[Bristol-Birds] BBC Picnic Great/ Trinidad birding next !!
- From: "Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Bristol-birds" <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2006 15:46:07 -0400
The Bristol Bird Club had an enjoyable picnic Saturday at Steele Creek Park.
It was a nice day of fellowship -- catching up with everyone and meeting the
new folks. The usual good food was as abundant and delicious as ever. This
report is in leiu of our president in absentia.
More than 30 birders, members and guest, attened the annual outing which was
spared of surrounding thunderstoms and driving rains. It was a cool and
sometimes breezy evening with birders arriving as early as 2 p.m. and the last
departing by 9 p.m. as the park grew dark.
A few of the pleasant surprises we enjoyed was Rudy Morales, Steele Creek Park
Naturalist since March and an ETSU biology student, who not only went the
distance with us for the day but also joined the Bristol Bird Club. He stayed
until the last car left our picnic site. Not only did he say goodbye and wave
to the last vehicle leaving, he helped start that car which had a dead battery.
Coming and going was not always the easiest. Don Parker, Ellen Parker and
Charlie (CE) Parker experienced a flat tire enroute along the Volunteer Pky.
Don noted that he had not encountered such a problem since maybe his teenage
days. The quick change came just second ahead of a torrent rainfall. Janice
Martin and Fred Martin found their battery dead when the last few vehicles were
leaving. Morales was quick to jump in and, with a set of borrowed jumper
cables, the last of the BBC members were underway.
We enjoyed having Park Naturalist Kevin Elam spend time visiting with us. He
leaves the staff Aug. 4 to attend graduate school at Virginia Tech. CE Parker
is a junior naturalist at the park and, with new assistant park naturalist
Larry McDaniel present, the Nature Center was well represented.
Bob Quillen, who has put up a mountain of hay so far this year, was a real joy
as was Dr. Ed Burke, a founding member of BBC from 1950, who has recently
experienced heart surgery for a valve problem earlier this year. The BBC medic
corps was kept busy with Quillen getting an eye consulation from Dr. Janet
Brown and Dr. Diane Draper advising Don Holt and Walace Coffey about
circulation dangers from foot swelling. Diane's sister from Michigan attened.
She is visiting here for a awhile. She is a special education teacher.
Rob Biller, Rick Knight, Carolyn Coffey, Julee Burke, Dave Worley, Ethel Mason,
Diana Worley, Mary Jane Erwin, Judy Roach, Mike Poe, John Hay, Allen Martin
and Nancy Necessary, assured an abundance of gossip and real news.
Dave Worley spent much time coordinating last minute details and keeping nerves
calm for the Bristol Bird Club's July 8 tropical Birding Special Trip to
Trinidad and Tobago. Our members depart by plane next Saturday at 5 a.m. Dr.
John Moyle, a board member of the Asa Wright Nature Centre in Trinidad
and a member of the Bristol bird Club, has arranged a bargain birding trip in
the junglesat the Asa Wright Nature Center thru July 16.
The many BBC persons heading to the tropics will fly out of Miami for the
exciting birding adventures which included roundtrip airfare, all connections,
all field trips, all meals and double rooms in cottages. The Centre has a main
lodge with vista/ bird viewing gallery and attractive dining room with
comfortable cabins nearby, all set in the North Rangeâs montane forest. The
trip includes excursions to Trinidadâs Caribbean Coast, Nariva
swamp/marsh/lagoon, boat trip in the Caroni Swamp (mangroves), North Range
forests and an Oilbird cave; Tobagoâs Bon Accord marsh, its montane forests,
and the seabird colony on Little Tobago.
So you can see we not only had a great picnic but many nervous stomachs as
visions of Ornate Hawk-Eagle; Oilbird; Scarlet Ibis; Potoo; Chachalaca;
Toucan; Motmot; Oropendola; Bellbird; Manakin leks; Tityras; Antbirds;
Peppershrike; Jacamar; Jacana; Tufted Coquette, Hummingbirds including
White-tailed Sabrewing, White-necked Jacobin and Ruby-topaz; Southern Lapwing;
AzureGallinule; Boat-billed Heron; Rufescent Tiger-Heron; Striated Heron;
Tropic Birds; Boobies; Tropical terns; mixed flocks of
Tanagers and Honeycreepers.......and more "danced thru their heads!"
Judy Roach, Mary Jane Erwin, John Moyle, Mike Poe, Janice Martin, Dave Worley
and Diana Worley are among just a few of our birders asking for your prayers
for this trip.
We missed you at the picnic if you didn't come enjoy our company.
The next bird club picnic is set for Thursday, July 6, at 6 p.m. when the Lee &
Lois Herndon Chapter of TOS holds their annual picnic at the Harris Pavillion
of Rotary Park on Broadway Street opposite the Optimist Soccer Complex in
Johnson City. Food, including BBQ pork sandwickes, will be served at 7 p.m.
The park closes at 9 p.m.
Let's go birding......
Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN
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