Upcoming Meetings
July 1st: Karl Enter of the Memorial Park Zoo together with some of his feathered friends will be returning by popular demand to present a show on owl behavior.  This will be an informative and fun presentation for the whole family and a great chance to see live raptors up close.

Note of Thanks to:  Mary Case and Eugenia Thompson for organizing the June Bird Count on June 5th.
Be sure…  to check your mailing label for the expiration date for the Newletter or your Audubon Society Membership. If you have a question please call Mary Case 706-548-3848 or Maggie Nettle 706-543-8823.
Not all…  of the information is in yet for  the Breeding Bird Count on Saturday June, 5, 1999. At this time a total of 86 species were recorded. I want to thank all of those who participated in this count. Additional information will be in the next Newsletter.

Report on the June 3rd meeting and potluck:
    The annual potluck dinner/meeting/election, which was held outside in the church pavilion on a slightly sultry Thursday evening, was well attended. After a filling meal of savory foods and flavorful desserts, elections were held. Elizabeth Little was elected president, Mary Case vice-president, Page Luttrell secretary, and Tom Shelton treasurer.  All were voted in with unanimous support. Gary Crider unveiled the new 1999 version of the ORAS t-shirt in three styles: short- and long-sleeved and collared short-sleeve. David Galewski presented a program on song identification of some of the warblers that were likely to be found during the June bird count. He focused on contrasting pairs of birds with similar songs (Black and White vs. Prothonotary, Parula vs. Prairie vs. Yellowthroat.  As always, David was very informative as well as delightfully entertaining. Page Luttrell followed with an update of the breeding bird survey. She emphasized that any evidence of breeding activity such as courtship, repeated singing in an area, nest building, caring for young, and sightings of fledglings is valuable data for the breeding bird survey and can be reported to Page. Just note the closest street cross-road to where the sighting took place as well as the day and time. Following the program, attendees consumed more refreshments and continued socializing to bring to an end an enjoyable evening.

Sightings
Maggie Nettles saw 2 Barred Owls, which she believed to be juveniles, bathing and frolicking in the North Oconee river.  Sarah Cliett observed a Bald Eagle fly over her property in Danielsville in the middle of May. David Galewski visited his sister in New York in May and spent a good deal of time at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge where he observed, among other species, Eurasian Widgeons and 2 Warbling Vireos.  Page and Tim saw a pair of Canadian Geese with goslings, a Lesser Scaup, and 6 Spotted Sandpipers. Bill Brown observed a Chuck Wills Widow on a nest in Oconee County. At his backyard feeder, Roy Majors observed the breeding behavior of Cowbirds, Redwing Blackbirds, Bluebirds, House Finches, and Mockingbirds and also saw Indigo Buntings and Blue Grosbeaks.

The American Birding Association/Leica Young Birder of the Year Competition
    This is a competition for ALL birders under the age of 18, whether you're a beginner or an experienced birder. We are not looking for big life or year lists or lists bulging with rarities. Rather we want young birders who are simply keen to improve their birding skills, whatever level they are at. So participants will be judged on the improvement they show in their field birding skills, based on the records they keep, during the year. When you register to enter the competition we will send you a pack to help get you started. The pack includes the ABA Field Notebook as well as the National Geographic Society's Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Birders Journal's The Basics of Bird Identification: Bird Topography, ABA Trip List, a Sanford Corp. pencil, a pin, and some guidelines on keeping a Field Notebook. You can also check out one of our web pages that gives you tips on how to take field notes (reproduced from an article published in Birding magazine February 1996).
   Some really great prizes are waiting to be won. They include a scholarship to attend the On the Wing field ornithology camp in Colorado run by the Colorado Bird Observatory and Keystone Science School plus $250 toward the cost of the air fare to get there, and a LEICA 8x32 BA Ultra binocular. The winner in each age group will receive a bundle of prizes worth over $2,400. In addition, prizes will also be awarded for Best Essays, Best Overall Field Notebook, Best Artwork in a Field Notebook, Best Conservation Field Notebook, and Most Innovative Customization of a Field Notebook. If you're a young birder interested in entering the competition you could try approaching your local bird club (i.e. Oconee Rivers Audubon) to sponsor you. Visit the ABA website (www.americanbirding.org) for more information. To obtain a registration form and competition instructions contact Lina DiGregorio at ABA by email: edcon@aba.org, by phone at 719-578 9703, or by mail at ABA, PO Box 6599, Colorado Springs, CO 80934, USA.

Action Advisory, Chlorfenapyr Update, 21 May 1999
    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced April 30, 1999, that it would not grant a full registration to American Cyanamid for the cotton pesticide chlorfenapyr (brand names Pirate and Alert). The American Bird Conservancy (ABC) leads the opposition to this pesticide, which has a half-life of one or more years in soil, as well as high reproductive toxicity to birds and other wildlife. Chlorfenapyr has been characterized by EPA as Aone of the most reproductively toxic pesticides to avian species that Environmental Fate and Effects Division has evaluated. Although full registration (section 3) of chlorfenapyr has not been granted, EPA is considering the possibility of again granting state-by-state emergency exemptions but under Avery severe use restrictions. The Agency has approved such exemptions over the past four years in several states. American Cyanamid however, objects to the limited conditions of emergency exemptions and is pressing EPA to reverse its position. Some members of Congress primarily from cotton growing states support Cyanamid's bid for full registration. Because of this, ABC is again calling for those who oppose registration of chlorfenapyr to send letters to EPA asking that they protect birds and other wildlife by denying ALL chlorfenapyr registrations.
    Even limited registration of a chemical by EPA has the potential to influence other nations' acceptance and use (for example, a US registration that allows the import of products from other countries on which the chemical is used). Chlorfenapyr use on cotton or other products grown outside of the US but in the Western Hemisphere will pose risks for migratory bird species--as well as for other birds and wildlife. EPA needs to send a strong message to the industry that the risks of chlorfenapyr to the environment and to avian species worldwide are unacceptable.  EPA needs to hear from the public they serveCask EPA to deny registration.
    EPA's decision to not grant full registration comes after an overwhelming response to the action advisory sent out by ABC through Pesticide Action Network and numerous bird related networks in the US and Canada. Approximately 200 opposing responses were received in EPA's public docket. ABC and Defenders of Wildlife also worked to insure that EPA initiated formal consultation with U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceCa process to which Cyanamid is opposed. American Cyanamid has proposed use of chlorfenapyr as an insecticide and miticide on cotton. Cyanamid claims that it is one of the most effective controls available for beet armyworm in chemically intensive cotton agriculture. Applications for use on citrus and vegetables and for termites and ants are also pending. Chlorfenapyr belongs to a new class of chemical called "pyrrole" -- never before registered by EPA.
    Letters of continuing opposition to registration and public support for EPA's current position can be e-mailed to: EPA Administrator Carol Browner at browner.carol@epa.gov and to Senator John Breaux (D LA) who supports registration senator@breaux.senate.gov
    For further information or copies of the original action advisory contact:
Kelley R. Tucker, Director, Pesticides and Birds Campaign,
American Bird Conservancy, 1250 24th St., NW Suite 400,
Washington, DC 20037,
phone: 202/778.9773 fax: 202/778.9778
e-mail:ktucker@abcbirds.org. Additional information can be found on the web at:www.abcbirds.org
 

Oconee Audubon Society

P.O. Box 48132

Athens, Georgia 30604-8132
 

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