Jan. 16 – Bera Fay

Jan. 23 – Dan

Jan 30 – The Wiggins

Feb. 6 – Kathy & Esta

Feb. 13 – Larry

Feb. 20 – Dan

Feb. 27 – Larry

Mar. 6 – Dan

These are all board members who have volunteered to perform this duty along with Harry who takes on the duties during the week.  Board members are going to begin inviting the general membership to accompany them in the performance of these duties.  Please try to help if you can.

Saturday, Jan. 23, 2010 – Field trip to Waste Water Treatment Plant.  We will depart from McDonald’s at 1201 N. Judge Ely at 8:00am.  Come earlier if you would like to buy breakfast.  Target birds are Black-necked Stilt, Wilson’s Phalarope and sandpipers.  Bring water and a snack.

Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010 – Membership meeting 7:00pm at the Rose Park Senior Center.  John English, Nature photographer and Big Country Audubon member will present,  “Wildlife, Nature & Scenic Photography”. Will cover techniques and equipment used as well as photographs shown as examples.

Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010 – Colorado City State Park.  We will depart at 7:00am from Whataburger 4241 South 1st St.  Come early if you would like to buy breakfast.  Target birds are Bushtits, Verdin and Pyrrhuloxia.  Bring water and snacks.  We plan to eat lunch in Colorado City.

Thursday, Mar. 4, 2010 – Membership meeting 7:00pm at the Rose Park Senior Center.  Dan Symonds, member of Big Country Audubon will present, “Birding Central Spain”.

Sat., Mar. 20, 2010 – Field Trip to Dyess Air Force Base.  We will meet at the main gate visitors center for passes at 0730.  You should have a picture ID.  This will be a half day trip.  Wild Turkey and Swainson’s Hawk will be the target birds.  Please email BigCountryAudubon@live.com or call the hotline by March 18th, if you plan to attend.

Fri & Sat,  April 9- 10, 2010 – Field trip to Ft. Hood.  This may be an overnight trip with details to be worked out later.  Look forward to this  good trip!  Target birds will be the Golden-cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo.

Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009 – Field trip to Lake O.H. Ivie.  We will leave from Burger King on Antilley Road promptly at 7:00am. This will be an all day trip, bring a sack lunch and water.  We will try to stop at a frequented eatery for lunch.  Target birds are returning waterfowl and Bald Eagles.

Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009 – This will be a half day field trip around Lake Ft. Phantom Hill.  We will meet at Denny’s on I-20 & FM600 at 7:30am.  Come earlier if you wish to eat breakfast.  Bring snacks and water.  Target birds will be Osprey, Vermillion Flycatcher and Canvasback.

Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009 – Christmas Party at 6:00pm at the Lueders Train Depot on the Ben Richey Boys Ranch at 501 Ben Richey Drive.  Please bring your favorite party finger food.  If you wish to exchange gifts, please bring one that doesn’t exceed a value of $10.

Thursday, April 2, 2009: General Meeting

Eleanor (Ellie) Hamby will speak at our April meeting at 7:00 PM at the Rose Park Senior Activity Center.

Ellie Hamby will present Journey to Galapogos. Ellie has been photographing people and wildlife all over the world for many years. Her specialty is capturing the faces of people and particularly the Tonga’s of Southern Zambia. She has had solo exhibitions of her photography in the United States and Africa and does numerous speaking engagements concerning her photography. Her photos have been on the cover of magazines and she has had extensive newspaper coverage in Zambia and the USA of her photography.

A Marine Iguana suns himself on the beach. Photo by Ellie Hamby

Her late husband, Kelly, and she traveled to over 70 countries and lived in Zambia, Africa for six years. She always travels with her camera at her side, relying on her camera and her sense of capturing, through the lens.  For more information and to see her photos of people, go to: http://www.photosbyellie.org/

Blue-footed Booby, by Ellie Hamby

The Galapagos Islands are beautiful islands and they are famed for their  biodiversity and for their vast number of endemic species. You will enjoy Ellie’s pictures and stories, so please come and bring a friend!

