President's Message
Is it an April Fools’ joke that we’re already staring at the April Calendar? March was incredibly busy with 2nd graders’ rookery field trips, Mondays @10 programs, field trips, and birds coming and going around the Rookery Park. This month closes out our fiscal year, wraps up our school rookery field trips, and begins to slow things down as some of our members and visitors “migrate” north for time away from the Venice area. For those of you destined for “up north”, we wish you safe travels and look forward to seeing you again before too long.
Last month’s program night offered an opportunity to celebrate our volunteers with a rousing evening of fun, highlighted by ice cream sundaes, raffle items, and an engaging round of JeoBIRDY! It was wonderful to see and appreciate all the ways our volunteers are engaged. Every year, the Venice Area Audubon Board of Directors is immensely grateful for the THOUSANDS of volunteer hours that are contributed by so many people and this year is no exception. I know I say this often, but it’s true: volunteers are the backbone of this organization. We cannot do, offer, and participate in the activities that we engage in without our volunteers. Each volunteer is a contributor to achieving our mission: to promote an understanding of and interest in wildlife and the environment that supports it, and to foster the cause of conservation with emphasis on birds and their habitats.
Perhaps you caught the lovely article in the Venice Gondolier on March 26 about the Friends of Venice Public Library’s gift of Stan Takiela’s “The Kid’s Guide to Birds of Florida” book to every 2nd grader and teacher that attends a class rookery field trip. |
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The partnership with the Friends of Venice Public Library is in its second year and has been a hit with kids, teachers, and parents alike. Thanks to the Library supporters, our local children continue to engage in environmental education and awareness long after their field trip day. What an amazing gift!
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And lastly, remember we still have lots of great things to take part in this month! Mondays @ 10, upcoming field trips, and the last of our school field trips to the Rookery deserve a look at the Calendar. We hope to see you this spring! - Jean Pichler
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Our Board of Directors completed their annual Bylaws review and approved some updates to the document, which were presented at the March Program Night. Bylaws changes will be voted on for ratification by Members in April. In addition to correcting a few grammatical and spelling errors and clarifying confusing verbiage, the highlights of the updates include:
- Meetings are not required for June, July, Aug and Sept;
- Updating officers’ titles and duties;
- The Nominating Committee may accept candidates for upcoming Board of Directors’ elections at the March meeting or via email by March 31 for April elections;
- The addition of a new article on the voting process to permanently offer the option for in-person voting or electronic voting if a member is not present at the Annual Meeting.
If you were unable to attend the March Program Night and would like to review a copy of the updated Bylaws prior to April’s elections, please email me at info@veniceaudubon.org and I’ll be happy to send you a copy.
Board of Directors Election
Sharon Johnson, Nominating Committee Chair, announced the following candidates for the Board of Directors at the March meeting:
- President (2-year term) – Jean Pichler
- Corporate Secretary (2-year term) – Barbara Zittel
- Membership Secretary (2-year term) – Linda Moore (2-year term)
- Director (3-year term) – Eileen Gerle
The positions of Vice President and Director are open and available for interested candidates. If you’re interested in running for any Board positions or to nominate someone, please email info@veniceaudubon.org with the person’s name, contact information, and position of interest. Candidates can be accepted until voting begins on April 15. Candidates must be a member of Venice Area Audubon Society and give consent to be a candidate prior to being included on the ballot. |
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Purple Martin Colony News
BY BARBARA ZITTEL |
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We have been waiting patiently for some time now for our Purple Martin colony to start mating. More than 120 birds have been seen circling the housing we erected in late January, and they appear to have joined up in pairs.
The pine straw that we added has indentations and the birds have added green Live Oak leaves to many of the houses.
On March 24th we found five lovely eggs in one of the cavities in the white houses! We were jubilant and so were the second graders who were visiting! Since female Purple Martins lay only one egg a day, this clutch was probably started on March 20, exactly when the first egg was laid last year. So, we are off…
If you’d like to join us for a nest check, they will occur on the next few Mondays at 11 AM. All are welcome.
