www.jayhawkaudubon.

org

Volume 33, Issue 2 OCTOBER, 2008

Marsh Wren. Missouri
Dept. Conservation The Douglas County Commission Affects Your Life
Property Taxes, Rural Development, Emergency Management
and much more fall into the Commission’s remit.

WHERE DO CANDIDATES STAND?

Find Out Monday, October 27th at the
JAS COUNTY COMMISSION CANDIDATE FORUM
The candidates for District #2 are: Democrat Nancy Thellman and Republican David L. Brown. The candidates for
District #3 are: Democrat Ken Grotewiel and Republican James E. Flory. Not sure of your district? Call the County
Clerk’s office, 832-5356 or check www.douglas-county.com. Click on ‘districts’ under ‘commission information’.

The forum, which will be moderated by Bev Worster, will provide attendees an opportunity to pose questions about
issues that come before the County Commission. Examples are overall budget issues including support for social
service agencies; alignment and completion of the South Lawrence Trafficway; property taxes to support county
services such as Emergency Management including purchase and placement of warning sirens, Fire and Medical
Services, collection of motor vehicle taxes, the Register of Deeds office, and the Sheriff's Department to name a few.
The Commission also fills vacancies for the county's 4 seats on the Lawrence/Douglas County Metropolitan Planning
Commission; cooperates with the city on location and start-up funding of business and industrial parks; funds ECO2
Open Space projects jointly with the city; maintains roads and bridges and decides timing and frequency of
roadside rights-of-way mowing and pesticide applications which can have significant impacts on wildlife.

If you would like to submit questions before hand, please send them to Joyce Wolf at rjjawolf@sunflower.com.
-Joyce Wolf
Meeting: 7:30 p.m. Trinity Lutheran Church Fellowship Hall. 1245 New Hampshire Street. Lawrence.
Refreshments will be served. Ample parking east of the church. Enter the lot from New Hampshire.
All programs of the Jayhawk Audubon Society are free and open to the public

~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~
Savannah Sparrow.

