Spring is here and I reviewed the nice article by Cox in American Birding on ID of the Common Peeps using primarily clues other than plumage, like structure, behavior, etc. Here are my study notes from that review for anyone interested.
Monthly Archives: April 2017
April 12, 2017 – ABC’s new best friend – Noah Strycker!
BIRDING WITHOUT BIRDERS: ABC welcomes Noah Strycker
Noah Strycker struck gold on April 12, 2017, when he visited Tacoma and was treated by ABC like the VIP he has become. Getting Noah for ABC was a dream come true for Kay Pullen who had been plotting ever since she got ABC to read Noah Strycker’s book, The Thing with Feathers, a couple of years ago. The event mushroomed into the biggest event ABC has held to this date, necessitating a change in venue to the Rotunda at UPS, finagled by Peter Wimberger, director of the Slater Museum, and Kay’s fellow conspirator for this event. Fellow sponsor, Tahoma Audubon, managed collection of fees and checked people in. There were over 150 people in the rotunda when Noah arrived after meeting earlier with UPS students and ABC principals.
We already knew Noah had a talent for birding and a talent for writing, but tonight we found that he has a talent for holding a large audience in the palm of his hand! With his expertly-curated collection of photos, the Power-Point presentation hummed along in harmony with Noah’s story, which started before he was even born and proceeded into his unknown, but brilliant, future. After shattering the previous record by approximately 1500 species, Noah finished 2015 with 6042 birds!! He wore the crown for a year, but challenger Arjan Dwarshuis of the Netherlands broke it in 2016, and the two have become friends with many stories to compare.
Noah wrote a daily blog during his Year, which many of us followed, and which is being expanded into his upcoming book, Birding Without Borders: An Obsession, a Quest, and the Biggest Year in the World, due this fall. While you’re waiting for the book, you can still read his blog: http://www.audubon.org/features/birding-without-borders
Noah made it clear that he couldn’t have done this year alone. He used native guides as much as possible and as a result had as many people stories as he did bird stories. We predict much to come from this young man and are very happy to have become some of his people.
June 6: Joe and Maggie Tieger present: “South Georgia Island, Seabird Paradise”
Join the Advanced Birding Club (ABC) of Tahoma Audubon as our own ABCers Joe Tieger, retired from the US. Fish and Wildlife Service and Super Fund Program at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and his wife Maggie, also retired from working on the international endangered species program at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, discuss their recent adventure to South Georgia Island. Experience this remote island with its wild, spectacular landscapes and special wildlife (penguin, seal and seabird colonies) in the vibrant spring. The island’s snow-covered mountains rise almost straight out of the sea and provide a backdrop for wildlife behaviors seldom seen elsewhere. See vast colonies of King Penguins with their offspring “Oakum Boys”, Southern Elephant Seals nursing young, and bulls starting to fight for breeding rights, and awkward Wandering Albatross young on their nesting grounds.
Lecture Location:
Wednesday, June 6, 2017: 6:45 to 8:45pm
University Place Library Meeting Room
3609 Market Place W, Suite 100
University Place, WA 98466
Price: Free