PRESIDENT’S PEN
by Lynn Barber

Happy New Year!

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? I often try to make a resolution on some important thing—like to lose weight or to carry out some task that I’ve been putting off. Sometimes I make the resolution as the year begins and sometimes as the year goes along. But usually, it’s really easy once a new year really gets going, at least for me, to just forget the whole thing—sometimes deliberately, I must admit.

But then another new year comes, and I try again. So this year, 2005, I’d like to challenge you to do what I’m going to try to do, which is to make at least one concrete effort, and hopefully more, to do something for the environment; something that I’m not already doing. What will I do? I haven’t decided yet, and maybe I won’t make a decision until our January program. D. D. Currie, our program chair, has informed us that our speaker in January, about whom there is more information elsewhere in this newsletter, will be telling us exactly the kinds of things that I need to know for this year’s New Year’s resolution. What can I do in my daily living to be a better conservationist? I know there are many things that I either cannot do, or for now am not really willing to do (see my travel column for an example), but I also know that there is much that I can and am likely to be willing to do. It’s just that I am so uninformed about much of it, and I expect that you are too.

So perhaps the first New Year’s resolution should be to become more informed about what things we can do. This becoming informed can involve reading conservation articles and searching the web and talking to people who know. But one easy way to begin to be better informed is to come to our January meeting on January 13—and come prepared to take notes and ask questions and make specific resolutions and be inspired to take action! Sometimes I can, and we can, follow through on our resolutions—hopefully, this will be one of those times.

Remember to join us for Birding in the Park

Foster Park 8:30-10:00 AM

January 8, February 5, March 5, April 2 and May 14

Everyone welcome. Easy walking. Binoculars available for use. Members of board present to bird with people who come.

Members, come introduce friendly folks and families to the wonders of bird watching.

On Trail Lake Drive,1 mile north of I-20

Welcome to our monthly meetings!

The Fort Worth Audubon Society meets the second Thursday of each month, September through May, at 7:30 PM. All meetings are free and open to the public. Meetings are held at:

UNT Health Science Center
3500 Camp Bowie Boulevard
Research and Education Bldg.
Everett Hall Room 100

Easiest entrance is from parking lots A or C off Clifton Street. Doors are west end of building, lowest level.

January program to feature ways to be a better citizen of our planet

This presentation will provide an overview of Nurtured World’s innovative training, which is designed to help consumers reduce their personal environmental impact, save money and increase personal satisfaction. Many workshops and courses have been designed to help businesses reduce pollution, but few have focused on individual behavior.

Topics to be covered include the relative impacts of consumer versus industrial activities, the types of consumer activities that have the largest impact on the environment, and personal action case studies. Case studies and information provided is based on the Ecological Footprint, studies by the Union of Concerned Scientists, and measurable results reported by previous Nurtured World workshop participants.

Approaches for effectively addressing personal environmental impacts will be discussed, including how personal satisfaction, environmental impact and finances are related. Attendees will have an opportunity to explore how daily activities and our relationship with money affect the environment and how our personal goals can be met more effectively with lower negative environmental impacts.

Case studies of successful personal environmental behavior change, including sustainable food choices, green building and a multitude of additional personal choices will be presented along with results from Nurtured World’s workshops conducted at venues such as NASA Johnson Space Center, The University of Texas at Austin and Heifer International.

Meet our speaker for the January meeting: E. Susan Roothaan

Susan Roothaan is the founder and Executive Director of Nurtured World, a non-profit organization dedicated to a global change in thinking so that people naturally live fulfilled, environmentally sustainable and financially successful lives. Nurtured World provides training, conducts research and develops software tools to forward personal environmental behavior change. Participants of Nurtured World’s courses report saving thousands of dollars in personal expenses, generating measurable reductions in environmental impacts and finding ways to live more consistently with their personal goals.

Ms. Roothaan has over 20 years of experience in the environmental field, including serving as an engineer, team leader, and project manager in the areas of pollution prevention and innovations at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Prior to working for the state of Texas, Susan worked in the pollution control field as a process engineer and chemist. She holds a master’s degree in chemical engineering from The University of Texas at Austin and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon.

Fort Worth Audubon Society 2005 Birding Outings

DESTINATION DATE LEADER/NOTES

Lake Tawakoni January 15 Richard Kinney

Raptor Rave January 29 Bob Smith

Meeting Place: Meet promptly at 8:00 AM at the Benbrook Antique Mall parking lot at 9250 Hwy 377S –

Directions: From W Loop I-820 S take the Hwy 377S / Granbury exit and head southwest on Hwy 377S for approximately 1 mile. Benbrook Antique Mall will be on the right. The group will then proceed back north to the Markam Ranch Road off of I-20 then south on Aledo road to Whisky Flats and then over to Winscott-Plover Road and possibly a quick drive to the lake to see if we can spot an Osprey.

