Shorelines
The newsletter of the Choctawhatchee Audubon Society
Calendar of Events
CAS monthly meetings
First Thursday of each month at 6:30
PM at OWC Learning Resources
Center (LRC), Room 131.
February 2: Dr. Jonathan Bryan,
Professor of Earth Science at OWC will
address the possible relationship of
dinosaurs and birds, laying out some of
the information and myth-information
on the subject. Can evidence of hollow
bones, feathers, and hard shelled eggs
be proof that dinosaurs are more like
birds than reptiles? Can it be possible
that we are looking at the last surviving
dinosaurs through our binoculars?
March 2: Paul Moler, a Florida Fish and
Wildlife Conservation Commission her-
petologist will give us an introduction to
the natural history of Florida frogs and
give each of the 30 species an opportu-
nity to introduce itself and say a few
"words".
April 6: FWC fisheries and wildlife biol-
ogist Bradley Smith will present results
from 2005 survey of rooftop nesting
seabirds in NW Florida with a special
focus on Okaloosa and Walton coun-
ties.
Chapter Walks and Field Trips
February 4: FWB spray fields and
holding ponds. Meet at 7:30 am, at
Coach & Four parking lot.
February 17-19: CAS Annual Retreat
will be the Rally for the Rivers festival in
Palatka FL. CAS carpool leaves Friday
Feb. 17th at noon. Go to www.flade-
fenders.org for more details.
For Chapter Walk or Field Trip
information, please call
Bob Penhollow, 729-2602
Dedicated to the protection of bird and wildlife habitat and a greater appreciation of Northwest Florida’s natural beauty.
Volume XXXV Number 1 February 2006
Choctawhatchee Audubon Annual Retreat
By Bob Penhollow, Field Trip Coordinator
February is here and it’s time for our annual
retreat. It will be held Saturday, February 18th and
Sunday, February 19th at Ravine State Gardens for
Ocklawaha River Rally in Palatka, FL. The Board has
reserved some sleeping accommodations and we
plan to carpool to Palatka because of the distance.
We will need to leave around noon on Friday,
February 17th.
Several walks, hikes, boat trips, and other out-
ings are available. For instance, on Saturday morning
there are over twenty possible field trips ranging from
driving/walking tours to birdwalks to canoe/kayak
trips. Saturday evening and Sunday morning are also
full of possibilities.
We must have a firm count of those who wish
to attend, especially those who wish to be housed with
the group. We must also make reservations for any
organized field trips. Sponsored by the Putnam
County Environmental Council, most events are free
and all are open to the public. For details go to
www.fladefenders.org/riverrally.html, also check the
CAS website www.choctawhatchee-audubon.org. I
also have a copy of the list of "Field Trips and Places
To Go" for the event and can be contacted by phone
at 729-2602. I, for one, am looking forward to this
event. See you there!
2005 Christmas Bird Count
by Donald Ware, Bird Count Coordinator
On 19 December, 31 participants in the Choctawhatchee Bay, FL Christmas Bird Count found
16,603 birds of 146 species. Five species were new, not found before on 27 previous Christmas
counts: Cackling Goose, Wood Stork, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Ovenbird, and Black-headed
Grosbeak. The Cackling Goose, found by me at the Okaloosa STF holding pond, and the Lesser
Black-backed Gull, found by Merilu and Rufus Rose in Shalimar, were both first county records. Four
species were seen or heard on 16 December that were not found on count day, so they are recorded
as Count Week species; King Rail, Common Ground-Dove, Barred Owl, and a Black-chinned
Hummingbird at Blake Hardison’s feeder. Two hummingbirds were seen on count day; a Rufous at
Maryann Friedman’s in Niceville and a Ruby-throated seen well by Jim Kowalski in FT. Walton Beach.
This was the third lowest number of individual birds counted, with a maximum of nearly 26,000 in 1999,
yet only three times has this count produced more species.
We had all 14 areas covered. Our team leaders were Virginia Spisak, Don Ware, Merilu/Rufus
Rose, Peggy Baker, Alan Knothe, Lois Gilman, Ann Forster, Pat Baker, Bob Penhollow, Bob
Reid/Betsy Clark, Carole/Phil Goodyear, Bob/Lucy Duncan, Charlie Saleeby, and Jim Kowalski, with
Bill Bremser as a rover.
Other species that were represented by a single bird were: Black-crowned Night Heron,
Peregrine Falcon, Greater White-fronted Goose, Wild Turkey, Great Horned Owl, Red-cockaded
Woodpecker, White-eyed Vireo, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Winter Wren, Nashville Warbler, Black-and-
White Warbler, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Summer Tanager. Our most numerous species this year
were 1,437 Laughing Gulls, 1,370 European Starlings, and 1,256 Mourning Doves.
I thank all participants for their time, effort and expertise. The complete database can be
accessed at www.audubon.org/bird/cbc. The count code is FLCB. Please mark your calendars for
our next CBC on 18 Dec 06 and the next migration count on 13 May.

