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The L e a f l e t N E W S B R I E F F R O M W I L L I S T O W N C O N S E R V A T I O N T R U S T | F A L L 2 0 1 5

Spreading Its Wings Seven Years of Bird Banding Research Boosts Education and Outreach Opportunities Since 2009, the Trust’s Bird Conservation Program has banded thousands of birds comprising 89 species at Rushton Woods Preserve, revealing a vibrant, thriving population of birds that use our open spaces. Located within an Audubon-designated, globally significant Important Bird Area, the Rushton Woods Preserve Banding Station is managed by Lisa Kiziuk, the Trust’s Director of Bird Conservation, and our banding expert, Doris McGovern. Both Lisa and Doris are federally licensed bird banders and, together with Nature Education Coordinator Blake Goll and a team of 26 dedicated volunteers who annually donate over 850 hours of time, they keep the banding station humming from April through November.

In addition to contributing to global bird conservation research, the Trust’s banding program teaches and builds stronger connections to the land and nature for thousands of visitors. The unique combination of bird banding, sustainable farming, and habitat restoration—all within an 86-acre nature preserve—is providing exciting education and research opportunities and attracting volunteers, scientists and students of all ages and backgrounds. Ongoing studies that supplement the bird banding research cover a broad array of topics, and a growing list of partnerships with institutions including the University of Pennsylvania and the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University magnify the Trust’s conservation work. It’s a remarkable example of what can be done with the Willistown area’s rich reservoir of protected lands.

Jason Weckstein (shown standing), Associate Professor and Associate Curator of Ornithology, Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, is collaborating with the Rushton Bird Banding Station team on several projects examining parasites and pathogens in birds, including a study of Lyme disease in birds and a study of avian malarial parasites. Here Dr. Weckstein is shown with Todd Alleger, Rushton Farm Agroecology Project Coordinator, along with several graduate students examining a Baltimore Oriole at the Rushton Banding Station.

Spreading Its Wings Seven Years of Bird Banding Research Boosts Education and Outreach Opportunities

Rushton Farm Carrot Club members learn about the science of bird conservation, as Doris McGovern prepares to band a Gray Catbird. In the background are Director of Bird Conservation Lisa Kiziuk and Alice Fetterman, a University of Pennsylvania graduate student conducting research at the station.

Northern saw whet owl - October

RIGHT: Todd Alleger, an experienced bird bander and biologist, is Rushton Farm’s Agroecology Project Coordinator. Todd works alongside the farm staff in the crop fields, documenting and cataloging all observed forms of life—from birds to rodents, mammals, insects and pollinators. His research focuses on the interaction between the cultivated and natural areas of the preserve and the farm’s impact on biodiversity. His studies will add to the seven years of banding data on migratory Neotropical songbirds and Northern Saw-whet owls at Rushton Woods Preserve.

FALL 2015

Banding Birds at Rushton An Exciting, Careful ProcessDawn breaks at Rushton Woods Preserve, and the first rays of sunlight illuminate dew drops clinging to a mist net, carefully spread open by a bird bander between the hedgerows. The net lay furled the previous night as untold thousands of songbirds crossed the starry sky on southbound wings, taking advantage of a still night.

Now the team of bird banders works swiftly to open all ten nets around the nature preserve while keeping their ears peeled to the dawn contact calls between birds—revealing to the experienced birder the large number and species of the migrants that descended to rest their wings in this critical stopover habitat of plentiful food and shelter. With skillful and experienced fingers, one bander extracts a tiny yellow bird with gentle care from a situation that would look hopeless to the untrained eye. Holding the golden creature up in the growing light, the bander says with excitement, “It’s a male Mourning Warbler. A beauty!” The tiny warbler is taken back to the banding station in the hedgerow in a small cotton bag where it, along with a dozen other birds, is quickly processed by licensed bird banders. Feathers are scrutinized, wings are measured, weight is taken, giant reference books about plumage are pored over, and numbers are entered onto datasheets. Before gently being released, each bird is given a virtually weightless metal leg band with a unique 9-digit number. From then on, that bird’s unique information will forever be stored

in the national Bird Banding Lab database, along with records of over 64 million birds and over 4 million recapture records since 1960.

