Tulsa Audubon News

Field Trip to Pathfinder Parkway, April 20, 2019

Mon, 22 Apr 2019 19:53:26 GMT

Four Tulsa birders were joined by five Bartlesville folks Saturday morning to walk the Pathfinder Parkway and see what birds we could find. Migration still seems to be a little later than usual, but we did find a few good birds. Here is a list of the highlights:

White-eyed Vireo-2

Warbling Vireo-2

Yellow-throated Vireo-2

Red-eyed Vireo-1

Orange-crowned Warbler-3

Northern Parula Warbler-3

Myrtle Warbler-5

Yellow-throated Warbler-2

Prothonotary Warbler-2

Louisiana Waterthrush-1

Lincoln's Sparrow-5

Thanks go to Mark Peterson for leading us, and to Jen Wong for the attached photos. - Jim Deming

Field Trip To Spavinaw Area, April 6, 2019

Wed, 17 Apr 2019 14:38:56 GMT

Seven Tulsa Audubon members met four Indian Nations Audubon members at Spavinaw State Park for a day of birds and wild flowers. After birding around the park and vicinity, we headed for the main objective; the City of Tulsa property between Lakes Spavinaw and Eucha, which has been largely untouched for 100 years.Migrating birds were scarce, but we did find Louisiana Waterthrushes, Northern Parula, and Yellow-throated Warbler. The Ozark wildflowers were blooming nicely, and we saw Woodland Phlox, Rue Anemone, Dutchman's Breeches, Bloodroot, Trout Lillies, Yellow and Blue Violets, Cutleaved Toothwort, and others we could not identify. Both Spavinaw and Eucha Lakes still had Common Loons, and Eucha had an Osprey. After lunch in Jay, we went to the upper Eucha area for a while before heading home. There we found a rookery of Great Blue Herons, and observed them coming and going for a while. We lucked out on the weather, and while we finished with only 52 bird species, we all agreed it was a very good trip.

Here is the complete bird list:

Canada Goose

Gadwall

Scaup sp.

Common Loon

Pied-billed Grebe

Double-crested Cormorant

American White Pelican

Great Blue Heron

Black Vulture

Turkey Vulture

Osprey

Bald Eagle

Red-shouldered Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

American Coot

Bonaparte's Gull

Franklin's Gull

Eurasian Collared-Dove

Mourning Dove

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Pileated Woodpecker

Eastern Phoebe

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Blue Jay

American Crow

Fish Crow

Barn Swallow

Carolina Chickadee

Tufted Titmouse

White-breasted Nuthatch

Carolina Wren

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Eastern Bluebird

American Robin

Northern Mockingbird

European Starling

Louisiana Waterthrush

Northern Parula

Yellow-throated Warbler

Chipping Sparrow

Song Sparrow

White-throated Sparrow

Northern Cardinal

Red-winged Blackbird

Common Grackle

House Finch

American Goldfinch

House Sparrow

Join Tulsa Audubon in Panama!

Tue, 12 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Sept. 26 - Oct. 5, 2019

Experience the natural wonders of Panama with Tulsa Audubon Society, Sept. 26 - Oct. 5, 2019! Panama offers some of the most exciting birding in all of Central America as well as amazing lodging options. Our tour will start at the unique Canopy Tower, a former US Air Force radar tower in the midst of Soberania National Park (near the Panama Canal) that’s been turned into a beautiful eco-tourism lodge to give you eye-level looks at birds and other wildlife. Then, we’ll move on to the Canopy Lodge situated in beautiful El Valle, for a very different set of birds and other wildlife. Lots of birds and other wildlife, plus fun and fellowship! Click here for a flyer with the details. Contact Jeff Cox ( jeffacox54@gmail.com or 918-629-2140) for more information.

Woodcock Watch This Thursday (Feb 21)!

Wed, 20 Feb 2019 19:44:03 GMT

Meet Thur Feb 21st at 6:00 p.m. at the entrance gate for Oxley Nature Center

The American Woodcocks are back!!!! And they are displaying at Oxley Nature Center, so it's time for an ad-hoc field trip. We'll meet on Thursday, Feb. 21 at 6:00 p.m. at the gate into Oxley Nature Center. Be on time or early, as they started displaying about 6:15. Please park in the lots just before the gate.

We'll be meeting Amy from Oxley there and she recommends we stay on the entrance road rather than walking down the flowline, which is very wet. She has been seeing them about half way up the road.

Woodcock Watch Etiquette: The birds are somewhat tolerant of people, but be sure to keep your voices down, so everyone can hear the peenting, and stay with the group. You are welcome to bring a camera, but know it will be dark and they are very difficult to photograph. Since we are with a group please do not use any flashes, and stay with the group and don't try to get closer. As with most wildlife photography, you are best off doing it alone without a crowd around.

Saturday (2/16) Field Trip Canceled

Fri, 15 Feb 2019 21:34:23 GMT

Saturday's (Feb. 16) field trip to Tulsa Area Lakes has been canceled. Like many around Tulsa, Terry and some other alternate leaders are not feeling well, so we are canceling this trip.

