VOLUME 33, NUMBER 2 OCTOBER 2001

WARIOTO AT A GLANCE
REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, October 4, 7:30 p.m., Sundquist Science Complex, room E106A, APSU.
PROGRAM: "Oil drilling in the Arctic national wildlife refuge & other public policy issues" presented by Emily Byram, Regional Grassroots Coordinator, Public Policy Division, National Audubon Society
HOSPITALITY: Kathy and Alan Bottomlee will provide refreshments following Emily’s program.
BOARD MEETING: In the Sundquist Building biology conference room, D126 at 7:00 p.m.
FIELD TRIP: Sunday, Oct. 14, a dusk visit to the Elk and Bison Prairie, LBL. Meet at 1:00 pm in the McCord parking lot.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE by Sally Schiller

Last year our chapter sponsored five Audubon Adventure classrooms. This sponsorship provided the teachers with materials to supplement the regular curriculum with activities to teach students about animals, habitats, and conservation issues. Over the next few months we will receive feedback from the teachers about how they used the materials and if they found them helpful. Last summer I had the pleasure of spending a morning with the APSU Child Learning Center’s school age group which is one of our Audubon Adventure classrooms. Their teacher Jackie Bradford had been using the materials all summer and said that they had been very useful to her and the children really enjoyed the activities. On this particular morning using materials from the kit as well as materials from APSU’s Biology Department I took the kids on a "owl prowl". Owls are probably the first bird most people learn to identify by voice and you probably would find few people unable to do a fair imitation of an owl. This group of enthusiastic children were excellent owl imitators and are now even better owl imitators and identifiers! During the morning we talked about four owls that they might encounter/hear in this area: barred owls, great horned owls, screech owls, and barn owls. They learned that in addition to the hooting sound that everyone associates with owls there are several other even more intriguing owl vocalizations. We were able to hear these using the Internet at www.owlpages.com. Using the Biology Department museum specimens we were able to observe up close the feathers, coloration, and body structure of these four species. We talked about the way that owls make their living as birds of prey and dissected for study an owl pellet (the indigestible parts of an owl’s meal that is "coughed" up and spit out). They very much enjoyed this task with all the appropriate "Oohs!" and "Yucks!" I hope you enjoy these photographs of the young ornithologists at work.

Last month Troy Ettel, State Ornithologist from Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) kicked off our 2001-2002 program year with a slide show entitled "Historical Habitats and Birds of Tennessee." This was a wonderful program and I wished more people had come out to see it. It carried a message that we need to be reminded of more often: We are losing biodiversity at a staggering rate and unless we understand what we are losing we cannot prevent further loss. The old saying, "You don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone" could apply but worse is the fact that some of the habitats and species have been gone for so long that most of us are unaware that we have lost anything! So, it is instructive to take a historical perspective. For some species, TWRA is considering reintroduction programs. For example, the Great Prairie Chickens could be reintroduced to areas of tall grass prairie habitat at Fort Campbell. For other species such as Red-cockaded Woodpecker, we no longer have enough of the pine woods habitat to support a reintroduction program. And, of course, other species such as the Carolina Parakeet are extinct and gone forever. I think we must be ever vigilant against the temptation to exploit every corner of the planet for short term human gains at the expense of biodiversity. Thank you Troy for coming up to Clarksville, wandering all of over campus, but finally arriving in good spirits to give this informative program!! ( I think you ought to take it out to area high schools.)

On October 4^th, Thursday at 7:30 PM in the Sundquist Science Complex Room E106A Emily Byram, Regional Grassroots Organizer from National Audubon Society will give our program. Emily will talk to us about Oiling Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and Other Public Policy Issues on which the Audubon Society is working. Since the terrorist attacks in New York, Washington, DC and Pennsylvania the importance of all other matters seem to pale in comparison to the country’s recovery efforts and pursuit of justice. However, as President Bush and others have said if these attacks change our way of life then the terrorists have won. As hard as it is, we must return to matters that were important to us before September 11^th and will still be important to us in the future. One knows one lives in a great country when despite the events of 9-11-01 one can be optimistic enough to continue the good fight for the environment. Please come out and hear what Emily has to tell us about the environmental agenda of the National Audubon Society! I look forward to seeing you there and visiting over refreshments following the program.

