Valley Habitat 1The Valley Habitat M a rc h 2 01 4 A J oi n t P ub l ic at io n of t he St an is la us Au d ub on So c ie ty an d t he Yo ku t s Gr o up of t he S ie rr a C lu b It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood!By Maryann HightLast year the Yokuts group president, Anita Young, wrote about her experience riding her bicycle to work, and about a few people among her acquaintances who are also bicycle commuters. Last month Steve Tomlin- son expanded upon his experience using an electric bi- cycle. This month, I am going to expand on my own ex- periences over the last year as a bicy cle commuter . Like many people, the financial needs of my family and circumstances weren’t always met by my income, and I found myself with more debt than I wanted to be carry- ing as I prepare for retirement. Since my plan to find a rich benefactor or win the lottery had never worked out, I decided I either had to get a second job or get rid of my car in order to free up all the money I was spending on car payments, insurance, gas and mainten ance. So I got rid of the car, and 18 months later I am debt free. Being without a car changes life considerably, but not, in my view, in negative ways. In fact, for me, the changes in my habits and the way I experience my com- munity has been positive, such as:*I buy less stuff. When you have to load all your grocer- ies into your bike baskets and your backpack, you really think carefully about what you need to eat. If I ride over to TJ Maxx to buy pillows, then you can bet I don’t buy l ots of other stuff because then I would have to carry it on my bike in some fashion!*I am in better physical shape. Now this did take some time. The first couple of times I had to ride into the wind going to work there was some huffing and puffing g oing on. However, now, th e wind barely slows me down.*My life has become more local. I go to the Turlock farmer’s market. I frequent the restaura nts and shops here in Turlock than I used to when I hopped into my car for everything. *I know more about my town. I often ride through parts of town that car drivers would ignore because the streets don’t provide a direct route to a destination, (Continued on page 6.)Yokuts Group of the Sierra Club Program 7p.m. Friday, March 21, 2014Member’s Slide ShowYou, Sierra Club members, will b e the feature of March’s Yokuts Program. Please bring your dvd’s and thumb drives of your most recent backpacking and hiking trips, vacation adventures, your bird and wildflower sightings and whatever you would like to share for the meeting on March 21st. There will be a lap top and projector set up but come about 20 minutes early (about 6:25) so we can work out any of the technical bugs. Contact Linda Lagace at 863 9137 for any questions about the program. College Avenue Congregational Church • 1341 College Avenue -Refreshments and socializing begin at 6:45 p.m. and the meeting starts at 7:00 p.m. -Non-members are always welcome! The program is free and open to the public .
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Stan is laus Audubon SocietyRECENT SIGHTINGS OF RARE OR UNCOMMON BIRDS
MERCED COUNTY:
Bill Amundsen and other participants of an Audubon field trip saw a pair of BLUE-WINGED TEAL at the Merced National Wildlife Refuge on January 25. James Williams had a BREWER’S SPARROW at the same refuge on
February 5.
STANISLAUS COUNTY:
Harold Reeve and Sal Salerno had an adult LITTLE GULL at the restricted access Modesto Water Quality ControlFacility on January 26. The gull was re-found by other birders on February 8. Little Gull is a review species with theCalifornia Bird Records Committee, which means it is a species that averages only four or fewer occurrences per yearin California and has been recorded fewer than 100 times overall in the state. Eric Caine had the first Little Gull in ourcounty at this site in 2008; that first-summer bird was accepted by the California Bird Records Committee. Harold andSal saw two immature Little Gulls at those ponds in 2011; the status of that sighting is pending review by the C.B.R.C.
