May 2014 Meeting Minutes

Cayuga Bird Club Meeting Minutes

May 12, 2014

Paul Anderson called the meeting to order at 7:30 pm. He thanked Linda Orkin and Laura Stenzler for bringing cookies. The next get-together will be on June 9 at 6 pm at the large pavilion in Stewart Park for the annual dish-topass picnic. It will celebrate the hundredth birthday of the club and coincide with the unveiling of the Renwick panel which the club sponsored. 

Interesting birds seen recently included Whip-poor-will, Indigo Bunting, American Bittern, Snowy Owl, and Yellowbreasted Chat. 

The next Monday night seminar at the lab will be on May 19, entitled “Humpback Whales: Composers of the Sea” by Katy Payne. 

There have been three field trips since the last meeting: 

4/26: Gladys Birdsall led 8-9 people around Sapsucker Woods and the Visitor Center at Cornell. Highlights were Rusty Blackbirds and a Blue-winged Teal.

5/3: Linda Orkin and Becky Hansen led a group of 12 people around Sapsucker Woods, where they saw a Prairie Warbler, Wood Thrush, Northern Waterthrush.

5/10: Paul Anderson took a couple people to the Hawthorn Orchards, where they saw a Yellow-breasted Chat. 

Upcoming events include:

5/18: Laura Stenzler will lead a trip to the Park Preserve.

5/24-5/26: Mark Chao will lead his annual birdquest walks to the land trust preserves. Check the website for details. 

5/31: Carl Steckler and Meg Richardson will lead a trip to

the Summerhill area.

The budget and changes to the by-laws were on the agenda. Information about these had been brought up at the previous meeting and was also emailed to members. There were no further questions or discussion. Carl Steckler moved to approve the budget. Linda Orkin seconded. The budget was voted on and passed. Carl Steckler moved that the changes to the by-laws be approved. Marie Read seconded. The changes were voted on and passed.

Marie Read read the list of the birds of the Cayuga Basin. The speaker for the night was Mia Boynton who is one of five grandchildren of Louis Agassiz Fuertes. She talked about the research she has done for her biography of him, Fuertes Revisited: A Bird Artist In His Setting.

Respectfully submitted,

Becky Hansen