Conococheague Audubon Society

PO Box 20, Fayetteville, PA 17222

ConAudubon@outlook.com

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Conococheague Audubon

Monthly Message

Usually written by the president, a note about the season, upcoming activities, …

April 2025 from the President

By Valerie BarnesPosted on Posted in Conservation, Monthly Message, Outreach, ZoomTagged , ,

According to a recent press release from the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources,

“Shapiro Administration Launches Statewide Program to Replace Invasive Trees and Shrubs

Pennsylvanians can replace up to five invasive trees and shrubs with native species through the new statewide Pennsylvania Invasive Replace-ive Program— registration now open for May events”.https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dcnr/newsroom/shapiro-administration-launches-statewide-program-to-replace-inv.html

“The program aims to replace some of Pennsylvania’s most problematic invasive species, including:

The April 14 annual business meeting will feature elections and reports from the year as well as a program, Radio-tracking Passerines in Early Successional Habitat, by Grace Muench. Plan to participate! We need at least 30 votes for the election to be valid, so if you haven’t voted yet, please do. Jeff Schmaltz and Mike Fagan are running to fill our two director openings. Leaders will be reporting status for the 2024 season, so plan to join us in person or participate via Zoom.

Volunteer needs:

  • Ruth Barton is stepping down as Hospitality Chair. The main duty is setting up a table in the back of our meeting room to welcome newcomers. Feel free to talk to Ruth about what else is involved. Please be hospitable!
  • John Greer is stepping down as Conservation Chair. The main duties are to stay on top of conservation issues and keep our membership informed. It’s also terrific, but not mandatory, if you write a short article for each Naturally newsletter. Who is willing to be our collective conscience about conservation?
  • To honor Rhetta Martin’s son Jason, join us for a work session at the Michaux District Forest Office, 10099 Lincoln Way East, Fayetteville, PA 17222 at 8:30 AM on Wednesday, May 7. We’ll be helping to plant native seeds and plugs around the office. Wear gardening garb and bring a trowel or shovel. You need to submit a volunteer form: DCNR Conservation Volunteers. Action: Contact Josh Donaldson to volunteer.
  • Greencastle-Antrim Middle School Trout Release day, with nature-related activities, at Caledonia State Park on Thursday, May 15. Last year the schedule had us arriving at 8:30 to set up and leaving by 1:30; we assume this year will be similar. Action: Contact Terri Kochert to volunteer.
  • Buttonwood asked CAS to set up a display table on April 26, 2025 to celebrate Earth Day at Pine Hill Recreation Area, 12684 Mentzer Gap Rd, Waynesboro, PA. Volunteers will be needed from 11 AM – 4 PM. Action: Contact Larry and Sharon Williams to volunteer.
  • June 14, 2025 Appalachian Trail Festival, Red Run Park, Waynesboro, PA from 9:00 – 3:00. Action: Contact Terri Kochert to volunteer.
  • June 28, 2025 North Square Farmers Market, Chambersburg, PA from 8:00 – 12:00. (Just one time this summer.) Action: Contact Terri Kochert to volunteer.
  • Beginning Birders’ Workshop on June 7 at Caledonia. Planning meeting at 6 PM before the April General Meetings. Action: Contact Janet Tice to volunteer.

Please bring family and friends to our events – we welcome new faces! Everything is open to everyone and is free.

March 2025 from the President

By Valerie BarnesPosted on Posted in Birds, Conservation, Monthly MessageTagged ,

It’s above 30 degrees. Can spring be far away?!

Eastern Bluebirds take advantage of nest boxes and our Bluebird Trail team is in charge of organizing volunteers to monitor at least two nest box trails – one on Penn National Golf Course and one at Caledonia State Park. You are invited to attend the opening presentation for the 2025 bluebird season on Saturday, March 8, at 9:30 AM in the Penn National Clubhouse, 3720 Clubhouse Drive, Fayetteville, PA. The keynote address will be presented by JOAN WATROBA from the Bluebird Society of Pennsylvania. Please contact one of the organizers to register for the event: Lynn & Dorian Runt 717-352-4995 or adamsmail@centurylink.net; John Fry 301-503-3646 or johnefryjr@yahoo.com; Ruth Barton 301-367-6968 or ruthbarton46@gmail.com.

An application for the $500 scholarship that Conococheague Audubon is offering this year is available on the Chambersburg Area Education Foundation website. Applications are due March 21, 2025. Qualified applicants include those CASD students who intend to pursue post-secondary studies in environmental conservation, ornithology, wildlife management, or a related field. We look forward to seeing applications. Please tell CASD seniors about the opportunity!

