Dec 2007 Prairie Falcon Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society

8/9/2019 Dec 2007 Prairie Falcon Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society

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prairie falconNorthern Flint Hills Audubon Society

Newsletter

NorthernFlintHil

lsAudubonSociety,

P.O.

Box1932,

Manhattan,

KS66505-1932

PrintedbyClaflinBooks&

Copies

Manhattan,

KS

INSIDE

pg. 2-Skylight plus-pete cohen

pg. 3-Stargazing

pg. 4-Spooktacular pics

pg. 5-Spooktacular pics

pg. 6-Birding Report - kevin fay

pg. 7-Take Note

Upcoming Events:

Dec. 6 Board Meeting 7 p.m.

Home of Tom & MJ Morgan

250 Summit Ave.Dec. 7 STARGAZING -Margy Stewart,

11003 Lower McDowell Rd.7-9 p.m.

B (see pg. 3)

Dec. 8 Birdseed PICKUP at UFM 9-12n

Dec. 8 Beginning Birding

8 a.m. meet at Sojourner Truth Park

Dec. 15 - Christmas Bird Census

Dave Rintoul 532-0104

Dec. 17 Olsburg CBC - Gary Jeffrey

468-3587

Vol. 36, No. 4 ~ December 2007

Manhattan CBC Compilation Dinner -- Chili SupperJoin the NFHAS and fellow birders for a potluck supper at 6 p.m., Dec. 15, at the Seniors ServiceCenter, 412 Leavenworth, Manhattan. Feel free to bring a dish to share. Free-will donations toNFHAS are welcome. Table service and drinks provided. Enjoygoodfood,goodcompanionship,andndouthowthisyearscountcomparesto

previous years. If you have any questions on what to bring for the supper or want to help setup,please call Carla Bishop, 539-5129 or 532-1858 or email: [email protected]

This is the one event of the year that brings out almost eveyone!! Dave Rintoul is the coordina-

torandcompiler-socontacthimif youdontalreadyknowwhotheleadersareorwheretobird

(532-0104 or email him at [email protected]). He will get you into one of the six groups that

cover the Manhattan circle (centered at Anderson Hall).

White-throated sparrowLincoln sparrow

THE MANHATTAN

CHRISTMAS BIRD

CENSUS 2007

You might see these sparrows...photos by Dave Rintoul.


2/8

p. Dec. 007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter

skylight plus

pete cohen

There are other stars, of course, and one likely to draw attention is Fomalhaut of the Pisces Austrinus (theSouthernFish)playingsolitairealongtheSWhorizonearlyintheevening,anddivingdownabout9p.m.,therst

nightof ofcialwinter.

Asusual,theskysbrighteststar,Sirius,partof CanisMajor(theBigDog)inthesingingtrio,willbehigh

intheskytothesouthatmidnightonNewYearsEve.Procyon, the brightest of the two stars of Canis Minor (the Little Dog) will be to its upper left (below

Gemini)andhugeandbrightBetelguese(Orionsrightshoulder)willbetoitsupperright.Thus,awintertriangle

to match the summer one of Altair, Deneb, and Vega, all of whom will be sinking in the west. Altair whosesetting does as good a job of marking west as its rising does of marking east will leave a little before Fomalhautdoes, blueish Vega a little later, with Deneb (the tail of Cygnus the Swan in the Milky Way) hanging out till aboutmidnight on the solstice.

Going back to Orion, StarDateinforms me that to the people of ancient Egypt that grouping representedOsiris, the god of the dead. And that a narrow shaft in the largest pyramid, the Great Pyramid of Khufu, pointedatOrionsbeltatthetimethatthepyramidwasbuilt.

Meanwhile the three of the planets will deserve equal billing this month. Venus is still a prominent bright-

ness rising in the wee hours though closer and closer before dawn. It is Mars, though, who carries the planetarybanner through the nights as the distance between us closes as we overtake him so that he shifts gradually retro-gradeinJanuaryfromwesttoeasteachnightwhilestayingincompanywiththeGeminiTwins.Hellhithis

brightest note for the year on the 18th, and will be a cheery red sidekick to the rising full Moon on the 23rd. LateintheeveningsSaturnrisesasacompaniontoLeosstar,Regulus.Jupiter?heducksoutearlyin

thewestduringtheearliestsundowns(fromDecember3rdto13th),thendoesntbothertoappear,perhapssail-ing off to Tahiti, incognito.

