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VTBIRD for Tuesday, January 29, 2002
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Subject: DISCLOSER makes no representation.
From: Kathy Dube <kdube(AT)ncia.net>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 8:27am
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
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Any actions taken by the Participant in response to the disclosure of
confidential information by DISCLOSER shall be solely at its risk.
8. The Participant acknowledges and agrees that the confidential information is
provided on an AS IS basis.
DISCLOSER MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, WITH RESPECT TO THE
CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION AND HEREBY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL IMPLIED
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
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[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Re: Bird fluctuation and smelly houses
From: BoB LeSuer <rlesuer(AT)zoo.uvm.edu>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 8:32am
My understanding is that birds generally have a diminished, but still
present, olefactory lobe which would indicate that they have some minor
sense of smell. I found one source which proposed that natural
selection removed the sense of smell to decrease the weight of a bird's
head and thus make it more aerodynamic. (I'm not at all confident in
the source, but I figured I would throw the idea out there anyway.)
Great-horned owls enjoy eating skunks, so that begs the question of
whether or not they smell, or if they just have very different standards
as to what smells good! :-)
BoB
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: A quiet day for raptors
From: "Larry & Mona Rogers" <lmrogers(AT)shoreham.net>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 9:33am
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
----INCLUDING text/plain MIME SECTION----
Yesterday was such a great afternoon that I decided to spend a =
couple of hours looking for birds in the lower Champlain Valley. I =
started at Larabee's Point in Shoreham and worked my way up the shore to =
Kingsland Bay in Ferrisburgh. It was not a big day for raptors or =
waterfowl.
The lake is pretty solidly frozen up to the Crown Point Bridge. =
Usually the open farmland between rte. 22A and the lake in Shoreham, =
Bridport, Addison, Panton and Ferrisburgh is good for big hawks, =
especially rough-legs, but I didn't see much. A couple of red-tails in =
Bridport-Addison and one light-phase roughie in Panton was about all. I =
did get an immature bald eagle at Ft. Cassin in Ferrisburgh at the mouth =
of Otter Creek, however.
At Crown Point there were a fair number (circa 75-100) of Common =
Goldeneyes about a mile out north of the bridge, and a few more flocks =
at Button Bay. Not too much else going onother than the usual blacks =
and mallards near the shore. I did spot some sort of medium-sized =
sandpiper on the shore at the Ferrisburgh Town Beach, just short of =
Kingsland Bay. I spotted it in my binoculars, went back to my truck for =
the scope, and found it had disappeared by time I got the scope set up. =
It was solitary or spotted sandpiper-sized. It seems early for =
shorebirds; is this unusual?
Speaking of early(?) arrivals, has anyone else noticed how many =
kestrels are around this winter?
As far as feeder birds are concerned, we are seeing all of the usual =
suspects (chickadees, juncos, cardinals, tree sparrows, nuthatches, =
etc.) except for evening grosbeaks and (oddly enough) house sparrows. =
Is there something going on with house sparrows?
Larry
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Subject: Barred Owl calling help
From: "David Lazicki" <dlazicki(AT)us.ibm.com>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 9:51am
Taking advantage of the full moon last night, for the first time I headed
to the woods to hope to "speak" with some Barred Owls. I was able to have
a Barred return my calls three times, but then he fell silent. I'd like to
hear from anyone who has had success in "talking" with Barred Owls.
Specifically, what techniques work, time of day, habitat, etc. You may
contact me directly if you feel this is better suited offline, thanks in
advance for your advice.
Dave Lazicki
Underhill, VT
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Re: Barred Owl calling help
From: "Holly Hungerford" <hhungerford(AT)vpt.org>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 10:20am
I'd love to hear what others can offer on this subject, so if you don't
mind responding so we can all see, please do so. Thank you!
Holly F. Hungerford
Vt. Public Television
88 Ethan Allen Ave.
Colchester, VT 05446
(802) 655-8049
hhungerford(AT)vpt.org
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: RE: A quiet day for raptors
From: "Price, Terri" <TPrice(AT)vdh.state.vt.us>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 10:46am
Good morning!
House sparrows...they must all be at our house! Actually don't they go to
farms where they can get in out of the weather and eat heartily? We would
love any feedback on how to rid our bird houses of them, so that the
bluebirds and the swallows can live in peace and harmony! We have tried
taking out their nests (eggs and all), they rebuild, we take out, they
rebuild, we have kept the houses closed until the bluebirds and swallows
arrive, then the little buggers wait until they have built their nests and
then move in on top of them! They are nasty as they go in and poke on the
little helpless chicks and then they die, very heartbreaking. Needless to
say it is a daunting task! Any suggestions?
