Please click on the link below for Don's newsletter:

Sun City Hilton Head Bird Club January 2010

SCHH BIRD CLUB

DECEMBER 2009 NEWS

This is the end of the year update/newsletter for 2009, and probably the last time I’ll be sending out something like this.  So here’s what’s happening:

O  Our December meeting with Dr. Chris Marsh was excellent, and thanks to Marilyn Shaw and Kay Long for organizing the wine and cheese.  I hope everyone enjoyed the meeting. 

C   Congratulations to our 2010 officers:

P             President: Don Woytowick                              donald.woytowick@yahoo.com
          Vice President for Programs:  Marilyn Shaw    scshaws@hargray.com

      Vice President for Field Trips:  Diane Rand       dianem2r@gmail.com

      Treasurer:  Helen Chatterton                            chatthe@sc.rr.com

      Secretary:   Jane Munster                                 jmunster@hargray.com

      Members-at-Large:  Richard Matheny (2^nd year) rmatheny1@sc.rr.com

                                           Mary Helen Rosenstein  mhr@nycap.rr.com

      I’ll still be hanging around as the president ex officio for 2010.

T  This year’s Christmas Bird Count will be held on Tuesday, December 15^th.  A captain’s meeting will be held on Wednesday, December 9^th at 4PM, in the Somerset conference room (at the Craft Center.)

<!  There will be a welcome/orientation for new club members at Riverbend,  January 31, 2010, at 2:30.  You will get a chance to hear from some of our officers and volunteers about the club’s history, programs, and field trips.  We will be serving cake and coffee, with some time to socialize.

 Our Bluebird Trails results are in for the 2009 season:

                       EABC  (EASTERN BLUEBIRD)     44 NESTS,   181 EGGS,    165 FLEDGLINGS

                  CACH   (CAROLINA CHICK)           26    "          120    "           110     "

                  ETTI      (TUFTED TITMOUSE)          8    "            41    "             41     "

           This doesn’t count all the successful broods in the private nesting boxes, so Sun City has quite a bluebird population; and those young will need their own homes to breed in, so think about a nesting box for this spring.  More information will be coming on how to get one.  Thanks Jim Ennis and all the monitors.

       Our Purple Martin Condos had the following results:

           Basket Walk and Thomas Bee each had 10 nests (90% occupancy), which would mean about 80 young.  The other 7 houses were also busy (40 to 80%), but not to this extent.  Jim Kyle and his helpers will be relocating a couple of the boxes to different locations to see if there will be increased activity in the spring.  Thanks to Jim and his dedicated helpers and monitors.

 I’d like to say thank you to a lot of people who made this year such a success for the club:

To the 2009 board members: Don, Diane, Joanne, Helen, Richard, Dick and John, for working together to keep the club functioning smoothly. 

T  To the trail program heads (Jim Ennis, bluebird, and Jim Kyle, purple martins) and all the volunteer trail and condo monitors.  Jim and Jim do a lot of work to build, install and maintain the nest boxes.

<!  To Katy and Helen, and all those who help them, as well as the observers for the upcoming 2009 Christmas Bird Count.

<!  To Jane Deakin, who works behind the scenes maintaining our website and email roster.

<!  To all those who helped in the Mayfest, Parking Lot sale, Club Fair, socials and other activities.  We couldn’t do any of these activities without your help and hard work.

<!  To Charles Carpenter for the great DVD, and to all those who donated their photographs for this project.

Please don’t forget to renew your membership for 2010.  You can drop off your check at Helen Chatterton’s, 5 Behn lane.

IMPORTANT!!!

Please note the following meeting locations for 2010:

Most of our meetings will be held in the Azalea Room (Side "A") in Magnolia Hall.  Here's the schedule:

January 6th              Azalea
February 3rd                   "
March 3rd                       "
April 7th                   Ballroom at Hidden Cypress (HC)
May 5th                   Pinckney Hall and Pavilion (Mayfest)
June 6th                   Ballroom at HC
July 7th                       Azalea
August 4th                     "
September 1st              "
October 6th                  "
November 3rd              "
December 2nd      Ballroom at HC

Thanks for a great year

Paul Padula

Here is the outline of the wonderful presentation by Tom Rea at the meeting on 10/8/09.  Click on the link below:

