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So many wonderful drawings were
entered in this year’s contest, it was hard
to choose the winners.But here on the cover of The Towhee,
in glorious black and white, are the first
place winners in each category; inside
on pages 6 and 7, you will find the 2nd
and 3rd place and Honorable Mention
winners.
We sure wish we could print in color
to give you the full impact of beautiful
compositions, but fortunately, the News
Tribune has put the full gallery of win-
ners on their website. Go check it out at
http://www.thenewstribune.com/adven-
ture/story/86922.html.
You can also view the original art-
work in the gallery at Tacoma Nature
Center over the summer months.
Published by the Tahoma Audubon Society
IN THIS ISSUE:
July/August 2007 Vol. 38 No.6
25 years ago page 2
TAS Bylaw changes page 2
Bryan Flint column page 3
New Owl species? page 4
BirdSongs page 4
New members page 5
Education page 8
Field trips page 9
Conservation page 10
Birdathon pages 9, 11 & 12
Paul Webster page 12
Results of the 2007 TAS Bird Drawing Contest
Top left: An boldly drawn Osprey by Kendyl Born, a homeschooled firstgrader; Top right: A beautifully composed illustration of a chickadee by EmilySands, a sixth-grader from All Saints School; Above: A wonderful painting ofa chickadee by Lauren Sullivan, a fourth-grader from St. Nicholas School.
Anyone who drives in the metro-
politan Puget Sound region knows
that getting from point A to point B is
an exhausting chore that gets worseevery year. Our nation’s love of cars
has influenced our transportation sys-
tems to such an extent that roads have
been built at the cost of all other
viable options. Ninety-two per cent
of all trips are made using an auto-
mobile. Sure, we have ferries, taxis,
public buses and trains. Yet the serv-
ices are limited in both routes and
frequency that make the option an
unrealistic one for many. By con-trast, roads are available 24/7. Gas
was once cheap (or so I hear). Buy a
car and you can go anywhere you
want. Complete freedom. That’s
what its all about, right?
Sometime after our local road net-
works and interstate highways were
built, we settled down and focused on
other important issues. We had our
roads, now we just needed to use
them. And use them we have.Washingtonians drove 27.6 billion
highway miles in 1995, and that
number is expected to increase to
48.5 billion miles by the year 2020 –
a 79% growth in travel.
Unwilling to invest in our trans-
portation system, we effectively
ignored them for the past 20 years.
Unfortunately, several factors have
contributed to making that a costly
mistake. The factors creating stresson Washington’s roadways include:
1) State population growth rate of
54% between 1980 and 2006.
End of the roadBy Krystal Kyer
see “Highway” on page 5
On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
Cross-Base Highway a relic of the past
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Staff
Flint, Bryan Executive Director
[email protected] 253-565-9129
Kyer, Krystal Conservation Coordinator [email protected] 253-232-9978
Newton, Gabriel Education Coordinator
[email protected] 253-565-5479
Tahoma Audubon Board of Directors
Brosius, Jane Membership 253-759-9852
Carkner, Dick 253-922-1604
Garner, John 253-756-9057
Gilmur, Thelma Membership 253-564-8210
Hukari, Molly Past President
Jordon, Al 253-588-7191
Larson, Sally 253-588-9839
Larson, Wayne 253-588-9839
LeGreid, Kathleen Publication 360-458-1483
Matthaei, Fred 253-564-6947
McNair-Huff, Rob Conservation 253-752-3628
Roening, Marcus 253-756-0215
Sloat, Sally Administration (contact) 253-564-0655
Shea, Margie Education 253-591-6439
Sullivan,Brian Volunteer 253-278-1026
Our field trips continued through
the summer, but regular meetingswere put off till fall.
Freshwater biologist
Ray Herbig led a trip
to study pond crea-
tures at the Snake
Lake Nature Center;
We studied what
will be the future of
Ruston Way Park
System on site with
Tacoma Planning Department’s
“waterfront” person; and Bob
Ramsey led an all day field trip from
“Snowline to Shoreline” starting withthe wildflowers of the mountain
meadows. There was a “Gray Whale
Potluck Picnic” at Stan & Helen
Engle’s backyard with a new film by
the American Cetacean Society, “The
Whales That Wouldn’t Die.”
We went to Anderson Island with
Peter Andrews for birding and the
local museum; to Wright Park with
Mary McKeever; and another all day
trip to Riechel Creek at Vale, with
Dan Sokolowski on his 160acres near the
S k o o k u m c h u c k
River. On an
evening walk with
Darlene and Ric
Zarwell we saw
where the
Audubon Nature
Center will be at the
mouth Of McAllister Creek,
Nisqually Delta. President Art
Peterson, Friends of Chambers
Creek, took us along the wilderness
trail in the Chambers Creek canyon.
It would be easy to check out
some of these same places and see
how they’ve come along in the 25
years since the 1982 summer.
Just the other day ...
July/August 2007Page 2
The Towhee is a publication of the Tahoma Audubon Society . The
Tahoma Audubon Society was chartered in 1969. TAS advocates for the
protection of wildlife and promotes conservation through education and
activities that enrich its member’s experiences in and with the naturalworld.
The Towhee is published monthly, nine times a year, with a combined
Jul/Aug and Dec/Jan issue. Submissions of articles and photographs of
birds, bird lore, natural history, conservation, and environmental educa-
tion are reviewed and considered for inclusion by the editor.Copy is due
by the 15th of the month and may be sent by e-mail, disk, or typed.
Editor: Kathleen Ann LeGreid: phone 360-458-1483
E-mail:kaleditor@ mindspring.com
Mailing: Vera & John Cragin and Winfield Giddings
Design & Layout: Robert Kelton: E-mail: [email protected]
Printing: Consolidated PressPrinted on recycled newsprint
By Helen Engle
Here’s what TAS was doing back in 1982
Feedback, comments and reminis-
cences welcome, 253-564-3112,
HELP NEEDED! Come water and weed at the
Adriana Hess Wetland Park/Audubon CenterMonday, July 16--9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Monday, August 20--9:30 to 11:30 a.m.Bring your favorite tools for weeding of small plants and trimming
back grass. Bring a lunch and stay for the 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. plantwalk.
University Place parks depend on help from volunteers and welike to be helpful here at the park where we are located. Weappreciate any amount of time that you can come and help.THANK-YOU so much to weeders and waterers who helped from
May 16 to June 16. Janet Bent, Margie Griffin, Earline C LucoMcQueen, Connie Decker, Karen Harris, Tom Gergen, Jennie Hall,and Berta Thompson.
Tahoma Audubon Societyproposes bylaw changes
During the past few months, the
Tahoma Audubon board has been study-
ing the bylaws of our organization with
the idea of updating them to reflect the
changes we have gone through in the past
two years.
Anytime changes are proposed,
those changes must be published
in two consecutive issues of the
Towhee. This gives you, the
membership, a chance to view the
proposed changes. The changes are
then voted on at the membership meeting
following the publication of the second
issue which in this case would be on
September 14th.
The following articles are those in
which we have proposed changes. The
changes are in bold, underlined type. We
invite comments on these changes by
emailing Molly Hukari at
You may view the bylaws in their
entirety at www.tahomaaudubon.org or
call 253-565-9278 or come into the office
at Adriana Hess to request or view a copy.
The address at Adriana Hess is 2917
Morrison Road West in University Place.
The following proposed change wasmade to provide a reference forchapter creation as opposed to thedate of incorporation.