Saturday, April 4, 2009:  Star Party at the Abilene State Park

On Saturday, April 4th, there will be a Star Party at the Abilene State Park sponsored by Big Country Astronomy and the Friends of Abilene State Park. The event will run from sunset to midnight: Come and go or come and stay! There will be several telescopes, plus monitors, to explore the skies. This will be part of the local celebration of the International Year of Astronomy.

February 5, 2009: General Meeting, 7 pm

Sooty Tern

Strangers to the Ground:  The Birds of Tern Island, Hawaii

presented by Matthew York

Matthew York is a graduate of Baylor University.  He did his Masters’ work for Sul Ross State University concentrating on life ecology of Montezuma Quail (Cyrtonyx montezumae) in the Davis Mountains, Texas.

In addition to having an interest in birds as far back as he can remember, he has served as an Avian Wildlife Biologist with several species and organizations.  These include work with Golden-cheeked Warblers (Dendroica chrysoparia) for The Nature Conservancy at Fort Hood,  Seabird Field Assistant at Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge on Tern Island Field Station with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service:

Matt rescues a Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle at Tern Island

This past year he served as Avian Field Biologist with the Institute for Wildlife Studies.  There, he was a part of the San Clemente Island Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus mearnsi)  Recovery and Monitoring Project.  This endangered subspecies is found only on San Clemente Island, the southernmost member of the Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California.  Recently moving back to Texas to be closer to home and loved ones, he will be working for Texas A&M analyzing habitat characteristics, nesting locations, and presence or absence of the Black-capped Vireo (Vireo atricapilla) in portions of central Texas.

Please join us February 5, 2009, at 7 p.m. at Rose Park Activity Center, Room A, South 7th and Barrow Streets. Our meetings are free and open to the public.

A Laysan Albatross (l) saunters past a pair of Black-footed Albatrosses during their bonding dance on Tern Island

Note: February field trips and other activities will be added as soon as they are confirmed.

The long-awaited Painted Bunting patches are now here!  They are very handsome and even more striking than the above photo depicts.  One will look awesome on your birding vest; two will look stereoscopic on your hat; and three will look ridiculous plastered to your day pack – but who am I to comment on your style of club spirit.

The patches are only $6.00 a piece.  If you’d like one, two, or more, please contact us with your name, snail mail address, and how many patches you want.  Then send your check (addressed to Big Country Audubon)  to:

Big Country Audubon Society

P.O. Box 569

Abilene, Texas 79604

We will get your patches to you as fast as the US Post Office operates, around five to seven working days.  If you want your patches yesterday, call me (I’m in the phone book) or our hotline at 325-691-8981 and we can arrange a time for you to come over and pick them up.  If you are a patient birder, we will have the patches at our February 5 meeting for your purchase.

Proceeds from these patches will support the Club’s activities and they are a great way to promote our Club.  Don’t let them all fly away before you get yours!

Board Meeting: Tuesday, January 13, 2009  – 7:00 pm. Board meeting at MezAmiz Coffee Shop on South 7th.  Come early (6:30pm) to order dinner.  All members are welcome.

Field Trip: Saturday, January 17, 2009 – 7:30 am. Wild Goose Chase in Haskell County!  We’ll carpool from the Towne Crier on Business 20, leaving at 7:45 am.  Come earlier to enjoy their breakfast buffet.  Our target species are geese (Greater White-fronted, Canada, Snow, and Ross’s), hawks and falcons.  There’s a possibility we could see a Brant, too!

Wildlife Landscape Conference:  Saturday, January 24, 2009 – 8:30 am. In the Extension Conference Room at the Taylor County Extension Center.  Sponsored by the Big Country Master Naturalists, Texas Parks and Wildlife, and AgriLIFE Extension.  Topics covered will be Gardening for Wildlife, Hummingbird Habitats, Attracting Bluebirds, Managing Nestboxes, Backyard and Landowner Certification, Wildlife Exemption Requirements, and much more!  Registration is $15 and this includes a box lunch.  For more information please contact Taylor County Extension Office, 1982 Lytle Way, Abilene, TX 79602, Phone: 325-672-6048, or e-mail Taylor-tx@tamu.edu for more information.

February meeting:  February 5, 2009: to be announced