird Count will be held on Saturday, May 5th, this year. If can help with even a small area for the Illinois Spring Bird Count that day in Cook Co., please let me know (see http://home.xnet.com/~ugeiser/Birds/BirdCounts.html for more information on compilers in other counties in the state). A number of downstate counties have only a few participants (Vern Kleen said he's only got 3 so far for Union Co.) thus far. And even though we normally have many participants in Cook Co., this year due to many factors (injuries, accidents, work, vacations and other reasons; we also 'lost' a few participants who will help in downstate counties too but that's ok as many counties need help!), a number of very good birding areas in Cook Co. that have been covered in the past, aren't being covered so far. Even if you only have a half-hour or an hour to help, you can still participate in the count. Below are the areas in Cook Co. where we don't have coverage thus far (a number of areas, especially in bold, are usually covered, but past participants there are unable to help this year). Please let me know if you can help in any of the locations below (MANY forest preserves are in the Palos area and in southern Cook Co. and even some good locations along the lakefront need help too); THANKS, Alan Anderson, Cook Co. compiler for IL SBC; casresearch@comcast.net Des Plaines. ---------------------------------------------------------- Areas needing coverage for Cook Co. Spring Bird Count 1) NORTHWEST COOK: Stillman Nature Center St. Michael’s Cemetery and Reservoir Harper College and adjacent park/reservoir Palatine Marsh (east of Barrington Road) 2) NORTHERN COOK : a) areas near Des Plaines River: - Belleau Lake FP - Camp Pine Woods FP - Campground Road Woods FP - Dam #1 Woods FP - Iroquois Woods FP - Lions Woods FP - Northwestern Woods FP - Potawatomi Woods FP b) areas near north branch Chicago River - Blue Star Memorial Woods FP - Caldwell Woods FP - Edgebrook Woods FP - Erickson Woods FP - Forest Glen Woods (Forest Glen Rd. west of Cicro) - Indian Road Woods FP - Linne Woods FP - Turnbull Woods FP c) areas near Lakefront - areas along Wilmette, Winnetka, Kenilworth lakefront (i.e: north of Gilson Park – Tower, Kenilworth, Glencoe etc.) d) other: - Emily Oaks Nature Center - Ladd Arboretum/Evanston Ecology Center (NORTH SHORE CHANNEL, Evanston) - Harbert Park, Evanston 3) CHICAGO a) Lakefront: - Lawrence Ave (4800 N.) north to northern city Limits - Lincoln Park from North Ave. to Belmont (including North Ave Beach, Diversey Harbor, Lincoln Park Zoo – NOTE: North Pond is covered) - Olive Park and Navy Pier - South Shore Cultural Center/Nature Center b) Chicago River: - North Shore Channel from Foster to Peterson/Lincoln Village - North Shore Channel from Devon to Howard/Oakton (or parts thereof) - Chicago River downtown to Belmont Ave. - Chicago River south branch including Chinatown area parks c) inland Chicago Parks - Columbus Park - Douglas Park - Garfield Park - Humboldt Park - Marquette Park - McKinley Park - Riis Park - Sherman Park - Washington Park 4) Western (or near northwest, near southwest) Cook Co. - Bemis Woods FP (North and/or South) - Brezina Woods FP - Callahan Grove FP - Cermak Woods FP - Che-che-pin-qua Woods FP - Evans Field FP - Fullerton Woods FP - LaGrange Park Woods FP - Maywood Grove FP - Miller Meadow FP - St. Paul Woods FP - Schiller Woods FP - Schuth’s Grove FP - Sunset Bridge Meadow FP - White Eagle Woods FP 5) PALOS area preserves, Cook Co. - Arie Crown Forest - Belly Deep Slough - Black Partidge Woods FP - Buffalo Woods FP - Bullfrog Lake FP - Cherry Hill Woods FP - Columbia Woods FP - Country Lane Woods FP - Crawdad Slough FP - Crooked Creek Woods FP - Dan McMahon Woods FP - Duffy Grasslands - Forty Acre Woods FP - Hickory Hill Woods FP - Horsetail Lake - I&M Canal Bike Trail - Joe’s Pond - Lake Katherine Nature Center - Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center - Maple Lake Woods FP - McClaughry Springs Woods FP - McGinnis Slough - Morrill Meadow - Orland Grasslands - Paddock Woods FP - Palos Park Woods FP - Papoose Lake FP - Pioneer Woods FP - Red Gate Woods FP - Spears Woods FP - Sundown Meadow FP - Swallow Cliff Woods FP - Tampier Lake FP - Teason’s Woods FP - Theodore Stone Forest - White Oak Woods FP - Willow Springs Woods FP - Wolf Road Woods FP 6) Tinley Park/Oak Forest area, Cook Co. - 167th/175th and Central/David’s Pond - Arrowhead Lake FP - Bachelor Woods FP - Bur Oak Woods FP - Carlson Springs Woods FP - Elizabeth Conkey Woods FP - Midlothian Meadows FP - Midlothian Reservoir FP - Old Plank Road Trail - Rubio Woods FP - St. Mihiel Woods FP - Tinley Creek Woods FP - Turtlehead Lake FP - Yankee Woods FP 7) South/Southeast Cook Co. - 138th/Halsted, Riverdale Quarry - Beaubien Wood FP - Calumet Woods FP - Dan Ryan Woods FP - Glenwood Woods FP - Green Lake Woods FP - Indian Hill Woods FP - Joe Orr Woods FP - Jurgensen Woods FP - Kickapoo Woods FP - King’s Grove FP - Lansing Woods FP - North Creek Meadow FP - Plum Creek FP - Sand Ridge Nature Center - Sauk Trail Woods FP - Schubert’s Woods FP - Shabbona Woods FP - Sweet Woods FP - Van Vlissengen Prairie - Wampum Lake Woods FP - Woodrow Wilson Woods FP -- Alan B. Anderson casresearch@comcast.net Des Plaines, Cook Co. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://screamer.ece.iit.edu/pipermail/bcnnet/attachments/20070424/50007077/attachment.html From donniebird at yahoo.com Mon Apr 30 19:49:17 2007 From: donniebird at yahoo.com (donniebird@yahoo.com) Date: Mon Apr 30 18:49:21 2007 Subject: [BCNnet] Birds, bats and wind turbines Message-ID: <004001c78b8a$8ce27eb0$0200a8c0@DONNIERTMEJESV> BCNnet friends Here's today's press release from American Bird Conservancy urging Congress to subsidize wind energy only if provisions protecting birds and bats are included in the renewal legislation. Please tell your Congressman or Congresswoman to support the legislation only if this provision is included. Donnie Dann Highland Park, IL donniebird@yahoo.com Renewal of Tax Credits for Wind Energy Should Require Protections for Birds and Bats (Washington, D.C. - April 30, 2007) Bird protection measures must become mandatory for wind energy projects because voluntary steps are being ignored by the wind energy industry says Dr. Michael Fry of American Bird Conservancy in testimony before the House Subcommittee Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans tomorrow. The hearing "Gone with the Wind: Impacts of Wind Turbines on Birds and Bats" is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Tuesday May 1 and will be webcast live on the Committee's web site at http://resourcescommittee.house.gov . A copy of Dr. Fry's testimony is available at http://www.abcbirds.org/policy_wind_testimony.htm. "Collaborative efforts to successfully address the impacts of wind projects on birds and wildlife have been a failure," said Dr. Fry, who is a member of the National Wind Coordinating Committee (NWCC) comprised of representatives from the utility, wind industry, environmental and government sectors. "There has been much discussion and almost no real action on the part of the wind industry to resolve bird collision issues." The House Ways and Means Committee is currently considering an extension of tax breaks for wind energy production. To keep the wind industry growing, its advocates are aiming to push Congress to extend a tax credit worth 1.9 cents per kilowatt-hour that currently does not require any action on behalf of the wind energy industry to mitigate its impacts on federally protected migratory birds. The credit generally expires and is renewed every two years. "Any renewal of the production tax credit for wind energy should include provisions that require developers follow best management practices in avoiding and minimizing bird and wildlife impacts," said Dr. Fry. According to The Worldwatch Institute Report, "American Energy: The Renewable Path to Energy Security," in 2005, the United States led the world in wind energy installations. In the same year, wind farms were the country's second largest source of new generating capacity, after natural gas-fired plants. But according to the NWCC, this growing alternative energy source is killing between 30,000 to 60,000 birds a year, including Golden Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, Burrowing Owls, Mourning Doves, bluebirds and over 50 species of migratory songbirds. At the current mortality rate and growth rate of the wind industry, by 2030 a projected 900,000 to 1.8 million birds would be killed per year by wind turbines, unless protective measures are implemented. ABC believes that with proper siting, operation, and monitoring, wind energy can provide clean, renewable energy for America's future with minimal impacts to birds and bats. Concerns have surfaced over the potential threat to birds and bats from the construction and operation of wind energy projects. ABC emphasizes that before approval and construction of new wind energy projects proceeds, potential risks to birds and bats should be evaluated through site analyses, including assessments of bird and bat abundance, timing and magnitude of migration, and habitat use patterns. Wind energy project location, design, operation, and lighting should be carefully evaluated to prevent, or at least minimize, bird and bat mortality and adverse impacts through habitat fragmentation, disturbance, and site avoidance. For example, wherever possible, wind power projects should be sited on areas with poor habitat, such as agricultural lands rather than native prairie. Sites requiring special scrutiny include sites that are frequented by federally listed endangered species of birds and bats, in known bird migration pathways, areas where birds are highly concentrated, and areas that have landscape features known to attract large numbers of raptors. # 30 # ABC is the only 501(c)(3) organization that works solely to conserve native wild birds and their habitats throughout the Americas. ABC acts to safeguard the rarest bird species, restore habitats, and reduce threats, while building capacity in the conservation movement. ABC is the voice for birds, ensuring that they are adequately protected; that sufficient funding is available for bird conservation; and that land is protected and properly managed to maintain viable habitat. ABC is a membership organization that is consistently awarded a top, four-star rating by the independent group, Charity Navigator. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... 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