Bird Photography

Thanks to Judy Roach for this beautiful powerpoint of hummingbirds.  Click on the link below:

HUMMINGBIRDS

We were reminded at the meeting Monday (7/2/09) that the young osprey can still be seen through the live webcam that Palmetto Electric Cooperative has installed on a large tower at their utility's Mathews Drive office.  Visit the site at:

http://www.palmetto.coop/community/en_osprey.html 

Sun City Bird Club  

Spring Newsletter

     In late April, about 16 Bird Club members took a short trip down to Amelia Island, Florida, for two days of birding.  We visited several areas, such as Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve, Huguenot Memorial Park, and other places, comprising salt marsh, open fields, maritime forest and tidal flats.  We were led by Roger Clark, the National Park Service Ranger at Timucuan Preserve.  Over 130 species were tallied, including many colorful migrants like painted and indigo buntings, summer and scarlet tanagers, yellow-throated warblers, and many shore birds. 
 
We hope everyone enjoyed the Mayfest activities and lunch.  Thanks to everyone who worked on the event, and to those who donated the many door przes.
 

• The parking lot sale was a huge success.  Thanks to everyone who donated items and helped out.  The club made over $500.00.  We are very close to reaching our goal for the spotting scope.  Diane Rand will work with a couple other members and some outside sources to find us the best one for our use.
• The Hummingbird/Butterfly Garden is in the design phase, and members from both the Bird Club and Gardeners are working on this project.  While final plans and approvals are still not completed, progress is being made.
• Just a reminder that club dues will be $10 per person for 2010.
• We’ve heard from many who bought bluebird boxes, that mating pairs went right to the box as soon as Jim Ennis finished installing them. 
• Swallow-tailed kites are still being spotted in Sun City.  If you see them, don’t forget to report them via this website: http://www.thecenterforbirdsofprey.org/swallowtail/swallowtail.html  The nice thing about this site is that after you fill out your information, all you have to do is use the map to pinpoint the location where you saw the bird(s).

• June’s program, “Wading Birds”, will be presented by John Edman at Hidden Cypress, June 3 at 4pm.

PUBLIC ASKED TO REPORT SIGHTINGS OF STATE-ENDANGERED SWALLOW-TAILED KITE

      The public is being asked to report sightings of the swallow-tailed kite, an endangered-species in South Carolina and considered a species of highest conservation concern throughout its breeding range in North America. Help the South Carolina Working Group for Swallow-tailed Kites monitor swallow-tailed kite distribution, identify important nesting and foraging areas, and promote conservation of this important species and their habitats by reporting sightings this spring and summer and contributing to the Citizen-Science for Swallow-tailed Kite database. Call toll free 1-888-296-4732 to report a swallow-tailed kite sighting or go to the form at swallowtail.internationalbirdsofprey.org/. Find out more about the kite, its range and conservation efforts at the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Web site (pdf file) http://www.dnr.sc.gov/cwcs/pdf/Swallowtailedkite.pdf.

This bird is unmistakable with its narrow, 4-foot wingspan and long; 10-inch forked outer tail feathers. The dorsal coloration is black while the head and underparts are white. Average weight for adults is a little over 1 pound, with females being slightly heavier than males.

The kite currently occupies a remnant breeding range of seven, possibly eight, Southern states that historically included at least 21 states as far north as Minnesota. It is found in floodplain forests and other large tracts of forested wetlands/mixed pine habitats of the outer coastal plain from South Carolina to east Texas. The estimated number of breeding pairs in South Carolina is 120 to 170; these are primarily found in large floodplain forests and swamps of the outer coastal plain, with significant populations occurring on the lower Great Pee Dee, Santee, Edisto and Savannah rivers and in the Francis Marion National Forest. 

Primary challenges to the swallow-tailed kite are wetland loss and drainage. Specific threats along its migration routes and wintering grounds in southern Brazil are unknown at this time, but significant land use changes could negatively impact the species.The disappearance of the swallow-tailed kite from three-fourths of its U.S. breeding range between 1880 and 1910 was one of the most dramatic range contractions of any bird before the post-WW II peregrine falcon crash. Since about 1940, populations have apparently stabilized with some evidence of a modest range expansion into former habitat, such as eastern Texas and parts of coastal South Carolina. South Carolina's goal is about 400 nesting pairs statewide. The areas most likely to contain swallow-tailed kites are the Pee Dee and Savannah rivers, Francis Marion National Forest, the ACE Basin and associated floodplains. 