I have noticed that our bird feeder population is not as great as in the
past, but tickled to death that I have seen a male cardinal twice this year!
Lots of blue jays. One weekend we had 4 hawks flying around looking for a
meal (we get a lot of hawks checking out the feeding area in Addison).
Looking forward to spring when the ring necked pheasants will come back, we
haven't heard them in awhile, still put out corn for them, but without any
snow we can't see if they have been around (and of course not being around
during the day). They are a hoot to watch. Last fall we watched one brave
little pheasant playing with 4 deer to see who could get to the corn first!!
It was hilarious! Needless to say the pheasant ran down into the pond and
up the other side!
I just discovered this site and I'm very thankful, I love receiving all this
news!
Enjoy your bird watching!!
Terri & Joe Price
Addison
-----Original Message-----
From: Larry & Mona Rogers [mailto:lmrogers(AT)shoreham.net]
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2002 8:20 AM
To: VTBIRD
Subject: A quiet day for raptors
Yesterday was such a great afternoon that I decided to spend a couple of
hours looking for birds in the lower Champlain Valley. I started at
Larabee's Point in Shoreham and worked my way up the shore to Kingsland Bay
in Ferrisburgh. It was not a big day for raptors or waterfowl.
The lake is pretty solidly frozen up to the Crown Point Bridge. Usually
the open farmland between rte. 22A and the lake in Shoreham, Bridport,
Addison, Panton and Ferrisburgh is good for big hawks, especially
rough-legs, but I didn't see much. A couple of red-tails in
Bridport-Addison and one light-phase roughie in Panton was about all. I did
get an immature bald eagle at Ft. Cassin in Ferrisburgh at the mouth of
Otter Creek, however.
At Crown Point there were a fair number (circa 75-100) of Common
Goldeneyes about a mile out north of the bridge, and a few more flocks at
Button Bay. Not too much else going onother than the usual blacks and
mallards near the shore. I did spot some sort of medium-sized sandpiper on
the shore at the Ferrisburgh Town Beach, just short of Kingsland Bay. I
spotted it in my binoculars, went back to my truck for the scope, and found
it had disappeared by time I got the scope set up. It was solitary or
spotted sandpiper-sized. It seems early for shorebirds; is this unusual?
Speaking of early(?) arrivals, has anyone else noticed how many kestrels
are around this winter?
As far as feeder birds are concerned, we are seeing all of the usual
suspects (chickadees, juncos, cardinals, tree sparrows, nuthatches, etc.)
except for evening grosbeaks and (oddly enough) house sparrows. Is there
something going on with house sparrows?
Larry
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Re: Barred Owl calling help
From: gills(AT)norwich.edu
Date: 29 Jan 2002 10:48am
Was about to respond to Dave when this came, so will respond to all. I
have a friend who said a practically foolproof way to call in owls is with
a hunter's rabbit death throes call. One can also call things one might
not want, like coyotes and bobcats (he had the latter run right into his
legs, realize what was up, and shake himself off and scat fast). At any
rate, he swears by its efficacy. Owls are breeding now, so selectivity in
how one goes about this should be a first consideration. PG
Paula A. Gills, Director, Learning Support Center
Norwich Univ., Northfield, VT 05663
(802) 485-2132 e-mail gills@ norwich.edu
"We must go out and re-ally ourselves to nature every day.
We must make root, send out some little fibre at least
even every winter day." Thoreau
"Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul"
Emily Dickinson
"Holly
Hungerford" To: vtbird(AT)raven.csc.vsc.edu
<hhungerford@ cc:
vpt.org> Subject: Re: Barred Owl calling
help
01/29/2002
09:07 AM
Please
respond to
vtbird
I'd love to hear what others can offer on this subject, so if you don't
mind responding so we can all see, please do so. Thank you!
Holly F. Hungerford
Vt. Public Television
88 Ethan Allen Ave.
Colchester, VT 05446
(802) 655-8049
hhungerford(AT)vpt.org
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Busy morning
From: "Larry Levine" <larryruns(AT)hotmail.com>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 12:28pm
----DELETED HTML-ENCODED SECTION----
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Eagles and Shrike
From: Bryan Pfeiffer <Bryan(AT)VermontBirdTours.com>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 2:25pm
A Northern Shrike was hanging out at Hawkins Slang in Ferrisburgh on
Monday. From Route 7 drive west on Little Chicago Road for 0.9 miles, turn
right on Hawkins Road and drive 1.5 miles to Hawkins Slang on the right.
