The Wrack: york county audubon

Wells Reserve, Center for Wildlife, and York County Audubon Society partnered yesterday to offer the third annual Winter Wildlife Day, and 150 people attended! Activities included live animal presentations with non-releasable wildlife ambassadors, tracking walks, face painting, and the creation of plaster track casts, owl window decorations to prevent bird strikes, and binoculars. Snowshoes were available to use on the trails, and hot cocoa greeted visitors when they returned from the outdoors. It was a bustling day with lots of smiling faces!

Here are a few images from the second Winter Wildlife Day, held during school vacation week with help from York County Audubon and the Center for Wildlife. Despite the lack of snow, folks had a good time. The rain showers seemed to arrive when everyone was inside for presentations and the sun came out when it was time for the trail walks.

Yesterday's Lunch 'n Learn in Mather Auditorium drew over 20 people who were interested in learning more about the birds of York County. Marie Jordan of York County Audubon Society shared her vast knowledge of birds, as well as an impressive slideshow of her bird photographs. Following are just a few of the snippets of information that I documented in my notes from the program:

1. Pine Siskens come through this area in November and March. They look like house finches, but have yellow on the wings.
2. King Eiders can sometimes be seen off Marginal Way in Ogunquit. Harlequin ducks are common in this location in the winter, too.
3. Cedar Waxwings and Bohemian Waxwings feast on the fruit from crab apple trees through the winter months.
4. Saco Heath is a great place to find Prairie Warblers in the spring.
5. At Kennebunk Plains, birders often see Upland Sandpipers, Grasshopper Sparrows, and Vesper Sparrows.
6. Many birds have expanded their range into Maine. Birds like the Red Bellied Woodpecker and the Carolina Wren were not here 30 years ago.
7. It is very important to manage fields for Bobolinks and Meadowlarks, waiting until after their nesting season to mow.
8. Marie shared a statistic she had heard--that roughly one million birds in Minnesota are killed by cats each year. She encouraged all of us to keep our cats indoors for the sake of songbirds.
9. Mockingbirds have their own song! In addition to all of the mimicking they do, they also have their very own "harsh sounding" song.
10. When someone asks Marie what her favorite bird is she replies, "The bird I am looking at this minute!" She has too many favorites to name just one.

After the indoor presentation, the group ventured outside on a bird walk with Scott Richardson. Soon after leaving the auditorium, a Sharp Shinned Hawk flew overhead and Scott explained the flight patterns and wing differences of the area's most common raptors.

Following is the list of birds either seen or heard along the walk:

1. Song Sparrow
2. Sharp-shinned Hawk
3. Blue Jay
4. Red-tailed Hawk
5. American Crow
6. Yellow-rumped Warbler
7. American Black Duck
8. Surf Scoter
9. White-winged Scoter
10. Northern Gannet
11. Double-crested Cormorant
12. Bonaparte's Gull
13. Common Loon
14. Ring-billed Gull
15. Tree Swallow

It was standing room only at the first live animal presentation during last Thursday's Winter Wildlife Day. Here's a look around the auditorium, where the Center for Wildlife, York County Audubon, and the Wells Reserve teamed up for a successful event.