ARTICLE I: STATUS
The Tahoma Audubon Society was reg-
istered on 12 August 1974 under the
provisions of the Washington State Non-
profit Corporations Act, RCW 24.03.
Tahoma Audubon was chartered by
National Audubon on March 17, 1969.
The following proposed changereflects our adoption of a chapter-
only membership. ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP
Section 2: Classes of member-
ship and dues shall be the same
as those maintained by the
National Audubon Society. Tahoma
Audubon Society may institute a
chapter membership separate from
National Audubon.
When the bylaws were written in1974, committee chairs wererequired to be on the board.This cre-ated a more cohesive, communica-tive board. As the chapter haschanged and people’s lives havebecome busier, this requirement hassometimes been an impediment tofilling chair positions. In the followingarticle, the word “shall” has beenchanged to “may”, giving chairs theoption of not being on the board.
ARTICLE V: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 2: The Board shall consist of at
least twelve members who are members
of the Society, with four elected each
year to serve for three years. The chair-
persons of the standing committees, if
SEPTEMBER 7 THROUGH 23.It's time to get Tahoma Audubon schedule ready for the Fair.
Call Thelma Gilmur, 253-564-8210 and say you will volunteer for a 4-hourshift. You'll receive a free ticket to the Fair for every day you volunteer.TAS has been at the Fair for 37 years telling the story of conservation. Weare there this year, in the Northwest Outdoors Tent. We will need nearly200 volunteer slots filled to adequately staff our booth, make presentationsin the "Hands-on Arena”, and be the building guides on our given days.Please pull out your calendar and let me hear from you. Please call 253-564-8210. We'll need people to put up and take down the booth, too, so ifyou have time on September 5,6, or 24 let me know.
Sign up to staff booth at Western Washington Fair
see “bylaws” on page 3
On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
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The phone woke me out of a dead sleep at two
thirty in the morning. Three Pierce County Council
members, staff from the Regional Transportation
Improvement District (RTID) and representatives
from Piece County Executive’s Office had been up
all night trying to work out a compromise on theCross-Base Highway. They were looking for some-
thing the environmental community could accept.
The next morning the RTID would vote on a roads
package to put before the voters in November.
How did this come to be? How could it be that the
fate of a three-county roads and transit plan hinged
on the opinion of Tahoma Audubon and its allies?
After so many years of being ignored on the Cross-
Base Highway, how could it be that elected officials
stayed up all night trying to find a way to meet our
approval?
It is the most recent example of the Audubon way:
fighting for its mission to preserve and protect
wildlife habitat in Pierce County.The Audubon way is to be tenacious and unyield-
ing in speaking truth to power about the need to pro-
tect habitat. That means never giving up, even when
it takes years to get the message across.
The Audubon way is to build coalitions and work
with allies to get the message out. Nothing Audubon
has succeeded in has been done on its own. In the
fight against Cross-Base, we united with the
Woodbrook Hunt Club and the equestrian communi-
ty and other allies in the environmental community
like Conservation NW.
The Audubon way is to work constructively to
ensure that our interests are at the table when the
decisions are being made. Being at the table
involves the willingness and ability to compromisewithout giving up your core values.
The Audubon way is to never believe that a cause
is lost, just because the power structure tells you that
it is. Three months ago the Cross-Base was consid-
ered fait accompli. No one thought that it would
actually get
removed from the
regional road proj-
ect list.
Only because of
the hard work of Audubon leaders
and our allies in the
C r o s s - B a s e
Coalition, it was.
We were able to
highlight the envi-
ronmental issues of the project in the media, with
elected leaders, and key community stakeholders.
The final compromise reached gives us certainty that
our issues will be addressed and alternatives actually
considered before money is appropriated for the
Cross-Base Highway. There is still $200 million left
to be found before the project could be completed.
The recent success against the Cross-BaseHighway would not have been achieved without the
hard work of key people who put in endless hours.
Thank you to Melody Fleckenstein, Tonia Oliver,
Jen Hansen, and every one in the equestrian commu-
nity. Thank you to Dave Werntz, Jen Watkins and
Hudson Dodd with Conservation NW and the mem-
ber groups of the Cross-Base Coalition. And thank
you to all the Audubon members who made their
voices heard.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S CORNER
Fighting to protect wildlife habitat in Pierce County
July/August 2007 Page 3
Tahoma Audubon is the Pierce County chapter of National Audubon.
As an Introductory member of Tahoma Audubon you also receive a
National Audubon membership and Audubon Magazine for one year.
Renewing your Chapter Membership ensures that we can continue to
do our work in Pierce County. Chapter membership includes: Towhee
newsletter subscription, free family events, birding trip invitations,
class & book discounts, conservation activities, annual celebrations
and more. Joint TAS/National Audubon membership includes:
Chapter membership, National membership, annual Audubon
Magazine subscription, and support of Important Bird Areas (IBA)
and state and national conservation agendas.
Membership Fee:
___ Introductory (first year) $20
___ Joint National/Tahoma Audubon $50
___ Chapter member renewal $30
___ Other Contributions _____________
Member(s) Name: _______________________________________
Address: _______________________________________________
City______________________________ Zip__________________
Phone: home ___________________business _________________
e-mail: ________________________________________________
Member #: _______________________________ (office use only)
Checks payable to: Tahoma Audubon
2917 Morrison Rd. W. University Place, 98466
Tahoma Audubon Society, established in 1969, is a 501(c)(3) non-
profit organization. Donations are tax deductible.
• $10 million for mitiga-tion and environmentalenhancements. Thisincludes money forimpacts to the equestri-
an community.• $60 million that isdependant on success-ful mediation. Could beused on Cross-Base or176th depending on theresults of the mediation.• $30 million for Cross-Base. Money cannot bespent until after themediation.
• Mediation does notstart until January 2009,when County Executivewill be term limited outof office.
• The mediation will startwith a fresh look at thetraffic problem in SouthPierce County and howto solve it, leaving theopportunity for some-thing other then Cross-Base. It will have priori-ty consideration of pre-venting impacts to OakPrairie habitat.
What we got from the Cross-
Base Highway compromise:
not appointed from the Board, may
become members of the Board. The
immediate past president shall also be a
member for one year after the new presi-
dent is elected.
We hired our first executive director in2004. We have added language toclarify that role.With the addition ofthis article, the numbers of subse-quent articles increased by one. Ihave not included all of thosechanges for the sake of conservationof space.
ARTICLE VIII: EXECUTIVE DIREC-
TOR
Section 1: The Board may choose to
hire an Executive Director. The
Executive Director’s job will consist of
those responsibilities in the job descrip-
tion and will include working with vol-
unteers and coordinating committee
and staff communication with the
Board. The Executive Director will
follow the policies of the organization.
The next change creates an avenueof communication between the board
and committees which could havebeen lost by the change to Article V.Board of Directors.There was also the desire by somecommittee chairs to update thedescription of the role of their com-mittees.Those changes also follow.
ARTICLE IX : COMMITTEES
Section 1: The President, with the
approval of the Board of Directors, shall
appoint chairpersons of standing com-
mittees. The chairpersons shall be mem-
bers of the Society. They may select their
own committee members with the rec-
ommendations and suggestions from the
Board. Terms of office shall be for oneyear. They may be re-appointed.
