The sands of Laudholm Beach in Wells reveal the stories of a diverse array of birds, mammals and invertebrates. Join Certified Wildlife Tracker and Maine Guide Dan Gardoqui for an enlightening morning of decoding stories in the sand. Participants will need to walk about 3 miles and spend time on uneven surfaces. Please bring your own water and snacks. This program is co-sponsored by York County Audubon and Wells Reserve, with members of either organization (and Maine Audubon) receiving the discounted program pricing.
About the Presenter
Dan Gardoqui has been studying naturalist skills, wildlife tracking, bird language, and mentoring for nearly 30 years. Dan has a M.S. in Natural Resources, is a Certified Wildlife Tracker, Registered Maine Guide, and served as Science Faculty at Granite State College. Through wildlife tracking, Dan has contributed to wildlife studies and served as science editor for the bird language book What the Robin Knows. Dan co-founded and led the nature connection nonprofit, White Pine Programs for 20 years. He currently runs Lead with Nature, where he helps leaders find success and meaning through nature-based consulting services & adventures.
Registration
YCA is co-hosting this program with partner the Wells Reserve. It will run from 7 am to 10 am. Advance registration is required, and the cost is $32 for members (of either YCA/Maine Audubon or the Wells Reserve), or $40 for non-members. To register, please email suzanne@wellsnerr.org or call Suzanne at (207) 646-1555 x116.
Please note: Program fee does not include site admission fee.
Join Marine Mammals of Maine (MMoME) as they take you through a seal’s journey from stranding to release, and all of the obstacles in between. Starting with seal basics such as: whether it’s normal for them to be out of the water and why you might see a baby on its own, and then dive into when and why seals need our help. You will learn what MMoME is, what they do,the animals they care for, and how you can help.
Marine Mammals of Maine is dedicated to marine mammal and sea turtle response, rescue, care, research and education. With a small staff and a dedicated volunteer team, MMoME provides expert stranding response across roughly 2,500 miles of Maine’s coastline (including islands), covering the geographic area of Kittery to Rockland.
Jessica Woodend has been a volunteer with MMoME since 2017, after attending the 2nd annual Ocean Commotion 5k (MMoME’s biggest fundraiser held every October) and learning more about the organization. She started out helping with educational opportunities and events, and now is also part of the response team and animal care team. Jessica started her career in the field of wildlife education and animal care in 2007 and has worked all over the country.
This program will be presented in the Mather Auditorium at the Wells Reserve at Laudholm. It will be free and open to all ages, and no registration is required for attending the program in person.
This photo shows a male Eastern Towhee, a bird regularly seen and heard at the Wells Reserve.
Join us at the Wells Reserve at Laudholm Farm every other Saturday this summer starting May 11th for a guided bird walk around the Reserve property. Beginners are welcome. Please bring binoculars. These walks are free and open to the public. However, space will be limited and reservations are required. Please email suzanne@wellsnerr.org or call Suzanne at (207) 646-1555 x116 to reserve your space.
The additional dates are 5/25, 6/8, 6/22, 7/8, 7/22 and 8/3. We meet in the parking lot at 7:30 a.m, and walks typically last about 2 hours.
Winters, when not experiencing new places, they volunteer at the World Birding Center / Estero Llano Grande State Park in Texas – guiding, assisting with programs and habitat improvement. Summers find them hunkered down in Mid-Coast Maine, exploring, spending time with grandkids and bird-guiding for the Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge. Many of you may know them from their many summers working for the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge at Timber Point, or for the very entertaining program they presented for YCA in 2018 on their travels to the Galapagos Islands.They are avid seekers of all things natural. They mostly avoid urban areas. They like to search out opportunities for learning wherever they are.
They are trying a multi-faceted approach to avoid getting old. Mostly succeeding (except for the darn clock and calendar).
Change is good. They believe that we cannot avoid change so should embrace it.
They will be presenting a new program based on a few of their travels and adventures on planet Earth. It will include Antidotes, Anecdotes & Art:
* Antidotes to unexpected change – going with the flow
* Anecdotes of journeys – near & far
* The Art of turning lemons into lemonade
The program is a multi-media presentation; photographic, audiographic, videographic and, god forbid, storytelling-graphic! And … hopefully entertaining. Come join us as we venture off the beaten path.
