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JAN/FEB 2018 NEWSLETTER OF GREAT SALT LAKE AUDUBONwww.greatsaltlakeaudubon.org
INSIDE
BIRDS ‘n BITES Join us for our monthly informative and entertaining programs. The meetings are free and open to all and presented in the Education Building at the Tracy Aviary in Liberty Park. Doors open at 6:30 pm for refreshments and socializing; the programs begin at 7pm. Enter Liberty Park at 600 E 900 South.
Board Highlights...............................................page 2 Membership Information..................................page 2Dark Skies.........................................................page 3Citizen Science..................................................page 3Calendar of Events.........................................page 4-5eBird.................................................................page 6Grants Awarded................................................page 7
Tuesday, January, 16th, 7 PM, “An Overview of the US Magnesium Superfund Site,” Anna Rasmuson, Logan Frederick, and Shu YangAdvised by Dr. William P. Johnson UofU, Geology and Geophysics Technical Advisory Team for FRIENDS of Great Salt Lake
Tuesday, February 20th, 7 PM, “Spring Awakening: ID Tips on Confusing Spring Birds,” Ian Batterman, GSLA Field Trip Coordinator and Board Member
Spring is a wonderful time to go out and bird watch as many species are out in full display with their breeding plumage and beautiful songs. However, this doesn’t mean that the birds are any easier to identify. In fact with more species around during spring and summer, identification can be even harder. Ian Bat-terman is once again going to point out different field marks and behaviors to look for amongst some of Utah’s more confusing breeding bird species. At the end, Ian will test your knowledge with a brief quiz to hone in your identification skills.
US Magnesium (US Mag) is the largest producer of magnesium (Mg) in North America and produces 50,000 tons of Mg each year by concentrating salt from the Great Salt Lake (GSL). The proprietary salt refining process also generates ~2 million gallons of wastewater per day. Unlike most Superfund sites, US Mag is currently op-erational, posing unique remediation challenges. The facility and newly generated waste are regulated under the Resources Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), whereas the Superfund process manages the historic waste present on the US Mag property surrounding the facility and an additional 5-mile buffer radius. The primary contaminants of potential concern that have been identified through the Superfund process are dioxins, hexa-chlorobenzene (HCB), chlorine gas, and hydrochloric acid (HCl). Soil, groundwater, surface water, and air are currently undergoing sampling and characterization to understand the contaminants present and their associated ecological and human exposure risk. A Remedial Investigation (RI) study at the site has identified a containment issue at the Active Waste Pond as well as the potential for contaminant transport via air. The Superfund process will identify a means to contain the waste from US Mag as well as remediate other potential contamination at the site. US Mag is currently in Phase 2 of a 4 Phase remediation process.
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THE PELICANNEWSLETTER OF GREAT SALT LAKE AUDUBON
Printed on recycled paper.
Mission Statement: Great Salt Lake Audubon is dedi-cated to protecting and enhancing habitat for wild
birds, animals and plants, and to maintaining healthy and diverse environments for wildlife and people
throughout the state.
GREAT SALT LAKE AUDUBON DIRECTORYwww.greatsaltlakeaudubon.org
OFFICE152 W. Burton, Suite J, SLC, Utah • (385) 313-0608Send correspondence to P. O. Box 520867, SLC, UT 84152-0867
OFFICERSPresident, Heather Dove.......................................801-201-3637 Vice President, Ray Smith....................................801-532-7384Secretary, Heather Griffiths...............................435-213-6565 Treasurer, Kandy Richards..................................801-599-7410
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Term Ending 2019Kandy Richards....................................................801-599-7410Melanie Taylor......................................................801-733-0760Term Ending 2018Ian Batterman.......................................................920-360-0805Term Ending 2017Karin Kirchhoff................................................... 801-793-0484 Anne Terry............................................................361-649-2430Heather Griffiths.................................................. 435-213-6565
COMMMITTEE CHAIRSFinance, Melanie Taylor.........................................801-733-0760Newsletter Editor, Heather Griffiths.................... 435-213-6565Education, Anne Terry...........................................361-649-2430Field Trips, Ian Batterman....................................920-360-0805Fundraising.............................................................OPEN Social Media Editor, Heather Griffiths...................435-213-6565 Hospitality, Bob & Darlea Stack............................801-487-3792 Membership, Heather Dove ..................................801-201-3637 Programs, Karin Kirchhoff.....................................801-793-0484 Publicity, Rollie and Martha Westman...................651-308-2717 Conservation, Deb Drain........................................801-455-4353 Volunteer Hours, Barb Eastman.............................801-671-8932 Website, Heather Dove & David Druker................801-201-3637
Submission Guidelines: Original articles and photos arewelcomed. The editor reserves the right to choose and edit as needed. Email articles to [email protected]. The Pelican is published 6 times a year. Submis-sion deadline for the Mar/ Apr issue is February 10, 2018.
