San Joaquin Audubon Society

HERE'S OUR JULY/AUGUST 2021 NEWSLETTER: https://www.sanjoaquinaudubon.org/hoot-owl-journal/ No in-person programs until September, but FIELD TRIPS are back:... SATURDAY, July 17 Woodbridge Wilderness Join leaders Kathy and Virginia Bonham for our monthly census of this small riparian park on the banks of the Mokelumne River. Meet at the north end of Meadowlark Lane in Woodbridge at 8:00 a.m. SUNDAY, July 18 Mokelumne River Fish Hatchery Join leaders Joanne Katanic for our monthly census of this lovely little riparian area below Camanche Dam. Meet Joanne in the fish hatchery parking lot at 8:00 a.m. SATURDAY, August 7 Introductory Birding Field Trip Join leader Pat Paternostro at the north end of Laurel Ave. in Lodi (on the east side of Lodi Lake Park, off of Turner Rd.) at 8:00 a.m. Birders of all skill levels are welcome, but the focus will be on birding fundamentals. Extra binoculars and field guides will be available. SATURDAY, August 21 Woodbridge Wilderness Join leaders Kathy and Virginia Bonham for our monthly census of this small riparian park on the banks of the Mokelumne River. Meet at the north end of Meadowlark Lane in Woodbridge at 8:00 a.m. SUNDAY, August 22 Mokelumne River Fish Hatchery Join leaders Liz West and Joanne Katanic for our monthly census of this lovely little riparian area below Camanche Dam. Meet Liz and Joanne in the fish hatchery parking lot at 8:00 a.m.

LODI LAKE BIRDWALKTHIS WEEKEND (Jun 26) Birders July’s beginning birding walk at Lodi lake will take place this Saturday (6/26), due to the 4th of July weekend. We will start at the north end of Laurel Ave at 8am. ... Should be a good day to look for our summer residents as well as some newly hatched juveniles. It looks like it will be a cool morning, but will warm up as we walk. Pat Paternostro See more

On a lighter note. . .

THIS WEEKEND (June 19, 20) BUTTERFLY COUNT, FISH HATCHERY BIRDING 1) SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY ANNUAL SUMMER BUTTERFLY COUNT Date: Jun 19, 2021 Saturday 8:00 AM 3:00 PM PST Contact: Kathy Schick at [email protected] This field trip is cosponsored by San Joaquin Audubon, San Joaquin County University of California Cooperative Extension and the North American Butterfly Association. San Joaquin Audubon joined in 1986, and I have led the count in mid-June every year since then.... The count area includes Oak Grove Regional Park, Woodbridge Regional Park, Lodi Lake Wilderness Area and White Slough. (So we see many birds and other wildlife in the process of counting butterflies.) This field trip visits the same localities each year, surveying butterfly populations; we add to it by training (and retraining) all volunteers each year, so it is educational for participants. We provide all participants with our years of data as well as a local life-sized butterfly field guide. We will do this year’s trip on Saturday, June 19, 2021. Participants should plan to dress comfortably for walking and bring water and snacks. Bring Butterfly nets, books and binoculars if you have them. Anyone interested in participating in our Butterfly Count should contact Kathy Schick at [email protected]. 1) Masks, 2) social distancing, 3) don’t share optics. 2) BIRDING AT FISH HATCHERY Date: Jun 20, 2021 SUNDAY 8:00 AM Where: Mokelumne River Fish Hatchery. See the Map Join leaders Joanne Katanic and Liz West for our monthly census of this lovely riparian area on the Mokelumne River below Camanche Dam. Meet the leaders in the fish hatchery first parking lot at 8:00 AM 1) Masks, 2) social distancing, 3) don’t share optics.

BIG TREES STATE PARK, CALAVERAS COUNTY Date: Jun 12, 2021 Saturday 9:00 AM Where: Big Tree State Park. See the Map Join leader Donna Marciano and San Joaquin Audubon for a birding adventure at Big Trees State Park on Saturday, June 12th. Donna will lead our birding group on a trip through the park to look for nesting migrants and residents (and of course marvel at the sequioa’s). Some target birds include: White-headed Woodpecker, MacGillivray’s Warbler, Pacific Wren and T...ownsend’s Solitaire. The trip will begin at the visitor’s center parking lot at 9am. Please plan to bring lunch and pay the $10 per car admission fee. The terrain is mostly flat, but boots are recommended. If time allows, we may bird other spots in Calaveras County on the way home. Given COVID protocols, we are limiting the trip to 14 participants. Please RSVP to Srini or Donna @ [email protected] or [email protected] (Pileated Woodpecker, Calaveras Big Trees, April 2021 Alan England)