This program will be presented in-person in the Mather Auditorium of the Wells Reserve at Laudholm, and will also be viewable via Zoom. To view via Zoom, you’ll need to register in advance. To do so, please click on this link and enter your name and email address:https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Vd6W30tMTuu8GuOUSD7qoA
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
We hope you can join us in-person, or, if not, via Zoom!
This program was presented on April 16, 2024 via Zoom. Our apologies that the audio quality is not great, as we were having some technical difficulties.
To access the recording, please click on the image below to watch it on this page, or you can click on “Watch on Youtube” at the bottom of that image. (We also recommend clicking on the little white square in the bottom right corner of that viewing screen to convert the image to “full screen”).
For a description of the program, you can scroll down to the original post for the program.
The 2020 edition of the Maine Register of Big Trees lists 146 champions located throughout the state. Join us to learn about these trees, and how they and other big trees play a significant role in our environment. State champion big trees capture people’s imagination for their size and strength, but there is more to a champion than just its size — they are symbols of all the good work trees do for the quality of the environment and our quality of life.
Jan Santerre is the Project Canopy director for the Maine Forest Service where she focuses on all aspects of program management. Project Canopy is a federally funded program in support of urban forestry programming in Maine’s municipalities. Santerre has managed the Maine Register of Big Trees for MFS for more than 20 years, has a bachelor of science degree in forestry from the University of Vermont and is a native of Dover-Foxcroft.
<< Photo of Jan Santerre with the former state and national champion yellow birch in Deer Isle
This program will be presented in the Mather Auditorium at the Wells Reserve at Laudholm. It will be free and open to all ages, and no registration is required for attending the program in person.
This wonderful program was presented on March 12, 2024 via Zoom. To watch it, please click on the image below to watch it on this page, or you can click on “Watch on Youtube” at the bottom of that image. (We also recommend clicking on the little white square in the bottom right corner of that viewing screen to convert the image to “full screen”). For a description of the program, you can scroll down to the original post for the program.
Why and how do baby songbirds develop so quickly, some launching into flight only 11 days after hatching? In 2002, Julie Zickefoose began to draw and paint wild nestlings day by day, bearing witness to their swift growth. Over the next 13 years, Julie would document the daily changes in 17 bird species from hatching to fledging. Her book, Baby Birds, is the enchanting result, with more than 500 life studies that hop, crawl and flutter through its pages.
In this talk, Julie shares her influences as well as her artistic process, a must-see for the aspiring natural history artist. Art and science blend in every Zickefoose pursuit, as the scientist’s relentless curiosity joins the artist’s quest for beauty. The work, wonder and fun of studying nestlings, including being foster mother to orphaned hummingbirds, chimney swifts and bluebirds, makes for an irresistible and highly inspirational presentation.
Julie Zickefoose lives and works quietly on an 80-acre wildlife sanctuary in the back country of Whipple, Ohio. She is a prolific writer and painter who was also an All Things Considered commentator for five years. Her illustrated work, The Bluebird Effect, was an Oprah’s Book Club pick in 2012. After 37 years of contributing art and writing to Bird Watcher’s Digest, recently became Advising Editor to the new and improved BWD Magazine. Her heavily illustrated books include Natural Gardening for Birds,Letters from Eden,The Bluebird Effect, and Baby Birds: An Artist Looks Into the Nest. Her newest book is Saving Jemima: Life and Love With a Hard-Luck Jay, the intimate story of how an orphaned bird can save a soul.
FMI: http://www.juliezickefoose.com/
This program will be presented via Zoom only. To view it, you’ll need to register in advance. To do so, please click on this link and enter your name and email address:
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is world famous for its work with birds, but did you know that it also has an Elephant Listening Project?
In recent decades, forest elephant populations have dramatically declined largely due to poaching, habitat fragmentation, and habitat loss. To help conserve west and central Africa’s tropical forests and forest elephants, the Elephant Listening Project (ELP) utilizes passive acoustic monitoring (PAM).
