PACIFIC FLYWAY NEWSLETTER - October 2024


OCTOBER 2024 Flyway

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MCAS Field Trip - OCT 17 - Habitat: Windy Cove Mud Walk

Windy Cove [photo by Faylla Chapman]

Morro Coast Audubon Society Presents  

FIELD TRIP:       Habitat: Windy Cove Mud Walk  

DATE:                  Thursday, October 17, 2024  

TIME:                   3:00-5:00pm  

LEADER:            Faylla Chapman  

Trip is limited to 12 participants - Signups will be taken for 24 hours. Participants will be randomly selected. The remainder will be put on standby status in case of cancellations. Only registered people may attend.

Description: Walk to Windy Cove below the Morro Bay State Park Natural History Museum learning about the plants, the mud and the organisms that inhabit the mud. Look for the organisms of the upper intertidal on the rocks around the base of the Museum and into the Marina.  

Restrooms are available at the Museum.

ADA Accessible: No

Experience Level: All Levels Welcome

Registration and RSVP to confirmation Required! 

Registration will open on the morning of OCT 7thOn that date, MCAS members will automatically receive an ALERT with the LINK to the Field Trip’s Registration Form.

Non-members can receive ALERTS from MCAS regarding Field Trips, Community Programs, and other MCAS activities. You will need to fill out the MCAS ALERT EMAIL LIST sign up form in the footer of the MCAS website. You can also join the SLOCOBIRDING email list to get ALERTs via Groups.io. (Field Trip alerts only)

Please consider becoming a member of MCAS to support MCAS’s mission and activities, including Field Trips.

Questions? Email Freddy Howell freddy@morrocoastaudubon.org

MCAS Field Trip - OCT 15 - Habitat: Visit the Atascadero Beavers with SLO Beaver Brigade

Beaver Brigade at Salinas River, Atas. [photo by Brittany App]

Morro Coast Audubon Society Presents  

FIELD TRIP:       Habitat: Visit the Atascadero Beavers with SLO Beaver Brigade  

DATE:                  Tuesday, October 15, 2024  

TIME:                   10:00am to 12:00noon  

LEADER:            SLO Beaver Brigade  

Trip is limited to 20 participants - Signups will be taken for 24 hours. Participants will be randomly selected. The remainder will be put on standby status in case of cancellations. Only registered people may attend.

Description: There are four beaver families in the Salinas River in Atascadero this year!  We are going to visit one of these families and see their dam that was built this May.  We'll see a beaver dam, beaver chews, other signs (scat, trails, drags) and lots of bird activity.  Come join us as we explore this new dam and beaver complex and see what changes have happened since our last visit.

The walk is a half-mile walk out to the ponds on sandy, rocky trails.  It is helpful to wear water shoes or tall boots since we typically walk into the water up to our shins, or old sneakers you won't mind walking with into the water. Restrooms are not available. There is no water or restroom facilities at the site. Home Depot and Starbucks are the closest facilities.

ADA Accessible: No

Experience Level: All Levels Welcome

Registration and RSVP to confirmation Required! 

Registration will open on the morning of OCT 5thOn that date, MCAS members will automatically receive an ALERT with the LINK to the Field Trip’s Registration Form.

Non-members can receive ALERTS from MCAS regarding Field Trips, Community Programs, and other MCAS activities. You will need to fill out the MCAS ALERT EMAIL LIST sign up form in the footer of theMCAS website. You can also join the SLOCOBIRDING email list to get ALERTs via Groups.io. (Field Trip alerts only)

Please consider becoming a member of MCAS to support MCAS’s mission and activities, including Field Trips.

Questions? Email Freddy Howell freddy@morrocoastaudubon.org

MCAS Field Trip - OCT 14 - Bats at Laguna Lake in SLO

Tracking Bats [photo courtesy of Lisa Murphy] 

Morro Coast Audubon Society Presents 

FIELD TRIP:       Bats at Laguna Lake in SLO 

DATE:                  Monday, October 14, 2024  

TIME:                   6:30pm to 8:00pm  

LEADER:            Lisa Murphy  

Trip is limited to 20 participants - Signups will be taken for 24 hours. Participants will be randomly selected. The remainder will be put on standby status in case of cancellations. Only registered people may attend.

Description: Curious about bats?  Come join us to learn more about our local bats in SLO.

We will begin with a 30 minute talk at the picnic tables.  After which we will stroll to several sights to identify active bats.  We will be utilizing auditory monitoring equipment (Sonobat Live technology) which is able to identify species through their echolocation calls.  Bring layers, as fall evenings can get cool.  And please, no bug spray!  

Restrooms are available. Rain Cancels.

ADA Accessible: Yes

Experience Level: All Levels Welcome

Registration and RSVP to confirmation Required! 

Registration will open on the morning of OCT 4thOn that date, MCAS members will automatically receive an ALERT with the LINK to the Field Trip’s Registration Form.

Non-members can receive ALERTS from MCAS regarding Field Trips, Community Programs, and other MCAS activities. You will need to fill out the MCAS ALERT EMAIL LIST sign up form in the footer of theMCAS website. You can also join the SLOCOBIRDING email list to get ALERTs via Groups.io. (Field Trip alerts only)

Please consider becoming a member of MCAS to support MCAS’s mission and activities, including Field Trips.

Questions? Email Robbie Revel robbie@morrocoastaudubon.org

MCAS Field Trip - OCT 12 - Global Big Day at the Abalone Farm, Cayucos - MEMBERS ONLY

Birders at Abalone Farm and Surrounding Area [photo by Robbie Revel]  

REGISTRATION CLOSED.