Expected Birds/Target Birds: Red Tailed Hawks, Ferruginous Hawks, Harlan’s Hawks, Swainson’s Hawks, Red-shouldered Hawks, Coopers Hawks, Sharp-shinned Hawks, Northern Harriers, Kestrels, Merlins, Prairie Falcons, Vultures, Caracaras, Ospreys, Bald Eagles

Trip Length: half day Contact: Bob Smith / 817-999-1691 / webmaster@fwas.org

River Legacy East February 12 Charlie Amos

Hagerman NWR February 26 D.D. Curie

LBJ National Grasslands March 12 Claire Curry

Fort Hood March 26 Rich Kostecke/Gil Eckrich

Lake Caddo April 9,10 Gail Morris

High Island April 23-24 Daniel Floyd

Spring Bird Count May 7 Daniel Floyd

Longhollow Ranch, Erath Co. May 21 Lee Clauser

(Target birds: Golden-cheeked Warbler, Black-capped Vireo & Ash-throated Flycatcher)

Field trips are open to all, members and nonmembers, beginners to world-class birders. We especially want to encourage and welcome first-time birders to come on our local trips in the Fort Worth area. These trips are an excellent way to get started learning the birds and the best locations and seasons to find them. There are always people on these trips who are willing and able to answer any question about birds. We try to help everyone see all the birds we find. Don’t let bad weather deter you. Often the best birding is in the worst weather. Miserable conditions certainly build camaraderie. Come prepared. Warm weather trips may bring mosquitoes, chiggers, etc. Always bring along food and water because lunch is always in the field. If you have any questions, call Phil Craighead, Field Trip Coordinator, at 817.596.3227, or by email: philmarj@mesh.net

THE TRAVELING BIRDER
By Lynn Barber

TRAVEL TO: All over Texas for a birding Big Year

I have been birding since I was seven years old, most of my birding occurring near wherever I happened to be living at the time. But about twelve years ago, I started going on international birding trips and became a very avid international birder, often forgetting the joys of U.S. birding and missing opportunities to bird more locally.

And then in 2000 I moved to Texas, which is like a multitude of foreign countries all wrapped into one. In one state, we have desert-dry sage flats, serious conifer-topped mountains with nesting alpine birds, windswept prairies with wintering northern hawks, rivers roaring through cuts in rocky hills covered with Golden-cheeked Warblery cedars, piney woods abounding with woodpeckers and otherwise rare sparrows, vast coastal migrant trap woodlands and beaches, the Rio Grande Valley with lurking Mexican migrant species, and everything in between. The diversity of habitat is spectacular, and so are the birds.

In 2003, I made my first attempt at exploring the state by trying to see as many bird species in Texas as I could during the year—otherwise known as a Big Year. For a novice at doing a Big Year, I think I did pretty well. I was quite delighted at my year-end total of 485, which was five species short of the previous record. For those of you who came to the December FWAS meeting, however, you missed an excellent account of what doing a really serious Big Year in Texas involved for Eric Carpenter in 2003, who surpassed the previous record Big Year in Texas by 15 species! And in 2004, Howard Laidlaw from Houston is past Eric’s record and still counting.

Although I would not mind being up there with the big guys on this, I just want to do another Big Year, now that I’ve figured out a bit better what needs to be done, and see if I can beat my own total from 2003, and have fun doing it! And maybe get a few more bird species beyond that. So I’ve decided that on January 1, 2005, just 17 days away as I write this, I’m going to launch another Big Year effort. I plan to tell you of the highlights of my Texas birding travels in 2005 in this column, telling you about some of the neat spots that I visit and the birds that I see (or that I miss). Stay tuned.

Oh, by the way, in case you haven’t figured it out, all that gas that I’m going to use to see all these birds is the conservation area where I just cannot force myself to make a New Year’s resolution this year (see my President’s Pen column for more information on this topic). And good birding to you in 2005!

PRACTICALLY GREEN
by D.D. Currie

What you can do in your everyday life to reduce your impact on the planet

Energy costs are soaring, and the environmental impact to produce energy (e.g., electricity, natural gas, etc.) is enormous. To reduce your energy consumption, thereby reducing environmental impact and saving money, complete the following “Home Energy Checklist for Action.”