PAM is a non-invasive method that enables evidence-based conservation strategies through large-scale monitoring of elusive, acoustically active species, as well as human disturbance, such as illegal gun hunting and logging. Research Analyst Bobbi Estabrook explains how the ELP works toward improving conservation outcomes by supporting data-driven decision-making, evaluating the effectiveness of anti-poaching strategies, mentoring researchers, and sharing the wonder and complexity of forest elephants.
ELP’s goal is to help conserve the second largest block of rainforest on earth and the biodiversity that it harbors, by focusing on forest elephants as key architects of those forests, and using innovative acoustic tools at the scale of landscapes.
On Tuesday, February 20th, at 7 p.m., York County Audubon is pleased to host Bobbi Estabrook, who joined the ELP team in 2021. She conducts acoustic analyses, manages & carries out research projects and mentors the many students that join the lab each semester. Bobbi first touched base with ELP in 2007, when she attended the first ever Sound Analysis Workshop. With more than 10 years of experience using passive acoustic methods to understand the ecology of baleen whales, Bobbi’s current research focuses on the acoustic ecology of African forest elephants and the effects of human activities on their vocal behavior.
FMI: https://www.elephantlisteningproject.org/
This program will be presented via Zoom only. To view it, you’ll need to register in advance. To do so, please click on this link and enter your name and email address:
Can you tell the tracks of a fox from a fisher? Ever trailed a porcupine to its den? Join Certified Wildlife Tracker and Registered Maine Guide Dan Gardoqui for an outdoor adventure. Open to all curious adults (& interested teens). We’ll spend the morning seeking out, interpreting and following the tracks, trails and signs of our wild neighbors living on the Wells Reserve. Bring your own food/snacks and dress warmly.
Dan Gardoqui has been learning and sharing naturalist skills, wildlife tracking, bird language, and mentoring for over 30 years. Dan has a M.S. in Natural Resources, is a Certified Wildlife Tracker, Registered Maine Guide, and served as Science Faculty at Granite State College. Dan co-founded and led the nature connection nonprofit, White Pine Programs for 20 years. He currently runs Lead with Nature, where he helps leaders find success and meaning through nature-based consulting services & adventures. FMI: www.leadwithnature.com/about-2/about/
York County Audubon is co-hosting this program with and at The Wells Reserve. It will run from 9 am till noon. Advance registration is required, and the cost is $32 for members (of either YCA/Maine Audubon or the Wells Reserve), or $40 for non-members. To register, please email suzanne@wellsnerr.org or call Suzanne at (207) 646-1555 x116. Please note: Program fee does not include site admission fee.
Backyard birders who want to attract birds and help them thrive will learn what it takes at a get-together from 2-4:30pm on Saturday, January 27, at Kennebunk Town Hall. Backyard birding is becoming more and more popular, with many people interested in attracting more birds year-round. Several local environmental organizations are hosting an environmental event to provide inspiration and ideas on this topic.
Two noted naturalists – Doug Hitchcox and Andrew Tufts – will provide lively talks on how to make your backyard safe and attractive for birds twelve months a year.
Prior to their presentations, artist Rebekah Lowell will first read from her children’s book “Catching Flight” and then facilitate a free and fun workshop on how to draw a cardinal, designed for children but open to adults. Children under 12 must be accompanied by someone 18 or older.
Also available will be drawings for various items – with the premier raffle featuring three home consultations by Shawn Jalbert of Native Haunts in Alfred. These consultations will provide customized guidance in making your yard more inviting to birds and pollinators. The consultations will be chosen for three different types of backyard habitat (shade/woodsy, sunny/open, small/contained).
Rebekah Lowell is an award-winning author/illustrator with a passion for the natural world. Her artwork has been featured on the Maine Duck Stamp five times and the Common Ground Fair poster. When not in her studio, you can find her outside—birding, gardening, nature journaling, rescuing birds for Avian Haven, and serving on the York County Audubon Board. Rebekah will begin her drawing workshop for kids at 2:00pm.
Maine Native Plants for Birds will be covered by Andrew Tufts ofMaine Audubon. He will explain which native plants best support birds’ year-round needs in Maine backyards and where they can be obtained. Andrew’s job is to restore and rebuild natural biodiversity by planting the native wildflowers, shrubs, and trees that support the widest array of wildlife. “This trend is a paradigm shift in the gardening world,” he says, and he is excited to provide insights and answer questions.