Buttonwood Nature Center near Waynesboro has invited us to set up a display table at their Earth Day event on April 26. The event will take place from 11-4 at Pine Hill Recreation Area. We seek volunteers; and we need to decide soon whether or not we have enough interest to say yes. Please contact Terri Kochert (terri.kochert81@gmail.com  or 717-263-3692) ASAP if you are interested.

Field trip: Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area is mostly closed due to geese having been infected with Avian Influenza. The March 1 field trip is CANCELLED.

The last Nature Film of the season is Frogs: The Thin Green Line. Join us on Thursday, March 6 at 7 PM at Chambersburg Area Middle School South.

Budget requests for the June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026 season are due to Donna Hocker ( dlhocker@yahoo.com ) by March 1.

A reminder that the April 14 annual business meeting will feature elections and reports from the year as well as a program, Radio-tracking Passerines in Early Successional Habitat, by Grace Muench.  Plan to participate!

Volunteer needs:

  • Conservation Chair John Greer reminds us our highway clean-up day is March 8, 2025.  This is part of PENNDOT’s Adopt-A-Highway program. We have “adopted” 2 miles of PA-997 from I-81 west to Main Street, Scotland. It is easy walking on wide shoulders. Supplies are provided–including “grabbers” generously donated by Waste Connections so as to save our backs. We will meet at 9 a.m. at the Scotland Park & Ride, I-81 exit 20.  Even if you are unable to pick up trash, we need a driver to shuttle supplies, and we need a pickup truck to carry filled bags.  Please join us to help beautify PA! Action: Contact John to volunteer.
  • Bluebird Trail – see earlier paragraph above.
  • Greencastle-Antrim Middle School Trout Release, May 15. Val Barnes and Terri Kochert are volunteering to help out.  Action: Additional volunteers? Contact Terri.
  • On April 26, 2025 Buttonwood is requesting CAS to have a display table to celebrate Earth Day. Action: Volunteers will be needed from 11 AM – 4 PM.  Contact Terri.
  • June 14, 2025 Appalachian Trail Festival, Red Run Park, Waynesboro, PA from 9:00 – 3:00. Action: Volunteers? Contact Terri.
  • June 28, 2025 North Square Farmers Market, Chambersburg, PA from 8:00 – 12:00. (Just one time this summer.) Action: Volunteers? Contact Terri.
  • Beginning Birders’ Workshop on June 7 at Caledonia. Planning meetings at 6 PM before the March and April General Meetings. Contact Janet to volunteer.

January 2025 from the President

By Valerie BarnesPosted on Posted in Birds, Monthly MessageTagged ,

Happy New Year! May 2025 be full of friends, family, and good birds.

Here are some highlights from the Chambersburg Christmas Bird Count conducted on December 14, 2024. 71 observers in the field recorded 20,345 individual birds, up from 2023. Two zones reported a Peregrine Falcon, seen only on 7 prior counts. White-winged Crossbills were found in Caledonia State Park on count day and the following day, but haven’t been reported since. A Palm Warbler was observed for only the third time on this CBC. Only a few feeder watchers saw Red-breasted Nuthatch; no one in the field saw one. We had (slightly) record highs of Bald Eagle (10), Common Raven (25), and Hermit Thrush (21). Only 3 waterfowl species were seen (Canada Goose, Mallard, and American Wigeon) and the numbers of Geese and Mallards were below normal. When all the data are compiled, look for the details on our website under the Observation Records page. Right now, you will see a placeholder; when the actual results are available, they’ll be posted there.

Many thanks to the George P. and Martha B. Buckey Fund, a charitable fund of the Franklin County Community Foundation, a regional foundation of the Foundation for Enhancing Communities (TFEC) for an unexpected grant to CAS last month. The gift will help us in our mission to promote conservation of wildlife.

Thanks, too, to Jim and Deb Wheeling. Attendees at our December 2024 meeting enjoyed and admired several of the fine art bird prints that Jim and Deb contributed to CAS. Some folks put cash in a donation bucket and took home a print.

We hope to see you at our annual covered dish dinner and members’ photo show on January 13 at 6 PM at St. Luke Evangelical Lutheran Church. Members typically contribute one dinner item and/or a dessert. Coffee, tea, and pots/jugs of water will be provided. Bring your own table setting, including a napkin, flatware, plate, bowl, and mug/cup. Let’s try to avoid plastic and disposable items! If you have a few photos you wish to share, please bring them on a USB thumb drive. Bring a friend; all are welcome!

