Upcoming Local Trips

Below is a list of upcoming local field trips for the weekend of May 30-31, 2009:

Brooklyn Bird Club
Saturday, May 30th, 2009, 11:00am
Brooklyn Coast Boat Cruise
Leader: Don Riepe
Boat fee: $ 50.00 Limit 6 people
Registrar: Peter Dorosh, Email Prosbird@aol.com or TEXT Message 347-622-3559
Registration period: May 12th - May 28th


New York City Audubon
Saturday, May 30th, 2009, 1:00-7:00pm
Rowing, Conservation, and the Brother Islands
Guides: Gabriel Willow and Mary Nell Hawk In partnership with East River CREW
Using eco-friendly human power, enjoy a rowing tour where you see birds at the water's level. Learn about conservation issues and remote Islands in New York City. View the gulls and cormorants on Mill Rock, and then herons on the shores of North and South Brother Islands, home to one of the area's largest nesting colonies. Land nearby on the beach at Barretto Point Park, where lunch will be provided. A willingness to learn how to row in a fixed seat gig and moderate physical dexterity are required. It is easy to learn with our experienced coxswain. Meet at the East River esplanade at E96th St. Bring water, hats, and binoculars. Limited to 11.
Price $118($106.20 for NYC Audubon members at the Senior/Student level and up)


New York City Audubon
Saturday, May 30th, 2009
Jamaica Bay Sunset Cruise
Guides: Don Riepe and Mickey Cohen In partnership with the American Littoral Society
Enjoy a 3-hour cruise aboard the 100' boat "Golden Sunshine," leaving from Pier 2 in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. Visit the backwater marshes near JFK Airport and learn about the history, ecology, and wildlife of the bay. See nesting peregrine falcon, osprey, egrets, shorebirds, and waterfowl. Includes wine and cheese, fruit, drinks, and snacks.
Fee: $45
For reservations, call 718-318-9344 or email driepe@nyc.rr.com


Protectors of Pine Oak Woods
Saturday, May 30th, 2009, 9:00am to 11:00am
Arthur Kill Wetlands (Sharrotts Shorelands)
Meet at the dead end of Androvette Street close to the Arthur Kill (2 blocks south of Sharrotts Road on Arthur Kill Road).
We will walk through a wetlands and sandy shore area recently acquired for conservation by the NYSDEC. We will observe saltmarsh and beach plants that grow in that inhospitable place, and observe where Tappan’s Creek, which originates in Clay Pit Ponds State Park, empties into the Kill. Low tide is at 8:13 a.m. We will observe loads of fiddler crabs, shorebirds, and the remnants of boat and barge salvage operations in the Kill. Although we will enter at low tide, we may have to pass through a marshy area to enter.
For more information call Dick Buegler 718-761-7496 or Don Recklies 718-768-9036.


Protectors of Pine Oak Woods
Saturday, May 30th, 2009, 1:00pm to 4:00pm
Clay Pit Ponds State Park/Preserve: Wildflowers, Trees and Wildlife
Find out why Protectors urged the preservation of this parkland and how we got our name in 1975. It has Pine Barrens, rare southern “pine and oak” trees, fence swift lizards, and a few rather unusual wildflowers, nothing like our Greenbelt forest. With a permit, you, Sandra and I will enter the restricted area where few have trod. We will find the diseased clones of the American Chestnut that has produced flowers and fruit the past few years and the healthy, uninfected 9 to 10 inch diameter Chestnut tree, now 20 + feet tall. The normal trunk splitting at the base is not indicative of chestnut blight unless a fungus growth is observed.
Wear waterproof shoes.
Meet at the new park office building with exhibits along Drumgoole Road West, off Sharrott’s Road in Rossville.
Call Dick Buegler for driving directions to the new meeting location at 718-761-7496.


Urban Park Rangers
Saturday, May 30th, 2009
Early Morning Birding
8:00 a.m.
MARINE PARK

Peregrine Falcon Watch
11:00 a.m.
Multiple Parks Locations

Invasive Investigation
11:00 a.m.
Multiple Parks Locations

*****

New York City Audubon
Sunday, May 31st, 2009, 10-11:30am
Avian Exploration of Forest Park
Guide: Urban Park Rangers.
In partnership with Urban Park Rangers
As the weather warms up, so does the birding. Join NYC Audubon and the Urban Park Rangers as we team up to welcome back our feathered friends to Forest Park (meet at the Visitor Center, Woodhaven Boulevard and Forest Park Drive).
Free
Limited to 30


Urban Park Rangers
Sunday, May 31st, 2009
Avian Exploration of Forest Park
10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Multiple Parks Locations

Healing Plant Power
1:00 p.m.
Multiple Parks Locations