Three ways to join or renew your membership:
1. Great Salt Lake Audubon-only membership is $30 a year. All dues support local education, advocacy, habitat restoration, field trips, newsletter publication, and more. (See membership form on page 8 of The Pelican). Local membership is very important, as GSLA is primarily self-supporting.2. A new membership to National Audubon Society (NAS) costs $25, with renewal of $35 after the first year. Benefits include the quarterly national magazine and automatic membership in GSLA. Most of your dues support environmental campaigns at the national level. As a new NAS member, you will receive a courtesy subscript to our newsletter, The Pelican, for one year. Thereafter, if you wish to continue to receive The Pelican, please join Great Salt Lake Audubon. 3. You can join both GSLA and NAS if you wish to support both local and national activities.
BOARD HIGHLIGHTS NOVEMBER/DECEMBERby Heather Griffiths
Thank you to everyone who has answered the call for volunteers! We are excited to work with every one of you. Your support and time is vital to Great Salt Lake Audubon’s continuing efforts to conserve and preserve our natural local habitats. If you are interested in putting your skills to use for local conservation, please contact our president, Heather Dove, at [email protected].
Melanie Taylor has been asked to chair the Finance Com-mittee. Jeff Orth has agreed to represent the membership at large on this committee.
We recently partnered with Utah Support Advocates for Recovery Awareness (USARA) for an education family program in October and had a blast! We made bird masks, talked about “spooky” birds, and dispelled myths by letting children and adults explore skull replicas, feathers, and an owl pellet (loaned from Tracy Aviary). Over 200 people attended!
There is still time to participate in a Christmas Bird Count (CBC)! See our calendar of events for information on the Jordan River CBC. The active participation of local birders is paramount to the success of the CBC. If you are interest-ed in volunteering in future counts, please let us know!
GSLA would like to thank Nancy Sakahara for her devoted time as a board member and former Newsletter Editor. Nan-cy’s contributions to GSLA have been immeasurable and we are grateful for her dedication and hard work. We wish Nancy the best in her future endeavors.
3JAN/FEB
Dark Skies Event to kick off Lights Out Salt LakeBy Cooper Farr
Tracy Aviary, in partnership with the Salt Lake Chapter of the International Dark Sky Association, has been leading a citizen science project investigating the impact of light pollution on birds that migrate at night. The Salt Lake Avian Collision Survey (SLACS) documented birds that collided with downtown buildings through-out the spring and fall migration seasons in 2017, and took measurements of nighttime light levels and building characteristics. This information is being used to launch a Lights Out Salt Lake initiative: a campaign to pro-mote efficient, dark-sky friendly lighting practices during the migration season and make Salt Lake safer for the many birds that migrate through our valley. Join the community in a kickoff evening event at Tracy Aviary on March 1st to learn more about the importance of dark skies, and the ways that you can participate in Lights Out Salt Lake! More information coming soon to www.tracyaviary.org/upcoming-events
Join Tracy Aviary’s Citizen Science Team for 2018 Breeding Bird Surveys
Are you interested in learning more about Utah’s birds? Would you like to collect data that will help conserve birds and their habitats? Join Tracy Aviary’s citizen science team for our yearly breeding bird surveys! We welcome birders of any level, and we will teach you bird identification by sight and sound, data recording skills, and everything else you need to know to conduct bird surveys at our study sites throughout Salt Lake County. Our indoor training starts at the end of February and our field training starts in March. Breeding bird surveys are conducted April-July. To learn more and sign up, email Cooper Farr, [email protected] by February 10, 2018.
Join our email listWe regularly send out event reminders, action alerts and legislative updates via email. If you would like to receive this important info, send an email request to Heather Dove at [email protected]. GSLA does not share your email informa-tion with any persons or organizations.
Steller’s Jays, normally found in the higher elevations in conifer-ous forests, have been spotted around the Salt Lake Valley in Holladay, Millcreek, the East Bench, and other locations.this fall. The reason we see this large, crested blue and black jay at lower elevations is due to a scarcity of food in the mountains. The seed crop was poor this summer and that has forced the Steller’s to find food in other places such as the Salt Lake Valley, where we can view and enjoy this bird with white streaks above eyes and on forehead. This photo with caption was taken by Marguerite Roberts on the east side of SLC above the Foothill Village area.
