Hog Island Audubon Camp

This island is so beautiful it really makes my heart ache!

Why, it seems to me God's own heaven

can hardly be more perfect.

- Mabel Loomis Todd

Hog Island Audubon Camp has been on my wishlist of destinations for many years now. Roger Tory Peterson, Allan Cruickshank, Rachel Carson, Scott Weidensaul, Kenn Kaufman, and many more have spent time there, taught classes there, been a part of birding history, and now I get to add my name to the distinguished list.

Photo by Stephen Kress

In college I was interested in everything and nothing. Two semesters I volunteered at a banding station but then like the wind my attention went elsewhere. Years later I taught "Ornithology" classes but I mostly was trying to get kids to appreciate the biology of birds and the fact that they exist.  I couldn't identify flycatchers or gulls but I was somehow qualified to take kids in the woods to a pond that had Black-crowned Night Herons and Wood Storks.

The real birding came later. In 2007 I started working at Green Cay Nature Center and I immersed myself in identifying spring migrants.  I was hooked on warblers like an addiction and it hasn't stopped since. Now my vacations consist of birding trips and my work is once again back in the world of birds.

Photo by Stephen Kress

This summer I will be working and living at the Hog Island Audubon Camp as the Program Manager. I won't be an instructor but more of a director of people as they go from boats to dining halls to cabins.  I also plan to do a lot of birding and really delve into the allure of The Hog.

Photo by Stephen Kress

If Hog Island is on your wish list, why don't you join me? We still have openings for a few of the sessions. I think the Hands-on Bird Science led by Scott Weidensaul is going to be especially interesting. Bird banding, songbird recording, taxidermy, you name it!  Or for those beginner birders try Breaking Into Birding.  We have something for all walks of life.  If you're an educator we have Educator's Week or if you're just a birding fan we have Joy of Birding or Field Ornithology. The best part - this is a summer camp for adults. For many of us, that's something that feels right, that feels nostalgic.  Why not go to camp this summer? I'm going to be there, I hope you join me!

Lego Robotics

Lego Robotics, since when did that become an after school club?  I'm not sure when it started but it's a brilliant idea.  Kids love legos and robots.  So why not merge something they love with math and science-reasoning.  This year's project theme in Colorado is Natural Disasters, a very fitting one.  The kids build a robot, they give a presentation, and they do a leadership/team-building activity in the competition.  Three schools decided to build robots that involved saving animals and contacted me for a presentation.  It was fun helping out the kids and even better, I stumbled on the world of Lego Robotics.

Middle School Trip to the Everglades

Back in December I took a few 8th graders camping in Everglades National Park.  These urban Miami kids often don't take advantage of the diverse ecosystem in their backyards.  We set out with 4 kids, their teacher, and me as the chauffeur of the mini-van and the naturalist.

First stop was Anhinga Trail where the vultures were everywhere.  Some may not be fans but I really enjoy vultures.  I find them a fascinating lot of birds and this is a great place to see them up-close.  Just watch out when they start their hissing.

We transversed the national park with stops along the way.  We played a few games, checked out some of the wildlife, and finally ended our journey at Flamingo campground to set up our homes for the night.  We were greeted by the resident Osprey.

The middle schoolers lost interest in being outdoors when the mosquitos came to play and I don't blame them because they were pretty intense.  Fortunately, a VERY friendly Red-shouldered Hawk came to visit the campsite and provided the group with some great hunting tips.  We watched the hawk catch lizards literally feet away.  It was a great experience for the students and one I enjoyed as well.

We may not have converted any Miami kids into nature lovers and yes, that photo is from our departure day where you would think they would be accustomed to wildlife, but we did provide some real South Florida experiences.  When I leave South Florida, I will miss Everglades National Park.  I love the birding, the camping opportunities, and the unknown.  Every time I visit this park something provides me with one of those awe moments.  I may not love South Florida with the traffic and urban sprawl but I love the Everglades, the birds, and the teaching opportunitites.