"The South Carolina Working Group for Swallow-tailed Kites would like to extend its gratitude for all of the citizen science for swallow-tailed kite sightings reported during the 2008 season," said Laurel Barnhill, bird conservation coordinator for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR). "We had a great year-1,355 reports of 2,660 individual kites were submitted from across the southeastern United States and more than half (710) of those were from South Carolina! Conservation partners have worked to create an interactive means for sharing sighting report information with researchers, land-managers, and the conservation community through a coordinated online (password-protected) database. This information that our citizen scientists helped to generate serves as a cost-effective tool for monitoring population trends and distribution of swallow-tailed kites."

1.  Plastic container: mine is 12 x 14 (lid optional; if you use a lid, make airholes.)                                    

2.  Growing medium: Oatmeal, oat bran, cornmeal; about 2 to 3 inches.

3.  Feed once a week with slices of carrot, potato or apple (lay piece on top of meal.  Make sure nothing           gets moldy; remove pieces when they shrivel up.

4.  Occasionally (every few months) sift the medium to remove the  powdery waste.  (This waste will contain eggs.  If you want, you can put it in a different container, add some medium, and when the larva are large enough, move them to the main container.  Then discard the siftings.)                  

5.  All can be done in the garage; no need to bring them in the house.  When you want to feed the birds (or the anoles), just move the medium around and pick up the larger mealworms.

TIP:  Lay a couple paper towels on top of the medium.  I spray some water on this a couple times a week, and the larva get needed moisture from this.  It will also make it easier to harvest them, as they will hang around near the top of the meal – saves digging around.  (Any food would then be placed under the paper towel.)

TIP:  To keep the mealworms from pupating too fast, you can refrigerate them (like they do in the stores.)

SUN CITY HILTON HEAD BIRD CLUB NEWSLETTER

JANUARY 2009

·         Membership Information:  The Bird Club currently lists 321 members, although there are a number who still need to pay their 2009 dues.  We know that people move away, or have lots of different interests, so we’ll be contacting folks to firm the list up.  We need to establish a cutoff date so we don’t let this drag out too long, so anyone who hasn’t paid their 2009 dues by the end of February will drop off the list. 

·         Please let Jane Deakin (jdeakin@sc.rr.com) know if you are not receiving emails from the Bird Club.  If you have a friend who is in the club, but does not have access to email, please print them a copy of any communications so they can stay up to date.

·         Badges: Last year, the club started charging members extra for the cost of name badges if desired.  The reason is that so many badges have gone unclaimed, and we had been paying for them out of the $5.00 dues.  This year the cost to the club has increased, and badges will be $1.50 beginning with any new badge requests.

·         We hope everyone enjoyed Diana Churchill’s presentation on sparrows at the Jan 7^th meeting.  Her handouts are available on the Club website (www.suncitybirdclub.org).  At February’s meeting (4 PM at Hidden Cypress), we will be presenting a slide show and talk about the recent trip to Panama.  Here are just a couple pictures to pique your interest:

                                                                                         (sorry the pictures didn't come through!)

We’ll also present some information on how to raise your own mealworms.

·         NOTE:  We are still in need of two or three members to help with the few social events we’ve all come to enjoy.  Without your help and participation we won’t be able to continue to hold such events as the Mayfest (with its field trips, programs and food) and others like the ice cream social and new members reception.   Please contact me (ppadula@sc.rr.com or 705-9152) if you can help. 

·         Don’t forget, you can participate in the Great Backyard Birdcount, February 13 through 16.  Check their website at http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc.

Thanks, and see you at the meeting, February 4^th, at Hidden Cypress.

From Diana Churchill's excellent presentation at the club on January 7:
Diana Churchill – dichurch@bellsouth.net
(You can pull up these files for printing from the HOME section.)

Aimophila - “thicket loving” Medium size, long rounded tail, dull plumage.
Bachman’s Sparrow * Aestivalis - “like the summer.”