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Great Salt Lake Audubon, www.greatsaltlakeaudubon.org(385) 313-0608
Calendar of Events including Field Trips for JAN/FEB 2018Beginning birders and nonmembers are always welcome.We encourage carpooling on our field trips. Contributions to drivers for gas money would be appreciated. Be sure to call the field trip leader to confirm that arrangements are still as published.
Physical Difficulty:EASY - little or no walking, smooth paths.MODERATE - 1 mile or more, possible rough terrain.DIFFICULT - extensive walking which could include rough terrain and significant changes in altitude.Despite our best efforts, ratings for the field trips are still somewhat subjective. Please consult with the leaders.
****PLEASE NOTE: EXPECT FIELD TRIPS TO LEAVE ON TIME SO ARRIVE 5-10 MINUTES EARLY TO ARRANGE CARPOOLS.****
Monday, January 1st, 7 am—6 pm Jordan River Christmas Bird Count—EASY-MODERATELeaders: Jeanne Le Ber and Ray Smith: (801) 532-7384 or [email protected] Jordan River CBC is held on Monday, January 1. Partici-pants meet at 7:00 a.m. at Kneader’s Bakery & Cafe, located at 177 East 13800 South, Draper, UT (801-838-7700) for breakfast and to establish birding teams. There are 8 teams that bird within the count circle. Teams are assigned during breakfast and CBC instructions are shared with the groups. Beginner, intermediate and expert birders are invited and encouraged to spend the first day of the New Year birding with us. At 5:00 p.m. participants meet at Sizzlers (9000 South 20 West, Sandy, UT - 801-566-8021) to talk about their day and turn in tally sheets. Please contact Jeanne Le Ber or Ray Smith if you are interested in participating.
Saturday, January 13, 8 am—10 amDecker Lake—EASYLeader: Ian Batterman: 920-360-0805 or [email protected] the Maverick Center in West Valley lays a quaint little marshy pond that offers refuge for many gulls, waterfowl, and shorebird species. The walk is short, but the birds are surprisingly numerous. Depending on what is around, we may go to other areas nearby for anyone who is interested. Meet at the parking lot of Decker Lake located on Decker Lane in West Valley just off I-215 exit 18. For more information, contact Ian Batterman.
Tuesday, January, 16th, 7 pm, BIRDS N’ BITES, Education Building in Tracy Aviary, “An Overview of the US Magne-sium Superfund Site,” by Anna Rasmuson, Logan Frederick, and Shu Yang
Thursday, January 25, at 6pm, Introduction to eBird Class, Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Meldrum Science Building. See page 6 for more details.
Thursday-Saturday, January 25-27 St George Winter Bird Festival Details at www.sgcity.org/birdfestival
Monday, January 29, 8 am—1 pm Inland Sea Shorebird Reserve—EASYLeader: Bryant Olsen: [email protected] is located on the south shore of Great Salt Lake. Come and enjoy the property and see which birds are making use of it at this time. Meet at 8 am in the Sego Lily Parking Lot of Sugar House Park (the parking lot closest to the greenhouses). PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED as the number of cars allowed is limited. Call or email Bryant if you plan to attend.
Wednesday, January 31, 7:30 am —2 pm Antelope Island Causeway & Farmington Bay—EASYLeader: Bryant Olsen: [email protected] to the limited lighting in the morning, we will be starting at the Causeway of Antelope Island first and then going down to Farmington Bay afterwards. Meet in the Sego Lily Parking Lot of Sugar House Park at 7:30 am to carpool or at 8 am at the parking lot before the entrance to the Antelope Island Causeway. For those wanting to just bird watch at Farmington Bay, meet at the Nature Center on Glovers Lane in Farmington around 12pm. Contact Bryant to let him know you are coming.
Saturday, February 5, Noon—5 pm8th Annual GULLSTRAVAGANZA—EASYLeaders: Tim Avery, Kenny Frisch, and others TBDEvery winter as California Gulls congregate on the edges of the Great Salt Lake to search for food at nearby landfills, parks, wildlife management areas, and anywhere that may have open fresh water--other gulls that stray from their normal winter ranges end up mixed in. This creates one of most unique inland gulling hot spots in the nation. Along with the thousands of California Gulls are smaller numbers of Ring-billed Gulls, and decent numbers of Herring Gulls. Mixed in with those you are likely to find a few Iceland Gulls. Aside from those 4 species a handful of others show up every year including: Glaucous, Glaucous-winged, Mew, Lesser Black-backed, and Western.This February, join Great Salt Lake Audubon and the Utah Birders as we search for wintering gulls on the south shore of the Great Salt Lake during the annual GULLSTRAVAGANZA! Meeting location is yet to be determined, but it will be either Lee Kay Ponds or Farmington Bay. We will send out reminders and updates as we approach the event and finalize the meeting loca-tion based on where the gulls are, and what will work best.
