12 - 14 October 2007
Jekyll Island, GA
 

meeting summary. . .

The fifth Colonial Coast Birding and Nature Festival was held October 12-14, 2007, and by all accounts was a huge success. The field trips actually began on Thursday, October 11, at the Glennville Water Treatment Facility and did not conclude until Monday, October 15, with a trip to Little St. Simons Island. In between were more than 60 field trips, a Nature Day on Saturday, workshops and seminars on Friday and Saturday, the banquet on Saturday evening with a wonderful talk by John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, activities and exhibits at The Rookery, and the shared fellowship of more than 300 birders and nature enthusiasts.

This year’s species count was 199, down a bit from the last two years, possibly because the fabulous weather and northern winds were ideal for pushing migrants along on their southbound journey, so many birds were quickly moving through Georgia into Florida. Still, some great birds were found over the weekend, including a Western Kingbird on the south end of Jekyll Island, several sightings of Cave Swallows at different locations, a MacGillivray’s Warbler that was banded at the Jekyll Island Banding Station, a Franklin’s Gull on the South Beach of Jekyll, and a Clay-colored Sparrow at the Altamaha WMA.

Saturday’s Nature Day at The Rookery was a new feature this year, with activities for the whole family. It was a full day of educational programs and events, such as beginning birding for adults and kids, the history of the barrier islands, why the Georgia coast is such a birding magnet, a raptor show, and presentations on reptile and turtle biology. Other activities during Nature Day included a beach walk, a marsh walk, and a nature trip on the Little Satilla River. “Passports” were issued to each registrant and were stamped at each activity or exhibit. More than 100 people signed up for Nature Day.

The banquet Saturday night featured a very good dinner, the election of the GOS officer slate (see the new list in this newsletter), and the announcement of the winners of the Colonial Coast Birding Challenge. John Galvani and Gene Keferl won the challenge, with 86 species seen in one day and only at sites that are part of the Colonial Coast Birding Trail.

Dr. Fitzpatrick began his talk with a somewhat haunting recording of an Oo, a bird of the Hawaiian Islands. Then he stunned his audience with the announcement that this was actually a recording of the last bird of this species and that they would never hear this beautiful, distinctive song again except on a recording. “Fitz” went on to present a fascinating case-by-case talk on how important it is to save the habitat of endangered birds (or any other plant or animal), not just because of the values those habitats provide for wildlife, but also because preserving them is vital to ensuring the future health of planet Earth. As he so eloquently put it, “It is not about the species, it is about preserving the environment that supported that species.” Fitz also fascinated the audience with his review of the evidence concerning the existence of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

As we look forward to next year’s festival, we owe a great big thank you to all those who put in so much time and effort to put on these festivals. It is truly an outstanding event on Georgia’s uniquely beautiful coast.

Submitted by Bob Sargent

Steve Holzman, Compiler
199 species observed

The following table contains a combined list of the species
reported from the all of the field trips:

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