Spizella - “a little finch” Small size, long square tail, no breast streaking, small bill, rounded head, tend to hang out in flocks.
Chipping Sparrow * Passerina - “of or for sparrows”
Clay-colored Sparrow Pallida - “pale, colorless”
Field Sparrow * Pusilla - “very small, tiny, wee”
American Tree Sparrow (accidental) Arborea - “of or belonging to trees”

Pooecetes - “grass dwelling” Medium-large, long square tail, streaked breast, white eye-ring, often perches high.
Vesper Sparrow Gramineus - “grassy, covered with grass”

Chondestes - “grain eater” Long rounded tail, central breast spot, white tail corners.
Lark Sparrow Grammacus - “a line or stroke in drawing”

Passerculus - “little sparrow” Small size, streaked breast, short tail, yellow in face, open country.
Savannah Sparrow * Sandwichensis - “Sandwich Bay, Labrador”

Ammodramus - “sand runner” Flat head, large bill, short thin tail, secretive, grasslands (wet & dry)
Grasshopper Sparrow * Savannarum - “of the meadows”
Henslow’s Sparrow Henslowii - “John Steven Henslow - Prof. of Botany, Cambridge, Eng.”
LeConte’s Sparrow Leconteii - “Dr. John LeConte, GA Physician”
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow Caudacutus - “have a sharp tail”
Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow Nelsoni - “Edward W. Nelson, Chief of US Biol. Survey”
Seaside Sparrow * Maritimus - “of the sea”

Passarella - “little sparrow” Large size, very red, gray in face and nape, heavily streaked breast.
Fox Sparrow Iliaca - “side of body”

Melospiza - “song finch” Medium size, long rounded tail, don’t form large flocks, scrubby habitat.
Song Sparrow * Melodia - “pleasant song”
Swamp Sparrow Georgiana - “of Georgia, state where type specimen was collected”
Lincoln’s Sparrow Lincolnii - “Thomas Lincoln accompanied Audubon to Labrador”

Zonotrichia - “banded thrush” Large, chunky birds, distinct head patterns, join mixed flocks.
White-throated Sparrow Albicollis - “white necked”
White-crowned Sparrow Leucophrys - “white eyebrow”
Harris’s Sparrow (Accidental) Querula - “full of complaints, fretful”

Junco - “reed bunting” mostly gray, pale bill and white belly, white outer tail feathers.
Dark-eyed Junco * Hyemalis - “of or belonging to winter”

Pipilo - “to chirp, cheep, twitter” Larger, kick around in leaf litter, distinct call.
Eastern Towhee* Erythrophthalmus - “red-eyed”

Also from Diana Churchill's presentation on January 7:

Old World Sparrows  Family Passeridae
Short legged, stoutly built seed eaters
Native to Eurasia & North Africa
House Sparrow - Passer Domesticus
Released in NY in 1851
Thrives in urban areas
Year-round in Georgia & South Carolina

The New World Sparrows  Family Emberizidae
4 to 9 1/2 inches
Brown, streaked appearance
Rounded wings
Conical bills
Eat insects in breeding season, seeds in winter
Get most food from ground or low vegetation
20 species visit coastal Georgia & SC

Chipping Sparrow  Spizella passerina
Small - 4 1/2 inches
Rusty cap
Clear breast
Dark line through eye, light stripe above
Frequents feeders
Likes white millet
Feeds in flocks on ground
Song a dry trill

White-throated Sparrow  Zonotrichia Albicollis
Grey breasted
White throat patch
Yellow lore spot between eye and bill
Some adults black & white head stripes
Some adults brown & tan head stripes
Winter - duller
“Oh, Sam, peabody, peabody, peabody”
Does the “hop & scratch”

Song Sparrow  Melospiza melodia
Widespread in North America
Heavy streaks that converge into large central spot
Long tail
Thickets, brush, marshes, roadsides, gardens
Melodious song
Responds to “pishing”

Savannah Sparrow  Passerculus sandwichensis
Small streaky bird of open fields, meadows, marshes, prairies
Yellowish stripe above eye, can be absent
Short, notched tail & pink legs
Forages while walking or running on ground
Streaking finer than Song Sparrow
Song a dreamy “tsit-tsit-tsit, tseee-tsaaaay”

