VOLUME 32, NUMBER 6 MARCH 2001

WARIOTO AT A GLANCE
REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, March 1, 7:30 p.m., room 102, McCord Building, APSU.
PROGRAM: Birding Workshop: Learning to Identify Birds with Amy Atkins, Park Naturalist at Dunbar Cave State Natural Area. Learn the basics of bird identification
HOSPITALITY: Post-meeting refreshments will be provided by the Clarksville Academy Key Club.
BOARD MEETING: Thursday, March 1, 7:00 p.m., room 214, McCord Science Bldg., APSU.
FIELD TRIP: Birding Workshop: Practical Experience led by Dr. Dave Snyder, ornithologist at APSU. Put your birding skills to practice on this field trip to Cross Creek National Wildlife Refuge. Meet in APSU’s McCord parking lot at noon, Saturday, March 17. Some binoculars, spotting scopes and field guides are available, but if you have your own, please bring them.

According to the chapter’s constitution, it is time to solicit nom-inations for officer positions. For this purpose, I am appointing a Nominating Committee of the following people: myself (387-4071), Randy Ellis, and Gloria Milliken. Suggestions for nominations for officers may be submitted to this committee by any member of the chapter. You may nominate yourself. Nominees will be presented at the May 3^rd program meeting. Technically, nominations from the floor can be taken up to the time of elections which will be at the June 7^th meeting. Officers presented by the Nominating Committee shall be elected by a voice vote of the membership present at the June meeting. If there is more than one candidate for any office the election for that office will be by ballot. New officers will assume their duties on July 15^th. Please consider donating a small part of your time to the cause this year. Below is a list of the offices that we elect each year with a small description. For more information about the office duties please give me a call.

President - Presiding officer.
1^st Vice President (Programs) - president-elect, make provisions for program meetings.
2^nd Vice President (Field Trips) - plan, organize & arrange field trips.
3^rd Vice President (Membership) - keep membership lists, conduct membership campaigns, keep in contact with National Audubon concerning membership.
4^th Vice President (Publications) - oversee publication of newsletter.
5^th Vice President (Conservation, Environment, Education & Com-munity. Service) - keep local chapter informed of conservation, environment and education activities on local and national level.
6^th Vice President (Hospitality) - arrange for refreshments at program meetings, keep supplies of chapter’s utensils, etc and make sure they are available for the annual banquet and picnic.
7^th Vice President (Publicity & E-communications) - a new office, distribute information to local media and other outlets about chapter activities that would be of interest to the general public; maintain an email distribution list for chapter information.
Secretary - keep record of all proceedings, keep list of officers and their contact information, prepare correspondences.
Treasurer - keep track of chapter’s funds, make deposits, write checks for chapter expenses and prepare an annual report.
2 Board Members (2001-2004) - assist in decision making and conducting business of chapter; three year term.

February’s program on The Birds of the Galapagos Islands by Polly Rooker was great success. As always Polly had a fantastic set of slides and was very entertaining. The turn out was very good and CA’s Key Club did a super job setting up for our after program refreshments. We were all relived to learn that the January oil spill in the area of the Galapagos has apparently not resulted in substantial damage to the islands or the wildlife living there. I would like to thank Polly for enthusiastically donating her time to us once again!

This March we are going to be conducting two community outreach activities. I would like to encourage you to come to at least one of these and bring a non-member friend. On March 1 Amy Atkins will conduct a workshop on Learning to Identify Birds. This should be a useful workshop to introduce birding to those who are thinking of taking up the hobby or for those who may want to polish newly acquired skills. On March 17 David Snyder will lead a birding field trip to Cross Creeks Wildlife Refuge in Dover, TN. We will meet for this trip in the McCord Bldg parking lot (APSU campus) at noon and leave shortly thereafter. In addition to David’s expertise, field guides, binoculars, and spotting scopes will be provided.

In honor of Arbor Day (March 2), a special door prize of a bundle of white oak seedlings will be given away at the March 1 Learning to Identify Birds workshop.