Standing committees shall be composed
of not less than three members. Each
committee will present no fewer than
quarterly reports to the Board.
d. Publications: The role of the
Publication Committee is to establish
and maintain guidelines to present
Tahoma Audubon to its membership
and to the public through publications
and media using a professional, uni-
form, and consistent message. The
Publication Committee publishes, at
least six times a year, a bulletin (TheTowhee) for the members of Tahoma
Audubon.
e. Education: The Education
Committee shall generate environmen-
tal education and natural history pro-
grams for youth and adults utilizing
sites operated by Tahoma Audubon
and natural areas of Pierce County.
The committee shall work with
schools, agencies, businesses, organiza-
tions and individuals in the communi-
ty to pursue its goals of environmental
education. The education committee
program should be developed as apart of the annual planning process.
The education committee shall serve
in a collaborative and supportive role
for the Education staff.
This final change clarifies which edi-tion of Robert’s Rules of Order will beused.
ARTICLE XIII : PARLIAMENTARY
AUTHORITY
In matters not covered by these bylaws
the most current edition of Robert's
Rules of Order shall govern.
... Bylaws changescontinued from page 2
On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
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BIRDSONGS by Phil Buly Technology and birdwatching
July/August 2007Page 4
Birdwatchers have long headed into the woods with little moreequipment than binoculars and a notebook. But when Laura
Erickson sets out on a birding trip,she now brings along two digitalcameras, a Palm device with a bird-species database and an iPodloaded with bird songs.
Indeed, many traditionalists who think that the whole point of bird-ing is to commune with nature bristle at the technology now avail-able to the modern birdwatcher, from laser pointers used to identify
birds perched on high branches to devices that play birdcalls.Professional alerting services, already popular in the UnitedKingdom and springing up in the U.S., allow hardcore hobbyists to
receive notices of local sightings on their cellphones orBlackBerrys.
"I have seen good friends in the field that looked like electronics
stores when they came down the trail," says Richard Payne, presi-dent of the American Birding Association,a Colorado Springs,Colo.,nonprofit that counts about 18,000 members. "It's not my style."
- By ANDREW LAVALLEE from the Wall Street Journal
Last September, my wife Angie and I were plan-
ning a trip to Ecuador to visit her family and see
more of the country. I planned to go off on my
own for a few days and do some birdwatching and pho-
tography. I was researching lodges and some informa-
tion on the San Isidro lodge caught my eye. According
to the site, for the last several years the managers and
guests there had been observing a pair of owls that were
a mystery, potentially a new species of owl. There was
even a close range photo of the bird. I spoke with the
managers and came to find out that the bird in question
was very similar to the Black Banded Owl but lived at a
much higher elevation than the Black Banded was sup-
posed to occur. I checked my “Birds of Ecuador” and
sure enough the Black Banded Owl was not supposed to
occur over 3,000 feet and the elevation at San Isidro was
7,000 feet! My interest piqued, I made a reservation to
stay at the lodge.
The driver picked me up in Quito, the capital city of
Ecuador. We had a day of birding on the way from San
Isidro to Quito. Our first main stop was high in the
paramo at Papallacta Pass. We searched for the elusive
Rufous Bellied Seedsnipe at 14,000 feet but did not find
it. However, we had a beautiful view of the lake dotted
open country from atop the
peak we were on. There
were many consolation
prizes including a singing
Tawny Antpitta and several
Stout Billed Cinclodes.
Upon arriving at San
Isidro, beautiful Inca Jays
greeted us in the parking lot.
Soon after that the manager
showed me the rather tame
Chestnut Crowned
Antpittas that came to feed
on worms put out by the
lodge staff. What a great
start! However, soon after
that the rains started and
continued most of the rest of
the afternoon. I decided to
take a rest, have dinner and
then try for the mystery owl.
The manager, Galo, tried to
locate the owl but we nei-
ther saw nor heard it that
first evening. The next day
I saw many beautiful
species of hummingbirds
and tanagers. The most
memorable experience of
the day was a Masked Trogon feeding on a large moth on
the ground just outside my hotel room. I had left my
large lens down at the lookout a few buildings away. I
rushed into my room, grabbed my 70-200 zoom and man-
aged to get some nice closeups as the trogon tried to sub-
due the moth. That evening 3 Dutch graduate students
and I tried for the owl again. We caught brief glimpses
of an owl but not
enough to even say
what species. Two
nights done and no
mystery owl, I was
starting to get worried.
The next day I saw
more nice species but I
had really chosen this
spot to see and record
the mystery owl and I
was not having any
luck. As I was having
dinner the 3rd night, the
Galo burst in and said
the owl was in its usual
perch atop a secropia
tree near the road.
Dessert could wait. We
headed out with spotlight and camera in hand. Sure
enough the owl was atop its favorite tree. The tree was
quite high and far away, but with my big lens and flash I
could reach it and make some fairly good images. It's a
striking black and white strix owl. The owl then flew
around from the perch nearer to us but we only caught
glimpses of the flight in the darkness. It landed back in
the secropia tree with a very
large insect in its beak. I
snapped off a rapid succes-
sion of photos and to my
delight I had some fairly
good ones of it feeding on
this big bug. The guide
explained that was why it
was attracted to this spot.
The large lights that illumi-
nated the road into the lodge
attracted large numbers of
very big moths and other
insects. The owl would
catch its prey in the air like a
very large flycatcher. The
guide told me he had even
seen the owl feeding on a bat
once. The owl disappeared
and we went to look in an
area where it sometimes
perched at night, very close
to my cabin. The guide
summoned me that he had
found it very close to the
trail. I followed and there it
was at very close range. So
close that I couldn't fit the
whole bird into the picture.
I took some closeups. In the darkness there was not easy
way to back up off the trail. I decided to head to my room
and grab my smaller lens. I did so and surprisingly the
bird was still there. I snapped off a few good photos and
then the bird departed.
The next day I enjoyed the good weather and beauti-
ful hummingbirds. That evening I decided to look for
the owl in the same area, near to my cabin that I had pho-
tographed it the previous evening. I heard a strange call,
it sounded a bit like a dog and a bit like an owl. I locat-
ed the bird near a large floodlight, this was lucky as I was
by myself and needed the light to help me focus on thebird. I took many nice photos with different poses, the
bird yawning, stretching and looking at me. I heard
another owl calling from nearby and the owl I was pho-
tographing returned its call. I was thrilled, listening to a
possible new owl species communicating with one of its
own kind high in the Ecuadorian cloud forest.
On this trip I learned that they had been seeing
these owls for about 7 years and had seen
young with the adult owls at least 2 years but
had never found a nest. I observed these owls at very
close range and they looked quite a bit larger than the 15-
17 inches listed for the Black Banded Owl, about the size
of our Barred Owl, which is listed at 21 inches. Other
people I talked to regarding this owl think they are larger
than the typical Black Banded Owl as well. Reportedly
the voice is very different too. This high altitude owl has
not been seen anywhere else in the world, but at the same
altitude in both Peru and Colombia people have heard and
recorded the same voice in the night. Galo told me that
they need to collect a bird to verify if its actually a new
species. The lodge is certainly not going to let anyone
do that as these birds are a big draw for tourists. If I were
a professional ornithologist I would certainly be trying to
find this bird in other parts of the Andean cloud forest and
try to determine if it were a new species (hopefully they
can figure this out without collecting one). I am not an
expert on the topic of new bird species, but it seems to me
a larger bird with a different voice, living at a very dif-
ferent altitude and habitat is probably a different species.
But for now it remains the San Isidro Mystery Owl.
Viewing and photographing it at close range was one of
the highlights of my birdwatching and photography expe-
riences.