Morro Coast Audubon Society Presents                          *MEMBERS ONLY*  

FIELD TRIP:       Global Big Day at the Abalone Farm, Cayucos  

DATE:                  Saturday, October 12, 2024  

TIME:                   8:00am - 2:00pm  

LEADERS:          Steve McMasters & Bob Keally  

Trip is limited to 15 participants - Signups will be taken for 24 hours. Participants will be randomly selected. The remainder will be put on standby status in case of cancellations. Only registered people may attend. Remember to sign up on the same form if you are a couple.

Cornell Fall Global Big Day: participants are asked to have an eBird account before registering for this event. 

Description: We will walk and bird as well as drive the road to the farm. The terrain is moderate with several hills. Walking sticks are helpful over uneven ground. Once we get to the farm the terrain is relatively flat but uneven ground. There are vantage points from flat gravel paths. We will bird all accessible areas including the bluffs. After a break for lunch, those who wish, may continue with us to a second location for a few more hours of birding to finish off our Big Day.  Cameras and Scopes are welcomed. The total distance we expect to walk is about 2-3 miles. There is a restroom at the facility. 

ADA Accessible: No

Experience Level: All Levels Welcome

Registration and RSVP to confirmation Required! 

Registration will open on the morning of OCT 2nd. On that date, MCAS members will automatically receive an ALERT with the LINK to the Field Trip’s Registration Form.

Non-members can receive ALERTS from MCAS regarding Field Trips, Community Programs, and other MCAS activities. You will need to fill out the MCAS ALERT EMAIL LIST sign up form in the footer of theMCAS website. You can also join the SLOCOBIRDING email list to get ALERTs via Groups.io. (Field Trip alerts only)

Please consider becoming a member of MCAS to support MCAS’s mission and activities, including Field Trips.

Questions? Email Robbie Revel robbie@morrocoastaudubon.org

OCTOBER BIG DAY - OCT 12th

[Image and text below courtesy of eBird]

October is right around the corner, and that means its time to mark your calendars for October Big Day—12 Oct 2024! 

Like Global Big Day, October Big Day is an opportunity to unite around our shared love of birds. Last October, nearly 36,332 people from 191 countries submitted 83,735 checklists with eBird, demonstrating the power of birds to bring people together. Each year more and more participants join in this global celebration, how many people will contribute this year?

Wherever you are on 12 October, take a few minutes to join in this global celebration.

Participate from anywhere—even from home! By taking part in October Big Day you’re also celebrating Global Bird Weekend and World Migratory Bird Day. Be a part of the global team and help set a new record for October birding.

READ MORE

VIDEO now available - SEP 16 - The Language of Birds

 

Great-tailed Grackle, Phillips County, CO [photo by Nathan Peiplow]

Video available at MCAS YouTube Channel.

Description: All around us, the birds are constantly telling us who they are and what they are doing. In this talk, Nathan Pieplow unlocks the secrets of their language. You’ll listen in on the pillow talk of a pair of Red-winged Blackbirds, and learn the secret signals that Cliff Swallows use when they have found food. You’ll learn how one bird sound can have many meanings, and how one meaning can have many sounds—and how, sometimes, the meaning isn’t in the sounds at all. This talk from the author of the Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds is an accessible and entertaining introduction to a fascinating topic.

 

Bio: Nathan Pieplow is the author of the Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds, published in two volumes, one for Eastern and one for Western North America. An avid bird sound recordist and videographer, he is the author of the bird sound blog https://earbirding.com/blog/, a board member of the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, an author of the Colorado Birding Trail, and former editor of the journal Colorado Birds. He teaches writing and rhetoric at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

MCAS Field Trip - OCT 6 - Shorebirds and Gulls on the Strand

Terns Along Strand [photo by Bob Revel]
REGISTRATION CLOSED.

Morro Coast Audubon Society Presents  

FIELD TRIP:       Shorebirds and Gulls on the Strand  

DATE:                  Sunday, October 6, 2024  

TIME:                   9:00am to 11:30am  

LEADER:            The Revel Team  

Trip is limited to 12 participants - Signups will be taken for 24 hours. Participants will be randomly selected. The remainder will be put on standby status in case of cancellations. Only registered people may attend.

Description: Enjoy a leisurely stroll along Morro strand and through the coastal sage scrub to look for arriving fall migrants and shorebirds on the beach. We will investigate the pond and outflow of Alva Paul creek looking for birds that flock to this freshwater source - gulls, terns and others. The walk will be on a flat trail and beach with some areas of deep sand. Expect to walk 2 miles at a slow pace. Restrooms are available.

ADA Accessible: No

Experience Level: All Levels Welcome

Registration and RSVP to confirmation Required! 

Registration will open on the morning of SEP 26th. On that date, MCAS members will automatically receive an ALERT with the LINK to the Field Trip’s Registration Form.

Non-members can receive ALERTS from MCAS regarding Field Trips, Community Programs, and other MCAS activities. You will need to fill out the MCAS ALERT EMAIL LIST sign up form in the footer of the MCAS website. You can also join the SLOCOBIRDING email list to get ALERTs via Groups.io. (Field Trip alerts only)

Please consider becoming a member of MCAS to support MCAS’s mission and activities, including Field Trips.

Questions? Email Robbie Revel robbie@morrocoastaudubon.org