Issue 4, November 2019
Stockbridge
Audubon
www.stockbridgeaudubon.org
Representing Northeast Indiana
President’s Words
By Cynthia Powers
BIRDS ARE TELLING US IT’S TIME TO
TAKE ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE
Have you been seeing fewer birds lately?
Sometimes people ask me that. It’s hard for
one person to see the whole picture.
Recent news reports estimate a decline in bird
populations of about 29% over the last 50
years. That’s about 3 billion fewer birds than
in 1970.
How can they tell? In fact, many of you
helped gather the data they used, such as
Breeding Bird Surveys, Christmas Bird
Counts, Project FeederWatch, and now the
vast computerized database known as e-bird.
Weather radar has also contributed by
detecting migrating flocks.
Not all the new is bad. Bluebirds have
increased with all the nest boxes people have
put up, and the return of the bald eagle has
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P.O. Box 13131, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46867
raised spirits everywhere. It’s still a thrill to
see one at Eagle Marsh, but no longer
unusual.
Causes are no doubt familiar: habitat loss,
window strikes, pesticides, feral cats, and
rising global temperatures are all prime
suspects.
Grassland birds and shorebirds are
particularly vulnerable. I’d sure miss hearing
meadowlarks in early March! House
sparrows and starlings are also declining;
most of us wouldn’t be upset by that, but
birders in England, where those species
belong, are concerned.
National Audubon just released the study,
called SURVIVAL BY DEGREES: 389
BIRD SPECIES ON THE BRINK. Do
Google this and explore it: it’s fascinating!
You can search by location and by species,
and see how potential temperature rises of 1.5,
2.0, and 3.0 degrees affect the range of your
favorite species. For instance, at 3.0 degrees,
Indiana won’t have wood thrushes any more.
In fact, 2/3 of North America’s birds are
vulnerable, but we can help 76% of them.
What can we do? Quite a lot, and you’ve
heard it before. Make your yard bird-friendly:
native plants, clean feeders, nest boxes, and
indoor cats. Take your kids for a walk in the
woods, and teach them the names of common
birds—that’s a beginning! Most of all,
protect our local parks, ACRES properties,
and our own amazing Eagle Marsh (Little
River Wetlands.)
And vote! Preserve the Endangered Species
Act, Clean Water Act, and Migratory Bird
Treaty. Keep in mind: what’s good for birds
is good for people.
Stockbridge Audubon is now on Instagram!
Follow us at @stockbridgeaudubon (and don't
forget to DM us with any Northeast Indiana bird
photos you have taken, and you could be featured).
Upcoming Programs and Events
Details on all of the area Christmas bird
counts can be found later in this newsletter!
Interesting Report from Near Garrett
Member Gretel Smith related a very neat
occurrence at her home from around the first
of October. She said that when she was
outdoors one evening, her yard was
“overwhelmed” by a flock of migrating
chimney swifts. It was near dusk when she
noticed some creatures flying low ahead of
her. At first she thought that they must be
bats, but then she looked up and realized that
they were part of a huge flock of birds flying
around and around, visible through a gap in
the tree canopy. She figured that they were
looking for a place to roost; she watched in
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fascination for 10-15 minutes.
If you recently joined National Audubon Society,
you’re receiving this complimentary newsletter
because you are automatically granted
membership in the local Stockbridge chapter when
you join National. If you would like to continue
receiving the letter, which is produced four times a
year, please call Ed Powers at 260-638-4291 or
email him at zzedpowers@aol.com and let him