This is where the Fork-tailed Flycatcher visited in 2000. And Bald Eagles,
at least 17 of them, were putting on a show at the mouth of Otter Creek and
at Long Point in Ferrisburgh Monday.
Bryan Pfeiffer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vermont Bird Tours
113 Bartlett Road
Plainfield, VT 05667
Phone: (802) 454-4640
Fax: (802) 454-0145
E-Mail: Bryan(AT)VermontBirdTours.com
Web: http://www.VermontBirdTours.com
Enjoy Life.
Watch Birds.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Birders Can Help Save West Mountain WMA
From: Bryan Pfeiffer <Bryan(AT)VermontBirdTours.com>
Date: 29 Jan 2002 2:28pm
If you care nothing about conservation and biodiversity in Vermont, don't
read any further or simply click your delete key now. But it's now critical
that birders take an interest in the full protection of the West Mountain
Wildlife Management Area in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. The Vermont House
is now considering a bill that would kill one of the most important
conservation deals in the state's history. It would open an ecological
reserve to logging. Birders who care about the unique opportunity now
threatened at West Mountain should call their lawmakers and urge them to
vote AGAINST House Bill 567. Here are five reasons why:
1) At West Mountain the state has established a 12,500-acre "ecological
reserve." This area is open to hunting, fishing, trapping and even
snowmobiling. Don't let anyone tell you it isn't. But the reserve is closed
to logging. That's important because it recognizes the tremendous potential
in the rise of an old-growth forest. It's not only that the area holds rare
species. It does. What's also critical is that nowhere else in Vermont will
we witness - for science and recreation and conservation - the rise of
truly undisturbed wild areas, with full communities of rare and common species.
2) The ecological reserve represents only 9 percent of the total 133,000
acres of Champion timberlands purchased in a major conservation deal in
1999. Only 9 percent. Another 85,000 acres were sold to a timber company.
Also significant is that about 10,000 acres WITHIN West Mountain Wildlife
Management Area will be open to logging, including small clear-cuts. That's
right. There will be logging in West Mountain Wildlife Management Area,
just not on all of it (unless the House bill becomes law).
3) The authorized logging at West Mountain is designed to create habitat
for white-tailed deer, Ruffed Grouse, snowshoe hare, American Woodcock and
other game species. To may lawmakers, indeed many Vermonters, these game
species represent "wildlife." They don't realize or see value in the
importance of leaving woods to grow wild for Scarlet Tanagers,
Black-throated Blue Warblers, Spotted Salamanders, spiketail dragonflies,
orchids, lichens, mosses and the full assemblage of living things - both
common and rare - in an old undisturbed forest.
4) Many lawmakers are being led to believe that logging is good for
wildlife. Sure, it's good for some game species (and even Chestnut-sided
Warbler). But as we all know, there's much more to wildlife and natural
resources than species we hunt. And these need not necessarily be rare and
endangered species. The point of the ecological reserve is that we'll have
a unique opportunity to see what happens in habitats that are simply left
alone. There's nothing wrong with responsible logging. But lawmakers need
to be clear that in no way is logging - as House Bill 567 purports - fully
consistent with protection of natural resources.
5) Finally, many lawmakers are perpetuating a myth that they were never
told that a portion of the Champion timberlands would be protected and
off-limits to logging. Don't believe it. To think that The Nature
Conservancy, the Conservation Fund, the Vermont Housing and Conservation
Trust Fund and other conservationists who made this deal happen wouldn't
want at least some of the property fully protected amounts to revisionist
history.
So, again, please call your lawmaker at the Statehouse (800-322-5616) and
leave a message with the Sergeant At Arms. (Vermont lawmakers have no voice
mail, offices or staff.) If you can't recall the name of your lawmakers
find them at http://www.leg.state.vt.us/legdir/legdir2.htm. Better yet,
call your lawmaker at home and tell him or her that House Bill 567 attempts
to legislate an ecological myth that logging is fully compatible with
protection of natural resources. Don't allow them to open up the West
Mountain ecological reserve to logging.
Thanks.
