The Harlequin – Spring 2021
Please click on the link below to view the Spring 2021 issue of our Harlequin newsletter
Continue reading →Bill
A Video of our April 2021 Program: Decades of Change in Maine’s Birds – with Doug Hitchcox
This program was presented on April 20, 2021. Scroll down to the original post on this program for a full description. Note that the recording starts after the introduction, but includes the full program.
Continue reading →Decades of Change in Maine’s Birds – with Doug Hitchcox – Tuesday, April 20th
If you’ve lived in Maine for a while, you’ve probably noticed that bird populations have changed and continue to do so. Just a few decades ago, birds such as the Northern Cardinal, the Tufted Titmouse, the Red-Bellied Woodpecker and the Carolina Wren were uncommon sightings here, if seen at all. Birds such as the Eastern Bluebird were much fewer in number. In 1949, Robert Palmer’s then definitive Maine Birds described the “Eastern” Cardinal as “a very rare visitant,” with most sightings being “escaped captives.” As for the Tufted Titmouse, he noted there was one specimen in the University of Maine … Continue reading →
A Video of our March 2021 program on the Birds-of-Paradise Project – with Edwin Scholes
This program was presented on March 16th, 2021. Scroll down to the original post on this program for a full description. Note that the recording starts with a few minutes of birding small talk to give viewers a chance to join us.
Continue reading →The Birds-of-Paradise Project: Natural history media for science and conservation – with Edwin Scholes – Tuesday, March 16th
Among the most amazing creatures in the world, more than 40 species of birds-of-paradise live in New Guinea’s swaths of the Indo-Pacific rainforest region, one of the largest intact tropical forested areas on Earth. The stars of the show in National Geographic and PBS Nature TV documentaries, the birds-of-paradise have become icons of New Guinea’s rainforests. Their extraordinary beauty is unlike that of any other birds on Earth, but it’s their wide range of bizarre breeding behaviors that captivates audiences—from elaborate dancing and flaring their elegant plumes to shape-shifting displays that make these exotic species seem like avian transformers. Edwin … Continue reading →
A Video of our February 2021 Program: The Amazing Winter Crow Roost – with Dana Duxbury-Fox and Bob Fox
This program was presented on Feb 16th, 2021. Scroll down to the original post on this program for a full description.
Continue reading →The Amazing Winter Crow Roost – with Bob Fox and Dana Duxbury-Fox – Tuesday, Feb 16th
“It blows your mind. Thousands of them. They just keep rolling in.” It’s a spectacular display of sight and sound, a massive swarm of as many as 20,000 crows, a sky blotted black by their numbers, a crescendo of cawing that slowly fades to an eerie silence, night closing in. As it has for at least 30 years, this flock of mostly American crows arrives in Lawrence, Mass. in November, and carries out some of the primordial behaviors that still puzzle the amateur birders and professional ornithologists who study what many of them believe are the world’s most clever and … Continue reading →
A Year in the Life of North American Owls – with Paul Bannick – Tuesday, January 19th
“If your average picture is worth a thousand words, a Paul Bannick wildlife photograph is worth 20,000. Having worked with wildlife photographers for articles in Audubon, Smithsonian, Sierra, National Wildlife and other magazines for 45 years, I have yet to encounter one who better captures the magic and beauty of the natural world.” Ted Williams, former Editor of Audubon Magazine On Tuesday, January 19th at 7 p.m., York County Audubon is honored to host award winning author and photographer Paul Bannick. His online Zoom program will feature video, sound and stories from the field, and images from his book, Owl: … Continue reading →
The Birds of Maine – by Peter Vickery
There’s a spectacular new comprehensive book: The Birds of Maine by Peter Vickery. And, fittingly, a wonderful program just presented the story of the creation of this book. If you’re interested in the birds (and birders) of Maine, take a look:
Continue reading →A Video of our November 2020 program: The Narwhal’s Tusk – The Ten Most Remarkable Marine Mammal Adaptations – with Zack Klyver
This program was presented on Nov 17th. Scroll down to the original post on this program for a full description.
Continue reading →The 2021 Maine Birds Desk Calendar is now available!
