April 2024 Meeting Minutes

04/15/2024 

Cayuga Bird Club Monthly Meeting Minutes

Foundation of Light

Reading of the List began at 7:24 pm.

Meeting called to order at 7:32.

Last month's meeting minutes were approved.

Wayne Gottlieb was thanked for providing cookies, and a request was made for people to sign up for next month.

Next month's meeting will be at Foundation of Light once again, and the presentation will be Marie Read sharing her stories and photos of the Pribilof Islands of Alaska.

Upcoming CBC field trips can be found on the website and consist of (1) Derby Hill Hawk Watch on April 20th (rain date 21st), (2) Monkey Run South has been moved to April 28th, (3) Guided bird walk in Stewart Park on the 28th of April (rain date is May 5th), (4) twice-per-week Beginner Bird Walks continue starting 8:30 A.M. Saturdays and Sundays. Note that there's a chance to see Song Sparrow Research Demo on 27th April but registration is required - see website calendar for details. Youth birding trips continue, so check the website Youth page for evolving details.

Conservation: (1) Purple Martin houses are up at Stewart Park. (2) As part of Earth Day recognition, there are volunteer opportunities on April 21st and 22nd with Jody Enck down at Lighthouse Point from 10 A.M. to Noon.

Some of our club members recently returned from the Guatemala/Belize trip, and Jody is looking for suggestions of other places to visit for birding and learning about conservation issues.

Miscellaneous: (1) There are volunteer opportunities with the Montezuma Wetlands Complex, and (2) Additional atlasing is needed for some priority blocks. See the April newsletter for details. (3) CBC will be hosting the New York State Ornithological Association's annual New York Birders Conference in the Fall of 2025. If you'd like to help, contact Diane Morton. (4) Birders were successful in getting the Light Show at Taughannock Falls postponed so as not to interfere with the breeding season of the Peregrine Falcons nesting at the Falls. (5) The Lab of O Visitor Center is targeted to re-open in June 2024.

A vote was taken on two proposals that were submitted to the Club: (1) purchase of 10 new binoculars and (2) donating a sum of $5000 to the Finger Lakes Land Trust internal revolving loan fund.

Ken Haas, VP, led the discussion and voting.

Proposal #1 (binoculars): Motion by Bob MacGuire. Ken Murphy seconded. All Aye, so moved (Ken Haas).

Proposal #2 (contribution to FLLT): Motion by Donna Scott. Seconded by Marie Read. All Aye. So moved (Ken Haas).

The night's presentation by Julie Hart on New York's Breeding Bird Atlas activities began at 7:56 P.M. The atlasing project is done for five consecutive years every 20 years to collect distribution, abundance, and behavior information on the breeding birds in the state. As it turns out, our own Tompkins County has the highest atlasing effort in the state. Julie mentioned where we've seen declines (i.e., Eastern Meadowlarks, Barn Swallows, swifts. etc.) and that peak breeding season runs from the last week of May to the beginning of August. The last week of June and first two weeks of July are the peak time to see the baby birds. She also mentioned that it is advantageous to use the mobile eBird app, among many other tips, suggestions, history, tools, and findings. The presentation ended at 8:40, several questions followed and were addressed.

Meeting ended at 8:58 P.M.