The Geminid meteor shower is due to peak the night of December 13th-14th. The winter solstice occursat 12a08 CST on the 22nd. Moon is new the 9th, 11a40; full the 23rd, 7p16.

2007 Peter Zachary Cohen

Im Canis O-rion Im Taurus And we have the whole winter before us.Our stars will shine bright all through every night,And we hope that you will not ignore us!So when darkness is coming down early,If you start feeling saddened or surly,Welldancecrossthesky.So give us an eye,And a cheer, not a sigh,And be happy to join in our chorus!:

Winterscoming,andthoughthenightsarelonger, with clearer air the stars are brighter.And three of the most prominent perfor-mance stars of the winter show the con-

stellations of the Big Dog, the Hunter, and the Bull have a new vaudeville routine to add extracheer.Ifyoulistencarefullyyoullhearthem.

OoohImsogladthatwinteriscoming,

I can hear the cold winds humming.It may freeze up all my plumbing,

ButIlllovemyrosycheeks! Icantwaittoseesomeicing.

The prospect is so enticing; IlldoanysacricingJust to walk on snow that squeaks!

Im Taurus Im Canis O-rion Andwedontwanttoseeyoucryin.

So our stars will shine bright all through every night Andwehopewewillhearyoureplyin: CHORUS

O-rion Im Taurus Im Canis And what we are here to explain isThat our stars will be bright all through every nightSo sing with us, and our refrain isCHORUS


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Dec. 007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter p.

STARGAZING DEC. 7, 7-9 p.m.: The public is invited to enjoy the night sky at Bird RunnerWildlife Refuge, 11003 Lower McDowell Rd. (19 mi. south of Manhattan,) Turn right after the viaductand stay on McDowell Creek Rd. as it crosses the interstate; the Refuge is exactly 5 mi. south of I-70, onthe lefthand side. Attendees should dress warmly and bring binoculars. Hot chocolate will be provided.For more information call 776-8852

Stargazing at

Margys

Margy had once again scheduled stargazing forthe Bird Runner Refuge. This time she had a prairiewalk planned in case of cloudy skies. The weatherforecast was for the skies to become cloudy in lateafternoon. I obsessively monitored the weather beforeheading out. I had consulted all the websites thatpredict cloudiness and it seemed certain that onceagain we would be weathered out of stargazing. Mythoughts as I headed south on McDowell Creek Roadwas about a prairie walk and how to explain to MargythatIhaddamagedtheviewndertohertelescope

and not yet repaired it. But then the skies stayedclearindeanceof allthepredictionsandsatellite

photographs.Margy had heavily publicized the event and

we had a big turnout with four telescopes present andaround twenty people. It took me longer than normalto align the telescope and I must confess it distractedme from the purpose of the event. I forgot to give atour of the constellations which is my strong point.These new go-to have really made it possible for me

Welltheresamoon,itsinthesky

Itscalledthemoon

And everybody is there includingUranus! Neptune the B-52s

tondvariousobjects.Stilldespiteallof thatitwasawonderful night. The viewing area at the Bird RunnerRefuge is great and the skies are the darkest you willndwithintwentymilesof Manhattan.Therewasno

moon in the sky as we had planned it for the night ofthe new moon. There was a totally unexpected cometin the constellation Perseus called Comet Holmes.To me it has the eerie appearance of a huge cocktailice cube. We looked at the Andromeda Galaxy, openglobular clusters, closed globular clusters, Jupiter,Mars and more. I put the telescope on both Neptune

and Uranus which are both in favorable viewingposition now. But my group was rather underwhelmedby the sight. I admit that they were small and faint butstill, Neptune and Uranus! Come on people, this isworth getting excited about!