The Long Wait Is Over! US Geological Survey

Christopher Goldade

First-of-Season Seed/Feeder/Book Sale is 10/18

10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Lawrence Senior Center. 745 New Hampshire
Order form inside. Deadline to pre-order is 10/13. Walk-ins welcome.
The totals are in and now JAS can say THANK YOU to the seed sale patrons who
very generously added $400 in donations to their orders last year. JAS keeps its
expenditures small and local so this was a real boost to programs such as Eagles Day,
Wetland Learners, Natural History Museum scholarships & Monarch Watch/JAS Tagging Day.
 2 JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY
The Patter of Little Ferret Feet “LBJs” got you frustrated?
On Kansas Soil Is Good News
25 biologists and volunteers spent from dusk to dawn four
nights this August searching 27,000 acres for black-footed
ferrets in order to gauge the success of the December 2007
re-introduction of the endangered mammals to the Kansas
prairie. Dan Mulhern of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in
Manhattan directed the survey. One morning, after a long night
of searching, I spotted a ferret at 5:23 a.m., but it didn't come
back out of the burrow and into the live trap set in the entrance.
When we arrived back in the area that evening to set the trap in
the burrow again, I first had to dig out hard plugs of dirt that
had been packed a foot deep down into the entrance of that and
an adjacent burrow by prairie dogs during the day. Apparently
they knew the ferret was in there and wanted to do their best to
seal it underground. That was prairie dog behavior that I was
astounded to observe.
Sighting more than one ferret in a single location at this
time of year indicates a mother with young or siblings. At least
15 ferrets were observed during the survey, with three litters in
the Haverfield / Barnhardt / Blank complex and one litter at The
Nature Conservancy's Smoky Valley Ranch. It was a case of
looking for needles in a hay stack since ferrets seldom appear
Pine Siskins
above ground and an area can be searched
for hours night after night before one
suddenly emerges. The majority
were observed on the fourth and
final night, having gone undetected the
first 3 nights.
The production of 4 litters the first summer is incredible 10/11: Baker Wetlands Work Day-Sierra Club
and encouraging for the eventual success of this experiment
especially since all 24 ferrets released in December were
captive-bred and five were females beyond their reproductive
prime. They also had to adapt abruptly to a world with coyotes,
great-horned owls and other dangers including extensive Rozol
poisoning on surrounding ranches. The Haverfields, Barnhardts 10/20: Candidate Forum: Kansas House and Board
and Maxine Blank who own these lands deserve our thanks for
making conservation of native wildlife a priority on their land--
10,000 acres that is akin to a national wildlife refuge with jack-
rabbits, swift foxes, badgers, coyotes, burrowing owls, cotton-
tail rabbits, mule deer, pronghorns, whitetails, upland
sandpipers and barn owls. AOK hopes to organize tours
of the area in the future.
-Ron Klataske, Executive Director
Audubon of Kansas
(excerpted from postings to KSBIRDS)
For more on the ferret reintroduction visit
www.audubonofkansas.org.
DE-STRESS ON THE JAS
OCTOBER FIELD TRIP
"Little Brown Jobs" exasperate many
birders, especially in the fall, but there
is hope! Come to the Baker Wetlands
to learn field marks and other identifica-
tion tips that can make these birds less
intimidating. We will focus on the
many species of sparrows and other
difficult to identify birds which pass
through the Wetlands in large numbers
during the fall. We’ll meet at the
entrance off 31st Street on Saturday, White-crowned Sparrow.
October 25 at 8:30 AM. Contact me at Sonoran Desert Museum
steveroels00@hotmail.com or (616)
450-4262 if you have questions or need directions.
-Steve Roels
Whet your appetite with the LBJs depicted in this issue.
More October Events
10/6: Congressional Forum U.S. House 2nd District.
Nancy Boyda (D) and Lynn Jenkins (R). 7-9 pm.
Dole Institute of Politics. KU Campus.
Wakarusa Group. 9a.m. to Noon. Remove
invasive honeysuckle. Contact George Brenner to
sign up and learn where to meet. 785-393-3828 or
gbrenner@sunflower.com; Space is limited.
of Education. 7-9 pm. Free State HS Auditorium.
District 10: Brown (D) and Coen (R)
District 45: Wilson (D) and Sloan (R)
B of E: Campbell (D) and Meissner (R)
10/21: Eagles Day Committee
7 pm. The Shaw’s. 1635 Mississippi.
842-0475. Treats for the workers!
As of 10/1 only 117 days ‘til Eagles Day.
10/25: JAS Field Trip. Sparrows at the
Wetlands. See above for info. .
Field Sparrow. US
Geological Service
Christopher Goldade
 KIDS’ PAGE JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY 3

Crab spider THE KIDS’ PAGE IS GEARING UP FOR HALLOWEEN WITH….

SPIDERAMA
ARE YOU SCARED OF SPIDERS??? DON’T BE!
SPIDERS HELP US BY EATING BUGS like cockroaches, flies and mosquitoes that
get in our food or bite us!!! Next time you see a spider don’t kill it--instead take a good
look at it, then say “thanks for eating all those bugs!!!”

THE SPIDER STORY:

Spiders are tiny animals with 8 legs-known as arachnids. They are not insects which have 6 legs.

Spiders spin silk. Many build webs to catch insects for food. Not all spiders make big webs.
Some stalk their prey. Some hide & then pounce on a passing bug.
Spiders stun or kill insect prey with a venomous bite. All spiders have venom, but ONLY A FEW
spiders can hurt people with their bite. The truth is spiders have NO INTEREST in
attacking humans...We are much too BIG for a spider to eat!1

Spiders often leave a silk thread

behind them. This is called a dragline.
The dragline can be an escape line.

So, when you see a spider hanging down

from his web, he may be escaping
something. Could it be YOU?

PARENTS:
Visit the Spider Myths website
with your children. It debunks
urban legends and puts
spiders in a better light:
Connect the dots in
alphabetical order.
www.washington.edu/burkemuseum/spidermyth/
Color the picture if
you want to.

Dot to dot from www.kidzone.ws

 JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY KIDS’ PAGE 4

Get out your Nature Journal and draw the next spider you see. You may need your magnifying glass
to see its eyes and beautiful markings. Check out the different ways spider’s eyes can be placed.

DOES THiS GIVE YOU

SOME COSTUME IDEAS???

É
Q. W
hy a
re sp
iders
g ood
feet! s wim
bed mers
a ve web ?
h
hey
A. T

Eye illustration. Burke Museum.

University of Washington.

