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DAS EVENTS May 14, 2008: Kurt,
who is the author of Dragonflies
of the North Woods and
coordinator of the relatively new Minnesota Odonata Survey Project, will speak
at the May DAS program on May 14, 7:30 p.m. at the Hartley Nature Center. Kurt
spoke at a DAS program about five years ago, and it was an extremely popular
program. There
are over 100 species of dragonflies in our area, and new state and county
sightings happen surprisingly regularly. But there’s more to these fascinating
“winged dragons” than just impressive numbers. Consider that the Common
Green Darner migrates over 1,000 miles. Not impressed? Did you know the
“beefy” Dragonhunter has been known to take down hummingbirds? There
is much yet to be learned about the wealth of dragonflies and damselflies in our
area. Kurt will update us on the latest discoveries and explain how you can help
as a citizen scientist to study,
survey and record populations in our area. DAS To
Sponsor Boulder Lake Bird Outing on May 10 This
event actually marks the 14th year of the “Boulder Birding Big
Day,” but DAS sponsorship, along with a few new twists, will hopefully
revitalize this fun and scientifically important event. Details
of the new event are still being planned, but in the past participants have
teamed up with local experts in a friendly competition to see which group can
spot the highest number of species. It’s a fun, relaxed morning of birding,
but it’s also an important part of ongoing citizen monitoring of indicator
species at Boulder. Thus, the event fits in perfectly with the new DAS
commitment to citizen science. The
event is actually part hike, part field trip, part competition, part citizen
science, part learning experience and all fun. The
beautiful and expansive Boulder Lake Management Area could easily be considered
one of this region’s undiscovered birding hotspots. In fact, if our
Duluth/Superior Birding Map went that far North, it would have been hotspot #31.
The Boulder Bird Checklist lists an impressive 172 species, while the record
number of species for this particular event was 93 in 1996. We’ll have full details in our May newsletter, but if you're pretty sure you are going to attend, please "register" by emailing us just as soon as possible so we can be sure to have enough group leaders available. (Please let us know if you would like to be in the "novice" group, the pontoon group or a regular group.) Also, if you are qualified, please consider volunteering as a group leader. This
event is free and open to the public. Bring a friend! Spring
Warbler Walks These walks are free and open to the public. June
11, 2008 The
family-oriented program, which will be presented by the Audubon Center of the
North Woods, will be held at Hartley Nature Center at 7:30 p.m. It is free and
open to the public. Learn
about how some raptors have become endangered while others have recovered
through discussions, role playing and games. The three live raptors will
“represent” three threatened species: the Peregrine Falcon, the Spotted Owl
and the Hawaiian Hawk.
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