Doug Hitchcox, Press Herald nature columnist and staff naturalist for Maine Audubon, will focus on food – what birds eat and what they need in backyard environments. Doug is one of Maine’s eBird reviewers, owner and moderator of the ‘Maine-birds’ listserv, and member of the Maine Bird Records Committee and the York County Audubon Board. He also served as the Outreach Coordinator for the Maine Bird Atlas and is considered one of the most knowledgeable birders in the state.
Talks begin at 3 pm.
The event is sponsored by the Kennebunk Conservation Commission in partnership with York County Audubon, the Kennebunkport Conservation Commission, and the Planeteers of Southern Maine. For more information, please contact Jen Shack at jenelshack@gmail.com.
As noted in our post below, we had a last minute change in our presenter for November, with Dr. Laurie Goodrich filling in for Phil Brown. Dr. Laurie Goodrich is the Director of Conservation Science at famed Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania. In 1984, Dr. Goodrich was the first full-time research biologist hired at Hawk Mountain, and she’s been there ever since, involved with every aspect of the work that goes on there. Her program was presented on November 14, 2023:
We’re delighted to share that he lined up a wonderful replacement: Dr. Laurie Goodrich, the Director of Conservation Science at famed Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania. In 1984, Dr. Goodrich was the first full-time research biologist hired at Hawk Mountain, and she’s been there ever since, involved with every aspect of the work that goes on there. The title of her talk will be: Conserving Broad-winged Hawks from Canada to Colombia.
This program was presented on October 24, 2023 in-person at the Wells Reserve at Laudholm and via Zoom. To watch it, please click on the image below to watch it on this page, or you can click on “Watch on Youtube” at the bottom of that image. (We also recommend clicking on the little white square in the bottom right corner of that viewing screen to convert the image to “full screen”). For a description of the program, you can scroll down to the original post for the program.
Note that the mammals program is preceded by a short description by Christine Durocher of her week this summer at Educator’s Week on Hog Island. Christine was this year’s winner of our annual June Ficker Hog Island Educator’s Week scholarship. The mammals program starts at about the 8 minute mark.
Fall Migration is considered to be one of the birding wonders of the world. Well known birder Phil Brown is the Bird Conservation Director of the The Harris Center for Conservation Education in Hancock, NH. Under his guidance, Harris Center biologists collect hawk migration data as part of an international effort to monitor raptor population trends. The center has been partnering with Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania to better understand Broad-winged Hawk ecology. Phil will explain what has been learned to date about the migration of Broad-winged hawks breeding in New England that travel to their wintering grounds in South America and back.
photo by Chuck Carlson
The Broad-winged Hawk, despite its familiarity in the Northeast as a common raptor during the breeding season and in fall migration, is a poorly understood species throughout much of its life cycle. During the breeding seasons of 2021 through 2023, Harris Center staff and volunteers spent hundreds of hours finding and monitoring Broad-winged Hawk nests through a collaboration with Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, which conducted subsequent trapping and tagging of several adult hawks. Five adult Broad-winged Hawks were successfully trapped and outfitted with cellular or satellite transmitters and now provide a sample representation of migratory routes, wintering sites, and breeding territories of individuals within the New England breeding population. The findings yield critical information about habitat selection and demonstrate differences in migration timing and wintering ecology from other populations of this species in eastern North America. Through the use of transmitters and the nest monitoring component, conservation biologists have learned critical information necessary to better conserve this emblematic woodland raptor.
On Tuesday, November 14th, at 7 p.m., York County Audubon is pleased to host Phil Brown, Bird Conservation Director & Land Specialist at the Harris Center for Conservation Education in Hancock, NH. Phil spent his childhood in Staten Island, NY, where he was fascinated with the natural world. After studying at Rutgers, he took to the wilder woodlands of New Hampshire, realizing a lifelong dream, and ultimately becoming NH Audubon’s Director of Land Management, and then joining the Harris Center.
