State College Bird Club
January 23, 2013
The State College Bird Club met at Foxdale Village on January 23,
2013. Forty-eight members and guests attended, including two
first-time visitors. Nick Kerlin presided.
Business
• The minutes of the December 12 meeting were read.
• Dorothy Bordner presented the Treasurer’s Report.
• Megan Orient reported that the club has 56 paid
members and had collected $860 in dues money, including $35 for the
spring hawkwatch.
• Greg Grove read the checklist of species seen
within 25 miles of Old Main since December 12. Some notable species
included redpolls, an Oregon Junco, Red & White-winged Crossbills,
and Lapland Longspurs.
• Nick Kerlin noted that a date had been set for the
“Bird Day” at Wiscoy Pet Foods store. It will be held March 9th from
10am to 2pm. Four volunteers are needed to handle 2 hour shifts.
Announcements
• Field Trips – Joe Verica reported that he was hoping to organize at Bald Eagle State Park field trip.
Upcoming events
• Deborah Grim reported that the PA Native Plant
Society was sponsoring a talk by Steven Schwartz at Webster’s Bookstore
on February 6.
Presentation
The evening’s presentation was by Greg Grove who presented a program on
the Winter Raptor Survey. The WRS has been held annually between
mid-January and mid-February for the years 2001-2012. Its goal is to
determine the winter distribution and to detect long-term trends of
open country raptors in Pennsylvania. Greg presented maps showing
counts per hour over the 12 years.
Some key findings were a dramatic drop in Kestrels in southeast
Pennsylvania. Northern Harriers showed an upward trend in the
Susquehanna Watershed during the early years of the Survey, then a
decline. Greg speculated that the early upward trend was the result of
the start of the CREP program in Pennsylvania. Rough-legged Hawks were
most prevalent in North-Central counties. Roughlegs showed no specific
trend but great variability, probably as a result of winter weather
extremes.
Submitted by Ron Crandall, Secretary.