Jim Gain had a male adult RUFF at the Ceres Water Reclamation Facility on January 28. If accepted by the S.B.R.C.,this would be only the second county record; the first Ruff was found at the same ponds in 2008. On February 2, DaleSmith spotted a HORNED GREBE at Turlock Lake Fishing Access Area that was also seen by five other birders during
an Audubon field trip led by Ralph Baker. Bob Dunn had a SAGE THRASHER on Willms Road on February 6.
birds, sometimes you can do every-thing right and still get it wrong.Even when you’re cautious in not prejudging your perceptions, eventhough you make allowances forobserver biases, optical or lightingillusions, somehow the bird in frontof you still may not seem to ‘fit.’It’s time then to ease up yourselfand admit it’s the bird, not you,
that poses the problem.
For beginners or those whodon’t bird often, one persistent is-sue is that of distinguishing juvenile birds. The juvenal plumage ofmany birds is often characterized by streaking and spotting, markedlydifferent from subsequent adult plumages. The first time you see animmature Spotted Towhee, youmay be confused, until you notice
its foraging behavior or the adultcompany it keeps. Complicatingthis issue, many hawks, gulls, andother bird families undergo changesin coloration of their eyes, bills andlegs as they grow from juveniles toadults. In addition, many smallerfield guides don’t even show juve-niles of many species at all. True,you can search images online, butnot everyone has the Internet al-ways at their fingertips, so a search
may not be possible until you gethome.
Often you will encounter birds with plumage patterns thatdiffer from the basic or alternate plumages shown in field guides.It’s crucial to remember that molt-ing is a dynamic process, with
feathers often undergoing transi-tional phases between one plumageand the next. In such cases, youshould verify only the pattern thatyou understand, and concentrateupon the other field marks of the
birds, to reach a conclusion.
Sometimes you will see birds that have abnormal colorationin their feathers. They may bestreaked with white patches(leucism), washed with grayishtones (dilute plumage), or lackingany pigmentation at all (albinism.)Feathers can be bleached out bywear or sunlight, appearing palerthan they would be otherwise. Ele-ments in the environment may alsocause unusual colors. There may bestains on a bird’s head or chin fromfruit or pollen; a water bird may bediscolored from mud, oil, or otherchemicals in the water. In thesecases, you should focus more on
shape, size, posture and vocaliza-tions, and less upon the aberrant
colors.
Then there is the problemof hybrids. Although separate birdspecies seldom interbreed, that‘rule’ has so many exceptions inwild nature that ornithologists ad-mit hybridization probably occursmore often than we know. It isgenerally accepted that about 10%
of distinct bird species hybridize.Songbirds do not hybridize often, but gulls have a high rate of hybrid-ization between similar species. Ifyou go birding long enough, youwill eventually see a hybrid birdwhich exhibits field marks of both parental species in varying degrees.The mixture of characteristics may
suggest another species entirely, somuch so that you may have to writedown ‘possible hybrid’ and just let
it go.
What about the true‘oddballs’? In California, there areexotic birds of more than 100 spe-cies (ducks to parrots to canaries,and anything in between) that haveeither escaped from zoos and pri-vate collections or were released bytheir owners. If one of these birdslands in your backyard, just enjoyit. Then there is the slight butmeasurable chance (more than 0%)that, any time you go birding, youcould discover an actual rarity; afterall, rare birds use the same habitatsthat common birds do. If this hap- pens, enjoy the bird, make somerecord of it, and then contact other
local birders with urgent speed.
2. IS IT THE BOOK? What fault is there in books?
The medium is not always the mes-sage that nature delivers. We must balance our reliance on externaltools with our internal senses.Books are symbols that representthe world, not the world itself.Words and images of birds are aids
to our primary contact with variablecreatures, not substitutes for them.The photographs in Kaufman Field
Guide to North America are of spe-cific individuals. The paintings inThe Sibley Guide to Birds are artis-tic renderings of types. Real birdsinhabit the messy realms of organiclife between an isolated example
and a generic type.
