Monthly Meetings and Programs
PIAS holds meetings on the third Friday of each month (except for holidays) from September through May, excluding December. Our Annual Banquet is the third Friday of September. The meetings are held at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center, Room 112, 301 Peninsula Drive in Erie. They begin with a social gathering at 7 p.m., followed by a 7:30 program. Everyone is invited; you need not be a member to attend PIAS meetings and enjoy the informative, educational and fun programs.
Next Meeting
"How Nature Speaks to Me"
February 17, 2012
Our February meeting will feature Toni Kelly, watercolor and mixed media artist and calligrapher. She says that nature speaks to her, and through her art she tries to tell nature's story with color, texture, image and words. She loves to experiment with her art and allows herself to be guided through intuition and exploration. Her presentation will highlight sketchbook drawings and text of her interpretations from nature walks at Presque Isle. She will also show photographs which have a big part in her creations, such as the Letters to Chloe series which combines imagery and calligraphy.
Kelly's work has been seen in juried exhibits and found in local galleries and private collections. She is a member of the Northwest PA Artist's Association and the Pittsburgh Guild of Calligraphers. She volunteers at the bird banding stations with Audubon PA and is an active member of Presque Isle Audubon
Place: Tom Ridge Environmental Center
Address: 301 Peninsula Drive, Room 112
Social: 7:00 pm
Program: 7:30 pm
FREE and open to the public.
Allegany Nature Pilgrimage
June 1, 2 and 3, 2012
It's already time to start planning for the Allegany Nature Pilgrmage spring weekend. The Nature Pilgrmage has been providing a nature retreat in Allegany State Park, NY for over 50 years. Members, their families and friends from Buffalo, Jamestown, and Presque Isle Audubon Societies and Burroughs Nature Club gather to enjoy the outdoors and discover more about the world we live in. There is something for all ages and interests. Over 90 different field trips, adventures and classes will be held. There will be evening programs and speakers and a chicken barbecue on Saturday evening.
For lots more information and to download a brochure with registration form see the Allegany Nature Pilgrimage website at www.alleganynaturepilgrimage.com or contact Lisa at 814-898-0284 or lsdanko@hotmail.com.
2012 Hog Island Programs
Registration for the 2012 ornithology
sessions on Audubon's famed Hog Island opened October 17, and if this year
is any indication, they will fill up very quickly.
After years of being one of the instructors at Hog Island, I'm honored to be running most of the ornithology program at the island
next year. We'll have two seabird ecology and restoration sessions;
our ever-popular Field Ornithology week; the addition of a second week
of "Joy of Birding"; two sessions of "Coastal Maine Bird Studies" for
teens ages 14-17; and an exciting fall migration week in September
that will include two days on Monhegan Island, one of the best migrant
traps in the East. (Besides the ornithological programs, there will be
an educators' week and an Audubon chapter leaders' week.)
The avian sessions are taught by some of the best birders and
ornithologists in the country, including Pete Dunne, Kenn and Kimberly
Kaufman, Steve Kress, Sara Morris, Peter Vickery and many more.
The best housing options fill up fast, as do the programs as a
whole, most of which had long waiting lists this year. There is a $50
early bird discount for registrations by Dec. 15. For information,
videos, photo galleries or to register, go to
http://projectpuffin.org/hogisland. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at scottweidensaul@verizon.net.
Scott Weidensahl
Field Trips and Activities
Field trip at ENWR Muddy Creek Holly Trail
Presque Isle Audubon Society offers a variety of field trips which provide individuals with recreational and educational experiences throughout the year. In addition, PIAS sponsors other activities including the Presque Isle Christmas Bird Count, a Great Backyard Bird Count workshop, Hawk Watch in the spring, and the Festival of the Birds in May. Details for upcoming trips and activities will be published below and in our newsletter, Tern of Events. Unless otherwise indicated, these activities are free and open to the public. Bring a friend!
2012 Trips and Activities
2012 Festival of the Birds at Presque Isle
Plan ahead! The 2012 Festival of the Birds at Presque Isle will be held the weekend of May 11-13.
Check out our festival webpage at www.presqueisleaudubon.org/festival.
Great Backyard Bird Count
February 17-20, 2012
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like each day of the event. It's free, fun, and easy - and it helps the birds. For more information see the Great Backyard Bird Count website at www.birdsource.org/gbbc/.
Our local celebration will be held Saturday, February 18, at Shelter 2, Presque Isle State Park from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Michele Franz, PIAS Education Chair, will again this year prepare Shelter 2 for awesome opportunities to view some of our winter birds. She and her husband go out early to build a warm and inviting fire to keep everyone comfortable. Earlier in the week, Michele will go out to put up feeders and spread some birdseed so that our avian friends will know that food will be there and therefore are more likely to show up on Saturday morning for the count. Snacks and beverages will be provided by our Hospitality Chair, Joao Tavares. Other PIAS members will be available to help spot and identify the birds outside. Yes, we'll spend most of our time in the shelter looking out the windows! We will tally the highest number of birds of each species seen together at any one time. To report our counts, we will complete an online checklist at the Great Backyard Bird Count website. So be a part of this Citizen Science project! See you then!
Bruce Peninsula, 2012
We are in the early planning stages of organizing a botanical field trip to the Bruce Peninsula and Flowerpot Island for orchids. Before we get too deep into the plans, please let me know if there is any interest in doing this trip. It involves a trip to Canada, gas mileage, motel and food expenses plus expenses for the trip leader. Please let me know by November 1st if you would like to go. If there is enough interest, we'll proceed with plans for it. The best time to go is between late May and late June, with some of the interesting flowers being on the mainland Bruce Peninsula in various locations, and others on Flowerpot Island.
Flowerpot Island offers camping on 6 primitive sites within walking distance of the main landing dock and sea stacks ("flowerpots"), but the old lighthouse keeper's home also offers space for kayakers to sleep inside for a donation to the "Friends of" organization - sounds like a bunk room or hostel scenario (bring your own sleeping pad), but it's extremely scenic.
Flowerpot Island is accessed via tour boat or a shuttle boat. If participants want to paddle there, It's only about 3 miles out in the lake and I've done that kayak trip many times.
Accommodations on the mainland include camping at Miller Lake or Lands End campgrounds (or others) or booking at one of many hotels and motels in Tobermory and the immediate area.
There would be a fee for this trip, to be determined later. Contact Lee Ann Reiners at fieldtrips@presqueisleaudubon.org or 814-282-1512.
Tenative Field Trips and Activities for 2012
(further info to come)
March - Eagles, Hawks and Waterfowl of Crawford County
April 14 - Raptor Expeience, April 14, 8:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., Room 112 TREC, John Lasko, DCNR Naturalist will be helping out and give a presentation on raptor identification by using silhouettes.
April 21 - Paddling on French Creek, Union City to Mill Village
April 22 - Birding at Presque Isle
April 28 - Wildflowers and Birds at Laura Olsen Memorial Sanctuary and on ENWR's Muddy Creek Holly Trail
May 5 - Paddling on Oil Creek, Jersey Bridge to Petroleum Centre
May 6 - Wildflowers, Newbold Estate/Anders Run Natural Area
May 11-13 - Festival of the Birds at Presque Isle
June 1, 2, 3 - Allegany Nature Pilgrimage, Allegany State Park, Salamanca, NY
June 1, 2, 3 - Western Pennsylvania Solo Canoe Rendezvous, Cooper's Lake Campground, Portersville
June 16 - Wildflower Walk, Tanbark Trail, Allegheny National Forest, near Warren
July 7-8 - Paddling and Camping, Allegheny Weekend on Allegheny River