Following the disturbing events of Sept. 11 one thing is obvious–we live in uncertain and troubling times. Many people are wondering what they can contribute to help the nation recover from our attacks and to confront the challenges ahead. As we prepare to meet these challenges I would caution everyone to remember the famous quote that "the first victim of war is truth." Some corollaries to this are that calm deliberation and reason also suffer while hysteria and irrationality prosper. A society’s ability to discern the difference between these two states seems to get lost. The first step in meeting the challenges set before us is to return some normalcy to our lives, to get back to our "old" routines. This will include getting back to the business of the country and the attending political debate. I urge everyone to remember that the greatest service they can provide their country is to lend their calm deliberation and reason to the political decisions before us. Many of these decisions have profound national security and economic as well as environmental implications.

Prior to Sept. 11 the US Senate was preparing to take up the issue of drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR). The leading environmental organizations in the U.S. were working hard to provide to the American public the truth about drilling for oil in ANWR and to dispel several misrepresentations promulgated by the administration to justify its position favoring drilling in ANWR. Let’s begin with the truth. The truth is drilling for oil in ANWR will not lower gasoline prices and will not increase our national energy security. If the most outrageously optimistic projections of the amount of oil in the ANWR were to prove true, this still would not be enough oil to make a significant difference in the price of gasoline at the pump. The truth is that no ANWR oil will reach market for another 10 years. This is how long it will take to bring this area into production, a fact not disputed by any party to this debate. Furthermore, ANWR oil will not contribute to national security or energy independence. If terrorists can fly a plane into the political and financial capitals of our nation, they can easily disrupt the flow of oil through a 2000 mile pipeline winding its way across one of the most remote parts of the world. If we want to lower oil prices, we can start driving more fuel efficient cars. We can start today, and realize those savings immediately! If we want national security, we need build a diversified energy system that is widely distributed and invulnerable to attack. Conservation, along with renewable wind, solar, and hydro energy sources can provide such a system today. Hydrogen generated by alternative energy can power cars and many other machines, virtually eliminating pollution emissions at the same time. Sadly, one of the leading labor organizations in the country has chosen to support the administration position on the mistaken grounds that oil drilling in ANWR will increase union jobs. The estimate of potential jobs created is greatly overstated. It assumes energy prices will be reduced by the flow of ANWR oil. It further assumes that these lower energy prices will have a ripple effect throughout the entire economy. The estimate of jobs created by drilling ANWR includes all of these dubius assumptions. The validity of these assumptions is irrelevant because they apply equally to any strategy that increases energy supply and lowers energy consumption and cost. By this reasoning the greatest job creating machine of all is conservation which generates jobs directly by employing workers in industries manufacturing energy efficient products and indirectly through the ripple effect of lower energy costs to society!

While it may seem less important after the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, the Sept 4^th closing of Dunbar Cave State Natural Area still haunts many of us. I believe in this time of national suffering that we need Dunbar Cave more than ever. In light of the tragedy that has unfolded before our eyes, we need a place for quiet reflection and introspection. Whether it’s walking Dunbar’s trials to hear the insects and birds or sitting on a bench near Swan Lake to watch the geese and turtles, one can find the time and peace to recognize that life is still beautiful. Sitting in front of the TV you may find yourself worrying about the apparent insanity of the World, pondering the wisdom of our leaders as they are forced to make monumental decisions or suffering for those who have lost so much. In my opinion, a walk at Dunbar Cave is as good a tonic as any at this time, for no one can help you know how you should feel. That’s something you have to work out for yourself. Perhaps you need a brisk walk or a good run on the trails to vent your anger at what you have seen and about which you have read. It’s better to vent your anger and frustration at Dunbar (it can handle it) and spare your family and friends. No, I am not saying you should struggle alone with your thoughts. I am saying that it does one good to get away from everyone else’s opinions and generate some of your own. Quiet reflection, like dreaming gives us time to put things in the proper place.

At this point, the Department of Environment and Conservation has made no mention of their plans for the future of Dunbar Cave and the other closed park facilities. I would like to think they have a plan, but I am not sure that anyone at TDEC has really consider what’s next. Perhaps they are developing their schemes via phone calls or during closed-door meetings. Will they spring the next decision the way they sprang the news of the closing? We have heard that Mayor Piper is interested in operating over Dunbar Cave, but is waiting until the issue of the legality of their closing is settled. We need to get confirmation on that, so keep your eyes and ears open. Of course, as you likely know, I still believe the State Parks should continue to operate Dunbar Cave SNA and continue its long-term investment there.

At our September meeting Gloria Milliken mentioned that Dr. Carlos Brewer was Warioto Audubon’s first president. I thought this addition might interest the membership. Some of us newer members (and I count myself among them) don’t know about the many fine people like Dr. Brewer who help organize and run this organization.