A reminder: Our next free nature film, Woodpeckers: the Hole Story, will be shown on Thursday, January 30 at Chambersburg Area Middle School South starting at 7 PM. Door prizes will be awarded after the film.

December 2024 from the President

By Valerie BarnesPosted on Posted in Monthly MessageTagged ,

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, full of good food and family traditions. Perhaps you saw some good birds in November, too. A Hermit Thrush and a pair of Eastern Bluebirds stop by my yard every now and then, and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and a Brown Creeper are here more regularly. The leaves from my oak trees are mostly down, and the (non-native) Burning Bush has no berries left. I was remiss in not discouraging you from planting Burning Bush. They are not native and can become really invasive. You might try a native viburnum or native shrub dogwood instead. There will be a list of good options in an upcoming Naturally newsletter.

Just in time for holiday gift-giving, at the December meeting we will display more than 20 fine art prints from the collection of Jim and Deb Wheeling. The Wheelings are generously donating the prints to Conococheague Audubon, and we are offering them to you. Any voluntary contribution would be welcome. The prints will be available for viewing starting at 6:30 PM.

At our December program, Diversity in the Andes, Debby Hook and Terri Kochert will highlight the spectacular plumage of bird species in “the birdiest place in the world.” After learning how folks in Colombia and Ecuador are benefiting from birding tourism, the program will finish with a colorful slide show of beautiful equatorial birds. The meeting will take place at 7 PM on Monday, December 9 at St. Luke Evangelical Lutheran Church, (off Route 997, near Scotland exit off I-81) 2695 Luther Dr, Chambersburg, PA 17202. You may also participate via Zoom.

Conservation Chair John Greer reports that the legislature passed and the Governor signed a bill this summer that directs PENNDOT to landscape state-owned roads using native plants. This new law will benefit the public by reducing pollution run-off and beautifying our roadways.

John also reports that the legislature included $50 million for the Clean Streams Fund, which extends the Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program (ACAP) in the state’s budget for fiscal year 2024-25.  ACAP will receive $35.75 million of the $50 million.  Under ACAP, decisions to reduce agricultural pollution run-off are made at the local conservation district level.

If you haven’t already, please consider donating to Conococheague Audubon to keep things rolling. Mail your donation to CAS at PO Box 20, Fayetteville, PA 17222. Good birding and Happy Holidays!

  Valerie Barnes, President

November 2024 from the President

By Valerie BarnesPosted on Posted in Birds, Monthly Message, News, ZoomTagged , , , ,

We certainly had a gloriously sunny October! November is here and, hopefully, we’ll get some rain. Keep your eyes peeled for waterfowl, late migrants, and winter visitors. A Hermit Thrush has been popping by my yard, drinking from the birdbath and eating berries from the Burning Bush.

At our next regular meeting at 7 PM on Monday, November 11, we’ll announce the winners of this year’s youth contests. Then, member Becky Loncosky will present a program on “Breeding Bird Surveys in our National Parks: Catoctin’s Top Ten”. As usual, the meeting will be held at St. Luke Evangelical Lutheran Church, (off Route 997, near Scotland exit off I-81) 2695 Luther Dr, Chambersburg, PA 17202. You may also participate via Zoom.

We didn’t have space in the recent Naturally for Terri’s article about the first free nature film of the season, so you can find it here. Please come join us at CAMS South, 1151 East McKinley St, Chambersburg, on Thursday, November 14 at 7 PM for ”Islands of Wonder – Madagascar.” It sounds like a fascinating place!

From our friends at the Conococheague Institute, we bring you this announcement: Saturday, November 9th, 12:00pm to 8:00pm, 30th Anniversary: Bonfire Night. 12995 Bain Rd, Mercersburg, PA 17236.

Learn about the history of the event with Guy Fawkes, engage in Tavern song and dance, games and festivities, archery, wildlife, food and drink, all culminating in an evening Bonfire program at 7pm. There will be craft vendors and food trucks available throughout the day, a special children’s entertainment performance by Ray Owens, a birds of prey presentation by Miller’s Wildlife and much more! Matthew Wedd at Conococheague Institute shares that the falconer will be doing his presentation at 4 pm, and he’ll have a great horned owl with him.

Check this website for updates and maps to all locations.

If you haven’t already, please consider donating to Conococheague Audubon to keep things rolling. Mail your donation to CAS at PO Box 20, Fayetteville, PA 17222. Good birding!

  Valerie Barnes, President

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