UPDATED JAN. 3, 2024: Because of increased activity of respiratory illness, Skagit County Public Health is now recommending that masks be worn when visiting healthcare facilities. At this point, Skagit Audubon recommends that members and guests wear masks while attending indoor meetings. We also ask that people who are sick or experiencing symptoms of respiratory illness remain home.
Some of our general meetings are being held at the Padilla Bay Interpretive Center while others will be available on Zoom only. Hybrid meetings are not currently offered. Please check the monthly program description for meeting details. As with our field trips and other events, only vaccinated, symptom-free individuals should attend meetings in person.
IMPORTANT NOTICE-MARCH 12th MEETING PROGRAM UPDATE
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IMPORTANT CHANGE OF PLANS: Our scheduled speaker for next Tuesday, March 12th, River Gates from the National Audubon Society, has become ill and will not be able to do her Zoom presentation on Pacific Flyway Conservation. In its place, we will host a live, face-to-face presentation by John Farnsworth on “Bird Conservation in the North Coast Ecoregion” This will be held at the Padilla Bay Interpretive Center located at 10441 Bayview-Edison Rd., Mt. Vernon, at 7:00 pm and will not be available on Zoom.
John S. Farnsworth, PhD, is serving a three-year term on the WDFW Wildlife Diversity Advisory Council, where he co-chairs the committee on the State Wildlife Action Plan. He is Senior Lecturer in Environmental Studies and Sciences, Emeritus, at Santa Clara University, where his research centers on literary natural history. He has a forthcoming book called Reading Nature: The Evolution of American Nature Writing. He has been a member of the Skagit Audubon Board of Directors for the past three years, and is serving this year as chair of the Program Committee.
We are hoping to reschedule River’s presentation in the near future.
Welcome Back Hikes!
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WELCOME BACK HIKES – Skagit Audubon is once again offering scheduled hikes. Please welcome Jane Billinghurst to our Board as Chair of the Hiking Committee. Tom Ozretich will continue to serve as the hiking coordinator. For questions, please contact Tom at tom.ozretich@gmail.com or 360.424.8466. Full details are available on our website at: www.skagitaudubon.org/activities/hikes.
March 2024-Conservation
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by Tim Manns
March 7th is the final day of the Washington State legislative session. The mere sixty days of these alternate year sessions allow little time for bills to pass. At this mid-February writing, some Audubon Washington priorities did not meet deadlines in the legislative calendar and are no longer under consideration for this session. Still moving forward is House Bill 1368, requiring and funding the purchase of zero emission school buses (Washington State Legislature). Most school buses are diesel-powered and pose health risks to children as well as contributing to climate change. Quickly transitioning from fossil fuels is essential to slow global warming. Electrifying school buses is a significant step towards changing all public vehicle fleets to electric power. Why is this an Audubon issue? National Audubon research has identified climate change as the number one threat to birds, with many species on a trajectory towards decline and possible extinction in North America (Birds & Climate Change Report | Audubon). Transportation accounts for about 40% of Washington State’s greenhouse gas emissions, the single largest source (GHG inventories - Washington State Department of Ecology).
If you missed the February meeting, or would like to see the program given by Dr. John Marzluff on his book "In Search of Meadowlarks" again, the recording is now available to view by clicking on the link below. You will also need to enter the passcode provided underneath the link.
The North Olympic Peninsula, a strip of coastlines and forests between million-acre Olympic National Park and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, is widely known as a great place for bird watching.
The April dates of Olympic BirdFest are timed to overlap wintering birds such as Harlequin and Long tailed ducks, songbirds, and seabirds with spring migration. Rufous hummingbirds arrive in this area from Mexico with the blooming of wild red-flowering currants in early April.
Field trips are planned for Sequim Bay, Port Angeles Harbor, Dungeness Bay, Ediz Hook, Dungeness Spit and the Elwha River, as well as trips through wooded areas and fields to view songbirds. (NOTE: this event is not affiliated with or sponsored by Skagit Audubon Society)
Each spring, hundreds of thousands of shorebirds stop to rest and feed along the Washington Coast and in the Grays Harbor estuary during their migration northward. Coming from as far south as Argentina, these Arctic-bound shorebirds are among the world's greatest migrants. Some birds travel over 15,000 miles round trip! The concentration of birds during spring migration offers people a great chance to view a number of shorebird species. With luck you will also see the birds fly together in beautiful formation "murmurations" while trying to escape a Peregrine Falcon. (NOTE: this event is not affiliated with or sponsored by Skagit Audubon Society)
Reporting Banded, Sick or Injured Birds
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HAVE YOU SEEN A BANDED BIRD OR FOUND A SICK OR INJURED BIRD?
To report other bands or tags for local projects, please visit the Washington Ornithological Society’s Research page to view current projects, the types of markers they use, and how to report them.
SWANS
All swans that are dead, sick, or injured need to be reported to the WDFW hotline by calling (360) 466-0515. The hotline is monitored several times per day.
SICK OR INJURED BIRDS
Contact one of these organizations if you are sure the bird requires rescuing:
The Education Committee needs volunteers to help with a number of adult presentations coming up in the next several months. These Power Point presentations are scheduled at libraries and private organizations/clubs in the area. If you can help give part of a presentation (already written), that would be great; or, you can assist with the computer and help answer questions from the audience. If you can lend a hand, please contact Committee Chair Jeff Osmundson at education@skagitaudubon.org.
Skagit Audubon Society holds monthly meetings on the second Tuesday of each month except for the months of July and August. We meet at 7:00 pm at Padilla Bay Interpretive Center (Google map), 10441 Bayview-Edison Rd. Mount Vernon. Meetings are open to all.
The board of directors meets at the same location at 7:00 pm on the first Tuesday of each month, except for the months of July and August.