know whether you would prefer a paper or
emailed version. If you don’t wish to continue
receiving this newsletter, don’t do anything and no
further issues will be sent to you.
___________________________________________
Holiday Gift Idea from Cynthia Powers
Cynthia reports that she just bought from
Amazon a kids' book called Bird Count, by
Susan Edwards Richmond. It's about a little
girl who goes along on a Christmas Bird
Count, and like most kids, she's a good
spotter. They did see a catbird which Cynthia
thinks would be unusual, but it didn't say
where they were.
It would be a good gift for any 6-7 year old,
or a little kid to be read to. Cynthia read
about it on the Birding Indiana Facebook
page.
Stockbridge History
By Terri Gorney
Stockbridge and the Centennial
Indiana celebrated 100 years of statehood in
1916. Stockbridge Audubon Society* played
an active role in Centennial Celebrations in
Fort Wayne in June 1916.
The Woman’s Building** in Fort Wayne had
two large exhibits that were created for a
weeklong event starting June 5. The second
floor of the building was transformed into an
exhibit of birds of northeastern Indiana.
The idea for an exhibit on birds was the
brainchild of Laura Detzer who was chairman
of the exhibits in the Woman’s Building. Laura
was also an avid birder and member of
Stockbridge Audubon Society. She was friends
with Gene Stratton-Porter. Margaret Hanna
was placed in charge of the bird exhibits.
Margaret Hanna was a music teacher and could
imitate bird sounds. She also listed her birds.
By June 1916, she had a list of 133 species so
far that year.
Margaret chose the committee wisely, namely:
Mrs. E. T. Williams, Mrs. J.J. Kline, Mrs.
Edward G. Hoffman, Mrs. Charles Hughes,
Mrs. Grosjean, Mrs. Kimball, and the Misses
Jessie Hamilton, Stockbridge, Bessie
McCracken, May Jewell Smith, Thompson and
Bell. Those that volunteered on this project
were avid birders. They were those that had
studied birds and could give visitors accurate
information. On the evening of June 8, Charles
Stockbridge. A.A. Ringwalt, and J. Ross
McCulloch, “advanced students of bird lore”
assisted in the program.
The committee asked Charles Stockbridge if
they might use his collection of mounted birds.
It is noted that there were around 200 mounts
in this exhibit. They were placed in the former
library. Most of these birds had been shot in the
vicinity of Fort Wayne or found dead within
the city limits. They hoped to make these
“environmental exhibits.” They tried to show
the birds in their natural setting and some had
nests displayed with the bird mounts. It was
stated that wagonloads of greenery, plants and
bushes were brought in for this exhibit.
Some of the highlights were a pelican found
here in 1890. The whooping crane in the water
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exhibit and the wood ibis, were found near Spy
Run. The pileated woodpecker was found near
the city limits. There were displays of the
summer residents such as a scarlet tanager,
Baltimore oriole, bobolinks, horned larks,
rose-breasted grosbeak. The winter residents
included those rare ones such as the crossbills
and red polls.
A Victrola was hidden behind greenery and
played the bird preludes of Gorst and Kellogg.
Margaret gave bird calls and songs with the
music.
Many came from out of town to see this
unusual exhibit. On Saturday afternoon from
3:30-5:15 pm, fourteen hundred saw the
exhibit. It was noted that the committee was
pleased by the interest displayed by the
visitors, many of whom asked for many names
of bird guides and books. It is surmised that
20,000 visited this exhibit.
Unfortunately in Bert Griswold’s The Pictorial
History of Fort Wayne Indiana (1917), p. 558,
this exhibit merited only one line “One room
was devoting to the showing of native birds.”
It is safe to say that Mr. Griswold was not a
birder.