At the Harris Center, he leads conservation research projects focused on a variety of birds. These projects currently include Broad-winged Hawk research, an American Kestrel nest box project, Saw-whet Owl banding station, the Pack Monadnock Raptor Observatory, and a Common Nighthawk migration watch. Phil is also a frequent field trip and nature tour leader in NH and beyond, where he guides for several companies and organizations. He lives in Hancock, NH, with his wife, Julie, and two children.
This program will be presented via Zoom only. To view it, you’ll need to register in advance. To do so, please click on this link and enter your name and email address:
For many years, our former Board member, Marie Jordan, an avid birder and photographer, has produced a calendar and offered it for sale, graciously donating the calendars to YCA to support our educational programs. As many of our programs are now presented via Zoom, so we’re making the calendars available by mail.
It’s a desk calendar in a 4” by 6” plastic case that opens into a stand to display each month. Each page features a great photo she took this year of a Maine bird. The cost is $10 plus mailing costs. They’re wonderful anywhere in the house, and also make great gifts! And York County Audubon tremendously appreciates your support for our programs.
To place an order, please make out a check payable to York County Audubon, write Calendar in the memo line, and mail it to Marie Jordan, 32 Crestview Drive, South Portland, ME 04106. Be sure to include the address or addresses that the calendar(s) should be sent to. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Marie at wooddk5555@gmail.com.
Note that the calendars will be available November 1st.
The costs including postage and handling are:
1 calendar – $10 plus $5.00 postage and handling
2 calendars (mailed to one address) – $20 plus $5.75 postage and handling
3 calendars (mailed to one address) – $30 plus $10.50 postage and handling
4 calendars (mailed to one address) – $35 plus $10.50 postage and handling
(Note: these rates reflect the latest USPS increases.)
Keep your feathered friends happy this winter by treating them to tasty and fresh premium-quality bird food and help support two of your favorite environmental organizations. Proceeds from our annual sale support programs of both York County Audubon and the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve. A wide variety of types of seed and suet is available, with great pricing, especially if you order early.
A male Rose-breasted Grosbeak at a Kennebunk feeder- photo by Bill Grabin
Additional items this year include feeders, mealworm suet and Feather Friendly window markers to keep your birds safe. Early bird pricing is available if you place your order by 4 p.m. on October 27th. Order pick-up will be at the Wells Reserve on November 3rd and 4th with easy access and volunteers on hand to help load your car.
Please click on this link to view and print the order form:
An entertaining exploration of the role that small mammals play in forest regeneration and the movement of trees in Maine. We all know our cats and dogs have personalities, but have you ever wondered about the squirrels in your backyard? How would you even go about evaluating personality traits in squirrels, mice, or voles and why would you bother?
These small mammals play an important but often unseen role in forest regeneration and the movement of trees, dispersing the seeds of the towering forests here in Maine. While this role is known at the species level, unique individuals display varying personalities, with some consistently acting more boldly than others or consistently showing higher activity levels. Personality in the mice and voles of our forests has consequences for where small mammals are living, how they are foraging, and what they are doing with the seeds they find. Small mammals with contrasting personality traits are contributing to ecosystem services such as seed dispersal in different ways. Their behavior is influencing forest regeneration.
Land-use change, such as forest management or urbanization, and climate change are also at work altering the composition of forests and the distribution of personality traits within populations. We explore the intersection of these factors and investigate how the personalities of small mammals shape the growth of forests and how this may be shifting under changing land-use and climate change conditions. All this in turn affects the habitat and impacts birds and all other life in the forest.
On Tuesday, Octoberber 24th, at 7 p.m., York County Audubon is pleased to host Maisie Merz and Ivy Yen, second year PhD students at the University of Maine. Under the guidance of Dr. Alessio Mortelliti, they study the consequences of small mammal personality on several ecological processes that shape the forest landscape. Their presentation includes slides and night video that is entertaining, educational, and surprising! It will be interesting and fun to learn about mammals we rarely see much less understand.
This program will be presented in-person in the Mather Auditorium of the Wells Reserve at Laudholm, and will also be viewable via Zoom. To view via Zoom, you’ll need to register in advance. To do so, please click on this link and enter your name and email address:
