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VOLUME 32, NUMBER 2 OCTOBER 2000

WARIOTO AT A GLANCE
REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, October 5, 7:30 p.m., room 102, McCord Building, APSU.
PROGRAM: "Rise Up on the Wings of Eagles" by Bob Hatcher, Coordinator for Nongame and Endangered Wildlife, TWRA
HOSPITALITY: Following the program, refreshments will be provided.
BOARD MEETING: Thursday, October 5, 7:00 p.m., room 214, McCord Science Bldg., APSU.
FIELD TRIP: Cheekwood Museum and Botanical Gardens; view John J. Audubon Art Exhibit. There is an $8 fee. Sunday afternoon, October 8. Meet by Wendy’s at K-Mart east (Madison St. and the Bypass) by noon

PRESIDENT’S RAMBLINGS by Sally Schiller

An interesting thing happened here last weekend. One of our neighbor’s cows had twins in the pasture near our house. One of the twins didn’t live. By morning a startling number of vultures (maybe 50) were making quite a meal of the dead calf despite the lowing of the cow who was nervously guarding the surviving twin from the lurking birds. The vultures saved the farmer from having to dig a very big hole!

The September program turned out to be a lot of fun. We had nearly 100 attendees, members, nonmembers, adults, teenagers, and toddlers. I believe everyone that came had a good time. As promised, Scott Kelley had several live animals to show the audience and some interesting facts to tell about each. It is so easy to be unimpressed these days when so many of us are immersed in very slick, very entertaining and very fast media. However, there is no substitute for seeing in real time the real "thing" up close for oneself, especially for the kids. How many of us drew our breath in when Scott brought out the Barred Owl and held him on his arm? Turn off the TV and walk out the door!

At this gathering we received $40 in donations to help support an Audubon Adventures Classroom and signed up at least seven new members. Muchas, muchas gracías to Clarksville Academy’s Key Club whose members and advisor (the irrepressible Colleen White) provided lots of cookies, chips and drinks for refreshments following the meeting. One of our newest members, Heather Hollis, signed on to serve as our sixth board member. Thanks Heather! Your input will be invaluable. By the way, folks, we still need a Program chair/president-elect.

On October 5, Bob Hatcher, Coordinator Nongame and Endangered Wildlife of Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency will give our program. Bob will give a slide presentation entitled Rise Up on the Wings of Eagles. This presentation blends information about the progress of Bald Eagles in Tennessee with their symbolism in family life and in a variety of cultures. I am looking forward to hearing his program and getting together with everyone for refreshments afterwards. I am also really excited about October’s field trip to Cheekwood to view the J.J. Audubon exhibit and the botanical gardens. Hope to see you at one or both of these events.

One last thought: at the annual potluck banquet on November 2^nd (which is going to be held at the Clarksville Academy Cafeteria). We are going to have a silent auction. So, start thinking of items you would like to donate to the auction. It can be something new or used, store-bought or homemade ... just about anything!!

HUMMER PROGRAM OFFERED BY TOS

The Nashville Chapter of Tennessee Ornithological Society will offer a program by the hummingbird experts, Bob and Martha Sargent. The program, "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Hummingbirds, But Didn’t Know Who to Ask," will be held October 28 at the Warner Park Nature Center. The program, which is free, begins at 10:30 a.m. Sign up by calling 615-352-6299.

Our field trip to Mabry Farm in southeast Todd on September 9 was great. Dr. Mack Finley, Austin Peay gave us a very informative tour of the farm, which is owned and operated by Susan Menees. This farm has been using conservation farm practices for about 50 years while growing crops and raising cattle. Thanks goes out to Steve Hamilton, Heather Hollis (our new board member and APSU biology student), Bob Brinkman and Ted Ives (APSU biology graduate students) and Scott Sutton (Peay biology major) for joining the group. It looks like an Austin Peay sweep! We didn’t do a great deal of birding, but we did get some good looks at hawks, including a Northern Harrier and a Coopers Hawk.

Don't forget our October field trip to Cheekwood's Botanical Garden and Museum of Art in Nashville. We will be led on a guided tour of the museum and gardens then set loose in Botanical Hall where we can view J. J. Audubon's exhibit on our own. These paintings have been named the best quality of replicates from the original art. This trip will be a nice introduction to November’s program on "The Life and Art of J. J. Audubon" to be given by Mr. Don Boarman, John J. Audubon Museum, Henderson, Kentucky. This will be a must see program!!! For the field trip, we will leave from K-Mart east (Madison St.) at 12:00 noon, Sunday, October 8. The tour starts at 1:00 p.m. and will last approximately two hours. The cost is at a reduced price of $8 per person if we have a group of at least 15. So everyone, please come!!!!

CONSERVATION NEWS – Joe Schiller

The congressional session is down to the last two weeks and congress (mainly the senate) has yet to take action on some important conservation legislation we have been following all year. Two of these bills of particular interest to many Audubon members are CARA and the Everglades Restoration Act. The more senators here from their constituents about these bills the more likely they are to bring them to a vote by the end of this session. Please consider contacting your senators to urge them to support this legislation.

1. The Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA): This bill, S.2123, which has already passed the house is ever so close to passage in the senate. More than enough senators have cosponsored it to assure its passage if the senate leadership will just schedule it for a vote on the senate floor.

2. SENATE VOTE ON EVERGLADES BILL

The Audubon-supported S.2797 authorizes a series of projects to return the natural quantity, quality, timing, and distribution of freshwater to the Everglades. This will improve the habitat of the 68 threatened or endangered species, and the hundreds of other species of birds, other wildlife, and plants that make the Everglades home.

PLEASE CALL YOUR TWO U.S. SENATORS TODAY AND URGE THEM TO VOTE YES ON S. 2123 and S.2797. For more information, or for the direct dial phone numbers of your Senators, please call Shannon Mayorga at 1-800-753-5499 or e-mail smayorga@audubon.org.

On a different, and more personal note, I would just like to remind our membership that October is National Solar Energy Month. We (the Schillers) are not hosting any special activities this year, but the National Tour of Solar Homes is going on without us on October 14. If you are interested in touring solar homes on that day, contact Joe Schiller for information about groups in east, middle, and west Tennessee that are organizing tours. The recent rise in fuel prices assures that alternative energy issues will be in the spotlight for the foreseeable future.

SILENT AUCTION AT NOVEMBER POTLUCK BANQUET - Steve Hamilton

Our annual potluck banquet will take place in November as is Warioto’s tradition. It has been poorly attended over the last couple years, so I am urging you to make plans now for attending this fun event. More details of this event will be in the November Warioto Warbler, but I wanted to take a little space to elaborate on that mentioned by Sally in her "ramblings."

I have been active in Warioto Audubon for seven or so years and always make it a point to attend this event no matter the program. There is always plenty to eat (and better than Debbie, Hannah, and I will have at home with our busy lives). While the home-cooked dishes are great, there is no shame in picking up something at Kroger, KFC or wherever. I know many of you are very busy people that squeeze in Audubon among what seems to be a hundred other monthly, weekly and daily activities. Yet, as I have said before, what a great excuse to get out make new friends and chat with old friends. I am active in Warioto Audubon and Friends of Dunbar Cave, and for me, the best thing that has come out of these active memberships has been the great people I have met. While my involvement takes much time, it is well it. As they say, "The pay is terrible, but the benefits are great!"

As Sally mentioned, we will be having a silent auction at the November banquet. In the past this has been a successful fund-raising activity for Warioto Audubon. However, for this to be a success we need members to bring items for the auction and we need members and guest there to bid. So, come out, bring a friend, eat well, enjoy a great program, converse with friends (new and old ), and open your pocketbook. I’ve got a bat screen-saver that I will put be placing in the auction. I purchased this at the silent auction several years ago and have often received excited comments on it when people visit my office.

Monthly Meeting: Nov. 2^nd Annual Potluck Dinner and Silent Auction at 6 PM. Location TBA.

Program: "Life and Art of J.J. Audubon" by Don Boarman of the J.J. Audubon Museum (KY)

Field Trip: TBA

DECEMBER

Monthly Meeting: Dec. 7^th

Program: "Postcard from Costa Rica" by Polly Rooker, TWRA

Field Trip: Annual day long Christmas Bird Count. Call Debbie Hamilton (645-8092) for details. Also see information on the web at: http://birdsource.cornell.edu/cbc/

FEBRUARY

Monthly Meeting: Feb. 1^st

Program: "Postcard from the Galapagos" by Polly Rooker, TWRA

Field Trip: TBA

MARCH

Monthly Meeting: Mar 1^st (Call for officer nominations)

Program: TBA

Field Trip: TBA

APRIL

Monthly Meeting: April 5^th

Program: "The Nisqually Wildlife Refuge, Olympia, WA" by Laurina Lyle, Department of Biology, APSU.

Field Trip: Spring Fling at Dunbar Cave State Park.

MAY

Monthly Meeting: May 3^rd (Vote on new officers)

Speaker: "Southern African Ecosystems: Diversity and Challenges" by Drs. Carol (APSU) and Steve (Vanderbilt) Baskauf

Field Trip: Annual Spring Bird Count. Call Gloria Milliken (358-2998) for details. Bird Feeder counters are needed as well as field counters.

JUNE

Monthly Meeting: June 7^th

Speaker: TBA

Field Trip: Frog Call Identification

JULY

PRESIDENT: Sally Schiller, 2951 Chapel Hill Rd., Clarksville, TN 37040-8312 (TEL: 387-4071; E-MAIL: slschil@attglobal.net

NEWSLETTER EDITOR: Steve Hamilton, 290 Ardmoor Dr., Clarksville, TN 37043 (TEL: 645-8092; E-MAIL: hamiltonsw@apsu.edu)

MEMBERSHIP: Debbie Hamilton, 290 Ardmoor Dr., Clarksville, TN 37043 (645-8092)