Nate Chappell is a longtime Tahoma Audubon member. He is theavian gallery moderator of a top rated nature website, www.naturepho-tographers.net . He and his wife Angie, who is Ecuadorian, are lead-ing nature photography tours to Ecuador and Thailand this winter.There is more about these tours in this months Towhee. You can con-tact him at 253-512-1060.
photo/Nate Chappell
A possible new owl species gobbles up a big bug
photo/Nate Chappell This species is a striking black and white strix owl.
By Nate Chappell
Photographing a possiblenew owl species in Ecuador
On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
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July/August 2007 Page 5
New and Returning: Theresa And
& Terri Duf, M Baker, Nicole
Bateman, Ana Bennett, Mary Blyton,
Troy & Nita Born, Jane Davison,
Jack Dempsey, Sara Derr, Sandra
Elliott, Thomas Gergen, Dolores
Barrett, Dorie Golding, Yvonne
Herth, Ed Hume, Jerry Johannes,
Rebecca Johnson, Howard & Shirley
Johnson, J Kitchens, MarceilleKobel, Mark Kuhlmann, Peter &
Annie Laney, William Leneweaver,
Eric Lick, Lin Livingston, Diane
Martin, Monika Mc Faddeen, Denise
McCluskey, Brad McPhee, Bonnie &
Peter Meyer, Nicole Okada, David
and Chris Parent, Joe & Nancy
Peters, Dolores Sarandos, Tom Sims,
Ralff Somoff, Robert Sotak, Eileen
Stubblefield, Janda Volkmer, Louis
Walton, Nancy Jean White, Christine
Wood.
Introductory: (Joining through TAS
as new and will appear in New and
Returning at a later date.) Parker
Briggs, Lanny Walker.
Special Support, Chapter New andRenewing: (Joining through TAS.)
Susan Dawson, Worth & Marian
Gurley, Judy Krill, Thomas
Mansfield, Jim & Carolyn Nelson,
Edna Vandenheuvel, Donna & Alan
Zimmerschied.
Special Support, Joint TAS and
NAS: (Renewing done through
TAS.) Ronald
Coleman, John
Cragin, Harold Gray,
Sherrie Kilborn,
Dian Lord, Earline
C Luco McQueen.
Renewal: (List is from National,
including earlier listings under Joint
TAS and NAS in our monthlyreports.) Ruth Amos, Greg
Anglemeyer, Nora Arnold, Beverly
Ball, Juanita Bjork, Jerry Broadus,
Mary L Bryan, Anita Dorman,
Charlotte Duggan, Janis Elliott, Paul
Field, Linda & Scott Green, Mary
Baker Hairston, Shannon Heinrick,
Mr & Mrs John Herzog, Kent
Howard, Johnny Hughes, Howard &
Doreen Johnson, James Julich,
Katherine Loveless, Suzanne Mader,
Patricia McGill, Lynette Miller, NoraMiller, Michael Mitchell, Helen
Neighbor, Dale Pedersen, Warren
Picha, Tanja Scott, Rick Semple,
Jessica Troy & Steve Sissel, Dr
Ronald Taylor, David Taylor, Paul
Thompson, Joan Torfin, Laurissa
Wallace, Annette Wanwig, Monica
Weidman, Nancy Wittenberg, Mary
Zimmer.
Welcome greetings to new and returning members, May 16 to June 15, 2007
2) A72% increase in the number of registered vehi-
cles from 1980-2003.
3) Urban sprawl and increase in average trip length
(miles).
4) Congestion leading to increases in travel time.
5) Safety issues and failing roads due to lack of
maintenance.
6) Subsidized oil prices that mask the true cost of
driving and owning a car.
The real problem is that the current way of thinking
about transportation planning is to build more roads to
handle more capacity for more cars on those roads.
The trouble with that train of thought (no pun intend-ed) is that the solution feeds the problem, creating a
bigger problem requiring a bigger solution. In this
case, more cars need more roads, and adding capacity
adds demand for even more roads, and so on. Call it
the Flintstones method, if you like.
Adding more lanes to existing roads feeds that self-
reinforcing mechanism. Although, its not as bad, one
could argue, as constructing entirely new roads. New
roads have the nasty habit of traversing new territory –
land previously undeveloped by people or at least in a
more natural state then say existing roads or shopping
centers or residential neighborhoods. Laying new con-
crete often means filling unbuildable lands – wetlands,
in particular. Washington Department of
Transportation is the single largest contributor to wet-land mitigation. New roads also contribute to urban
sprawl and poor land use regulations.
Case in point, the proposed Cross-Base Highway or
SR 704 (I’ll get to that later).
After decades of ignoring our regional road prob-
lems, policymakers are proposing a solution: build
more capacity to handle the number of cars on today’s
roads, thereby cutting congestion and commuting time.
Sound familiar? It should, because it’s the old
Flintstones method. That, coupled with a modest tran-
sit package, constituted the policymaker’s solution six
years ago.
A lot has happened since then to force a change in
the direction and thinking on what constitutes good
transportation planning. Worldwide acknowledgementand awareness of the scientific consensus on global
warming and climate change is forcing governments,
especially at the local level, to take steps to cut green-
house gas emissions. In Washington, 55% of our
greenhouse gas emissions come from the transporta-
tion sector. At the same time, our country is at war
(again) in the Middle East, where over two-thirds of
the world’s proven oil reserves lay. Gasoline prices are
high and steady. And at home we constantly fight to
keep oil exploration out of national wildlife preserves.
So when Sound Transit and the Regional
Transportation Investment District (RTID) moved for-
ward simultaneously to develop a new transportation
plan for the region (meaning King, Snohomish, and
Pierce Counties), they knew that they were facing an
enormous challenge. The old school of thought pre-
dominated discussion in the early days. As the outsidefactors, coupled with the involvement of numerous
local environmental groups putting pressure on both
bodies for new solutions grew, they had to listen.
Maybe they didn’t want to. But in the end, they did.
The result is a regional transportation package that
emphasizes public transit options and ‘fix it first’ prior-
ities over simply building new capacity to move cars.
The Flintstones solution of just moving cars is out-
dated and a proven failure – like rock wheels. The
new solution is to emphasize moving people and
goods, not cars. How do we get people to and from
work? How do we transport goods? The answers
aren’t to be found in miles paved. The answers consist
of a package of creative solutions like rail, light rail,
sidewalks, bike lanes, HOVlanes, tolling (a.k.a. con-
gestion pricing), carpooling, telecommuting, smart
urban planning, etc.
The fact that the final version of the $17 billion joint
transportation package set to go before voters this
November consists of 61% Sound Transit funding, and
more RTID money going to fixing existing roads, con-
gestion pricing and non-motorized options points to a
real change in transportation planning. And that
change is one for the better: better for the environment
AND better for people and commerce.
The proposed Cross-Base Highway is evidence that
real change is underway in transportation planning.The road represents the last bastion of old school trans-
portation planning. Up until May 2007, the RTID
executive board clung to the thought of this new road
as an answer to traffic problems in South Pierce
County. It was the only new road slated to be in the
roads package. A six-mile long, two lane road (maxi-
mum speed 45 mph), with stop lights on both ends,
running east-west from SR 7 near Roy to I-5 at Thorne
Lane in Lakewood. The road would bisect Fort Lewis
and McChord, cutting across a wetlands system that
includes Audubon Springs and Spanaway Marsh, and
also across rare Oak Woodland Prairie Habitat, home
to numerous endangered and/or threatened species of
birds, wildlife, and plants. The path of the road is also
designated an Important Bird Area (IBA). Ongoing
projects in the area include bluebird nest box place-
ment and monitoring, and numerous field trips over theyears by Auduboner’s to the wetlands.
