Dear Reader,
Enjoying the break between the rain this morning - I hope you are out there enjoying the waves, the birds, and the views! I'm indoors with a winter cold, drinking OJ and watching the waves. This weekend we have King Tides again - if you can safely get photos of the tides and their impact on human structures and estuaries, it will help build the data for analyzing the effects of Ocean Rise. Learn more below.*
BIRD WALKS
There is no bird walk this month, instead, check out one of the three area Christmas Bird Counts (CBCs)!
Saturday Dec 18th - Tillamook Bay CBC
Sunday Dec 19th - Lincoln City CBC
Wednesday Dec 29th - Yaquina Bay CBC
Read about all three and contact the compiler to be part of the fun!
BEYOND THE BEACH
As you know, we are partnering with Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition on a series of Beyond the Beach webinars. If you haven't already, be sure to register for the next two in the series:
December 8, 6:30 PM
Beyond the Beach: Oregon’s Rocky Coast
January 12th, 6:30 PM
Beyond the Beach: Mysterious Undersea Kelp Forests New additional partner, Oregon Coast Community College!
ACTION ALERT ~ Private Forest Accord
Recently industrial timber, small woodlands, and conservation representatives hammered out an agreement known as the Private Forest Accord. This is a tremendous opportunity to update and modernize Oregon’s Forest Practices Act to the benefit of all Oregonians. The agreement prepares for development of a Habitat Conservation Plan designed to protect endangered species. While the agreement does not specifically mention drinking water, the proposed no-cut buffers will improve both water quality and quantity in streams that cross private timber
lands. This is a big deal for coastal communities like Lincoln City.
You can help! Tell Rep. Gomberg and Sen. Anderson to get behind these efforts and pass the legislation required to make this happen. Rep. Gomberg’s phone number is: 503-986-1410, Sen. Anderson’s is: 503-986-1705. While you’re at it, tell your City Councilors and County Commissioners to do the same. More info...
!YEAR END MEMBERSHIP DRIVE!
It's time again for our year-end membership drive. Give a gift of a Wood Duck $50 or more ASLC membership and your gift recipient will get a beautiful 2022 calendar designed and illustrated by our own Nora Sherwood, local scientific wildlife illustrator! Prefer to have your own? Upgrade your own membership to Wood Duck or higher! More info...
NEW FEATURE**
EXPECTED BIRDS AND POSSIBLE FINDS
December ~ Tillamook County
The ducks are back! Bufflehead can be seen on many Tillamook county bays and ponds, along with Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, and many others. A Eurasian Wigeon might be spotted along BayOcean spit or at the Bay city or Nehalem sewage treatment ponds. If you are lucky, a Redhead or Canvasback might be on Cape Meares Lake. Goldeneye numbers will be increasing soon.
Search the fence posts or telephone poles along Hughey Lane or Wilson River Loop Rd, in Tillamook, for a Rough-legged hawk. They are here for the winter after breeding on the tundra far to the north of Oregon. Sparrows seen here in winter include Fox, Golden-crowned, Swamp, and Lincoln’s; less common are White- throated sparrows.
Check the Tillamook Birder website and the East Cascades Audubon Society Oregon Birding Locations list [PDF] for ideas on where to bird in Tillamook county. And, if you're a Facebook user, join our new Birds and Wildlife of Lincoln and Tillamook Counties to share your photos and finds!
-- Submitted by Kathy Krall
**Let me know what you think of our new feature. We will alternate Tillamook and Lincoln county reports in our monthly eNews, or possibly create a separate mailing for them.
That's it for this month.
Let's keep working together for birds and nature!
--
dawn villaescusa, President Audubon Society of Lincoln City