HOW EXCITINGSAN JOAQUIN AUDUBON FIELD TRIPS ARE BACK--Starting this Saturday, June 5 We hope you will can join us. Just like the old days, except: 1) Masks, 2) social distancing, 3) don’t share optics. INTRODUCTORY BIRDING @ LODI LAKE ...Continue reading

San Joaquin Audubon and Friends This Tuesday, June 1, there will be a training session for the countywide BURROWING OWL SURVEY. We’d love to have you attend and volunteer to help with the survey. Topic: Burrowing Owl Survey Meeting... Time: Jun 1, 2021 06:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/ 85257175960?pwd= dk5wNHJ2SGx1eWUveWxMOW5wcTRHdz 09

Photos from our Annual Audubon picnic on Saturday, May 15, 2021 at the Mokelumne Day Use Area at the Fish Hatchery. Elections were held and Donna Marciano is the President-elect replacing outgoing President Pat Paternostro. Nice birds were found during the monthly bird census led by Liz West and Pat Paternostro, it was a lovely day.

THREE BIG THINGS: 1) The May-June Chapter newsletter, the Hoot Owl, is available at: http://www.sanjoaquinaudubon.org///Hoot-Owl-May-Jun-21.pdf 2) Tuesday night May 11 at 7:00 pm is Part II of John Sterling's presentation, Changes in Bird Distribution and Population in the Central Valley over the last 80 Years-PART 2 ...Continue reading

San Joaquin Audubon General Meeting APRIL 13, TUESDAY 7:00PM (Link below) Topic: TREES IN TROUBLE Presenter: DANIEL MATHEWS... Daniel will discuss his book, Trees in Trouble, about the effects of wildfires, insect infestations, and climate change on Western forests, and what’s needed in order to sustain our forests through the challenging transition to a new environment. He will show images that couldn’t be put in the book, and some California-pertinent updates. The book just came out in paperback. Daniel Mathews is the author of Natural History of the Pacific Northwest Mountains, Rocky Mountain Natural History, and Cascade-Olympic Natural History. During a career of learning and writing about the natural history of western North America, he has backpacked far and wide, watched for fires from Desolation Peak Lookout, watched a forty-foot fir crash onto his family’s house in a storm, and lived for years in a forest cabin without electricity, heating with firewood and writing by kerosene lamp. He lives in Portland, Oregon. Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85828241367

NEXT (WRAP-UP) DIY MEETING Date: 2021, Apr 06, Tuesday 7:00PM PST https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81205666345... We are introducing a fun birding competition as part of our next DIY. We hope you all have a chance to participate over the next 3 weeks. Here is how it works!: 25 birds were placed in 5 categories worth 1 to 5 points (see chart here). The harder the bird is to find, the more points it’s worth. Scoring is easy. For example, if you find 4 of the birds in the 3 point line, you will earn 12 points (4 birds x 3 points each). If one can find all 25 birds (anywhere in the county) over the next 3 weeks, you will have earned all 75 points. This is of course all for funhopefully a way to enjoy our wonderful birds and the upcoming Spring weather. You can keep your points to yourself, share them online or at our DIY wrap-up meeting.

California condor to return to Northern California for first time in 100 years https://www.sfchronicle.com//Endangered-California-condor-

Bob Stahmer, long-time member of San Joaquin Audubon, shot this wonderful footage on 2/28/21 https://youtu.be/UK3OjGe1oqE

Susan Schneider, Ph.D., a member of San Joaquin Audubon, will address "Learning to Fight the Climate Crisis" this Thursday at 7pm for Sacramento Audubon. [Zoom meeting--link below] Initially focused on renewable energy, Susan Schneider holds degrees in environmental and mechanical engineering and did an energy efficiency project for US Steel. After a stint in the Peace Corps, she obtained a PhD in psychology, specializing in reinforcement learning. Schneider's award-winning ...book for the public, The Science of Consequences, covers learning principles and their many applications, including sustainability. A lifelong environmental activist, Schneider was recently President of San Joaquin Audubon, and co-chairs the San Joaquin County Climate Action Coalition. She also recently joined the board of Idle-Free California. (No need to idle a vehicle more than 10 seconds!) Schneider coauthored two chapters in the upcoming Practitioner's Guide to Creating Successful Environmental Behavior Change, and has given numerous climate change talks and workshops. A Visiting Scholar at the University of the Pacific, Schneider is a consultant for Root Solutions, a Bay-area sustainability nonprofit. Here is the link to Susan's presentation: https://www.sacramentoaudubon.org//monthly-speaker-online- See more

Cornell Ornithology Lab + National Audubon + Birds Canada = Great Backyard Bird Count (Feb 12-15) https://www.birdcount.org/

THIS WEEK and Upcoming SJ Audubon General Meeting (Zoom) FEBRUARY 9, 2021 7:00pm Join the meeting by clicking on the Zoom link below https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81684009038...Continue reading

Cut the strings before throwing out.

