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NEW! Map of LaPorte County Birding Hot Spots
 

February 6, 2010  10-Noon

Great Backyard Bird Count

La Porte Public Library Children’s Section

904 Indiana Ave, La Porte

Potawatomi Audubon and the La Porte Library staff will be on hand to assist students in navigating the www.birdsource.org website in anticipation of the Great Backyard Bird Count to be held nationally on February 11-15, 2010. At this free event, students can not only learn to navigate the website but they can view the results from last year’s count and make a pine cone feeder to take home, play games about birds, and hear stories about birds.  Read more about the Great Backyard Bird Count in the following article.

February 11-15, 2010

Great Backyard Bird Count

We encourage everyone to join tens of thousands of everyday birders for the 13th annual Great Backyard Bird Count, a joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society.  This is an opportunity for families, students, and people of all ages to make an important contribution to conservation.  Participants will report their sightings online at www.birdsource.org.  Everyone can take part, from novice birders to experts, by counting as little as 15 minutes and reporting their sightings.  This data helps researchers understand bird population trends, information that is critical for effective conservation. Everyone’s efforts enable us to see what would otherwise be impossible, a comprehensive picture of where birds are in late winter and how their numbers and distribution compare with previous years.  Last year we increased the total number of observations and encourage every Potawatomi Audubon member to count birds for at least 15 minutes once during the four days and report their findings.  Totals are reported by zip code so check out the website.

April 15, 2010  6PM

Regular Program Meeting

La Porte Public Library

904 Indiana Ave, La Porte

Kelly Bontrager, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Entomology and Plant Pathology will present a program “ Gypsy Moths and the Emerald Ash Borer”.  We will also have a presentation on how to identify common Woodpeckers.

April 24, 2010  9 AM

Wildflower Walk

Bluhm County Park

3855 S 1100 West, Westville

Join us for a leisurely walk along a paved trail to view the many wildflowers.  Hepatica, bloodroot, harbinger of spring, and trillium are just a few of the wild flowers we should see.  Meet in the parking lot.

May 1, 2010  9 AM

Kankakee State Preserve

US Hwy 8

Join us for what has become an annual Field Trip.  This area is excellent for birding.  Last year we identified 22 different species of birds, everything from the Great Blue Heron to the Magnolia Warbler.   

May 8, 2010

Spring Bird Count

This event is an opportunity to get out and view a great variety of birds.  Beginning birders will be paired with experienced birders.  Bring your binoculars, birding guides, and dress for the weather.  We will meet at Luhr County Park at 7:30 AM.  You can also go out on your own but please contact Jim at 362-8109 for your tabulation form and the area in which you will be observing.

May 20, 2010  6 PM

Michigan City Public Library

Regular Program Meeting

Liz Ridenour, President of the La Porte Tree Commission will present a program, “Landscaping Your Yard for Energy Conservation”  We will also have a presentation on how to identify different Hawks.

June 17, 2010  6 PM

Annual Potawatomi Audubon Picnic

Bluhm County Park

3855 S 1100 West, Westville 

Join us for a potluck supper.  Bring your own table service, drink, and a dish to share.  Meat will be provided.  Bluhm County Park is an excellent place for birding.  There are a wide variety of birds because of the varied habitat.  The area has open fields, a wetland, a pond, and woods.  This is an excellent opportunity to share our bird sightings.   

 


 

Pileated Woodpecker

As seen at the feeder at the home of Joe
and Joan Wisniewski on Holmesville Road

 

 

Chickadees

Any inhabitant of a northern state who has taken the time to get acquainted with his or her surroundings is likely familiar with the chickadee.  This was the case even before W.C. Fields and Mae West immortalized the little creature in the film “My Little Chickadee” in 1940.  It is a delightful, saucy little (just a bit smaller than a sparrow) bird which stays with us throughout the year.  They make our winters more enjoyable with their antics at our feeders. 

Chickadees are aggressive little tykes with bright white and black coloring on the head, a cream-colored breast, and black, white, and gray stripes on the wings.   Many patient feeder tenders report that they can coax the chickadee regulars to eat from their hand.  These passerines eat insects during the summer, so they enjoy suet, but they will munch on sunflower and smaller seeds also. 

Chickadees usually hang together in small flocks throughout the winter, but pair up in breeding season to find a cavity or nest box to raise a family.  Their call is a familiar background noise in our neighborhood back yards, parks, and woodlands.  Even casual birders have little difficulty in recognizing the namesake chicka-dee-dee-dee call or the fee-beeee song notes.  They have a pack rat type of habit of hiding seed and dead insects in a variety of places.

Chickadees seem to be able to remember the location of a large number of these caches.

Most of the chickadees indigenous to the midwest are black-capped chickadees.  These are very similar in appearance to the Carolina chickadee which is more common in the southeastern US.  The ranges of the two species do overlap and they do interbreed. 

Chickadees have been extensively studied for their ability to communicate via subtle variations in their song patterns.  So these birds are not just pretty faces, they’re also pretty smart!  Ms. West should truly have been flattered to be WC’s little chickadee.

See the Projects Page for updates on bluebird trails, the bird count and the butterfly count.

SIGHTINGS:

Papa bluebird and teenage offspring.  Taken by Elizabeth Roman in her backyard.

 
 
 
 

 

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