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A mated pair of Purple Martins, a nest, and the first eggs of the season! |
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Annual Membership Meeting
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This year’s Annual Membership Meeting, in accordance with our bylaws and required to maintain our nonprofit status, will be held TUESDAY, APRIL 15 at 6:00 PM at Venice United Church of Christ’s Naar Hall. As our fiscal year ends on April 30, the yearly financial report will be provided by Treasurer Rick Cordner and Members will vote for Board of Directors’ officers for the coming term, along with ratifying updates to our Bylaws. The public is invited to attend the meeting but only current Venice Area Audubon Society Members are permitted to vote. Members unable to attend the April 15th meeting will receive an online voting option following the meeting. Please plan to join us.
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Earth Day at Oscar Scherer State Park |
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The 36th Annual Earth Day Festival will be celebrated at Oscar Scherer State Park on Saturday, April 19 from 10 AM to 3 PM. There will be live music, fun-filled activities for kids, various environmental and informational booths, a photo contest, guided hikes and more.
Once again VAAS will have a booth at the festival and volunteers are needed to set it up, staff it, and take it down, and then return all supplies to the VAAS Center. Please contact Bill Fairbank via email at wgfairbank@gmail.com if you can help.
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Costa Rica - Birders Paradise
BY EILEEN GERLE
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After a successful morning birding at La selva Biological station, the group presented a donation to help further their Tropical Studies. |
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On March 7th twelve adventurous birders joined me on a wonderful trip to Costa Rica sponsored by VAAS and facilitated by Holbrook Travel. This journey exposed us to prime birdwatching habitats in numerous locations including the Caribbean lowlands, Pacific coast, Talamanca Mountains, Arenal Volcano National Park, and Carara National Park. Three hundred and eleven species of birds were observed or heard under the expert eyes and ears of our incredible guide, Ivan Castillo. In addition to trogans, macaws, hummers and toucans, among other beautiful birds, we saw howler monkeys, two and three-ted sloths, coatis, tree frogs, crocs and other assorted wildlife.
Costa Rica is a lush, friendly, and environmentally aware country. Our accommodations were lovely, the food was great, and our driver Marvin kept us safe and provided local snacks after our birding excursions. All in all, it was a great trip and Holbrook Travel once again did a marvelous job in putting it together. Next up – Galapagos Islands, May 6 - May 18, 2026. |
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Resplendent Quetzal – Photo by Dave Whited |
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Emerald Toucanet – Photo by Dave Whited |
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American Oystercatcher
BIRD OF THE MONTH BY MARGARET F. VIENS
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Photo by Margaret Viens -
Turtle Beach, Siesta Key, FL - November 2023 |
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American Oystercatchers are large, easily identifiable shorebirds. They are crow-sized, at 17.5” long, with a wingspan of 32”, and weigh about 1.4 lbs. They have a bright carrot-like bill, black head, yellow eyes, brown mantle, white underside and pale pink legs and feet.
The eastern race is found along the coast from Maine to Florida, with 10-15% of the total US population, estimated at 10,000 birds, spending the winter on Florida’s northwest to central-west coast. They head to their breeding grounds further north in March, where monogamous pairs share in the incubation and rearing of chicks. Nests are a shallow hollow lined with shells or small stones, built on coastal beaches, on islands or in dunes.
American Oystercatchers have a specialized diet of bivalve mollusks which includes, in addition to oysters, mussels and clams. They will also take sandworms. They probe the sand and mollusk beds and if they find a partially open shell, will stab their long bill into the shell, breaking the valve so they can consume the soft body inside. Another method is prying a mollusk loose from the bed and then hammering it to break the shell and expose the animal inside. Chicks are precocial and can run within 24 hours of hatching but cannot open bivalve shells until they are about 2 months old. They typically live for about 10 years but the oldest recorded oystercatcher was 17 years old.
Threats to oystercatchers include predation from foxes, racoons, coyotes, gulls, owls and nest washouts from especially high tides and storms.
References:
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