Northern saw whet owl - October

White-eyed Vireo

Northern Saw-whet owl

White-throated Sparrow

Connecticut Warbler

W I L L I S T OW N C O N S E RVAT I O N T RU S T

A N N UA L F U N DYour gift to the Annual Fund ensures that the Trust’s Land Protection, Bird Conservation, Community Farm, Habitat Restoration, and Education Programs will continue to thrive.

BOARD OF TRUSTEESJeanne B. Van Alen

President/Executive Director

Janice Murdoch Chairman

V. Richard Eales Vice Chairman

Alice E. HausmannVice Chairman

Elizabeth C. Hucker Treasurer

John F. Stoviak, Esq.Secretary

Timothy B. Barnard, Esq.Bryan D. Colket

Gary A. CoxW. Anthony Hitschler

William T. HowardGeorge F. Krall, Jr.

Mark T. LedgerLeanne M. McMenamin

Collin F. McNeilElizabeth R. Moran*Christine S. Seving

Peter S. StrawbridgeMatthew E. Taylor Carolyn W. Turner

James L. Van Alen IITana Wall

*Honorary Trustee

STAFFChelsea Allen

Rushton Farm Assistant Field ManagerSue R. CostelloGIS Coordinator

Fred de LongDirector of Community Farm Program

Laura de RamelDirector of Development and

Community Outreach Elaine C. Gilmartin

Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations Blake Goll

Nature Education CoordinatorEliza Gowen

Community Farm Outreach Assistant Noah Gress

Rushton Farm Field Manager William R. Hartman, Jr.Director of Stewardship

Eric HetzelDirector of Land Protection and Public Grants

Lisa KiziukDirector of Bird Conservation Program

Kelsey Lingle Communications Associate

Susie MacDonnellEvents and PR Coordinator

Nancy K. RosinDirector of Annual Fund and Planned Giving

Barbara McIlvaine Smith Development Assistant

Joyce D. SpraginsCommunications and Technology Manager

Willistown Conservation Trust is a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation under Section 501(c)3 of the I.R.S. Code. Donations are tax-deductible. A copy of the official registration and financial information may be obtained from the PA Department of State by calling toll free, within Pennsylvania, (800) 732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.

W I L L I S T O W NCONSERVATION TRUST

WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST925 Providence Rd.

Newtown Square, PA 19073610.353.2562

LAND@WCTRUST.ORG

ON THE COVER: A Junior Birding Club Member holds a freshly banded Ruby-crowned Kinglet just prior to its careful release.oetr

Like everyone who knew her, the Trust is grieving the loss of our dear friend, Marilyn Taylor. Marilyn and her husband, Anson, were loyal supporters of land conservation going back to the earliest days of land protection in Willistown. Marilyn’s love of fox hunting and all things equestrian gave her a deep connection to the land. Over the years, the Taylors were responsible for permanently protecting over 140 acres from development in Willistown by donating conservation easements on three different farms under their ownership. Marilyn’s commitment to her family, the community, and the Willistown countryside manifested itself in many ways, and her passion for the land leaves a legacy that will benefit many generations to come.

ABOVE: Marilyn Taylor (1931 - 2015) was a loyal Trust supporter and volunteer. She is shown here at the tee-shirt tent at Run-a-Muck, which she managed every year from its inception in 2009 to 2014.

A Dear Friend

ABOVE: Heading Out on the Run-a-Muck TrailOver 400 people came out to experience the beautiful Willistown countryside and the Run-a-Muck trail on Saturday, September 19th. Proceeds benefit the Trust’s ongoing work to preserve the Willistown area’s countryside and to instill in people a lifelong love of the land.

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Audi DevonBarnard, Mezzanotte, Pinnie & Seelaus, LLP

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Countryside Consulting, Inc.Credit SuisseElite Group

Gardner/Fox AssociatesGreenWeaver Landscapes, LLCHawthorn, PNC Family Wealth

Inspire EnergyJames Brown Plumbing Heating & AC

Kreischer MillerMark D. Slouf Custom Building & Design

McCausland Keen & BuckmanOliver Heating, Cooling, Plumbing & Electrical

On Point FarmOrion General Contractors, Inc.

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