Great Back Yard Bird Count

by Linda Daugherty, CAS Publicity Chair
The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) returns for its ninth season February 17-20, 2006. The
National Audubon Society and the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology encourage everyone to COUNT
BIRDS WITH A BUDDY! Bird enthusiasts of all ages can share their love of birds with a friend, a child,
a scout troop, a class, or a co-worker-opening new eyes to the joy of birding and the fun of creating a
unique snapshot of winter bird abundance and distribution across the continent. Every pair of eyes is
needed and everybirdy counts, whether in a backyard, on a high-rise balcony, in a park, or on any of
the 730 million acres of public lands.
Year-round, anyone can view results from past counts and learn how to participate by visiting
www.birdsource.org/gbbc. There is no fee or registration for the event, which is sponsored by Wild
Birds Unlimited.

A Little Bird Told Me...

by Gee Oakman
A little bird told me that January is a poor time to be looking for birds. There are some water birds to
be seen - ducks, geese, loons, pelicans, cormorants, herons, coots, plovers, some of the other shore-
birds and gulls, and some of the hawks. Next month is the month to be prepared for with the return of
spring and summer birds. Ruby-throats will be moving through so get your feeders ready. There will
be some early warblers and others too so keep a sharp lookout.

February 2006.......Page 2
 CONSERVATION CORNER

Endangered Species Act

By John W. Fitzpatrick, Louis Agassiz Fuertes Director

Imagine the government weakening, then eliminating, highway laws that set speed limits on
motor vehicles. "After all," supporters would argue, "these laws aren't working. Thousands of peo-
ple are still dying on our highways because of speeding." Imagine doctors withholding medicine
from all but the gravely ill patients, explaining. "We shouldn't treat patients until they actually begin
to die." Imagine police departments compensating criminals for every thwarted crime, on the
grounds that the perpetrators were being robbed of potential income. Arguments akin to these are
among those offered in support of a bill recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives (HR
3824, passed by a vote of 229 to 193). If enacted into law, this bill would starve-and ultimately
destroy-the single most important act of environmental legislation in history.
The Endangered Species Act (ESA), signed by Richard Nixon in 1973, declared that the govern-
ment and citizens of the United States shall do what is reasonably within our power to keep any
native species from going extinct in our country. Over the ensuing 30 years more than 1,300
species were officially listed as Endangered and Threatened, and populations of more than half of
these have either remained stable or begun to increase since listing. Even more important, and con-
trary to statements often made by opponents of the ESA, the process works extremely well. More
than two thirds of the species that have been on the Endangered Species list for 12 years or more
are showing signs of recovery. Only 44 listed species (3 percent) are now classified as extinct.
The American public overwhelmingly supports retention of the ESA (more than 80 percent accord-
ing to some polls). Nevertheless, HR3824 contains a sunset clause that would end the law in 10
years. It also removes restrictions on pesticide use that threatens rare species, erects copious
bureaucratic hurdles to the listing and recovery process, deletes designation of "critical habitat," lim-
its the amount of time provided for review of land use proposals, and gives political appointees
authority to declare how species are (or are not) protected. The new rules would remove most of
the current protection afforded species designated as Threatened---thereby allowing them to decline
further until they get reclassified as Endangered (i.e., the gravely ill patient). Indeed, the proposed
law would remove "recovery" from the stated goals of the ESA altogether, making mere "survival"
the standard for success. Finally, the bill requires financial compensation to anyone claiming to suf-
fer an economic impact as a result of obeying the law.
Study after study confirms the correctness of the ESA's fundamental assumptions. As clearly stat-
ed in its original language (Section 2b), the act's purpose is to protect the ecosystems upon which
endangered and threatened species depend. Endangered species do not represent mere curiosi-
ties to be preserved by convenience, like so many museum specimens. Besides being our most
effective indicators of broad-scale environmental damage and degradation, they also demonstrate
our capacity as managers of the earth to live side by side with natural systems. The latter simply
requires that we make the effort. The ESA can be improved, most notably by adding incentive pro-
visions, but its principle features deserve canonization, not damnation.