*Stockbridge Audubon Society was known as
the Allen County Audubon Society from 1899-
1934. In 1934, it was re-named in honor of
Charles Stockbridge.
**The Woman’s Building was on E. Wayne
Street between S. Calhoun Street and S.
Clinton Street on the north side.
Main Sources: The Journal-Gazette, Fort
Wayne Indiana, 18 Jun 1916, p. 33.
Bird-Lore, V.19, 1917, p. 466
More Stockbridge History
By Terri Gorney
Member Profile: Margaret Hanna
Margaret Hanna, great granddaughter of Fort
Wayne founder Samuel Hanna, was an active
member in the community. She belonged to the
Country Club, Saturday Club, Red Cross,
Historical Society, and other organizations.
What is not well known is that she was active
in the birding community. She gave numerous
talks on the birds and led field trips. She was
also a “lister.” From a note in the Journal-
Gazette, we know that in 1916 she had listed
133 species of birds in the area by June.
For many years, she was a music teacher by
profession. She taught piano from her home at
1020 W. Wayne Street. This is well-known.
What is not is that she could imitate bird calls
and songs that she heard.
For the Centennial of Indiana’s statehood in
1916, Margaret was chairman of the Bird
Exhibit in the Woman’s Building.* Charles
Stockbridge’s collection of bird mounts were
placed in the former library. The committee
tried to re-create the birds in their natural
settings. A Victrola was hidden behind
greenery and played the bird preludes of Gorst
and Kellogg. Margaret imitated bird sounds
with the music.
In Bird-Lore she was noted as organizing
classes for bird study, not only in Indiana, but
in some southern states.
Her bird lectures included speaking
engagements at the Indiana University
Extension, Fort Wayne Library, Pleasant Lake,
Irene Byron Sanitarium, The Saturday Club in
Fort Wayne, and the Country Club. She was
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noted as an authority on the birds due to her
longtime study of her feathered friends. At
least one of the lectures, she spoke on “The
Birds of Indiana.”
In 1919, she was asked to speak at the
Crawfordsville Audubon and Nature Study
Club. Her topic was “Some Phases of Spring
Migration.” She illustrated this with lantern-
slides and bird skins. She was noted at this
lecture that “she has the unusual ability to
reproduce bird-calls and songs.”
In 1916, one of her female adult classes in bird
study went on one of their expeditions in field
work along the Huntington Road to Devil’s
Hollow, where they ate a supper while
listening to bird songs.
She owned a cottage at Leland Michigan. One
can imagine that she enjoyed birding there in
the summer months.
She died in 1961 at the age of 82. She is buried
in Lindenwood with her parents, James and
Eliza (Colerick) Hanna and her brother
Charles.
*Woman’s Building was on E. Wayne Street
between S. Calhoun Street and S. Clinton
Street; it was the former Fort Wayne High
School.
Main Sources:
Bird-Lore, V. 19, 1917, p. 466.
Bird-Lore, V. 20, 1918, p. 477.
Bird-Lore, V. 21, 1919, p. 435.
Journal-Gazette, 10 May 1916, p. 12.
Journal-Gazette, 18 Jun 1916, p. 33.
U. S. Federal Census records 1910-1940.
Fort Wayne City Directories
Notable Sighting at Eagle Marsh:
American Avocet!
Birders enjoy going out, alone or with friends,
and finding the familiar birds in the woods or
on ponds, or just flying over, going wherever
birds go. But sometimes they get an extra
thrill when a bird shows up that is out of
place. Such a thing happened recently at
Eagle Marsh when an American Avocet
visited for several days. It first was found by
David Ward, then spotted again on the
Stockbridge field trip by John Winebrenner,
after most of the group had walked past.
Avocets are large shorebirds that really
belong in the west, but they do occasionally
wander through the eastern United
States. They have visited Eagle Marsh before,