Swamp Sparrow  Melospiza georgiana
Stout, dark, rusty sparrow
Dull gray breast
Outlined white throat
Reddish cap, gray face & nape
Common in cattail marshes & brushy swamps, thickets & weedy fields in winter
Song a loose trill, slower and sweeter than Chipping Sparrow

Bachman’s Sparrow  Aimophila aestivalis
Found in grassy & brushy patches of open pine woods. Nests in GA & SC
Bright rufous & gray pattern on back
Buffy breast band contrasts with white belly
Found most easily in spring by listening for its sweet whistled song

Seaside Sparrow  Ammodramus maritimus
Dark olive grey sparrow
Found exclusively in salt marsh
White throat
Long bill
Short yellow area from bill to just above eye
Nests in Georgia & South Carolina
Find anywhere there is salt marsh
Easier to locate at high tide

Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow  Ammodramus Nelsoni
Shy skulker of inland and coastal wetlands
Well-defined orange breast, richer than Saltmarsh ST Sparrow
Head rounder, bill smaller than Saltmarsh ST Sparrow
Grey median crown stripe & broad yellowish eye line

Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow  Ammodramus caudacutus
Short-tailed sparrow of coastal marshes
Deep ocher-yellow or orange of face surrounds grey ear patch
Distinct streaks on breast
Flat-headed appearance
Bill longer than Nelson’s ST Sparrow
Song softer than Nelson’s

Henslow’s Sparrow  Ammodramus henslowii
A secretive sparrow of fields
Short tailed, flat headed
Bill large and pale
Striped olive colored head with reddish wings
White eye ring, scurries like a mouse

LeConte’s Sparrow  Ammodramus leconteii
Secretive sparrow of weedy meadows
Bright buff ocher eyebrow stripe
Grey nape with reddish purple lines
Rare wanderer to East Coast
White median crown stripe

Grasshopper Sparrow  Ammadramus savannarum
Small sparrow of open grasslands
Short sharp tail
Flat head
Relatively unstriped buffy breast
Crown with pale median stripe
Feeble flight

Vesper Sparrow  Pooecetes gramineus
Relatively large
Similar to Savannah Sparrow but longer tailed
White outer tail feathers
White eye ring
Often flies to treetop when disturbed

Field Sparrow  Spizella pusilla
Rusty cap
Bright pink bill
Clear breast
Narrow eye ring gives big-eyed look
Pale rufous & grayish head pattern
Nests in N. GA & SC, visits coast in winter

White-crowned Sparrow  Zonotrichia leucophrys
Large sparrow with clear, pale grayish breast
Crown striped with black and white
Bill pink
Immature paler with head stripes of dark red brown and buff
Uncommon

Fox Sparrow  Passarella iliaca
Larger than Song Sparrow with a rufous tail
Rust color with grey about neck gives a foxy look
Breast heavily streaked with rust
Feeds like a towhee, rustling in dry leaves
Hermit Thrush has red tail but no stripes on back

Lark Sparrow  Chondestes grammacus
One of our largest sparrows
Slender with long, rounded tail
Quail-like bold head pattern with chestnut ear patch
Whitish breast with bold central spot
Black tail with much white in corners

Clay-colored Sparrow  Spizella pallida
Small, pale plain-breasted sparrow
Similar to Chipping Sparrow but buffier
Light crown stripe
Sharply outlined ear patch
Pale lores, gray collar
More abundant in middle NA
Occasional visitor to coastal Georgia & SC

Lincoln’s Sparrow  Melospiza lincolnii
Similar to Song Sparrow but smaller and more delicate
Small, pointed bill
Finely streaked buffy breast
A skulker
Crown often peaked

Sparrow Allies
Members of same family - Emberizidae
Towhees - genus Pipilo
Juncos - genus Junco
Generally distinctive - not brown & streaked
Feed on ground - do the “hop & scratch”

Eastern Towhee  Pipilo erythrophthalmus
8.5 inches long
Male black with rufous sides, white belly
Female chocolate brown instead of black
Call “Tow-whee”
Song “Drink your teeee”

Dark-eyed Junco (slate colored race)  Junco hyemalis
Small, slender, cleanly marked
Striking white outer tail feathers
Slate gray head & back
White belly - “tuxedo birds”
Song a loose trill