Year End Appeal/#GivingTuesday

tulsaaudubonsociety@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Mon, 26 Nov 2018 19:21:44 GMT

Tulsa Audubon Outreach Program

Nov. 27th is #GivingTuesday , a national day of giving when Americans support their favorite causes. Please consider our very local project, which is our year-end appeal to help us establish our Outreach Committee so we can spread the word about birds and wildlife in the Tulsa community. You can donate via credit card or PayPal , but even better is if you are a Facebook member and make your donation on #GivingTuesday, Nov 27th, Facebook and PayPal will match your donation!

Tulsa Audubon receives many requests throughout the year asking us to provide speakers for various community, civic and school groups. We love sharing our love of birds and nature with others, but being a volunteer group makes it difficult for us to accommodate all these requests.

To solve this problem, we have formed a new Outreach Committee. Donna Horton, retired Naturalist from Oxley Nature Center, is helping us develop various programs for both adults and students. She is also providing us training on how to do a presentation (a skill Donna excels at!) By having pre-prepared programs, and offering training, we can expand our pool of volunteers to present these programs.

While our presenters will all be TAS volunteers, there are costs to ramping up this program. We will need to purchase a projector, put together kits for the school presentations with hands-on items, storage boxes, a rolling cart and other mundane but necessary supplies. We are developing appropriate handouts for participants that need to be printed. Finally, we are also pursuing a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Salvage Permit, allowing TAS to possess and use educational wildlife specimens.

Our goal for this is $1,500.

Your contribution will make an impact, whether you donate $5 or $500. Every little bit helps. Thank you for your support.

We already have a small pool of volunteers working with our new Outreach Committee, but we still need more help! If you would like to volunteer to present some of our prepared programs (along with appropriate training) please contact Julia Harris at 918-493-2388 or scotfiddle@aol.com.

Donate via Facebook (Donations made on #GIvingTuesday, Nov 27, will be matched!)

Donate via Credit Card or PayPal

Eagle Days & Raptor Rally

Mon, 26 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Saturday, January 26, 8:00-12:15

The Tulsa Audubon Society is teaming up with the Jenks High School Ornithology Program to once again host the annual Tulsa Eagle Day event on Saturday, January 26. The event is FREE to the public and geared toward adults and children alike.

For 2019 we are updating our program. We will have the wild Bald Eagle Watch early in the morning along the Arkansas River followed by a "Raptor Rally" at the Jenks High School, featuring separate presentations for both adults and children, all featuring live raptors!

The Outdoor Watch is 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. on the Jenks Pedestrian Bridge. Use the parking lot on the Jenks/West side of river, located at Riverfront Drive and "B" Street. (There is also a smaller overflow parking lot down below the main one.)

Join us after the viewing for our Raptor Rally, featuring live raptor presentations, from 9:00-12:15 at Jenks High School, Building 6, 301 N. Birch St.

Youth Birding Camp Scholarships

Wed, 14 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Thanks to a generous donor, Tulsa Audubon is pleased to offer again two full scholarships, each worth up to $1,500, to young birders to attend a youth birding camp in the summer of 2019. There are several such camps in different parts of the country and the scholarship can be applied to any of these. The eligible camps are described on the application. Some excellent discussion on youth birding camps can be found on the Young Birders Facebook page . More good info can be found on the American Birding Associations Young Birder's Blog .

To be eligible, you must meet these criteria:

Live in the general Tulsa area
Be between 14-18 years old (as of June 1st, 2019)
Be willing to provide a short report (about 10 minutes) at a TAS meeting
Be willing to provide 10 volunteer hours (such as at Oxley, giving a bird talk to an elementary school class, leading a youth field trip, etc., or your own idea, something meaningful to you.)

Note: These are not general nature camps, but are designed for youth that have a passion specifically for birds! You don't need to be an "expert" birder but do need to have a basic knowledge of birding and identifying birds.

The deadline to apply is January 31, 2019 , but you are encouraged to send in your applications as soon as possible since these camps fill up very fast and we will judge applications as they arrive.

The scholarship will cover the camp fee, up to $1,500. Transportation and other incidental expenses will be paid by the camper or his/her family. Additional funding to help with transportation may be available on an as-needed basis.

Click here for an application .

TAS now on YouTube!

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 13:33:39 GMT

We're pleased to announce a new service from Tulsa Audubon. Video of our monthly meetings for those who are not able to make it to our Tuesday evening meetings, or for those who want to hear it again! Thanks to Ron Huebner for the providing this service! We are posting these on the Tulsa Audubon YouTube channel .

Our September meeting is up first, featuring Jay Pruett's program on the Birds of Cuba:

https://youtu.be/Owm7jOKuV1g

And the October meting, featuring Dr Mia Revels on Saw-whet Owls in Oklahoma:

https://youtu.be/D2Q8Dy2mAPM

We also have available there a lecture given to TAS by Dr. Doug Talamy from 2015 .