but they are infrequent enough, even if you've
seen one before, to bring you out for another
look. It's in winter plumage, without the
orange neck it has in summertime. The
upturned bill is very noticeable.
(Photo courtesy of the internet.)
Big Sit Sunday
Sunday, October 13 was a pleasant day for the
annual Big Sit event at Fox Island; however, it
wasn’t the most fruitful day of birding. Those
present were glad to head inside the nature
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center to hear Mary and Eric Helfrich give a
fascinating program about their recent birding
trip to Romania and Hungary. The Helfriches
“got” many cool birds there, and in some
cases the sightings were almost miraculous,
aided by expert local guides. A slide show of
these exotic-to-us species provided a good
idea of what the trip must have been like.
Shade-Grown Coffee Can Benefit
Stockbridge
A new Indiana company called Wood
Warbler Coffee offers several bird-friendly,
fair-trade blends for sale. The Stockbridge
board agreed to become affiliated with this
business at no cost to us. Each pound of
coffee that is purchased under the
“Conservation Partners” tab and the
Stockbridge Audubon logo will result in a
$1.50 donation to Stockbridge. Both whole-
bean and ground coffees are available;
currently, only purchases of 1-lb. bags will
generate a donation to Stockbridge. Jeff
Canada, the founder of Wood Warbler Coffee,
has indicated that at some point 5-lb. bags
also may be included under the Stockbridge
banner. Check www.woodwarblercoffee.com
to learn more.
 2019-2020 Christmas Bird Counts
FORT WAYNE CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT
Saturday, December 14, 2019
(Sunrise will be at 7:58am and Sunset at 5:12pm)
Christmas Bird Counts are held each year to collect data on wintering bird populations and for the enjoyment of
participants. The Fort Wayne count is held in a 15-mile diameter circle (an internationally standard rule) in
northern Allen and southern DeKalb Counties. Participants divide into field parties of two to four, each with at
least one experienced leader, to count all birds identified by sight or voice in a designated section of the circle.
Parties drive county roads slowly and walk where public lands or permission from landowners permit. Beginner
birders are welcome. In general birds are counted between sunrise and sunset.
You can participate in a field party for the day, or for half a day, morning or afternoon. There is no fee for
participation. Most all-day and morning participants meet inside Hall’s Restaurant, corner of Coliseum Blvd.
and Lima Rd. by 8:00 a.m. Some of us arrive in time to have breakfast at Hall’s before 8:00. Some parties
meet at a location designated by the leader and some parties go out before sunrise to find owls at daybreak.
Afternoon-only participants will join their parties at lunch at a time and location designated by each party
leader. Be sure to dress for the weather, including waterproof, warm boots for wet or snowy conditions. Pack a
thermos and snacks. Your party leader will inform you if you need to bring a sack lunch or if your group will
meet with others at a fast food restaurant for lunch.
Persons who live in the count circle can also participate by counting birds at their feeders and in the yard, but
must make arrangements beforehand with the count compilers.
You are encouraged to attend a wrap-up session held at Wendy’s just off Lima Rd on Northland Blvd. It is a fun
gathering where we share the day’s experiences and join in compiling the day’s list.
If you plan to join in the count as a field observer or feeder watcher, or if you would like further information,
please contact the compilers, Margit Codispoti: magpii2@yahoo.com (260-609-6507 or Eric Helfrich:
conqur1066@gmail.com (260-693-3246) by December 5th but sooner is better.