THIS Tuesday, 2/2, JOIN SAN JOAQUIN AUDUBON FOR OUR NEXT DIY (Do It Yourself) FIELD TRIP. When: Tuesday, February 2 at 7:00 p.m. Plan: Discuss this month’s trip: Flood & Waverly Road... Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85038076039 We hope to see you there. ==================== Here’s how it works: SESSION I (Virtual) (Tuesday, 2/2 @ 7:00 pm) A Zoom meeting with the field trip leader. SESSION 1+ is the DIY part: before the next Zoom meeting, you visit the birding location, where you’ll look for the listed birds and other wildlife. Take binoculars and a bird field guide if you have them and keep a list of your observations. Please follow all COVID-19 precautions when you are in the field: wearing masks, observing social distancing and hand washing. SESSION 2 (Virtual) Usually the third week after the first meeting, participants join again on Zoom, sharing what they found, and there will be an introduction to the next DIY field trip location.

(Thanks, Joanne Katanic)

MOKELUMNE RIVER FISH HATCHERY-- DIY FOLLOW UP MEETING (Zoom Link) Topic: DIY Birding Presentation/Discussion Time: Dec 17, 2020 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting... https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87608480278 See more

UPDATES: SJ AUDUBON CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNTS 1) The Stockton CBS, originally scheduled for December 20, has been canceled due to the stay-at-home order for San Joaquin County 2) The Wallace-Bellota CBC is still scheduled, but for SATURDAY, JANUARY 2, not Jan 3 as previously announced. The decision whether to cancel depends on what we learn later this month if our current lockdown will continue into January. Kasey Foley is the leader.

The Black Hole is a private wildlife refuge at the end of West Woodbridge Road near Lodi, about a mile west of the Isenberg Crane Reserve. Good article https://www.lodinews.com//article_829cdfee-3383-11eb-aeeb-

Another way for birders to while away the hours while locked down at home.

TUESDAY, November 10, 7:00 p.m. ZOOM MEETING LINK: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87650154751 Birds, West Nile Virus, and the Mosquito Connection Dr. Tara Thiemann... West Nile virus was introduced to the United States in New York in 1999 and, by 2003, it had spread across the country and was detected in California. It has since remained endemic throughout the country and state. West Nile virus is a mosquito-borne virus that primarily infects birds, sometimes decimating populations. Additionally, with opportunistic feeding by mosquito vectors, the virus can be transmitted to mammals such as horses and humans. Host selection by these mosquito vectors is a crucial factor in the transmission of this virus and other pathogens. The goal of the current project was to characterize the feeding patterns of Cx. tarsalis, the Cx. pipiens complex, and other mosquito species according to habitat type in San Joaquin County. Over 600 bloodfed females were collected from different habitat types between August 2009 and November 2012. Over 80% of the bloodmeals were successfully identified. These bloodmeals represented 77 host species: 44% were mammalian and 56% were avian, with being collected from riparian and agricultural habitats. Overall, the most commonly fed upon species were cattle, house finches, and American robins. American crow, yellow-billed magpie, and California scrub-jay, species known to be highly impacted by West Nile virus, were also fed upon in this study. Dr. Tara Thiemann is an Associate Professor of Biological Sciences at University of the Pacific. She was born and raised in Missouri, receiving her B.S. and M.S. in Biology at Truman State University in Kirksville, MO. She then moved to California to pursue graduate work at University of California Davis. Dr. Thiemann graduated from UC Davis in 2011 with a Ph.D. in Entomology and a Designated Emphasis in the Biology of Vector-borne Diseases. Her dissertation focused on the bloodfeeding patterns of the Culex pipiens complex and Culextarsalis, two primary vectors of West Nile virus in California. At Pacific, Dr. Thiemann continues to study mosquitoes, while training both undergraduate and graduate students in her research lab. Projects include continued exploration of the bloodfeeding patterns of California mosquitoes, studying the transmission of dog heartworm, and characterizing insecticide resistance in local populations.