Migration Celebration

Green Cay Nature Center

12800 Hagen Ranch Road

Boynton Beach, FL 33437

FREE EVENT

PRESENTATIONS

10:00 am: “Bats – The Other Flying Animal”

                                    Sydelle Dombrowsky, Green Cay PLT Coordinator

11:00 am: “Submarine Fields of Green – The Manatee Kitchen”

                                   Dr. Chris Buzzelli, Senior Scientist, Coastal Ecosystem 

                                                                  Section, SFWMD

1:00 pm:  “Lifestyles of Butterflies in the Garden”

                                   Alana Edwards, Education & Training Coordinator,

                                                                  FAU Center for Environmental Studies

2:00 pm:  “Rescue, Rehab & Release of Florida Native Wildlife”                                                                                                                                                                                                              

                                   Sherry Schleuter, South Florida Wildlife Center

SPECIAL EVENTS

7:00 am – 2:00 pm: The “Big Sit” Bird Count

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm: Children’s Story Time Hour

9:00 am – 2:00 pm: Raffle & Silent Auction

9:00 am – 3:00 pm: Environmental Exhibits, Bird Passports & Crafts

For additional information contact Green Cay Nature Center at 561-966-7000.

Florida Trails Bird Migration Talk

Monday, March 5th I will be giving a Bird Migration talk to the Florida Trails group at Okeeheelee Nature Center in West Palm Beach, FL.  If you would like to join the talk it starts at 7PM.  I really enjoy doing some outside speaking engagements and this one always draws a nice crowd.  Those FL Trails folk are some of the friendlist around.  See you Monday!

Jr. Naturalist Series

Reservations are open for our winter break Jr. Naturalist Series at Green Cay Nature Center.  On Tuesday January 3, 2012 we will offer Jr. Herpetology from 9AM-12PM and Jr. Entomology from 12PM-3PM and on Wednesday January 4, 2012 we will offer Jr. Ornithology from 9AM-12PM and Jr. Wetland Biology from 12PM-3PM.  This is always an exciting day of fun-filled activities that connect 9 to 14 year olds with the natural world.  We play games, take nature hikes, and explore the animals of the wetlands.  If you know someone that's interested in participating they must be 9years old by January 1, 2012.  Please call to book your reservation today at 561-966-7000.

Oliver the Owl

Yesterday I posted a photo of our new education Kestrel but if you're visiting Green Cay you shouldn't definitely ask at the front desk if Oliver is out on our perch.  He usually sits behind the desk and delights visitors daily.  We've had Oliver for a couple of years now and he's such a cute guy.  We use him with our nightwalks, our school programs, weekend programs, and outreaches.  He's easy to handle and has quite the personality.  

Oliver was hit by a car and has an amputated wing.  He can never fly again and he was rehabbed at Busch Wildlife Center.  Now he lives at Green Cay and educates the public about birds, nocturnal animals, and human threats on wildlife.  Mostly he's a grumpy little guy but I do find him endearing.  It's a pleasure to work with such a beautiful animal.

Education Kestrel

Our new American Kestrel is doing well at Green Cay.  We are still in the process of getting his outside enclosure ready but so far he's eating well and working okay on the glove.  He's been a gem so far and we've already used him around the nature center when we have guests.  Friday he had his first chance to entertain a school group.  We had 30 homeschoolers in for a Birds class and he stole the show.  I'm really glad that we have him for our programs.  If you're interested in helping us with the naming contest then leave a message on the Green Cay Facebook page. 

New Education Kestrel!

Green Cay Nature Center is proud to have our newly arrived education American Kestrel.  I went to pick him up today from another nature center.  Over the weekend was the Kestrel Count mentioned but I didn't see any kestrels flying around Washington D.C.  But I was really happy to come back to work today and be able to pick up our new education bird.  If you want to see our new addition he will be used in upcoming programs.  Currently, we are running a naming contest for him at the front desk of the nature center and on Facebook.  If you would like to enter then drop a name idea over at the Green Cay Facebook page.

Okeeheelee Nature Center Day

Okeeheelee Nature Center is a great place to visit in Palm Beach County. My dear friend Mo Kieffer works there as a naturalist. Since Okeeheelee is part of the Palm Beach County Parks & Recreation Department, I have the privelege of helping out from time to time. On this particular trip I brought my Americorps student, Cathy, to observe a typcial day at their center.

First we watched Mo teach a story time lesson to her 3-5 year olds. Dip netting with little ones is a brave feat but Mo was excellent. The kids even found a few nice finds including a dragonfly nymph or two and this large apple snail pictured above.

One of the biggest differences between our two nature centers other than the different habitats is that Okeeheelee has over 16 birds of prey. We checked the inventory of chicks and mice before heading out to the deer and bird enclosures.

Okeeheelee's newest member of the team is the hand-fed deer pictured here. Her name is Dodo and she's quite the charmer. I've never met a deer that behaves like a dog until now.

The variety of birds at Okeeheelee is amazing. They have a Peregrine, a Merlin, a Turkey Vulture, a Barred Owl, Barn Owl, 2 Great Horned-Owls, 2 Eastern Screech-Owls, 2 American Kestrals, a Cooper's Hawk, 2 Red-tailed Hawks, a Red-shouldered Hawk, and a Broad-winged Hawk.

