Date: Fri 29-Aug-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: DOTTIE

Quick Words:

Lillinonah-Audubon-Society

Full Text:

The Lillinonah Audubon Society's Boundless Enterprise

( LIBRARY NOTE: THIS STORY HAS A SIDEBAR; use keywords Bent-River-sidebar)

BY DOROTHY EVANS

Like the birds of the air, Lillinonah Audubon Society members enjoy a special

kind of freedom.

Their range of activities is not limited by political barriers, such as county

lines or boundaries that separate towns. They prefer exploring the natural

byways and flyways of Western Connecticut, focusing on the life of rivers and

streams, woodlands and wetlands that are home to the widest possible diversity

of species.

Whether hiking on their own or joining a guided field trip, Lillinonah Audubon

Society members happily travel great distances just to experience what nature

has to offer, to hear a woodcock drumming in the spring or see a gathering of

waterfowl in the fall.

"We go down to the shore or we go up into the hills. And it's a great way to

meet people," said the society's newly-elected president, Sally O'Neil.

A resident of Sandy Hook, Mrs O'Neil has lived in Connecticut for the past 11

years since moving north from West Virginia. Her husband, Bill O'Neil, works

for Union Carbide in Danbury.

While working as a nurse and raising her family, Mrs O'Neil was involved in

the League of Women Voters and the Sierra Club; but since moving north to

Newtown and discovering the Lillinonah Audubon Society, she has become

increasingly committed to its educational programs and mission of

conservation.

A local chapter of the National Audubon Society, Lillinonah Audubon is growing

daily, she said, especially since "anyone who joins at the national level

automatically becomes a member of the local chapter."

Lillinonah Audubon now boasts between 700 and 800 members who come from many

western Connecticut towns, including Newtown and Southbury, where the idea for

the society was born 20 years ago.

"We always need more volunteers at all levels, whether it be to lead field

trips, do clerical work, participate in Bird-a-thons, go into the schools, or

write letters to congressmen," Mrs O'Neil said.

"But we know that to get people involved, it has to be fun. We're hoping for

more families to join us... and single people," she added.

Educational Mission

One goal is to continue and expand upon the Audubon Adventures program already

underway. Audubon Adventures are leadership guides that the society

distributes to children in many area elementary schools. There are more than

40 schools now participating in the program, Mrs O'Neil said.

The Lillinonah Audubon Society is also seeking to work with teachers in

organizing field trips in cooperation with Audubon naturalists, as well as to

encourage them to apply for a number of Audubon scholarships.

These teachers need not be Audubon Society members and they may apply for

week-long seminars in environmental education held at the Greenwich Audubon

Center or at special Audubon campsites on Hog Island, Maine, or in the Wind

River Range of Wyoming.

"We need to get the children and their teachers outside - involved and

learning more about nature," Mrs O'Neil said.

Founded by Students in 1977

The Lillinonah Audubon Society (LAS) was founded 20 years ago in Southbury by

a group of college students home on summer vacation, according to past

president and current LAS publicity chairman, Ruth Moore.

Mrs Moore remembers those early days well, especially the enthusiasm that the

students generated for environmental causes and the vacuum they left behind

when they "scattered" in the fall, going their separate ways.

"You know how it is with young people," she said, adding that being in on

those beginning stages, she was determined not to let the fledgling

organization fall by the wayside.

It has been gratifying, Mrs Moore said, to see the society flourish as the

years have passed, and to watch the membership grow, encompassing so many

different towns in the region.

"At the last count, we had more than 800 subscribers," said another past LAS

president, Marion Mackie, who is also a Southbury resident.

The group holds evening meetings on the fourth Thursday of every month at the

South Britain Parish House. Additional meeting dates are announced in their

bi-monthly newsletter, The Kingfisher.

Evening meetings, which may sometimes be held in other member towns, usually

include a program with a visiting naturalist showing slides or live exhibits.

A number of outdoor events are scheduled also, and are publicized in the

newsletter and through local media.

To learn more about the Lillinonah Audubon Society, Mrs O'Neil advises people

to write to LAS at PO Box 791, Southbury 06488.

Spring Bird Count Yields

100 Species

In addition to membership dues, the Lillinonah Audubon Society raises money to

support its programs through its Annual Spring Bird Count.

Traditionally, Audubon naturalist Jim Nolan and longtime Lillinonah Audubon

chapter member Bob Hollister "boldly go where no birder has dared go before,"

according to an LAS newsletter account, and this spring they were accompanied

by LAS vice-president Barbara Starr of Danbury.

While the official counters tally the species, chapter members sit at home,

having pledged $1 per bird (or whatever amount they wish) before the event to

encourage the counters to ever greater efforts.

The count takes place on a specified date rain or shine, and Audubon's

Bent-of-The-River sanctuary in South Britain is a primary locale, though it

certainly is not the only place that is "worked" in the 24-hour search.

"They go up to Washington and down to the shore - wherever they want in

Western Connecticut, whatever they can possibly cover in one day," said Mrs

Moore.

The 1997 Spring Count was held May 11 and it yielded exactly 100 species, Mr

Nolan said, including a "nice little number" of indigo buntings, an Acadian

flycatcher, several mourning warblers and yellow and black-billed cuckoos.

A complete list of 1997 Spring Bird Count follows.

Birdathon Report 1997

Red-throated loon; common loon; double-crested cormorant; great blue heron;

great egret; snowy egret; yellow-crowned night heron; mute swan; Canada goose;

wood duck; American black duck; mallard; blue-winged teal; common merganser;

turkey vulture; osprey; northern harrier; northern goshawk; broad-winged hawk;

red-tailed hawk; ruffed grouse; turkey; Virginia rail; American coot; piping

plover.

American oystercatcher; greater yellowlegs; solitary sandpiper; spotted

sandpiper; semipalmated sandpiper; least sandpiper; American woodcock; herring

gull; greater black-backed gull; least tern; rock dove; mourning dove; chimney

swift; belted kingfisher; red-bellied woodpecker; downey woodpecker; hairy

woodpecker; northern flicker; pileated woodpecker; eastern phoebe; great

crested flycatcher; eastern kingbird.

Tree swallow; northern rough-winged swallow; bank swallow; cliff swallow; barn

swallow; blue jay; American crow; black-capped chickadee; tufted titmouse;

white-breasted nuthatch; winter wren; blue-gray gnatcatcher; eastern bluebird;

veery; wood thrush; robin; gray catbird; northern mockingbird; European

starling.

Solitary vireo; blue-winged warbler; northern parula; yellow warbler;

chestnut-sided warbler; black-throated blue warbler; yellow-rumped warbler;

black-throated green warbler; blackburnian warbler; prairie warbler; black and

white warbler; American redstart; worm-eating warbler; ovenbird; Louisiana

waterthrush; common yellowthroat.

Scarlet tanager; cardinal; rose-breasted grosbeak; indigo bunting; chipping

sparrow; field sparrow; Savannah sparrow; song sparrow; bobolink; red-winged

blackbird; common grackle; brown-headed cowbird; northern oriole; house finch;

American goldfinch; house sparrow.