For many years, our former Board member, Marie Jordan, an avid birder and photographer, has produced a calendar and offered it for sale, with her graciously donating the calendars to YCA to support our educational programs. We’ve always presented them at our fall program meetings, but this year that’s not possible, of course, so we’re making them available by mail. It’s a desk calendar in a 4” by 6” plastic case that opens into a stand to display each month. Each page features a great photo she took this year of a Maine bird. The cost is $10 plus mailing … Continue reading →
The Narwhal’s Tusk: the ten most remarkable marine mammal adaptations – with Zack Klyver – November 17th
Have you ever wondered why a narwhal has a tusk? How sperm whales catch squid in the deep dark ocean? Which whale has the biggest tail, lives the longest, and holds the world migration record? Did you know that whale “waste” results in great plant plankton blooms in the ocean that produce the oxygen we breath, slow climate change and help create more productive fisheries? On Tuesday, November 17th, York County Audubon is delighted to host an online Zoom program featuring Maine marine mammal naturalist and conservationist Zack Klyver. He will give a presentation based on a book he is … Continue reading →
A Video of our October 2020 program: Conserving Reptiles and Amphibians – a Maine Focus – with Greg LeClair
This program was presented on Oct 20th. Scroll down to the original post on this program for a full description.
Continue reading →The Harlequin – Autumn 2020
Please click on the link below to view the Autumn 2020 issue of our Harlequin newsletter, including a feature article: John James Audubon – Revisited. https://www.yorkcountyaudubon.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Harlequin-Autumn-2020.pdf
Continue reading →Our 2020 Bird Seed Sale is Coming!
Keep your feathered friends happy this winter by treating them to tasty and fresh, premium quality bird food and help support two of your favorite environmental organizations at the same time. Profits from our annual sale support the educational programs of both York County Audubon and the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve. A wide variety of types of seed and suet is available, with great pricing, especially if you order early. Early bird pricing is available if you place your order by 4 p.m. on Friday, October 30th. The instructions for ordering are on the order form which you can … Continue reading →
Conserving Reptiles and Amphibians – A Maine Focus with Greg LeClair – Oct 20th
Gregory LeClair is a wildlife biologist with a contagious passion for amphibians and reptiles that he has honed from early in his life. In our October Zoom program, he will share his enthusiasm, concerns, and insight into diverse topics including amphibian extinction, the exotic pet trade, habitat destruction, the impact of human attitudes on wildlife conservation, and more. He’ll offer backyard landscaping recommendations, and offer other ways we can become involved in protecting these threatened species. Adults will love this fascinating program. It would also be appropriate for middle school or high school students who are curious about working with wildlife. … Continue reading →
A video of our September 2020 program: Seabird Sentinels in the Gulf of Maine – with Dr. Don Lyons
This program was presented on Sept 15th. Scroll down for a full description.
Continue reading →Seabird sentinels in the Gulf of Maine: What they can tell us about the state of our oceans – with Dr. Don Lyons – Sept 15th
By the middle of the 20th century, the populations of many species of seabirds in the Gulf of Maine had been decimated. Puffins had last nested on Eastern Egg Rock in 1885 and terns in 1936. In 1973, National Audubon started a program to reintroduce and establish the Maine breeding grounds for these species, led by seabird visionary Steve Kress. In 2019, forty-five years later, Steve retired and turned over the program to new leadership. The program has proved exceptionally successful. The population of Atlantic Puffins has grown to more than 1,000 nesting pairs on five coastal Maine islands, and … Continue reading →
A Video of our August 2020 program: 23 Reasons to Go Outside – with Josh Fecteau
23 Reasons To Go Outside: Snapshots from a Daily Practice of Nature Observation – with Josh Fecteau – an online program, Tuesday, August 18th at 7 p.m.
Interested in discovering some of the birds, plants and nature that are often hiding in plain sight all around us? Local naturalist Josh Fecteau will share some of the wild treasures he’s found near his home in Kennebunkport, and encourage all of us to go outside to make rewarding discoveries of our own. On Tuesday, August 18th, at 7 p.m., York County Audubon will be presenting this program online. The program is available free of charge, but advance registration is required. Please use the link in red below. Josh grew up along the southern Maine coast. In his early 20’s, … Continue reading →