Reprinted with permission from BirdScope, newsletter of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology,
www.birds.cornell.edu

February 2006.......Page 3
 CHAPTER
REPRESENTATIVES
President: Nonie Maines: 862-9588, nonie@noniesark.com
Vice Pres.: Bill Burke: 678-0440, manateeadvocate@hotmail.com
Treasurer: Karen Newhouse: 897-3745, newhouse@earthlink.net
Rec. Sec.: Carole Goodyear: 897-2666, carolegoodyear@msn.com
Corresponding secretary: Pat Baker: 678-2953, flabirder@cox.net
Count coord.: Donald M. Ware: 862-6582, donware@earthlink.net
Conservation: Josh Barbee: 218-0573, josh@heyroy.com
Education: Nonie Maines: 862-9588, nonie@noniesark.com
Field trips: Bob Penhollow: 729-2602
Hospitality: Gertrude Oakman: 664-0312
Membership: Theresa Dennis: tinkinneverland@yahoo.com
Publicity: Linda Dougherty: 269-0665, wbudestin@earthlink.net
Programs: Thelma Phillips: 651-0508, TCMagures@aol.com
Editor: Karin Barbee: shorelines@choctawhatcheeaudubon.org

Choctawhatchee Audubon Society Nonprofit Organization

Shorelines, February 2006 U.S. Postage PAID
P.O. Box 1014 Fort Walton Beach, FL
Fort Walton Beach, Florida 32549
Permit No. 110

Printed on recycled paper

Donations are welcome, please contact CAS

Thank you for donating to the treasurer Karen Newhouse at 678-0440. All
contributions are tax-deductible. Feel free to
Charlie Parkel Memorial Fund: specify a particular fund/event that you wish to
Phyllis Cheney sponsor.
Mary Hood
Pat Gross A great big THANK YOU to all CAS sponsors.
Laurie Mackey
Lenny Fenimore General Fund Donors:
Louise Birch Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Smith
Mr. M. C. Davis
MEMORIAL REMINDER
Introductory Audubon Society Membership (E-11):
We are still accepting donations for the This form is to be used for new memberships only.
"Lasting Memorial for Charlie Parkel Fund". We Name:__________________________________________
are anxious to decide what kind of suitable Address:________________________________________
memorial we will be able to purchase, to be City:____________________________ State:__________
placed in Rocky Bayou State Park. Charlie was Zip:_____________ Phone: _______________________
"special" so we want his memorial to be too. E-mail: _________________________________________
Send your donations to CAS P.O. Box 1014 Introductory membership is $20/individual or $15/student
Ft Walton Beach, FL 32549 or senior citizen to join national, state, and local Audubon
Thank you, groups and receive Audubon magazine and the Shorelines
The Memorial Fund Committee newsletter. To join, mail this form and a check, payable to
National Audubon Society, to NAS Membership Data
Robin Stiles-Pat Baker-Karen Newhouse
Center, P.O. Box 51005, Boulder, CO 80323-1005.
Lenny Fenimore-Carole Goodyear
Chapter Code: E-11 7XCH

© 2006 by Choctawhatchee Audubon Society. All rights reserved.