Falling squarely within our mission to protect birds,
wildlife and their habitats, Tahoma Audubon pursued
this issue with great tenacity over the years. We joined
a coalition of groups that included environmental
organizations, equestrians, local business owners, and
neighbors who were willing to fight for a solution that
did not including paving another natural area. A previ-
ous lawsuit over the endangered Gray Squirrel was
lost, appealed, and lost again at the state Supreme
Court of Appeals. Another lawsuit lays in waiting, and
is focused on the project’s environmental documents
that fail to adequately address NEPArequirements.
The coalition’s parties to the lawsuit didn’t want to
go this direction, unless forced to. Instead, we workedto put political, media, and public pressure on RTID
board members to remove the Cross-Base Highway
from the list of roads projects. In 2003-4 we meet with
Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg, the project’s
key supporter, to negotiate alternative options and
routes for the highway, as well as for better environ-
mental mitigation. After two years, the talks were
stalled. In 2007, Mr. Ladenburg again worked hard to
kill any opposition to his project.
After numerous meetings with RTID executive
board chair Shawn Bunney in the spring of 2007, we
were able to come to agreement on an alternate plan
that did not include funding for the Cross-Base
Highway per se. At the May 31st RTID executive
board meeting, the board voted in favor of a roadspackage free of any Cross-Base Highway money. This
was a huge symbolic victory for our coalition, and we
celebrated, if only tentatively.
By the following week’s vote of the full RTID
board, consisting of members of all three county coun-
cils, the political will had changed. We lost our votes
needed. We faced the very real possibility that 1) a
package fully funding Cross-Base would move for-
ward or 2) we would burn all our bridges with local
officials if we continued to oppose the package and be
blamed for its failure, as well. Either way, it was clear
we weren’t going to get what we wanted that day. And
after hours of all night negotiations over the phone,
brokering a deal en route to the meeting, and stalling
the meeting for two hours to get to a mediation agree-ment, we had a decision to make.
Most of us took the deal. We took a deal that was
hard to swallow, but in the end it is more than what we
had the week before. Its more than a symbolic victory:
it is a real opportunity for us to prevent an ill-con-
ceived environmentally destructive new road from ever
being built.
In the bigger picture, the would-be Cross-Base
Highway signals a paradigm shift in regional trans-
portation planning away from the Flintstones method
toward real solutions that move people and goods.
Now it is up to the Sound Transit and RTID boards
to sell it to the public, and its up to the region’s voters
to buy it, both literally and figuratively!
Highway ...-continued from page 1
On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
Cross base highway, as currently proposed, wouldcross Fort Lewis military base and Fort Lewis IBA
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July/August 2007 Page 7Page 6
Tahoma Audubon Bird Drawing Contest – 2007
Third place winners:
Grades 1-3: Nora Loney, a 3rdgrader with the Busy Bees 4HClub, right .
Grades 4-5: Chloe Sabo, a 5thgrader from Harbor MontessoriSchool, below .
Grades 6-7: Parker Olive, a7th grader fromHarborMontessori School, below right .
Grades 1-3: CambrieWilliams, a 3rd grader fromEvergreen Primary, right .
Grades 4-5: Julia Harper, a4th grader from All SaintsSchool, below .
Grades 6-7: Adam Nelson,a 7th grader from HarborMontessori School, below right .
Here are the drawings that made honorable mention. Remember, all the winning entries can beviewed in full color on the web at http://www.thenewstribune.com/adventure/story/86922.html
H a n n a h P e n a ,
5 t h g r a d e .
E m i l y R e p o n t e ,
5 t h g r a d e .
J o s h u a A l f a r o ,
4 t h g r a d e .
A n g e l a R a m o u s , 5 t h g r a d e .
A l y s s a S l y t e r , 5 t h g r a d e .
K a i t l i n M i l l e r , 5 t h g r a d e .
K a t e F a r n h a m ,
3 r d g r a d e .
K r i s t i n e K i n g s b u r y ,
7 t h g r a d e .
A n d r e w K r y l a t o r , 3 r d g r a d e .
C a r i s s a V r e u g d e n h i l , 3 r d g r a d e .
J e r e m y K e i s t e r , h o m e s c h o o l .
B l a k e W i l l i a m s ,
1 s t g r a d e .
R i l e y C l a r k e ,
4 t h g r a d e .
B r i a n L e e ,
6 t h g r a d e
.
Second place winners:
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On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
EDUCATION
Page 8 July/August 2007
1919 South Tyler Street, Tacoma WA 98338253-591-6439 www.metroparkstacoma.orgOpen Tuesday – Friday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
& Saturday 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
2917 Morrison Road W., University Pl.WA 98466253-565-9278 www.TahomaAudubon.org
Open Monday – Saturday10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
Tahoma Audubon Family Programs Discovery Walks All ages welcome, $5.00/person, free to Audubon membersThese walks are designed for families, and friends of all ages, with a special
invitation to grandparents. Discover a new location each month as you explore
the site with an experienced nature guide. Call 253-591-6439 for directions.
Pre-registration is required.
July 21 Snake Lake Watershed 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
August 18 Nelson Nature Park 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Morse Wildlife Preserve ProgramsBest for ages 2 and up, free to Audubon members
Explore this natural treasure located in Graham during the following special
open days. Call Gabriel for more information and directions at 253-565-5479.
Community ProgramsEnjoy a guided hike and activities with a different theme each month.
Programs run 10:00 a.m. – noon.
July 28 Habitats of Morse: Wetland
August 25 Habitats of Morse: Coniferous Forest
Open Trails: Walk the trails and discover the beauty of the five habitat zones
in the preserve. Programs run noon – 4:00 p.m.. July 8 August 12
Tahoma Audubon Just for Kids Nature Story Time
Best for ages 2 – 6, $5.00/child, free to Audubon members and U.P. residentsJoin us as we explore the park at the Adriana Hess Audubon Center in
University Place with nature stories based on the current theme. Adults are
welcome with the children. This is a wonderful grandparent/grandchild activi-ty! Space is limited. Call 253-591-6439 to register.
July 27 On the Beach 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
August 24 In the Deep 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Day Camps for kids age 4-6 & 8-10Visit the Tacoma Nature Center page on the MetroParks website for details:
www.metroparkstacoma.org.
Tacoma Nature Center Summer Day Camps Day Camps for kids age 5-15Visit the MetroParks website for details: www.metroparkstacoma.org.
Tiptoe through Tidepools at Titlow BeachSaturday, July 14, 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., FreeBring your family and join us on one of the lowest tides of the year to explore
the beach, learn about tidepool life and have lots of fun! The low tide of -3.2’
will be at11:43 a.m.. There will be self-guided tide pool exploration with natu-
ralists available for questions, a guided bird walk of Titlow park, crafts and
other activities for families. For more information, call 253-591-6439.
Nature Discovery Wednesdays4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m., Free
Animals are awesome! Join Tacoma Nature Center and Point Defiance Zoo &Aquarium staff to explore some amazing animal adaptations for survival.
You’ll get a chance to handle real animal skulls and pelts and meet a small live
animal ambassador from the Zoo!