Bryan Pfeiffer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vermont Bird Tours
113 Bartlett Road
Plainfield, VT 05667
Phone: (802) 454-4640
Fax: (802) 454-0145
E-Mail: Bryan(AT)VermontBirdTours.com
Web: http://www.VermontBirdTours.com
Enjoy Life.
Watch Birds.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: RE: Birders Can Help Save West Mountain WMA
From: kolgiati(AT)smcvt.edu
Date: 29 Jan 2002 5:32pm
ok, we called 'em! Thanks!
-----Original Message-----
From: Bryan Pfeiffer [mailto:Bryan(AT)VermontBirdTours.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2002 1:23 PM
To: vtbird(AT)raven.csc.vsc.edu
Subject: Birders Can Help Save West Mountain WMA
If you care nothing about conservation and biodiversity in Vermont, don't
read any further or simply click your delete key now. But it's now critical
that birders take an interest in the full protection of the West Mountain
Wildlife Management Area in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. The Vermont House
is now considering a bill that would kill one of the most important
conservation deals in the state's history. It would open an ecological
reserve to logging. Birders who care about the unique opportunity now
threatened at West Mountain should call their lawmakers and urge them to
vote AGAINST House Bill 567. Here are five reasons why:
1) At West Mountain the state has established a 12,500-acre "ecological
reserve." This area is open to hunting, fishing, trapping and even
snowmobiling. Don't let anyone tell you it isn't. But the reserve is closed
to logging. That's important because it recognizes the tremendous potential
in the rise of an old-growth forest. It's not only that the area holds rare
species. It does. What's also critical is that nowhere else in Vermont will
we witness - for science and recreation and conservation - the rise of
truly undisturbed wild areas, with full communities of rare and common
species.
2) The ecological reserve represents only 9 percent of the total 133,000
acres of Champion timberlands purchased in a major conservation deal in
1999. Only 9 percent. Another 85,000 acres were sold to a timber company.
Also significant is that about 10,000 acres WITHIN West Mountain Wildlife
Management Area will be open to logging, including small clear-cuts. That's
right. There will be logging in West Mountain Wildlife Management Area,
just not on all of it (unless the House bill becomes law).
3) The authorized logging at West Mountain is designed to create habitat
for white-tailed deer, Ruffed Grouse, snowshoe hare, American Woodcock and
other game species. To may lawmakers, indeed many Vermonters, these game
species represent "wildlife." They don't realize or see value in the
importance of leaving woods to grow wild for Scarlet Tanagers,
Black-throated Blue Warblers, Spotted Salamanders, spiketail dragonflies,
orchids, lichens, mosses and the full assemblage of living things - both
common and rare - in an old undisturbed forest.
4) Many lawmakers are being led to believe that logging is good for
wildlife. Sure, it's good for some game species (and even Chestnut-sided
Warbler). But as we all know, there's much more to wildlife and natural
resources than species we hunt. And these need not necessarily be rare and
endangered species. The point of the ecological reserve is that we'll have
a unique opportunity to see what happens in habitats that are simply left
alone. There's nothing wrong with responsible logging. But lawmakers need
to be clear that in no way is logging - as House Bill 567 purports - fully
consistent with protection of natural resources.
5) Finally, many lawmakers are perpetuating a myth that they were never
told that a portion of the Champion timberlands would be protected and
off-limits to logging. Don't believe it. To think that The Nature
Conservancy, the Conservation Fund, the Vermont Housing and Conservation
Trust Fund and other conservationists who made this deal happen wouldn't
want at least some of the property fully protected amounts to revisionist
history.
So, again, please call your lawmaker at the Statehouse (800-322-5616) and
leave a message with the Sergeant At Arms. (Vermont lawmakers have no voice
mail, offices or staff.) If you can't recall the name of your lawmakers
find them at http://www.leg.state.vt.us/legdir/legdir2.htm. Better yet,
call your lawmaker at home and tell him or her that House Bill 567 attempts
to legislate an ecological myth that logging is fully compatible with
protection of natural resources. Don't allow them to open up the West
Mountain ecological reserve to logging.
Thanks.
Bryan Pfeiffer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vermont Bird Tours
113 Bartlett Road
Plainfield, VT 05667
Phone: (802) 454-4640
Fax: (802) 454-0145
E-Mail: Bryan(AT)VermontBirdTours.com
Web: http://www.VermontBirdTours.com
Enjoy Life.
Watch Birds.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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