2017 Recorder's Report

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 05:23:16 GMT

For those interested in birds (that's all of us, right?!?) Recorder Paul Ribitzki's 2017 Annual Recorder's Report is now available. It is a summary of the first and last dates reported, the number of field reports per season, the number of individuals per season, the total number of reports, and the total number of individuals. It makes for very interesting reading, and Paul compares the birds seen in 2017 to those seen in 2016, and there are some very interesting species both missed in 2016 and unusual species observed in 2017. You can view previous year's reports on the Recorder's Report page

Flycatcher Trail Donor Brick Dedication

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

We had a big day Sunday, Oct. 7, 2018, at Flycatcher Trail as we dedicated our new donor recognition bricks. Thank You to our many donors for making the latest improvements to possible, including a new crushed granite walkway and a new classroom space. And Flycatcher Trail would not be possible without the dedication of a group of committed volunteers who maintain the garden.

Click on the Facebook icon in the upper right corner of the below preview to view photos. You do not need to be a Facebook member to view the post.

Wild At Art - Dec 7 & 8

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Mark your calendars! We are excited to announce our 6th Annual Wild At Art, December 7-8, 2018! This is our biggest fundraiser of the year. This event allows us to help defray the out of pocket expense to our WingIt rehabbers. All the proceeds go directly to the care of injured and orphaned wildlife. Not only does this event help us continue to rehabilitate wildlife, it also allows us to showcase local businesses and our incredibly talented local artists. Join us for this FREE event! You’ll be scoring unique gifts for this holiday season, as well as giving back…

Fri Dec 7th 12:00pm - 7:00pm, Sat Dec 8th 10:00am - 4:00pm

Tulsa Garden Center, 2435 S Peoria Ave, Tulsa, OK 74114, USA map

Shop Local ❤ Support Local Art ❤ Help Animals in Need…Win. Win.

Don’t forget to invite all your friends and follow #WildAtArt2018 on Facebook for sneak peeks and all the details!

Wild at Art has been conceived to support the "bigger picture", as Tulsa Audubon and Wing It are both deeply vested in wildlife conservation. Contributing artists' work will all be nature-oriented.

Monarchs on the Mountain 2018

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Mon, 24 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

We had a terrific time yesterday at Monarchs on the Mountain. 95 Monarchs were tagged and released. Thanks to Anita Harp , Jan Eckardt Butler , Sandra Schwinn and Teresa Damme for providing the Monarchs. Over 2,000 people came out. Weather turned out to be perfect. Tulsa Audubon would also like to thank all of the volunteers who came out to help.

Click on the Facebook icon in the upper right corner of the below preview to view photos. You do not need to be a Facebook member to view the post.

Nov 10th Saturday Morning Birders

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Sun, 16 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Saturday Morning Birders

Sat Nov 10th 8:00am - 12:00pm

Lake Yahola Mounment

The Saturday Morning Birders meet on the second Saturday of every month except Jul. & Aug. Anyone who would like to bird with us (whatever your skill level!) is welcome. Meet at the monument at Lake Yahola at 8:00 a.m. in Mohawk Park, 3730 Mohawk Blvd (just north of the water plant). From there the destination will vary each month, based on the weather, and current birding conditions. For more information contact leader Terry Mitchell at 918-697-3198

Oct 30th After Work Birding

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Sat, 15 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Tue Oct 30th 6:00pm - 7:30pm

Ray Harral Nature Park, 7101 S 3rd St, Broken Arrow, OK 74011, USA map

All ages and skill levels welcome for a short walk. Meet at 6:00 pm at Ray Harral Nature Center, 7101 S. 3rd St in Broken Arrow (On 121st between Elm and Lynn Lane). Leader: John Kennington, johnkennington@gmail.com , 918-809-6325.

Oct 16 Society Meeting - “Oklahoma’s Saw-Whet Owls: An Historical Perspective and New Information” by Dr. Mia Revels

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Sat, 08 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Tue Oct 16th 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Tulsa Garden Center, 2435 S Peoria Ave, Tulsa, OK 74114, USA map

Mia is a Professor of Biology at Northeastern State University and established Oklahoma’s first Northern Saw-whet Owl banding station.

The program is at the Tulsa Garden Center with refreshments at 7:00 p.m, and the program beginning at 7:30 p.m. All are invited to join our speaker and other TAS friends for dinner at 5:30 at Pepper's Grill in Utica Square (on 21st Street across the street from Wendy's.)

Nov 20th Society Meeting - “I Love the 70s & 80s! Svalbard – Sea Birds & Ice Bears “ by Dr. Doug Wood

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Sun, 02 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Tue Nov 20th 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Dr. Doug Wood is a Professor of Biological Sciences at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, an ornithologist and avid birder who travels far and wide in pursuit of birds.

Tue Nov 20th 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Tulsa Garden Center, 2435 S Peoria Ave, Tulsa, OK 74114, USA map

Sept 18 Society Meeting - “A Cuban Bird Survey” by Jay Pruett

johnkennington@gmail.com (John Kennington) — Sat, 01 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Tue Sep 18th 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Tulsa Garden Center, 2435 S Peoria Ave, Tulsa, OK 74114, USA map

Jay is past Director of Conservation at the Nature Conservancy, an expert birder traveling the world to observe and photograph birds.