July 11 Franklin Park
July 18 Jane Clark Park
July 25 Manitou Park
August 1 South Park
August 8 Jefferson Park
August 15 Portland Avenue Park
August 22 McKinley Playfield
Carnival in the Park Fridays5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Free
Summer Carnivals are back! Bring family, neighbors and friends. Come seeclowns and performing pigs, do hands-on science and experience some cool
critters, play carnival games and enjoy carnival food available for purchase.
July 6 Jefferson Park
July 13 Manitou Park
July 20 McKinley Playfield
August 17 Wright Park
Special Events
Park Party Fridays5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Free
Enjoy a fun, family-oriented evening at one of Tacoma’s great parks.
Activities for all ages. Challenge your family to a friendly relay race and play
other fun games. Slip your way down the inflatable water slide. Relax in the
park. Bring a picnic. And explore, with staff from Tacoma Nature Center and
Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, animals’amazing lives.
July 27 Jane Clark Park
August 3 Franklin Park
August 10 South Park
Tacoma Nature CenterArt ExhibitsAs part of the changing art gallery at the Center, please join us for:
Tahoma Audubon Bird Drawing Contest Winners, June 5 – August 25
The winning contest entries of the 8th annual contest will be on dis-
play for the summer at the Tacoma Nature Center. Participants
range from grade 2 to 7. Gallery available most open hours, call
ahead to ensure availability.
It’s time to clean those reading glasses and position your reading lamps.The Tahoma Audubon Book Club is gearing up for another year of readingand discussion. We are sorry to say that Dana and Amy Garrigan will not beour leaders this year as they are moving to Wisconsin where they will becloser to family.
In May at the Garrigan’s last meeting of the book club, we recounted theyears and books that we had read together. It was inspiring to discover thatwe had covered over two dozen books together. I want to take this opportu-nity to thank Dana and Amy for their guidance and let’s not forget the treats!
I am a richer person for having met them both. When conversation rollsaround to environmental issues, I have a much fuller background due to thebooks and discussions we have all shared. Best wishes and happy birding.
For our next book I have chosen “Condor: To the Brink and Back - TheLife and Times of One Giant Bird” by John Nielsen.This book will link nicelywith Diane Yorgason-Quinn’s article in the June Towhee “The Condors ofArizona.” For those of you who read that article and had your interestpiqued this is a great opportunity. Mr.Nielsen willreveal the story of the capture of the last wild birdsand the breeding program that led to the reintroduc-tion of Condors in California.
Please join us at our new day and time, Monday,September 10th at 7:00 pm at Adrianna Hess. Ifyou have any questions, contact Alan Ferguson at253-460-5569 or [email protected].
Tahoma Audubon Book Club
San Juan Islands Audubon announces with great joy, the birth of threeWestern Bluebirds in the Bailer Hill area of San Juan Island.These are thefirst juvenile bluebirds seen in the San Juans since about 1965.The par-ents are one of eight pair of Western Bluebirds translocated from Ft. Lewis,Pierce County, Washington, in March of this year.Both parents have sur-vived and were seen feeding the fledglings insects caught in the shortgrasses of Garry Oak habitat. Many volunteers spent the early wintermonths building and placing nest boxes throughout San Juan County inclassic bluebird feeding and breeding habitat. Please let us know if yousee any groups of bluebirds in the San Juans or adjacent counties. CallSan Juan Islands Audubon, Barbara Jensen, 360-378-308 or San JuanPreservation Trust, Kathleen Foley, 360-378-2461.
Baby birds on San Juan Island
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Page 9July/August 2007
Adriana Hess Audubon
Center Bird Walk Monday, July 9--noon to 1:00
p.m.
Monday, August 13--noon to
1:00 p.m.Leaders: Ruth and Patrick
Sullivan
Adriana Hess Audubon
Center Plant Walk Monday, July 16--noon to 1:00
p.m. Monday, August 20--
noon to 1:00 p.m.
There has been extensive
planting of natives at Hess,
this trip will look at the trees
and shrubs of the park. Come
get ideas for your yard.
Leader: Richard Van Deman.
Morse Wildlife Preserve
Bird WalkFriday, July 27--9:00 to 11:00
a.m.
Friday, August 24--9:00 to
11:00 a.m.Leader: Betty Jones. Call
TAS office to register, 253-
565-9278.
FIELD TRIPS
The 2007 Wenas Campout was great.About 200 people, including families with kids,enjoyed the nice weather and good program.
The Field Trips went up the canyons, on theridges, to the Lake, and all around WenasCreek and the Important Bird Area (IBA).
Besides day trips there were night-time owl
prowls, bat-watching, and bug-watching withthe “black light.”
At our Campfire programs Wildlife BiologistWDF&W Ken Bevis gave us good hope thatthe Wenas Important Bird Area will be protect-ed by the DNR Land Swaps.
Inspiring Nature Teacher Rob Sandelin did a"Tribal Values” program. He reminded us ofthe uniqueness of our Audubon Campout andthe impressive 3-generation run the event hasenjoyed.
The cumulative bird sightings list was readeach evening by Wilson Cady and we hit ahigh county of 127 species.
Native Plant Society’s Don Knoke talkedabout the flora of the Wenas Creek drainage,and what a good year this has been for wild-flowers.
Michelle Noe, Bats Northwest, talked aboutthe Bats we see in our state and showed herhigh-tech instrument that translates bat soundsto frequencies the human ear can hear.
Richard Repp of Yakima Valley Audubontalked about the Bluebird Trail, and how wemight help monitor the numbered boxes.
Don Norman, Consultant on all things natu-ral, and his crew of bird-banders were set upalong the Creek in camp and at Hardy Canyon.
Start thinking now about the 45th AnnualAudubon Campout at Wenas the weekend ofMay 24-26, 2008. For more information andlots of wonderful photos, see our website:wenasaudubon.org
Saturday, May 12, we began at 5:30 a.m. in front of
Art Wang’s house in Tacoma looking for Band-tailed
Pigeons. We had to wait later in the day to find the
pigeons at Snoqualmie Pass, but the singing Bewick’s
Wren and the view of Commencement Bay with the ris-
ing sun pinking the clouds were spectacular. This year
we were joined by Annie Meyer, a twelve-year-old bud-
ding birder, and her parents Nancy Hausauer and
Dane Meyer. Also on the trip were Wayne
Sladek, Patti Coolsen and Ed Sakai.
West Hylebos Park was alive with the
songs of the Black-throated Gray Warbler,Warbling Vireo, Wilson’s Warbler, Yellow
Warbler and Black-headed Grosbeak. A
Rufous Hummingbird whizzed by singing “zeee chup-
pity-chup.” A Red-breasted Sapsucker followed us
around the pond to visit his favorite trees.
In the muddy fields next to Emerald Downs we
found a flock of Long-billed Dowitchers, a Pectoral
Sandpiper, and Blue-winged Teal. Wayne spotted a
Sora walking along the far edge of the field in full view
of the group. The trees by the creek were filled with
Common Yellowthroats singing their “witchety-witch-
ety-witchety” song.
We headed for the mountains, stopping at Asahael
Curtis for the Townsend’s Warbler, Pacific SlopeFlycatcher and Varied Thrush. The Hyak sewage
treatment ponds had the usual pair of Barrow’s
Goldeneye.
A Turkey Vulture flew overhead as we exited for
Stampede Pass. The Hairy Woodpecker was working
the dead trees. Everyone had a great look at the noto-
riously difficult to see Hammond’s Flycatcher singing
its identifying “bean diiip” song.
At the Northern Pacific ponds in Cle Elum, we
found the Nashville Warbler, a colorful male Western
Tanager, and a Barrow’s Goldeneye with ducklings.
