December Meeting Minutes

December 8th, 2014

President Paul Anderson called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. He thanked Sara Jane and Larry Hymes and Donna Scott for bringing cookies.

Asked about recent interesting bird sightings, people mentioned seeing thousands of Snow Geese on Lake Cayuga, Pine Siskins, cormorants, and Goldeneyes. 

There are no more lab seminars for now. The next bird club meeting will be on Jan. 12, 2015. That will be the meeting when club members can share photos. Paul will post instructions for submitting the photos on the club website and Facebook page.

There was one field trip since the last meeting: Nov. 16 led by Steve Fast to Fair Haven Beach where a Glaucous Gull and Red-throated Loons were seen.

There was no field trip to Niagara this year because no leader was available. No other field trips are currently scheduled for December but check the website for updates. The next scheduled field trip will be on Jan. 11 led by Bob McGuire up the lake. The Christmas Bird Count will be on Jan. 1.

The army will be pulling out of the Seneca Army Depot ,which is an Important Bird Area, by 2016. The state is requesting input concerning this by Dec. 17. Paul Anderson proposed writing a letter on behalf of the club asking that the state acquire the land and that it be preserved as a natural area. The motion was seconded by Laura Stenzler and was voted upon. The motion carried.

Donna Scott spoke about a proposal by a Boy Scout to make a path by the Union Springs pond. Various people have noted that that might have a deleterious effect on the birds living there. The Village Board of Union Springs has asked for input. Donna suggested that people might want to write letters. Paul Anderson proposed that he send a copy of “The Guide to the Cayuga Basin” to the mayor of Union Springs to illustrate the value to his community of letting the pond remain a haven for birds. Donna Scott seconded the motion, and a vote was taken. The motion carried.

Paul Anderson thanked Donna Scott for standing in for him last month in his absence. Paul Anderson brought up the subject of the informational panel for the Swan Pen (Fuertes Preserve) at Stewart Park.

People had questions about what would be on the sign and how much it would cost. Bob McGuire moved to set aside $1,000 to get a design made after first getting text ready. Suan Yong seconded the motion; it was voted on and passed.

Wes Blauvelt read the list of the birds of the Cayuga Basin.

The speaker for the evening was Meena Haribal. The name of her talk was “Enchanting Bolivia and Lake Titicaca.” She spoke about the trip that she and Kathy Strickland made in Dec. 2013 to Bolivia.

Respectfully submitted,

Becky Hansen