To Do Today

Turn down the temperature of your water heater to the warm setting (120°F). You’ll not only save energy, you’ll avoid scalding your hands.

Check if your water heater has an insulating blanket. An insulating blanket will pay for itself in one year or less!

If you have one of those silent guzzlers, a waterbed, make your bed today. The covers will insulate it, and save up to one-third of the energy it uses.

Start using energy-saving settings on refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines, and clothes dryers.

Survey your incandescent lights for opportunities to replace them with compact fluorescents. These new lamps can save three-quarters of the electricity used by incandescents. The best targets are 60-100W bulbs used several hours a day. Measure the clearance in the fixtures to make sure they will accommodate compact fluorescents, which are slightly bigger than incandescents.

Check the age and condition of your major appliances, especially the refrigerator. You may want to replace it with a more energy-efficient model before it dies.

Clean or replace furnace, air-conditioner, and heat-pump filters.

This Week

Visit the hardware store. Buy a water-heater blanket, low-flow showerheads, faucet aerators, and compact fluorescents, as needed. If you can’t find compact fluorescents locally, check out ENERGYguide or Energy Federation Incorporated.

Rope caulk very leaky windows.

Ö Assess your heating and cooling systems. Determine if replacements are justified, or whether you should retrofit them to make them work more efficiently to provide the same comfort (or better) for less energy.

This Month

Ö Collect your utility bills. Separate electricity and fuel bills. Target the biggest bill for energy conservation remedies.

Ö Crawl into your attic or crawlspace and inspect for insulation. Is there any? How much?

(continued from page 6)

Ö Insulate hot water pipes and ducts wherever they run through unheated areas.

Ö Seal up the largest air leaks in your house—the ones that whistle on windy days or feel drafty. The worst culprits are usually not windows and doors, but utility cut-throughs for pipes (“plumbing penetrations”), gaps around chimneys and recessed lights in insulated ceilings, and unfinished spaces behind cupboards and closets. Better yet, hire an energy auditor with a blower door to point out where the worst cracks are. All the little, invisible cracks and holes may add up to as much as an open window or door, without you ever knowing it!

Ö Install a clock thermostat to set your thermostat back automatically at night.

Ö Schedule an energy audit (ask your utility company or state energy office) for more expert advice on your home as a whole.

This Year

Ö Insulate. If your walls aren’t insulated, have an insulation contractor blow cellulose into the walls. Bring your attic insulation level up to snuff.

Ö Replace aging, inefficient appliances. Even if the appliance has a few useful years left, replacing it with a top-efficiency model is generally a good investment.

Ö Upgrade leaky windows. It may be time to replace them with energy-efficient models or to boost their efficiency with weather-stripping and storm windows.

Ö Reduce your air conditioning costs by planting shade trees and shrubs around your house—especially on the west side.

Ö Know that you are making a difference!

Christmas Bird Count continues tradition of success
by Daniel Floyd, count coordinator

Combined, FWAS teams saw 126 species. The data will again be sent to National Audubon for inclusion in their bird populations monitoring. Birds seen were:

Thanks to all who participated to make this a wonderful count.

JANUARY EVENTS AT THE FORT WORTH NATURE CENTER

Saturday, ­January 8 1- 3 p.m.­ Canyon Ridge Hike: Winter is the best time of the year to explore the refuge’s most rugged trail. Catch the sights of striking yucca mesas, historical CCC structures, and beautiful scenic views of Lake Worth and Greer Island. Meet at Greer Island Parking Lot. $5/FONC FREE.­­

Saturday,­ January 22 8:30 - Noon­­ Canoe Tour: Tour a stretch of the West Fork of the Trinity River to view ducks, herons, beaver, and other critters. Sunscreen, water, and weather-appropriate clothing (including shoes that can get wet) are recommended. Lifejackets, paddles and canoes provided. Children must be 5 years or older. Parents must sign a liability waiver for minor children. Registration ends Thursday, January 20, or when filled. Maximum of 12 participants. $15/adult, $10/child/FONC $10/$6.­­

Saturday,­ January 22­ 1 - 3 p.m.­­ Winter Birding: Interested in birds? Then get your binoculars ready and join us in our watch for our feathered friends in the area. From waterfowl to woodpeckers, we’ll hike through a variety of habitats to observe them in their preferred niche. $5/FONC FREE.­­

CONTACT: Rob Denkhaus TELEPHONE: 817-237-1111

EMAIL: Robert.Denkhaus@fortworthgov.org