A Hooded Merganser was tending her young in the
marsh at the Teanaway Bridge. We pulled out an
American Dipper from the bridge on Masterson Road,
and a Calliope Hummingbird at a feeder.
Hidden Valley Road was hiding a number of
surprises. White-breasted and Pygmy
Nuthatches were both nesting near the road.
A pair of Red Crossbills flew in and landed
on the feeder below us. The Say’s Phoebewas flycatching from her perch on the fence.
We experienced a common occurrence in
Eastern Washington. The further East we went the
stronger the wind Annie spotted a Long-billed Curlew
flying along Lower Green Valley Road. But along the
Old Vantage Highway, Sage Thrashers and Sage
Sparrows were not to be seen or heard in the sage brush.
We heard one Brewer’s Sparrow.
The wind was calmer when we arrived at the
Caliche Ponds for Black-necked Stilts, Blue-winged
Teal, Cinnamon Teal, Ruddy Duck, and Yellow-head-
ed Blackbird. A Great Egret flew over Dodson Road.
We found our Canvasback and a Ring-necked Duck at
the end of Frenchman’s Hill Road. We headed for ourhotel in Moses Lake having seen or heard 119 birds.
Thank you for your support of the Audubon cause.
Your money is well spent; approximately 99% of
Birdathon funds go directly to Audubon education and
conservation programs. Our Birdathon includes
almost no expenses as it is completely organized and
run by chapter volunteers, with Thelma Gilmur lead-
ing the effort.
Trogon Tours Trip To Thailand January 13-27, 2008
Nate Chappell and his wife, Angie will lead a 2 week tripto Central and Northern Thailand next January.We willalso have 1 to 2 Thai nature guides with us the entire trip.The trip is focused on seeing and photographing thebirds and mammals of Thailand. We will travel fromBangkok to Unesco World Heritage site Khao YaiNational Park, Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary and DoiInthanon National Park in Northern Thailand. You willhave a chance to see and photograph many beautifulspecies of birds and animals. Thailand is rich in manybird families including giant hornbills, beautiful trogonsand colorful kingfishers. Cost: 3,400 includes all hotels,meals, transportation, park fees and guiding. Does notinclude the cost of airfare to/from the US to Thailand.Call Nate Chappell at 512-1060 for more information.Trogon Tours, Inc's website is www.trogontours.net.
Trogon Tours Trip To Ecuador December 8-16, 2007
Nate Chappell and his Ecuadorian wife, Angie, will leada trip to the mountains and western slope of the Andes.These are some of the best birding areas in the world.Elevations will range from 2,000 to 14,000 feet. We willstay at hotels in Quito, the Tandaypa Valley and Mindo onthis trip. Quality viewing and photography of Ecuador'sbirds will be the focus of the trip. Spectacular specieswhich participants have an excellent chance of seeinginclude Andean Cock of the Rock, 3 species of Antpittas,Andean Condor and many species of beautiful hum-mingbird and tanager. Cost: $1,700 includes all hotels,meals, transportation, park fees and guiding. Does notinclude cost of airfare between the US and Ecuador.Call Nate Chappell at 512-1060 for more information.Trogon Tours, Inc's website is www.trogontours.net.
Trogon Tours trips to Ecuador and Thailand
Where do you like to go to look for birds,hunt for butterflies, and photograph thewildflowers? Perhaps you like to visit a for-gotten state park or forest service road.Maybe you like to haunt the nearby sewerponds to check out wintering ducks andmigrants. Is there a place you’d like to visit
a place that you’ve wondered about? Doyou want help identify-ing the flora and faunaof a place? We mightknow the person whocan lend a hand.
Share your specialplace with other naturelovers and birdwatch-ers by leading a field
trip. Do you know someone else who wouldlike to lead a trip? Trip leaders don’t have tobe birders or naturalists.The people who
join the trip can tell you what you see andhear.You just need to be willing to shareyour time showing people your specialplace.
Join the Field Trip Committee at theSnake Lake Nature Center on Thursday,July 19, at 6:00 p.m. for a potluck planningsession. Bring your ideas for field trips anda dish to share (If your last name startswith A-M bring main dish; N-Z bring salador dessert). No matter what kind of ideayou have, (birds by bike? shrubs in winter?)we want to hear about it.We’re looking foreverything: short trips to look at lichens,mid-week trips to find dragonflies, day-longtrips to hunt for butterflies, and three-dayexpeditions to see all there is to see.Wewant them all.
A Birdathon trip with Heather and Marcus Roening
Birders' Picnic at Titlow, June 14, 2007, com-plete with tablecloths and floral arrangements.TAS director Bryan Flint on far right whips upthe birders to volunteer for field trips.
Photo/Diane Yorgason-Quinn
Where’s your favorite place?
44th Annual Washington
State Audubon Campout:
The Hazel Wolf Bird Sanctuary Campground in
the middle of the Wenas-Clemans Mountain IBA
On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
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On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org
Imagine people working together, communicating,
and learning from one another – all for the common
good of restoring degraded urban natural areas. Now
stop imagining. It’s happening right now, right here in
Tacoma. A collaborative effort is underway to protect
and restore publicly owned open-spaces and parks in
Tacoma. Citizens, neighborhood groups, local non-prof-its, City of Tacoma agencies, and Metro Parks Tacoma
are working together to coordinate efforts aimed at com-
bating invasive species like English ivy, holly, and
Himalayan blackberries from out-competing our native
vegetation. Without a comprehensive plan and volunteer
efforts to get a handle on these problems, our urban
canopy cover will continue to decline, and so will the
quality of habitat available for birds, wildlife, fish, and,
yes, people.
The Green Tacoma Partnership (GTP) is a collective
effort to address the pressing problem of declining habi-
tat and urban forests, along with associated decline in
ecosystem services, and quality of life in the city.
Through quarterly meetings, the partnership connects
diverse groups with each other, offering opportunities tonetwork, learn about other’s projects, and create opportu-
nities to work together.
Based on participant’s requests, a series of collabora-
tive restoration trainings and hands-on work parties are
underway. Free trainings are conducted at a different
site already adopted by a local group for restoration
work, and offers a chance for participants to connect to
one another, lend a hand, and learn a new environmental
restoration skill. Summer work parties have occurred at
Blueberry Park, Oak Tree Park, Puget Creek Gulch, and
Point Defiance. The trainings included tool usage and
safety, Scot’s broom removal techniques, planning andmanaging large work parties, and safe and effective
English ivy removal techniques. Over 200 people have
participated in these free events.
It’s not too late to get out there, meet your neighbors,
and get your hands dirty doing restoration work in
Tacoma. The next GTP training and work party will be
held on Saturday, July 28, 2007 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. at
China Lake Natural Area, in collaboration with Sierra
Club Tatoosh Group “Ivy League.” Focus will be o
removing Scot’s broom and other invasive species.
Along with building communication and group capac-
ity, the partnership serves as a conduit for the City of
Tacoma to share its work on the Open Space Plan as it is
being developed by the consultant, Parametrix. This is
an excellent opportunity for neighbors, groups and citi-zens directly involved with restoration efforts, to provide
direct input into the planning process as its being devel-
oped.
If you are interested in learning about the City’s Open
Space Plan, you may want to attend the next quarterly
meeting on Wednesday,
July 11, 2007 from
6:30-8:00 p.m. at the
University of Puget
Sound – Wyatt Hall.