Please bring $5 per person as a donation as part of the Utah Bird-ers continued fundraising activities. The money will be donated
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Great Salt Lake Audubon, www.greatsaltlakeaudubon.org(385) 313-0608
Calendar of Events including Field Trips for JAN/FEB 2018
JAN/FEB
to Great Salt Lake Audubon as part of our continued effort to support this great organization. It will likely be cold so bundle up and if you have scopes bring them as it will be an asset for scanning the large flocks of gulls.
Monday, February 5, 7 am—6 pm Winter Raptor Tour: Promontory Peninsula—EASY Leader: Bryant Olsen: [email protected] of the great joys of winter is close views of all the wintering raptors, and few places have a greater opportunity to see those rap-tors than the lands to the north and west of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. We will go west from Corinne to Golden Spike, then down the east side of the Promontory Peninsula, then up to Howell, and finish off the day around Salt Creek Waterfowl Management area looking for owls at dusk. Beside raptors, other birds potentially seen include Horned Larks and their tag-along Snow Buntings and Long-spurs, Sage and Sharp-tailed Grouse, plus Gray Partridge, Chukars, and Pheasant, and maybe swans and other waterfowl. Note this will be an all day trip, from dawn to dusk, and subject to cancellation due to weather. Salt Lakers and those from the south, meet at the Sego Lily Parking Lot of Sugar House Park at 7am. Those from northern areas can meet up with us at the Bear River MBR headquarters. Contact Bryant to sign up.
eBird for Intermediates, Thursday February 15, at 6pmWestminster College, Salt Lake City, Meldrum Science Building. See page 6 for details.
Saturday, February 17, 9 am—12 pmGreat Backyard Bird Count—MODERATELeader: Vivian Schneggenburger: (801-518-1730)The Great Backyard Bird Count is a nation-wide winter tradition and involves counting our local birds for one or more days from Feb.16th-19th. We can not only count our own backyard birds but also local parks, ski resorts or other hot spots. We have chosen to survey Parley’s Nature Park so join us at the trailhead on Saturday, Feb.17th by 9am (2760 South and 27th east). Check with the Vivian for current conditions.
Tuesday, Febuary 20th, 7 pm, BIRDS N’ BITES, Education Building in Aviary Tracy, “Spring Awakening: ID Tips on Con-fusing Spring Birds”, By Ian Batterman
Friday & Saturday, February 23 & 24 Snow Goose Festival near Deltadeltagoosefestival.comThe Utah Division of Wildlife Resources hosts this annual festival at Gunnison Bend Reservoir near Delta, about a 2 1/2 hour drive from SLC. When they “cooperate”, about 20,000 Snow Geese can be seen on the water, in adjacent fields or flying overhead. Visit deltagoosef-estival.com for more information.
Saturday, February 24, 8 am—10 am Bountiful Pond—EASYLeader: Ian Batterman: 920-360-0805 or [email protected] on the outskirts of Farmington Bay WMA, Boutiful Pond is a lovely oasis for all kinds of birds. The large pond provides a stopover area for many gulls and waterfowl, and the surrounding trees and fields hide many songbirds, owls, and other birds with close viewing opportunities. Feel free to either meet at the SW corner of the West Valley Target on 5600 W to carpool at 8 am or at main parking area near the pond at 8:30. Contact Ian Batter-man to let him know you are coming or if you would like more information.
Monday, February 26, 8 am—1 pmInland Sea Shorebird Reserve—EASYLeader: Bryant Olsen: [email protected] is located on the south shore of Great Salt Lake. Come and enjoy the property and see which birds are making use of it at this time. Meet at 8 am in the Sego Lily Parking Lot of Sugar House Park (the parking lot closest to the greenhouses). PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED as the number of cars allowed is limited. Call or email Bryant if you plan to attend.
