Fowl Feathered Friends, winners of the 2024 "Bird and Brag" Birdathon
President's Message
Geez, did we ever march through March! Welcoming and meeting so many Venice Area Audubon members, local residents, and visitors has been a pleasure during these busy last few months.
The 2024 “Bird and Brag” Birdathon raised over $6,400 for our 2nd Grade Birdwatchers Program! Congratulations to Fowl Feathered Friends for identifying 167 species and to Clark’s Nutcrackers for achieving highest team donation. It was a fun weekend of birding for a terrific cause. Read more about it on our blog.
But wait! It’s not over yet. We still have lots of terrific things happening in April.
The annual VAAS General Meeting is Tuesday, April 16, at Venice United Church of Christ beginning at 6:00 with refreshments, followed by our General Meeting at 6:30. The meeting will include a summary of our year, including a financial report, and the opportunity for members to provide input for next year’s programming. Please plan to join us.
This year we have one candidate for the Board of Directors. Bailey Cleveland was appointed to the Board in October 2023 and is now running for a two-year Director’s position. Voting will be conducted using an online ballot. All VAAS members will receive a separate email with details and voting instructions. Whether you’re in Venice or elsewhere, your vote will count.
Lastly, we have a special fundraising opportunity from noon to noon on April 9 and 10, 2024. The Giving Partner, presented by The Community Foundation of Sarasota County every two years, offers nonprofits a special opportunity to seek funding. For this year’s campaign, we are highlighting our need to update materials and equipment for upcoming education programs. As a special incentive, all unique donations from $25 to $100 that are made during the Giving Days from noon to noon on April 9 and 10 will be matched through the generosity of The Patterson Foundation, offering us additional funds. Please consider supporting our education programs for the coming years with a donation of any amount. Read our profile and donate online.
- Jean Pichler, President
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Great Blue Heron
4 nests: 3 chicks
Great Egret
26 nests: 0 chicks
Double-crested Cormorant
2 nests: 2 chicks
Anhinga
6 nests: 3 chicks Black-crowned Night Heron
3 nests: 0 chicks Glossy Ibis
3 nests: 0 chicks |
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Purple Martin Watch Update
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This is the fifth year that the Venice Area Audubon Society has been ‘landlords’ of a Purple Martin colony of 66 apartments. Purple Martins are completely dependent upon humans for their housing and thus survival!
We waited patiently for them to return from their winter stays in the Amazon region of Brazil. They worried us when their arrival was about two weeks later than last year. And because of that, their egg laying has also been later than expected. Ten days ago, one couple finally laid their first egg! Then, five days ago we had over 20 eggs and on March twenty-fifth we found 96 eggs. Last year we had over 300 eggs, so we are well on our way to perhaps even higher numbers.
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It's Mulch Madness!
April’s Volunteer Saturday is scheduled for April 20 from 8-10 AM in honor of Earth Day. BYOS (Bring your own shovel) if you have one, or a rake, or borrow one from our tool cupboard, and help us prep the plants and trees for summer around the Venice Audubon Center and Rookery Park. We’re going to spread mulch to help them stay healthy through the hot months. And after Volunteer Saturday, take a trip out to Oscar Scherer State Park for their Earth Day activities!
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Bird of the Month: Scrub Jay
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The Florida Scrub-Jay is Florida’s only endemic bird species. Though related to its western cousins, it is genetically distinct and has been geographically separated for about 2 million years. About the size of a blue jay, it averages a length of 11” and a wingspan of 13.5”. It has no crest and is predominately blue in color with a gray breast and back. The cap and throat are white with a blue “necklace” across the chest. Its bill and legs are black and has dark brown eyes. In parks and managed areas, they often will be observed wearing distinctive leg bands to identify individual birds. Males and females are alike. It is a fair flyer but prefers to forage on the ground. It feeds on acorns, insects and small animals, depending on the season. It is one of the world’s rare cooperative breeders, meaning it usually has a family group that assists with raising young, food gathering and sentinel duties. It has a scratchy “weep” call along with various scolding and low chirping noises. The female has a distinctive “hiccing” call.
The Florida Scrub Jay was classified as “threatened” by Florida in 1975 and by the federal government in 1987. Its population is estimated between 8,000 to 10,000. It is highly habitat dependent and relies on the increasingly rare and threatened Florida scrub.
The bird pictured was photographed by Jim Rogers at Venice’s Shamrock Park in February 2024. - Jim Rogers
References:
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Earth Day at Oscar Scherer State Park
Saturday, April 20: 10AM - 3PM.
Spend some time at our local Florida State Park to celebrate our terrestrial home and learn how to better protect it. Tram tours, guided hikes, and plenty of information and activities will be available for all ages. Be sure to stop by the Venice Area Audubon tables, too! Learn more.
Traveling this summer? Heading “up north” for a few months? Birding festivals and events abound across the country this summer. Check out Cornell Lab’s list and locations.
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Upcoming Field Trips
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April is migration time! Winter warblers and other avian refugees from the northern cold are returning to their breeding areas in the north to nest. Birds such as Great-crested Flycatchers, Northern Parulas, Least Terns and Swallow-tailed Kites are coming to Florida to breed. Also, migrating birds that wintered in South and Central America will be flying through Florida on their way back to northern breeding areas. It will be a most rewarding month to go birding. Our thanks go out to all those hosting field trips.
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Plant of the Month: Discover the Wild Lime, Zanthoxylum fagara!
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Forming elegant trees, ranging from 5 to 20 feet tall and 3 to 12 feet wide, this long-lived perennial adds a touch of charm to any landscape. Its inconspicuous yellow-green flowers grace us mostly in winter and spring, followed by brown-black fruits ripening in the summer to early fall. Noted for its captivating aroma and interesting foliage, the Wild Lime boasts shiny, lacey leaves that catch the eye. But beware – its very sharp thorns make it an ideal choice for hedges or buffer plants! Thriving in full sun to part shade, it's adaptable to various moisture levels and even tolerant of occasional inundation. Embrace
its role in nature as a larval host for the giant swallowtail and
Schaus' swallowtail butterflies, while providing cover and food for
birds and other wildlife with its fruit. - Bailey Cleveland
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And
here's a fun fact: its crushed foliage exudes a delightful lime
fragrance, making it a sensory delight for any garden enthusiast! You
can find wild lime in the Pollinator Garden at the Venice Audubon
Center. |
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"March came in with a strong wind that topped an Australian Pine that was heavily loaded with cones and created a perfect feeding station for American Goldfinches among three of our mist nets. As a result, we spent 3 days processing Goldfinches, ending with a total of 146. One lone Pine Siskin who is a rare and irregular winter visitor, was captured with one of the feeding flocks."
- from “Birding News” by The Stedmans, Wings & Things, April 1989
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veniceaudubon.org / PO Box 1381 Venice, FL 34284 / 941-496-8984
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