(Continued on page 6)
NOT LIKE THE ONE IN THE BOOK! Part Two by Salvatore Salerno
Note: The bird in last month’s photograph was a bedraggled Orange-Crowned Warbler.
to receive Valley Habitat and AudubonMagazine, send your check for $20.00 to:
National Audubon Society
Membership Data Center
P.O. Box 422246
Palm Coast, FL 32142-6714
Visit our web site:
www.stanislausbirds.org
Valley Habitat 4
Stan is laus Audubon Society
AUDUBON FIELD TRIPS
March 1. Ideal Duck Club, Los Banos. Duck club owner, Dale Azevedo,is opening his duck club for us to bird after hunting season. After the sea-son the water is drawn down, exposing large mud flats and attracting
shore birds by the tens of thousands. We'll be there to watch. Don't missthis unique opportunity to bird an area seldom seen. Trip leader to be an-nounced. For more information contact David Froba, [email protected], 521-7265. Meet at the Stanislaus County Library parking lot (1500 IStreet, Modesto) at 7:00 a.m. Bring lunch. We will return to Modesto
mid-afternoon.
March 16 and April 20. San Joaquin River National Wildlife Ref-
uge is huge and offers the most diverse habitats in the area, includingmixed species transitional savannas, riparian forest, oak woodlands, grassland,and seasonal wetlands. Trip leader, Ralph Baker
to visit each month based on conditions and season. Meet at the Stani-slaus Library parking lot at 1500 I Street. at 7:00 a.m. Bring lunch. We
will return to Modesto early afternoon.
CHANGE IN FIELD TRIP LEADER
During the January board meeting of Stanislaus Audubon Society, BillAmundsen announced that he wished to step down as leader of the SanJoaquin River National Wildlife Refuge field trips. Beginning in March,that position will be filled by Ralph Baker, who has assisted with many
refuge trips. The members of the board wish to express their apprecia-tion and gratitude to Bill, not only for his dedication on behalf of therefuge, but also for his help with the birders who accompanied him on
those trips over the past fifteen years.
California Wetlands and Waterfowl—Two Centuries of Loss
and Recovery: Tales from the Central Valley, Philip Garone
Sunday, March 2, Carnegie Arts Center, 250 North Broadway,
Turlock at 2 pm, Free
CSU Stanislaus History Professor Philip Garone will discuss the envi-ronmental history of our region. Roman Loranc’s evocative photographsof our valley landscape will serve as a visual touchstone for this in-formative presentation. We will take a look at why the valley’s formerlyextensive wetlands—and the wildlife they support—were almost all lost by the early 20th century, and how, for the past several generations,Californians have been successfully restoring and protecting our wet-
land heritage. hp://www.carnegieartsturlock.org/page55.html
Audubon Field Trip Email
List If you would like to be on a group
email to advise you of allAudubon field trips, please email:
Yokuts Group of the Sierra ClubSaturday, March 15, 2014Dayhike 2BLas Trampas Wilderness. We will hikeup from Bollinger Canyon to the LasTrampas (eastern) ridge of this East
Bay Regional Park and continue ontrails part-way down the other side tothe Eugene O’Neill historic site. Thehike will be approximately 7-8 miles inlength, and 1,000 ft in elevationgain. For further information, includingthe meet-up time and place, please con-tact Yokuts trip leader Randall Brown
at 209 632-5994.
Thursdays: Midweek Hikes in
Groveland/Highway 120 AreaTuolumne Group, Motherlode Chap-ter of the Sierra Club. Each Thurs-day meet at Mary Laveroni Park,Groveland at 9am for an approximate6-mile hike. Bring a jacket, water,sunscreen and a snack in a daypackand wear hiking boots. The hike isgenerally followed by a YO sacklunch. Call Frank Oyung for further
details, (209) 962-7585
Landscape Photography Exhibi-
tion at the Carnegie Landscape photographer Roman Loranc is the
Carnegie Art Center’s Distinguished Artist
for 2014. More than sixty of his photos will
be on display at the Carnegie Art Center in
Turlock from January 29-March 23. A native
of Poland, Loranc moved to California in
1984 and fell in love with the Central Valley;
the exhibit is comprehensive and many of the
photos were taken in our area. Also included
are scenes of Mt. Shasta and some cityscapes
from recent trips to Eastern Europe. Entry fee
for the exhibition is $5. See page 4 for Dr.