Wednesday, February 28, 7:30 am —2 pm Antelope Island Causeway & Farmington Bay—EASYLeader: Bryant Olsen: [email protected] to the limited lighting in the morning, we will be starting at the Causeway of Antelope Island first and then going down to Farmington Bay afterwards. Meet in the Sego Lily Parking Lot of Sugar House Park at 7:30 am to carpool or at 8 am at the parking lot before the entrance to the Antelope Island Causeway. For those wanting to just bird watch at Farmington Bay, meet at the nature Center on Glovers Lane in Farmington around 12pm. Contact Bry-ant to let him know you are coming.
Thursday, March 1st, “Lights Out Salt Lake”, Tracy Aviary See page 3 for details.
Wednesday, March 7, 8:30 am—11:00 am Mountain Dell Rec. Area, Parley’s Canyon—MODERATE Leader: John Middleton: (801-322-2171)Our monthly bird surveys will begin again so we invite you to join us. Even in winter, interesting birds can still be seen. We’ll meet by 8:30 am in the parking lot just west of REI on 33rd South and 3285 east for a morning of birding. Call John if you plan to attend.
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Introduction to eBird ClassThursday January 25, 2018 at 6pmWestminster College, Salt Lake City, Meldrum Science Building Rm 170 (there will be a flyer on building entrance)by Janice Gardner
Have you been interested in knowing more about eBird and how to use the program? Join Great Salt Lake Audubon for Introduction to eBird.
You will learn where the best places are to bird, find target species, and how you can log your birding lists or life birds. Class participants will have access to their own laptop or bring your own. Attendees will follow along as we explore what eBird offers to birders of all levels. You will be welcome to stay after the presentation and we will provide one-on-one support.
While not necessary, we encourage you to come to Introduction to eBird with a checklist of birds from a recent or past birding experience or a “life list diary.” No advanced knowledge of computers is required. If you know how to open a web page, this class is welcome to you!
Introduction to eBird is a free class, but registration is required to ensure space is available. Please email Janice Gardner at [email protected] to reserve your spot.
eBird for Intermediates Thursday February 15, 2018 at 6pmWestminster College, Salt Lake City, Meldrum Science Building RM 170 (there will be a flyer on building entrance)by Janice Gardner
Do you have a basic understanding of eBird, but wish to take your eBird abilities to the next level? Join Great Salt Lake Audubon for eBird for Intermediates.
Now that you know eBird’s basic features, we will learn some of the more detailed filters and features that allow you to find the best places are to bird, target species, and get the most out of your bird lists and data. Class par-ticipants will have access to their own laptop or bring your own. You will be welcome to stay after the presenta-tion and we will provide one-on-one support. While not necessary, we encourage you to come to eBird for Intermediates with a checklist of birds from a recent or past birding experience. No advanced knowledge of computers is required. If you know how to open a web page, this class is welcome to you!
eBird for Intermediates is a free class, but registration is required to ensure space is available. Please email Jan-ice Gardner at [email protected] to reserve your spot.
eBird (www.ebird.org) is an online checklist program that has revolutionized the way that the birding com-munity reports and accesses information about birds. Launched in 2002 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, eBird provides rich data sources for basic information on bird abundance and distribution at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. It is amassing one of the largest and fastest growing biodiversity data resources in existence. In the month of May 2015, participants reported more than 9.5 million bird observations across the world!
JAN/FEB 7
GSLA thanks the voters of Salt Lake County for their support of the Zoo, Arts & Parks program.
GSLA Grant Programby Kandy Richards
Fall 2017 AwardsAs announced in the Jul/Aug Pelican, the GSLA Board established a Grant Program to support other organiza-tions that share our mission. In October, we were thrilled to award three grants of $1,000 each to the following organizations:
Kestrels on Campus—A student organization that maintains and monitors kestrel nest boxes on the University of Utah campus. They will use the award to purchase equipment that will allow them much more efficient monitoring methods.
Student Beekeeper’s Assn.—A U of U student group which maintains 12 honeybee hives. They will purchase equipment that will enhance their honey/beeswax collection. This will provide ongoing funding for educational programming, hive monitoring and scientific study of ecosystems and biodiversity.
Sustain Music & Nature —Dedicated to reaching new audiences with the conservation message, they partner artists and wildscapes to produce music inspired by the land. The GSLA award funded Songscape: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Check out their website at sustainmusicandnature.org. Look for the resulting song from this project in the January issue of the Southwest Airlines’ magazine, Southwest: The Magazine.
Spring 2018 Grant ApplicationsApplication Deadline March 1, 2018 with awards announced April 15, 2018Maximum award $1,000. Please see the link on our website for more program details and application instruc-tions.
UofU Student Beekeeper’s Assn harvesting honey Fall 2017
Kestrels on Campus installing nest boxes.
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