Broward County Audubon Society

I haven't been here in a while. Have you missed me?

I joined the board of directors of the Broward County Audubon Society, and getting to know these people has been real darned interesting. They are currently wrestling with their mission. One of my fellow board members wrote this and I decided this would be a really good place to share someone else's words. Especially, these words ...

Birds and Audubon

Bird watching is an enjoyable, economical hobby that is swiftly growing, and the Broward County Audubon Society is happy to welcome birders to our events. The focus of the Broward County Audubon Society is and always has been…..birds. In today's rapidly changing world, our focus is not changing, but it is broadening.

The Broward County Audubon Society has embraced five areas of advocacy:

• Land Conservation


• Water Resource Protection


• Growth Management and Transportation
  
• Wildlife Policy
  
• Global Warming
  

The common thread that ties these areas together is ….. birds. Global warming and the resulting climate change will, over time, affect every single living thing on the planet, but the birds of the world will be among the first to be affected.

Much has been said about the fate of the polar bears and their shrinking habitat. The Northern Pika has been pushed to the upper limits of its' mountain habitat. Not enough emphasis has been placed on the fate of our birds.

Wildlife habitat worldwide has been shrinking at an alarming rate through deforestation, building and development; clean farming, where the land is worked right to the fence lines, resulting in a loss of bird habitat, as well as a loss of floral species through changing climate.

Population growth and the growing need for transportation facilities to support the growth are responsible for habitat loss around the world. The need for food for the growing population leads to more deforestation and wetland loss. Today's trend towards aqua-culture is the number one cause for the present rate of decline in mangroves.

Wildlife policies throughout the world are changing as governments try to seek a compromise between the needs of wildlife and the needs of our growing population. In the US, there is a current movement to open previously protected areas to hunting, vehicular traffic, oil exploration and drilling, strip mining and the new craze, mountain top removal, where the tops of mountains are literally blown off to get to the coal beneath them. This blatant destruction does not stop with the aesthetic change; the spoilage fills adjacent valleys polluting or completely eliminating streams, destroying wildlife habitat, and leaving toxic wastes behind to affect all life.

Other sources of pollution have had a drastic effect on our waterways including air pollution that leads to acid rain, runoff from fertilizers, pesticides and polluted groundwater, much of which is finding its way into our aquifers. This not only affects our wildlife that utilizes the waterways, it also affects the human population.

These conditions are all brought about by man. All can be controlled, and all affect …..birds. Birds are an "indicator species," meaning that they will be among the first of species to be affected by global changes. Before the advent of the miner's safety lamp, canaries were used in coal mines to indicate the supply of oxygen. Canaries need a higher concentration of oxygen to survive than man does. When a canary died, it was time for people to leave the mine. Unless we make some drastic lifestyle changes soon, canaries will be dying around the world.

In the Broward County Audubon Society's advocacy programs, we are striving to bring about positive changes that will affect our global outlook and we, as birders, can present a united front and a voice that will be heard. Please join us in our quest to regain the diminishing habitat that our birds so desperately need.

Grant Campbell, Broward County Audubon Society

Say, "Goodbye..."

It's hard to believe, but they're gone. I watched them on Tuesday. Mama and Papa Birds were showing the four youngsters how to hunt. They would fly from the fence next to our building to the bald cypress next to the canal and back to the fence again, somehow beckoning to the babies to follow. Finally, two followed. Then, the next time, three followed. By late in the day Tuesday, all four were following their parents to the cypress tree, then across the canal to the cow pasture.

I knew it wouldn't be long before they would strike out on their own, but to my surprise (and great disappointment) they were gone the next day. I like to think they've flown west into the Everglades, foraging for lizards and insects of all kinds, feeding until they can't eat anymore, then roosting in a tree in one of the hardwood hammocks, napping in the late afternoon's setting sun.

I'll be watching next February when it's time for them to return. I sure hope they do.

We've got baby birds!

One baby bird is perched not far from the nest, above,
and below are his/her three brothers and sisters!
Watching the threesome reminded me of Larry, Moe & Curly!

If you look closely, you can see 3 babies perched on a branch
and a fourth baby bird is on a branch upper left. Just to the right,
behind the "3 stooges" is the nest. They are fledglings, not yet
ready to fly from the tree. I think they're waiting for mom and
dad to bring food. They're quite vocal, fussing at each other
while waiting. And, when the parents show up, you can
really hear them carrying on! They are just too cute!

Loggerhead Shrike Nest Update

Above is a photo I captured with both birds in the nest this afternoon. Papa bird was bringing mama bird a little snack.
Our little Loggerhead Shrikes are busy these days. Here is a photo I shot as papa bird prepared to bring dinner to mama bird.

Frequently called "butcher birds," these little hawk like birds capture insects and lizards and use the barbs on the fence to carve up their meal.

Mama bird comes down from the nest and sits on the fence for a little break from time to time, but she's never away from the nest for more than a few minutes at a time.

Meanwhile, papa is always scouring the landscape for good eats!

Loggerhead Shrikes are nesting!

Above: a loggerhead shrike from spring 2006.

Below: their nest in March 2008!

In the spring of 2006, we had the privilege of observing a loggerhead shrike family out the windows of our office. They are cute little birds, often referred to as "Butcher birds," because they are hawk like and kill their prey on the barbs of the barbed wire fence that surrounds our property. We've observed them catching and killing lizards, and it's quite a lot of fun watching the baby birds fuss at the parents to "feed me! feed me!"
This morning (a Monday) I watched Mama bird leave the nest for just two or three minutes, flitting about from branch to branch in the mahogany tree where they've taken up residence, then quickly returning to the nest. The photo, above, was taken from the ground, so you can't see her, but you can see the nest, which we'll be watching over the next few weeks!
There's no doubt about it! Spring has sprung!