A large portion of
the meeting will bededicated to a mini-
design charrette. What
do you think should be
included in the Open
Space Plan? What
doesn’t belong there?
What does an ‘open
space plan’look like to
you? What is most
important? What kind of policy tools will help you do
your work? These are the kinds of questions we will be
discussing. The results will be available to the consult-
ant, to help inform the process as it is happening. So
bring your ideas!
Learn more about the Green Tacoma Partnership onthe web at: www.greentacoma.org Or Call Krystal at
253-232-9978 for more information about GTP trainings
and quarterly meetings
More about the Open Space Plan can be found online
at: http://cityoftacoma.org/Page.aspx?hid=4784
CONSERVATION
July/August 2007Page 10
Working Together: Restoring Tacoma’s Natural Areas
photo/Ruth Sullivan
Monthly birdwalk at the Adriana Hess Audubon Center in May 2007
The Conservation Committemeets on a regular basis,contact Krystal for details.253-232-9978 or e-mail @[email protected]
Q U A R T E R L Y M E E T I N G
Q U A R T E R L Y
M E E T I N G
Join a growing community of volunteers dedicated to protectingand restoring Tacoma’s natural areas and public open spaces.
Network, Collaborate, and Create!Share your restoration activities, find a helping hand,seek and offer advice.
Learn about the Open-Space Plan and participate in a design-charette.
Last but not least, enjoy free hot beverages and cookies.
Wednesday, July 11th, 6:30-8:00 PMUniversity of Puget Sound in Wyatt Hall,
1500 N.Warner,Tacoma WA
Disappearing birds send environmental wake-up callAudubon analyses reveals dramat-
ic declines for some of Washington’s
most familiar birds. This decline for
some of the most common and
beloved birds in Washington State
echoes the disturbing findings from
the National Audubon Society. Anewscientific analysis reveals how local
and national threats are combining to
take a toll on birds, habitat and their
habitats across the country.
The dramatic national declines are
attributed to a variety of factors,
including the loss of shrub steppe,
grasslands, mature forests and wet-
lands, and other critical habitats from
multiple environmental threats such
as sprawl, energy development,
intense management for single
resources, and the spread of cleanfarming techniques. The national
study notes that these threats are now
compounded by new problems
including the escalating effects of
global warming and demand for corn-
based ethanol.
8/9/2019 07-2007 Towhee Newsletter Tahoma Audubon Society
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July/August 2007 On the web @ tahomaaudubon.org Page 11
Story and photos by Diane Yorgason-Quinn
n order to have a suc-
cessful Birdathon, first
one must choose a great
birding trip, such as May
19th’s Birdathon trip to
North Kitsap with Rolan Nelson.
Secondly, one must make those
birders work! Just giving a flat
amount doesn’t work the birders
hard enough! Make ‘em sweatfor those extra species. I pledged
to Faye McAdams Hands, and
she really has her system down.
Not only does she have to come
up with as many species as pos-
sible to get the most revenue for
Tahoma Audubon, but she
charges double for life birds,
state birds, or birds seen out of
their usual flight path. For next
year, she’s already come up with
a new device to charge double
for any species seen which has
ever been on the Endangered or
Threatened lists. This was afterwe realized we had several of
them this time, counting Bald
Eagle, Osprey, and a bunch of
Marbled Murrelets!
Cleverly timed to coincide
with the end of International
Migratory Bird Week (see
IMBD’s website at
http://www.birdday.org), Rolan Nelson scheduled his
Birdathon field trip to the most northerly reaches of the
Kitsap peninsula. Attended by a full flock of birdathon-
ers including the alpha male, new Tahoma Audubon
director Bryan Flint, we set out to find as many species
as possible and charge our sponsors dearly for them.
While getting ready to roll out of the Purdy Park &Ride, birds were already appearing and demanding to be
counted. Not one, not two, but three Bald Eagles
zoomed in and then were gone! It was an omen for the
day! Band-tailed and Rock Pigeons joined the crows
overhead.
Alighting first at Hansville, we scanned the bumpy
waters along with the Hansville mascot, a Bald Eagle
sitting on a piling just out of our reach, self consciously
ignoring us. grebes, Rhinoceros Auklets, guillemots,
sea ducks, gulls, and Marbled Murrelets were out there
for the gleaning, just waiting for someone to count them
between swells. Just around the corner, we came to
Point No Point, site of the oldest lighthouse in
Washington, which was given that strange name by
Captain Wilkes in 1841. Surrounded on three sides by
water, this jut of land has been the site of treaty signings
more than once, and being the first landfall, it continues
to draw odd passersby of the bird and fish sorts, so one
arrives with hopes for rarities. The murrelets and auk-
lets were close at hand here as we walked past the light-
house and into the rosebush tangles, where we foundthree Western Kingbirds, blown way off course (mean-
ing double dollars for TAS)! Then just off the point, we
visited a local with whom Rolan had made arrange-
ments and got some more amazing surprises. Two
female Yellow-Headed Blackbirds at the feeders (more
double dollars)! These were even more off course than
the kingbirds! As we enjoyed the many birds there, a
Western Tanager was spotted as well. A great day for
sunshine-yellow birds with more to come.
Next stop was Foulweather Bluff, a Nature
Conservancy reserve, where a walk through woods
brings you out to a fabulous beach with snow-capped
mountains on the other side of the salt water and still
tidal ponds behind us. The woods were so completely
insulated from the weather that it was like being indoors.
Stepping over a few downed logs on the path showed
that the name, “Foulweather” was given for good rea-
sons. Just-arrived Flycatchers were calling within the
sanctuary as well as the year-round Wrens, Bewick’s
and Winter. A creeper crept out to check out this bunch
of humanity. Once we exited the “door” from the forest,we stepped out onto this stunning beach where eagles
and Osprey ruled the skies along
with the gulls and Caspian
Terns. Herons were on the
beach and goldeneyes on the
pond. One of the most unusu-
al Osprey nests anywhere
dominated the inland side. It
wasn’t in the top of a tree, but
on a lower sideways branch, and the tree wasn’t even
dead! But there was definitely an Osprey sitting in it,
and then she flew off and circled several times when her
mate came back, giving us one of those “Wow”
moments that birders live for.
After lunch we walked part of the long and scenicHansville Greenway Wildlife Corridor starting at Buck
Lake Park where four species of swallows cavorted over
the lake and the playground equipment. Common
Yellowthroats, avens, and a rare close-up look at a male
Wilson’s Warbler were some of the many highlights.
This fascinating trail loops through multiple habitats
including ponds, woods, and meadows, part of the way
following an ancient rail bed. It is still undiscovered to
most people in the greater Puget Sound area, but not
around these parts. Wildlife checklists are maintained
on Hansville’s website (http://hansville.org), and much
effort continues to be expended in keeping this area pris-
tine.
After this great day of birding and company, we final-
ly counted the birds and broke up the party. We werepushing 70 species, but not quite there.
Unfortunately for my pocketbook,
Faye refused to quit birding, but kept
looking for more birds on the way
home and indeed until the end of the
24-hour period that started when we
met up with Rolan. She managed to
add several more species, so I had to
pay more! However, unlike most bills
I pay, when writing out this check, I
smiled in the realization that I had had
a GREAT day of birding and cama-
raderie, and it was all so worth it.
A Birdathon trip to
Birdathoners at Buck Lake, Kitsap County.
A dragonfly at Hansville Greenbelt.
Osprey and mountains seen from Foulweather Bluff, May 19, 2007
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