I was happily surprised that Mo let me even hold the Barred Owl. She is so much heavier than our little Oliver, the Eastern Screech-Owl.

If you're in the Palm Beach area of Florida I would definitely fit in a trip to Okeeheelee. You never know which one of their birds you may meet on display at the nature center. And for those not in the know, all three County nature centers in Palm Beach County are free to the general public.

From the science symposium

Bees! One day will have my own hives and honey production. This one was set up at the Palm Beach County science symposium.

Kindergarten Reptile/Amphibian Class

Last week I was lucky to enough to teach the local kindergaten class about reptiles and amphibians. They in turn drew me some lovely pictures and told me what they liked best about the presentation. I thought I would share a few of my favorites.

I don't remember wearing a dress or green shoes but I like that the alligator and I match.

Next time I plan on brushing my hair before going up to teach. The artist did get one thing right, that big smile on my face was definitely realistic.

I love how the snake becomes bigger than me in the photo. For those that are curious I took a 3 foot Corn Snake to the presentation.

According to the artist this is me holding the Eastern Glass Lizard. For many of the kids this was the highlight of the show.

I thought this picture of me holding an baby alligator was perfect. One of the things we talk about that makes baby alligators and adults different is that the young have stripes that they use for camoflauge. It's amazing that six year olds can pick up on this better than adults.

The most accurate picture of the day except for the fact that I wasn't holding a blue snake by the neck...but it's pretty close.

4th Grade Science Fair

In contrast to the County Envirothon I judged a 4th grade science fair the day before. Both competitions were local students participating in science projects but the 4th graders provided me much more amusement. Two of my favorite hypothesises are below. I appreciate that Mom and Dad didn't help but I thought that they are classic kid ideas, the tiny blocks one especially.

Some of the projects made little sense, like this turtle experiment but I thought it was fun nontheless.

From the name of the projects you can tell how the media affects our youth. In Fruits Gone Wild the student studied decomposition of various fruits in different climates. I must admit, it's a catchy name but doesn't really have anything to do with the science.

Just like the Envirothon I had a teammate that helped me. This time I had Mo from Okeeheelee Nature Center and we decided that the War on Germs project was by far our favorite. All in all, it was a really fun afternoon and the teachers at Manatee Elementary are so kind. They even fed us pizza and snacks. So two wonderful days with the local students in Palm Beach County. Who knows, maybe some of the kids at this science fair will go on to the the Envirothon in years to come. Regardless, I'm proud to be a part of the process no matter how small.

Palm Beach County Envirothon

Last week I helped out with the County Envirothon competition. This year it was hosted at the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge. This is a great park and they just opened their brand new exhibit hall which is very nice. The competition this year was very competitive with some of the best high schools in the County going for the grand prize. Last year's winning team went on to win frist in the state of Florida and placed 6th in the Nationals. So it's really amazing to get to work with some of the brightest kids in the County for a day.

My job every year is to be a Team Escort. Basically I lead my group, which consists of 4 or 5 teams, around to each station. This year we had The Scots, Eco-Team-Go!, Alternates II, and our favorite team, Elementz aka Shrub Patrol. Elementz was one of our teams from last year so it was fun to get to work with a group of kids we already were famailiar with from a year ago.

At the Forestry station my team leader and I discussed carrying this axe around in case we needed to do any reprimanding. Luckily, our kids are not only bright but very well behaved.

Once we delivered the teams to the next station Danica, pictured above, and I would sit and chat. We racked up quite the bird list including: Swallow-tailed Kite, Gray Catbird, Great-crested Flycatcher, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Roseate Spoonbill and of course the usual wetland waders.

Our teams pictured above were very serious about the competition and with good reason, this is year long effort that accumulates in this one competition. At the Action Team station we had a chance to browse the environmental projects. Our team Eco-Team-Go! won the Action Team award and came in 4th overall.

Our favorite Elementz won second in the Action Team category but they took the grand prize overall. They were also the winning team last year so we hope they can repeat at the state level and go for an even bigger national win.

Below is the Elementz team with County Commissioner Vana. She's a great supporter of education and nature centers in the County. She's a former teacher makes a point to come to the competition every year. It's really nice to see some of our political leaders out in the community and not just on trial for abuses of their power. In three years Palm Beach County has lost three commissioners. I really hope that the people like Shelley Vana kept promoting the County in a positive light.