Hope to see you and a friend at one or both of these March events!

Sandhill Crane Days in Birchwood, TN was great! It was a beautiful day to see the large flocks (approximately 5,000 according to Polly Rooker) of the beautiful and graceful Sandhill Cranes. We started the morning learning the history of Sandhill Cranes and attempts to increase populations of this once endangered species. We also saw a talk on efforts to reestablish American Chestnut through selective propagation efforts. The event was very well organized, much better than previous years according to the Hamiltons. There was a great viewing platform and numerous TWRA game officers to direct traffic and help with identification of the waterfowl and other wildlife.

Attending were Steve and Debbie Hamilton, Alan, Kathy, Megan and Erin Bottomlee, Amy Atkins, and Suva Bastin. We also got to meet Richard Kirk, who will assume the duties of Director, TWRA Non-game Species Program this spring when Bob Hatcher retires.

Don’t forget next month’s field trip on "Learning to bird with the experts" led by Dr. David Snyder, an ornithologist at APSU. We will meet at noon in the parking lot behind McCord Saturday, March 17. Bird guides, binoculars and spotting scopes will be available, but if you have your own please bring them. Even the experts don’t want to miss out on a day of birding with Dr. Snyder! It will be a treat for all who come. I am looking forward to seeing you there.

It appears that the US congress may attempt to overturn President Clinton’s regulatory ruling protecting 58 million acres of Forest Service’s Roadless Area by using the previously untested Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act, or SBREFA.. All they need to overturn the rule is a majority vote in both the House and Senate. Please contact your twoSenators and your U.S. Representative and urge them to OPPOSE EFFORTS TO OVERTURN THE ROADLESS PROTECTION RULE! Please encourage your family and friends to do so as well! You can send a fax to your lawmakers through Audubon's TAKE ACTION site:

Now for some good news. CARA has been introduced again by Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska). The bill would fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund at $900 million -- half for federal land purchases and half as matching grants to states for conservation purposes. Coastal states would get $1 billion for shoreline restoration. It also allots $350 million for wildlife conservation and restoration; $125 million for the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery program; $150 million (an increase of $50 million from last year) for the Historic Preservation Fund; $200 million for federal and Indian lands restoration; and $50 million (a decreases of $100 million) for endangered and threatened species recovery. And keep in mind, if these figures sound high, remember that in total, it represents less than 1% of our nation's defense budget. Unfortunately, it's unclear whether CARA will be able to pass both the House and Senate, much less garner the approval of President Bush. The Administration has pledged to support $900 million for the Land & Water Conservation Fund, but they have so far failed to publicly support the overall bill.

THE 2000-2001 WARIOTO BOARD MEMBERS AND COMMITTEE CHAIRSPresident: Sally Schiller, 387-4071, slschil@attglobal.net, 1^st V.P.-Program Chair/Pres. Elect: OPEN, 2^nd V.P.-Field Trips: Rebecca Houtman, 645-2398, rahoutman@aol.com, 3^rd V.P.-Membership: Debbie Hamilton, 645-8092, hamiltond@clarksvilleacademy.com, 4^th V.P.-Publications: Steve Hamilton, 645-8092 , hamiltonsw@apsu.edu, 5^th V.P.-CEECS: Joe Schiller, 387-4071, schillerjoseph@netscape.net , Secretary: Amy Atkins, 648-5526, Treasurer: Gloria Milliken, 358-2998, Hospitality Chair: Colleen White, (615) 307-9415, faxon@aol.comBoard Members-At-Large: 1998-2001: Suva Bastin, 645-2849; Heather Hollis, 221-07181999-20022000-2003: Randy Ellis, 551-8741; Jill Freethy, flame327@aol.com: Barry Podell, 648-1922; Barbara Wilbur, 647-4956

PRESIDENT: Sally Schiller, 2951 Chapel Hill Rd., Clarksville, TN 37040-8312

NEWSLETTER EDITOR: Steve Hamilton, 290 Ardmoor Dr., Clarksville, TN 37043 (645-8092)

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