So I think most people enjoyed the evening.Margy has scheduled a December star gazing eventand I plan to participate and this time try to rememberto point out the constellations and have the telescopeready to go. Kevin Fay

TheNorthernFlintHillsAudubonSociety(NFHAS)kickedoff thewinterseasonwiththeirrstofthreebirdseedsales,SaturdayNovember3.Thesaleof birdseedisoneof theSocietysmostimportantannual

fundraisers. Thank you to 42 members who placed advanced orders for bird seed and many who included adonation! ThemostpopularmixesamongmemberswereBlackOilSunower,FlintHillsFeastandCheapCheep.NFHASmembersandvolunteerswhohelpedunloadedbagsof seed,greetedmembers,pulledmembersordersand loaded vehicles, managed the order forms, and delivered seed in-town --Thank you to Carla Bishop, WalterDodds, Kevin Fay, Dick Oberst, Judy Roe, Jacque Staats, and Madonna Stallman. WewelcomeallmemberstostopbytheUFMduringournextbirdseedpick-up,Saturday,December8,from9a.m.-12n.EnjoyamugofhotciderandbrowseourselectionofFHASmerchandise,justintimefortheholidays!IfyouareinterestedinvolunteeringwithotherNFHASmembersduringtheseedsale,pleasecontact Annie Baker, 785-375-4633. (Our fnal winter seed sale will be in February.) Annie Baker, Coordinater


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NFHAS Booth at

Sunset Zoo Spooktacular

The recorded sounds of the owls pulled in the children as

much as the candy did!

THANKS to all who helped:Patricia Yeager, Jacque Staats, Annie Baker, Susan Black-ford, Kevin Fay, Cindy Jeffrey and guest appearance by

Judy Roe!

The theme this year

was pirates. SeethepiratesparrotonKevinsshoulder!


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Dec. 007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter p.

More Spooktacular fun

It was a beautiful day too.However, the prairie dogsrightbehindourbooth,didntappreciate the owl calls!


6/8


Got a good birding story/encounter? Please share it with us - in Bird Tales WAITIN

TO HEAR FROM YOU! Send me your tales photos welcome! e-mail [email protected]

or mail them to me at 15850 Galilee Rd., Olsburg, KS 66520

Birdingkevin fay

Beginning Birding Fieldtrip November 2007

The weather was warm and sunny with stiff southerly winds as we metfor the Beginning Bird Trip. Our group was 250% greater in number than the average of the previous twomonths. At this rate in just a few months we will be dealing with thousands of participants. Our trip leader saidthe birds were at her house so we proceeded directly to Lake Elbo. She was right and the place did not disap-pointus.Therewesawbigocksof CedarWaxwingsandRobins.AMerlintriedtomakeamealof aRobinbut

itwasabletoescape.OnthewaterwesawPied-billedGrebes,Bufeheads,ShovelersandaBeltedKingsher.A

the feeder we saw Red-breasted Nuthatches, White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpeckers, Brown CreepersBlack-capped Chickadees, and Juncos. We had some time left, so we went to Pottawatomie County State FishingNumber Two. One of our group, fairly new the area, was amused to hear us talking about pot 1 and pot 2.Thefullnameisaninvitationtoabbreviation,isitnot?TherewesawMeadowlarks,TreeSparrows,andHarris

Sparrows. We then returned to Sojourner Truth Park and ended the trip having encountered neither a Jubjub

nor a Bandersnatch. I will skip the traditional trip list (birding term) since I have mentioned the highlights al-ready.Somemaywonderwhyourtriplistsaresoshort?Thereasoniswelikelookingatthebirdsandthatsmallnumber uses up our three hours.

The Beginning Birding Fieldtrip takes place on the second Saturday of the month. We meet at 8:00 a.m.atSojournerTruthParkonPottawatomieAvenuebetween10thand12thStreets(nearHowiesRecycling).Bird-ers of all levels are welcome. We will go to some local birding hotspot. Wear appropriate clothing but no strenu-ous activity is involved, just some light hiking. We will return to Sojourner Truth Park by 11:00 a.m.

Kevin Fay

Beware the Jubjub bird, and shunThe frumious Bandersnatch!

Lewis Carroll

A HOT LUNCH AFTER BEGINNING BIRDING?

Beginning Birding will travel to Bird Runner Wildlife Refuge (11003 Lower McDowell Rd.) on Saturday,

Dec. 8. The McDowell Creek Community Center (3 mi. S of I-70, on the way to & from Bird Runner) ioffering a sloppy joe & hot chocolate lunch from 11-2n on that day, along with hay rides and van tours o

the Flint Hills. Beginning Birders may wish to enjoy any or all of these added events. The cost is a fre

will donation to the community center. For more information, contact 776.8852.

TheTaleoftheTwoPenguins

Twopenguinssidebysidedeepinthought

Walkedonaustraliceasistheirlot.

