Shorebird Field Trip

photo by Barb Graf

Shorebird Trip

A field trip for anyone interested in seeing shorebird migration is set for Saturday morning August 7, 2010. Meet at the First St. Beach parking lot in Manistee at 8:00 AM. We will check the beach and pier for shorebirds then carpool to the Ludington Waste Water Treatment Facility, one of the better shorebird sites in Michigan, and return to Manistee about noon. If anyone is interested we may be able to finish up at the new Onekama Waste Ponds if it isn't too warm by then. Please call me at 231-510-9380 and leave a message if you are interested.

June Audubon Program, Butterflies with Steve Mueller

Karner Blue Butterfly, an endangered Michigan specie.

Ranger Steve Mueller, consummate naturalist,park ranger,consultant and researcher will present a program on butterflies Wednesday, June 9, 7pm at the Lake Bluff Audubon Center, 2890 Lakeshore Rd., Manistee. Mueller, current president of the West Michigan Butterfly Association and a Michigan Audubon Board mamber, is the discoverer of a new specie of moth and a nationwide traveler. His enthusiasm for the outdoor world is infectuous and his programs are always spell binding. For more information call the center at 723-4042 or email lakebluff@michiganaudubon.org .

West Michigan Birding Festival

This Weekend in Ludington. Tim Granger and Brian Allen of the Manistee Audubon will be presenting programs.

http://www.sabledunesaudubon.com/West_Michigan_Birding_Festival.html

Double Header for Meeting on April 14th

Mary Paine headlined the programs for the April Lake Bluff monthly meeting with a very informative and fascinating review of her recent trip to Tanzania with her family. Among the sites visited were Ngorogoro Crater http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ngorongoro_Conservation_Area and the Serengetti as well as the indiginous tribal area of the Tanzanian Bushmen. We all appreciated Mary's enthusiastic descriptions of her trip and insights into the culture and wildlife of Eastern Africa.

Akos Hivekovics and his wife Jessica did a short program on their ecotourism company
http://www.wildlifeandnaturetravel.com. After showing some very amazing pictures of Antartica we were able to see the plans for the Esperanza Center which is hoped to be a survival ark for dozens of species of amphibians and birds currently facing extinction. Akos and Jessica will return in fall for a more extensive showing of their travels and efforts to protect biodiviersity.

April Activities for Manistee Audubon

On Wednesday April 14th Mary Paine will present a program on her family's trip to Tanzania and the incredible Ngorogoro Crater Wildlife Refuge. Program at 7:00PM at the Lake Bluff Audubon Center.

On Saturday April 17th Meet at the causway at Arcadia at 8:00AM for the annual Arcadia spring birding trip with Benzie Audubon.

Pat Ryan and the Alaskan Islands

Horned Puffin one of the many birds studied by Pat Ryan during his stay in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.

Members of the Manistee Audubon enjoyed an excellent slide program by Pat Ryan of the USDA on his studies of seabirds of the Alaskan Islands during February's meeting on Wednesday Feb 10th.

Come join us for our next meeting on March 10th at 7:00PM for a viewing of the amazing PBS video on hummingbirds. We will talk about hummingbird feeders, gardens and sightings after the video with refreshments and hot chocolate.

The Seven Mysteries of Birding by Doug Cook

Doug Cook, President of the West Michigan Bank and Trust presented the January program at the Manistee Audubon Center. This was a thought provoking and humorous subject, the development of birding skills from beginner to master. Mr. Cook also had some very timely jokes on the economy and the US Banking system. This was a very entertaining program and I hope to see an article modeled after this lighting up the pages of "Birders World", "Birding", "Winging It" or some other publication. Thanks Doug!