Crossword from:
www.dltk-kids.com
Q.
W hy
d id
th e
age spi
ngu de
r
a
say
n l
ei g
fo r “M
ga eow
l ea
rnin ”?
s
wa
She
A.

An Orb Weaver
spider. Charlotte
was an Orb Weaver.
Right now in the Fall
you can see their
large, complex
webs in gardens. L Puzzle Word List
 JAYHAWK AUDUBON SOCIETY 7

Harris’s Sparrow.
Environment Canada

Concerned about the price of gas? Looking to save on winter heating? Learn
how to Save Energy, Money, & The Environment at the 2008 Energy Fair.

You will have opportunities to view exhibits and consult with the experts on
how to lower utility bills and increase energy efficiency. Exhibitors include
area builders, architects, insulators, heating & cooling experts, government
agencies, non-profits, & alternatively-fueled vehicle representatives.

An expert line-up of speakers will discuss home weatherization, energy effi-

cient remodeling, new home construction techniques, wind and solar energy,
and the legislative climate for energy efficiency in Kansas.

The Heartland Renewable Energy Society’s Sustainable Homes Tour

“is a great opportunity to observe alternative energy systems in action, and
talk with home owners about actual cost savings and the experience of living
in an energy efficient home,” says Daniel Poull, Chair of the Sustainability
Advisory Board.

Sponsors of the 2008 Energy Fair are Black Hills Energy, Cottin’s Hardware,
Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, Absorbent, Ink., Cromwell Environmental,
Hughes Consulting Engineering, Sierra Club-Wakarusa Group, Blue Sky:
Wind, Solar & Home, Paradigm Design, Scott Temperature, The Lawrencian.

For more information and links to exhibitors and sponsors please visit our
website at www.LawrenceRecycles.org.

By Cassandra Ford, Waste Reduction & Recycling Specialist.

City of Lawrence

“BE THE CHANGE…”

~BREAK THE PLASTIC BAG & BOTTLE HABIT
One of the easiest ways you can do something hugely beneficial for wildlife and our own future is to drastically reduce your use
of plastic bags and bottles. Americans send about 38 billion water bottles a year to landfills. Approximately 1.5 million barrels
of oil are needed to make those bottles. Lawrence tap water is fine. Read the certified report the Water Dept. issues
every year if you have doubts. Ironically it is now public knowledge that many bottled waters are actually tap water from
somewhere else! Stop wasting precious dollars and resources and buy a reusable water bottle.

Each of us needs to face the tragic effect on wildlife of our wanton overuse of plastic bags. Visit
http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080506/MULTIMEDIA02/80505016.
Song Sparrow
Be warned: these are heartbreaking, disturbing pictures. You will never again casually
N. John Schmitt
discard a plastic bag. Change to cloth TODAY!! Keep bags in your car so you always have one at
hand for unplanned trips to the store. It will soon be just another habit...a good one!
 Jayhawk Audubon Society Nonprofit Organization
P.O. Box 3741 U.S. Postage
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Lawrence, KS 66046 Lawrence, KS
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Application for New Membership in both: National Audubon Society and Jayhawk Chapter
___$15 Student; ___$20 Introductory for NEW members; ____$15 Senior Citizen.
(Make check payable to National Audubon Society.)

Application for Chapter-only Membership (Jayhawk Audubon Society). No Audubon magazine.

___$7.50 Chapter-only (Make check payable to Jayhawk Audubon Society.) Those with National Audubon
memberships are encouraged to support the chapter by voluntarily paying these dues. Chapter membership
expires annually in July.

National Audubon Society members receive four issues per year of the Audubon magazine and are also
members of the Jayhawk Chapter. All members also receive 10 issues of this newsletter per year and are
entitled to discounts on books and feeders that are sold to raise funds to support education and conservation
projects. Please send this completed form and check to Membership Chairs at the following address:
Ruth & Chuck Herman; 20761 Loring Road, Linwood, KS 66052; e-mail contact:
hermansnuthouse@earthlink.net . {National Members Renewing: please use the billing form received
from National and send it with payment to National Audubon Society in Boulder, CO}.

Name __________________________; Address ___________________________ Sedge Wren. Missouri Dept. Conservation

_________________________; City ___________________________; State ___;

ZIP Code (9) digit ________ __; Telephone (with Area Code) ________________
J02: 7XCH