The changing of the guard has taken place and I will try to fill Trygve's very competent footsteps in the next two years. I've been a member of Chappee Rapids for many years and became active in the group the last 6 years working as Program Chair, Treasurer and Vice President. The club is a great place to meet interesting people and make new friends as I have done.
If you know me, you know that I love nature and especially birds. It has been my good fortune to be able to travel in this country and some foreign countries in my quest to see birds. I've been to conventions, festivals and symposiums for birds and heard many speakers on the subject of bird conservation. You can't be interested in birds and not their environment.
There is a new organization in our state called Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative which I hope as a club we can get involved in. Their work is to address issues such as helping people understand how they can be better neighbors to birds by keeping cats indoors, making windows less reflective, avoiding pesticides and taking steps to control non-native populations of birds to name a few. They are also identifying key sites that are important bird areas in the state, especially where birds nest or migrate through. But more on this later.
The year promises to be an exciting and rewarding one. I'm looking forward to the meetings, field trips and work outings and hope to see you there. Please call me anytime and give me your ideas on how to make our organization a better one.

It's that time of year again. Your Chappee Rapids Audubon membership needs to be renewed. Dues help fund educational efforts, environmental projects, the newsletter and operational expenses. Consider renewing at the Supporting or Contributing level.
You may pay your dues at the September meeting. Or, use the enclosed envelope to send in your check along with the renewal form on the back of this newsletter. It is particularly important to include your e-mail address! This will allow you to receive notice of events that may not be in the newsletter. We will not send your address to any other organizations.

We will have a joint meeting with Upper Green Bay Basin Partnership Team and Trout Unlimited this month. In order to make this happen we have changed the date and time of the meeting. We will meet on Wednesday, February 11th at 6:30 pm in room M117 at the University.
Lisa Goodman from the River Alliance of Wisconsin will talk to us about river protection. Lisa is the Local Group Assistance Program, Northern Coordinator for The River Alliance. She provides technical assistance to Wisconsin river and watershed groups working north of Highway 29 in Wisconsin. The River Alliance helps citizens restore free-flowing rivers, works to minimize the environmental impact of hydropower facilities and increase recreational opportunities, strengthens local grassroots river watershed protection efforts and advocates for rivers at state regulatory agencies and in the state legislature. Kris Stepenuck, Water Action Volunteers Coordinator, will discuss the Water Action Volunteer program and how we fit into that picture. Kris works with groups and individuals in stream monitoring, storm drain stenciling, river cleanups and other action-oriented water resource protection projects. The speakers will start the meeting off at 6:30 pm. When they are finished we will move across the hall to room M110 to hold our regular business meeting.

The Hayward Lakes, Michigan Christmas Bird Count was held on Saturday, December 27, with 11 people walking or driving a total of 296 miles. Thirty nine species and 1809 individuals were counted (see details on this page). One unusual bird for the count, a winter wren, was sited along the entrance road to Wells Park. Pine siskins, tree sparrows, redpolls and common mergansers were seen in large numbers. Count coordinator was Joan Campbell.

Area Bird List a Success Last year, Chappee Rapids Audubon members Joan Campbell, Bob Brisson, Wendel Johnson, Denise Taylor and Dale Leitzke put together a bird check-list for Marinette, Menominee & Peshtigo that has a list of all of the birds seen here and the 10 best birding spots. It shows how to find each of the 10 locations and which birds to expect at each spot.
This brochure is an asset for visiting birders to our area, our members and local birders. It has proven so popular that it will soon go into its second printing.
The check-lists are available at the MI & WI Visitors Information Centers, the Chambers, Feed & Seed stores, etc. They will also be available at the September meeting For more info please call Joan at 732-1277 Joan Campbell

The International Sandhill Crane Count was held on Saturday, April 12. Seven volunteers counted cranes at five sites in Marinette County from 5:30 until 7:30 A.M. The morning was somewhat foggy, with a temperature of 40 degrees and an east wind at 15 mph. Volunteers counted a total of 10 Sandhill Cranes, with 4 breeding pairs

RISING TIDE: THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI FLOOD OF 1927 AND HOW IT CHANGED AMERICA, by John M. Barry; Simon and Schuster, 1997.
This book is a great read...it discusses the politics, the money and corrupt politicians behind decisions affecting the delta area, the migration of people, and the arrogance poised into thinking that the Mississippi River could be conquered with levees and by laboring people the banking community thought to be expendable. It redefined how we look at rivers, politics and who should make decisions, and hopefully who is closely affected by them. Mostly, everyone.

A warm declining sun and a cool north wind are classic reminders that autumn is well on its way. It seems all the American Goldfinches have fledged and the Bluebirds are filling the power lines as they retreat southward. Nighthawks started moving on August 18th followed by Killdeer in flocks of 30+ on the 22nd. Sandhills started gathering about mid August and I've noticed increased activity of Red-tailed , Broad-winged, and Sharp-shinned Hawks in the last week. I would expect good hawk migrations around Labor Day through the first 3 weeks of September. For the best viewing locally, try the river mouths. Red Arrow, possibly the Cedar River area. Get up before dawn on a calm clear morning and watch over open fields or marsh areas - anywhere there might be a thermal starting up. Raptors will fly into these rising columns of air to hitch a ride up to cruising altitude - 2000 to 7000 ft and yes they will fly above the your back staring straight up and look for circling black specks. This if fun, really.
Insects seem to be down in numbers this summer, except bees who drank quantities of nectar for a banner honey crop. Coinciding with this were large numbers of Northern Orioles and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. The Orioles have been leaving for about a week and the Hummers may be on their way after the frost tonight - time to take down the feeders. The Wisconsin Society for Ornithology reported on their Hotline a colony of White Pelicans at the south end of Green Bay. There were about 145 birds. Two pair attempted to nest but were unsuccessful. They also noted a pair of Gr. Black-backed Gulls nesting successfully off the Door Peninsula…..new residents for the Great Lakes? American Toads (Bufo americanus) were in great numbers this summer around my place while frogs generally had a poor year. This probably was related to the hot dry June. When observing nature always remember that today's abundance or scarcity is the result of yesterday's resources.
Late afternoon is a wonderful time to go walking hedgerows, fields, and wood-edges this time of year. The bugs are down, the air is fresh, the sumacs ablaze and underneath is the cool blue of the Bottle Gentian (Gentiana andrewsii). It looks as though this may be a good year for these; I noted at least fifty plants this evening. Last week I was lucky to find a small stand of the white sport of this same species. At least three other species of gentian are found in this area: the Fringed Gentian (G. procera and G. crinata) with their pale blue windmill-like flowers, and the Green Gentian (G. flavida) with uncharacteristic light flowers and found in dry upland woods. Any of these beauties are worth the effort to get out in the field. Once there, I'm sure autumn will have more to offer….much more!