Gene Stratton-Porter Christmas Bird Count

Tuesday, December 17, 2019, 8 a.m.-12 p.m. Located at the Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site at 1205
Pleasant Point, Rome City, IN 46784. The following information was shamelessly copied from the Indiana
State Museum’s website: “Participate in one of the oldest citizen science projects during the 118th annual
Christmas Bird Count. Birdwatchers of all skill levels are welcome to team up, enjoy nature, see some beautiful
birds and be a citizen scientist for Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Let us know you’re coming by calling us at 260-
854-3790. Questions? Call us or email genestrattonportershs@indianamuseum.org.” The site manager,
Tiffany Parker, also states that she would like to have people registered by December 13 so she can figure out
teams; however, walk-ins also are welcome. Tiffany may be reached at tmparker@indianamuseum.org.

PIGEON RIVER CBC

The Pigeon River Christmas Bird Count will take place on Sunday, December 15, 2019. If interested in
participating, please contact Joe Smith. His email is Joe.smith@kidszoo.org and his phone number is 260-427-
6246. Because hunting season will still be in progress, all participants are strongly advised to wear something
that is hunter orange in color.
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POKAGON CBC
The 40th Annual Pokagon Christmas Bird Count will be held on Saturday, December 28, 2019. On December
28, birders in predetermined teams will disperse into a 15-mile diameter circle, the center being the center of
Steuben County, to count both species and numbers of all birds. Participants will gather at the Pokagon State
Park Potawatomi Inn, Lonidaw Lounge (west end of building), by 7:45am to divide into teams and head into the
field. Birders should bring their own birding optics and dress for a day in the field. Participants should also
bring a sack lunch to enjoy in the field, or their team may wish to make other lunch arrangements on their
own. To register, contact Fred Wooley at 260-495-3307 or 260-243-0513 (cell) or E-
mail fwooley@frontier.com. Registration deadline is December 26. Updated for 2019.

TIPPECANOE CBC
The Tippecanoe Audubon Society Christmas Count will be Saturday, December 28th, 2019. The 15-mile-
diameter count circle is centered at Oswego, Indiana in Kosciusko County. Birders of all skill levels are
welcome. Anyone interested in participating should get in touch with Dave Hicks, 260-982-2471,
djhicks@manchester.edu.

SANJO (Southern Adams Northern Jay and Ouabache) CBC

Everything is the same as last year for SANJO CBC on Wednesday, January 1, 2020 - this is the fourth year of
the circle which was previously the Adams County Count.
Limberlost Visitor Center
200 E. Sixth Street (at US 27)
Geneva IN
Meet at 8:00 am at the Limberlost Visitor Center if you want before going out to your territory, or head straight
to your territory if you wish. Chili lunch will be at noon at the Limberlost Visitor Center for all birders in the
territory and feeder counters. Please join us. Meet members of area Audubon chapters. New birders welcome.
Terri Gorney, compiler; bandtgorney@aol.com

SOUTHWEST ALLEN CBC

The 5th official SW Allen count will be held January 4, 2020. We will meet at the Nature Center at Fox Island
County Park at 8 a.m. to meet our teams. Cars may be left there. Again, our famous chili makers, Brett Fisher
and Lori Healey, will preside over our noontime species list. After lunch, you may finish up your territory and
email your completed report. We also need feeder watchers: if you live within the count circle, call to find out.
Important: if you plan to participate, please register by January 1 with the compiler, Cynthia Powers at
638-4291 or zzedpowers@aol.com.

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P.O. Box 13131, Fort Wayne, IN 46867

Return Service Requested

|Stockbridge Directors and Officers|

Inside this issue:
Cynthia Powers, President 638-4291
President’s Words Julie Henricks, V.P. & Newsletter Editor 638-4375
Terri Gorney, Secretary & Program Chair 490-6725
More Stockbridge History
Eric Helfrich, Treasurer 260-693-3246
Sandy Schacht, Director 260-356-3681
Area Christmas Bird Margit Codispoti, Director 456-1996
Counts Ed Powers, Membership 638-4291
Dave Reichlinger, Director 432-9431
Notable Bird Sightings Stephanie Wagner, Director sewsings328@gmail.com
Greg Majewski, Director_________________gamajewski@gmail.com
Plus More Neat Stuff! Phil Wixom, Webmaster_________________a28n28@yahoo.com

We welcome new members using the form below (or apply online). To speed your service and save us postage, mail renewals
directly to National Audubon, using the form that they provide. Any questions relating to membership? Ed Powers, Membership
Chair, will be glad to help!

Online new membership requests: https://action.audubon.org/donate/chapter-membership?chapter=H09

Or mail the following form:

National Audubon Society/Stockbridge Audubon Chapter Membership Application H09

I want to join Audubon! Enclosed is my check payable to the National Audubon Society.

Name YEARLY MEMBERSHIP:

Individual/$20 Family/$20
Address ________________________________

City/State/Zip________________________________

Mail to: National Audubon Society, 225 Varick St., New York, NY 10014