Philip Garone’s talk (author of The Fall and
Rise of the Wetlands of California’s Great
Central Valley) on Central Valley wetlands
at the Carnegie on Sunday, March 2nd, at 2
pm. This is free.
February 8, 2014 Tuolumne River Hike Report
A hearty, hardy group of hikers braved the elements to enjoy a
beautiful morning on Saturday. Joining Dorothy were 12 humans,
including 4 children, and two dogs. The wind and rain did not pre-
vent us from appreciating the beauties of nature. The river was quite
low, of course. There were quite a number of trees with broken
branches, some quite large. Also, a duck was spotted sitting high on
a tree branch! All told, it was an exhilarating trek with much enjoy-
able conversation and new friends.
The Yokuts will be tabling at two Earth Day events in April. This is a
time when you can help other people learn about conservation and sus-
tainability.
One event will be held at MJC on Wed. April 16 , the second at
Graceada Park on Sat. April 19. To participate at these tabling events
see Milt Trieweiler at one of our meeting or call him at 535-1274. Sign
up to help other people learn about the plight of our Planet.
Stan is laus Audubon Society & Yokuts Group of the Sierra Club
NOT LIKE THE ONE IN THE BOOK!Part Two
(Continued from page 3)
Whether because of incom- plete knowledge or insufficientlooks, we have to accept that some birds will remain Unidentified Fly-ing Organisms. Birders who givethe impression of knowing all the
birds they see are more invested intheir egos than in the truth. Kauf-man said it well: “When faced witha bird that doesn’t seem to add up,there’s no reason why we have to put a name on it.” For those com- pelled with having to get every-thing right, repeat this after me: I
don’t know. You can thank me lat-
er.
Identifying birds shouldn’t be a goalpost, but a portal to under-standing and appreciation. Fieldguides are wonderful, but evenwithout them, nature can amplyfulfill our capacity for wonder. Ifwe can shuttle between What is
that beautiful bird? and What a
beautiful bird that is, then we willretain intact the passion of our
quest.
Online Valley Habitat for Yokuts
Yokuts Group of the Sierra Club members who want to re-
ceive the color version of the Valley Habitat online can sent
reviewed by Steve Tomlinson, Yokuts Treasurer "Zero Waste Home" is probably one of the more thor-
ough guides you will see for reducing waste and having an
impact on individual consumerism. It is clear that Ms.
Johnson's motivation for personal change and for writing
this book emanates from concern about excess use of re-
sources. The principles are simple enough and designated
as the "five R's". These are "Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Re-
cycle, and Rot". Everything from "Kitchen and Grocery
Shopping" to "Holidays and Gifts" is covered. Like many,
the author and her family formerly had a lot of "stuff". In
time, they grew a need to simplify and shift the energyfrom maintaining possessions to a more meaningful quali-
ty of life. This is a shift I personally have needed and im-
plemented to a degree as I'm sure many of you have. Ms.
Johnson spends time citing the intangible/internal benefits
of this shift and the tangible ones such as lowered expens-
es and more time to spend at a reduced pace with family
and friends, and other recharging activities. She fully rec-
ognizes that zero waste is not an overnight project and
cites the possibility of entering "eco-depression" followed
by "action paralysis". With change of such magnitude, a
little at a time seems a prudent and effective way. The
book has no shortage of methods and resources for doing
this. One of Ms. Johnson's citations fits well as she quotes
Gandhi: "Be the change you want to see in the world".
On March 15th, Sierra Club will join with our friendsat Californians Against Fracking, and thousands offolks from all over the state to send a message to Gov.
Brown, bigger and louder than ever: It's time to stopfracking in California!What: Governor Brown: Don’t Frack California
When: Saturday, March 15th, 12pm-5pmWhere: The Capitol Lawn, Sacramento, CA