President’s Message – Fall 2021

Hello my little birding friends! Hope you are all well and getting through all that’s going on in the world. I can’t wait to get back to normal, if there is such a thing. Good thing for the birds. They always bring a smile to my face, except for those grackles who eat all my birdseed in ten minutes. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing a great egret and some kingfishers in my backyard this summer. I also have seen three young and one adult green heron. They sit on a big dead branch over the canal so I can get a good look at them. I found their nest, only because the roof and side of my shed had a lot of white droppings on it!! And I mean a lot. There’s also been a lot of monarchs, swallow tail, and other butterflies in my yard. I have milkweed plants and a big butterfly bush that they come to every day. And I was happy to see one hummingbird. Even though it’s nice to feed the birds, it’s good to have native plants that produce seeds that birds eat too. Another thought came to me (always when I am trying to go to sleep), was people who feel the need to use fertilizer for the greenest lawn possible. That fertilizer runs off into the street drains and probably into our bays. Robins and other birds who eat worms and other bugs in these lawns are taking in these fertilizers. I only water my lawn and it’s just as green as people who use fertilizers!!

I’ve gotten some bird news from other Audubon chapters about a weird bird disease. They have asked not to feed the birds because that’s how it spreads. I mentioned it in this newsletter. Hopefully we can continue feeding them in the fall and winter.

We’ve had some nice bird walks this summer and will start again in September. At one walk, we were greeted by Earl, a Little Egret, who met us in the parking lot and led us down to the marsh!!! Thank you to all who participated and ran the walks. Also, thanks to those who contribute to this newsletter. Submissions for the next newsletter will be October 11th. Happy birding!!!