Youappearsillytome!

Likewearingatuxedoyousee

Saidtheother,WhatmakesyouthinkImnot?

Kevin Fay (based on a joke from tv show Twin Peaks)


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Dec. 007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter p. 7

Take Note

Dec. 7 - StargazingDec. 8 - Birdseed PickupDec. 8 - Beginning BirdingDec. 15 - Manhattan CBCDec.16-WakeeldCBCDec. 17 - Olsburg CBCDec. 30 - Junction City

If you cant make the Manhattan CBC, there are plenty of other ones

-- such as Wakefeld on Dec. 16th, Olsburg on Dec. 17th, or Junction

City on Dec. 30th. Just go to

ksbirds.org/2007CBC.htmto check other CBC in Kansas.

Go Green Curbside Recycling is a new business offering a great service. They offer an easy and cost

effective way to recycle. Residential customers can have their recyclables collected two times a month or on aweekly basis. It is the goal of Go Green Curbised Recycling to help increase recycling in our community bymaking it more convenient. For more information please call 410-8010 or email [email protected]

And of course there is Howies Recycling for those of you who can do it yourself!

Recycling:

Local Events of Interest:Dec. 4, 2007 5-7 p.m. the National Geographic photos of the Flint Hills will open at

the Junction City Arts Gallery (107 W. 7th)Jan. 5, 2008 -Eagle Day at Tuttle Creek, Corps of Engineers


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Northern Flint HIlls

Audubon Society

P.O. Box 1932

Manhattan, KS

66505-1932

Subscription Information: Introductory memberships - $20/yr., then basic membership is $35/yr. When you join the NorthernFlint Hills Audubon Society, you automatically become a memberof the National Audubon Society and receive the bimonthly Audu-

bon magazine in addition to the Prairie Falcon newsletter. Newmembership applications may be sent to Treasurer, NFHAS, P.O.

Box 1932, Manhattan, KS 66505-1932. Make checks payable tothe National Audubon Society. Membership renewals are handled

by the National Audubon Society and should not be sent to the

NFHAS.Questionsaboutmembership?Call1-800-274-4201or

email the National Audubon Society [email protected].

If you do not want to receive the national magazine, butstill want to be involved in our local activities, you may subscribe

to the Prairie Falcon newsletter for $15/yr. Make checks payable tothe Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society, and mail to: Treasurer,

NFHAS, P.O. Box 1932, Manhattan, KS, 66502-1932.RARE BIRD HOTLINE: For information on Kansas Birds, sub-

scribe to the Kansas Bird Listserve. Send this message to and join in the discussions.

Contacts for Your Elected Representatives ( anytime) Write, call or email @Governor Kathleen Sebelius: 2nd Floor, State Capital Bldg., Topeka , KS 66612. Kansas Senator or Representative _________: StateCapital Bldg., Topeka, KS 66612. Ph# (during session only) Senate - 785-296-7300. House - 785-296-7500. U.S. Senator Roberts U.S. Senate, Washington DC 20510. or Brownback U.S. Capital Switchboard 202-224-

3121. President G.W. Bush - The White House,Washington, DC 20500.

NFHAS BoardPresident: Patricia Yeager 776-9593 Vice Pres. Cindy Jeffrey [email protected] 468-3587Secretary: MJ Morgan

Treasurer: Carla Bishop 5

COMMITTEE chairs:Membership: Jacque Staats

Programs:Conservation:Northeast Park Jacque Staats

ButteryGardenSusanBlackford

Education:

Land Preservatin Jan GartonNewsletter Cindy Jeffrey [email protected] 468-3587

Fieldtrips: Patricia Yeager, Hoogy Hoogheem 776-9593 At-large: Tom Morgan, Paul Weidhaas, Kevin Fay

Audubon of Kansas Trustee: Hoogy Hoogheem

Printed on 100% post-consumer

recycled paper

Non-profit Organization

U.S. Postage Paid

Permit No. 662

Manhattan, KS 66502

Return Service Requested

Published monthly (except August) by the Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society, a chapter of the National Audubon Society.Edited by Cindy Jeffrey, 15850 Galilee Rd., Olsburg, KS 66520. ([email protected])

Also available on-line at www.ksu.edu/audubon/falcon.html

Dec 2007 Prairie Falcon Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society

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