FRIENDS OF THE TAMPA BAY BayNATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES

Friends Matter

A Quarterly Newsletter Spring 2014

Ding Darling Field Trip Chick a Boom Boom 2014 Refuge System FWS Bird Stewards 2013 Year-End Results Egmont Key Visitor Another great field trip Lifting up and Budget up by 4% Protecting nesting and Be sure to review Center Opens! is now a terrific protecting Least Tern Jim Kurth, Chief, resting shorebirds on Friends’ 2013 financial After years of planning, memory. If you haven’t chicks nesting on National Wildlife Egmont Key and membership the Visitor Center is taken a Friends field Pinellas County’s flat Refuge System results. finally ready to open! trip, you should. Great roofs. Page 2 value, great Page 2 Page 3 Page 3 experiences, great Page 2 interpretation from knowledgable guides.

Page 1

The group also toured Ding Darling’s The upcoming fall field trip will be to Ding Darling: We famed Wildlife Drive with Jeffrey Combs, Okefenokee Swamp NWR in southern came, we saw, we FWS Refuge Ranger and, again, learned GA where Tampa Bay’s former refuge learned, we loved it... so much about the Refuge’s habitat and manager, Michael Lusk, is the refuge its wildlife. Numerous Little blue herons, manager. The Okefenokee Swamp is the Friends’ January 2014 field trip to Sanibel Spoonbills, and dancing Reddish egrets largest NWR in the FL/GA system! Island’s Ding Darling National Wildlife highlighted the tour. Each refuge we visit offers different Refuge offered members pretty habitat and wildlife for us to view and much everything one could learn about. Janica Johnson, hope for (save for the chilly who coordinates the trips, temperatures). engages knowledgable guides Activities included a guided to lead us and maximize our boat tour with the Tarpon Bay understanding of the Refuge Explorers to view the overnight we’re visiting. roosts for brown pelicans and Field trips have limited wading birds. The guide was openings: typically no more phenomenal, providing terrific than 20 can participate, so be information on the birds and sure to watch your email for the sea life in the area. Along details and registration the way the group saw a pair of information. Osprey nesting on the metal roof of a nearby home.

Friends of the Tampa Bay National Wildlife Refuges 1 FRIENDS OF THE TAMPA BAY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES

Chick a Boom Boom Refuges’ Funding UP Bird Stewarding Saving the cutest birds around! Jim Kurth, Chief, National Wildlife Refuge System Protecting wildlife and a great day at the beach!

For at least 10 years now, St Petersburg Congress funded the Refuge System Each weekend, beginning in May through Audubon (SPAS) has been monitoring at more than $472 million for this Labor Day, volunteer bird stewards Least Terns and Black Skimmers that nest fiscal year, 4 percent more than we effectively oversee the federally protected on gravel rooftops instead of their natural received last year. And I can’t help beaches on Egmont Key where tens of habitat: undisturbed beaches without but think that’s due in large measure thousands of shorebirds migrate each urban predators. Because these adorable to the support refuge Friends show summer to nest and rest. In addition to chicks can’t fly and aren’t pre- year-in and year-out. monitoring the protected areas, bird programmed to know what a rooftop is, stewards educate the public about In the current fiscal climate, a 4 they tend to fall off the roof. Once on the shorebird behavior and habitat. ground, they don’t stand a chance of percent budget increase is a huge vote Transportation from the Fort DeSoto pier survival. of confidence in the U.S.FWS, which to and from the island is provided at no welcomes more than 47 million If you can spare a few hours a week or charge to the stewards. Stewards monitor more, you can be a rooftop chick checker. visitors to wildlife refuges each year. the protected areas on the north and Checkers swing by their assigned rooftop We are able to welcome those visitors south beaches, talk to the public, and from the time the chicks hatch through because the nation’s Refuge Friends assure that the birds are not disturbed. fledging (mid May through July), check help us at every turn. In short, we FWS law enforcement is only a walkie- around the building for any chicks that can’t do our work without their talkie away in the event assistance is have fallen, corral them, and call for a support. required. trained bander to band the bird and help Our current budget restored some of As Fish & Wildlife Service volunteers, return it to the rooftop via the chick-a- the cuts that came with the across- stewards are trained, scheduled, and boom, a 2 quart juice container on the end supported. This year’s training, for both of the conduit pipe used to hoist the the-board sequestration, and it means new and returning stewards, is chicks up to their waiting parents. Parent that we won’t have to cut about 400 Wednesday, April 16th 6:00 p.m. at Lake birds take care of their young even if they jobs. Indeed, we think this year’s Seminole Park. The park is located at have been touched by humans. In fact, budget will allow us to do some of 10015 Park Blvd, Seminole, between parents find their chick and feed them the conservation work we’ve had to Starkey Rd and Seminole Blvd. Follow within 20 minutes of their return to the delay. signs to Shelter 2, which is located near rooftop. For more than a century, the Refuge the recycling area. There are also survey opportunities System has been the hidden jewel Volunteers must sign a US Fish & Wildlife where checkers view historic rooftops for among public lands. This year’s Service Agreement and Florida State any activity. budget may well signal that national volunteer application, both of which are Least Tern chicks are the absolute cutest wildlife refuges are coming into the available from Joyce Galiardo at birds around. Can you help? Contact spotlight in the public’s consciousness [email protected], who can also Barb Howard [email protected] – and that’s thanks to the work respond to any questions you may have or call 727 343-1272 for more information. Friends do. about stewarding.

2 Friends of the Tampa Bay Refuges FRIENDS OF THE TAMPA BAY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES FTBNWR Year End Mark Your Calendar! Financial and Membership Results Island Earth Days, Honeymoon At our Annual Meeting in February, Barb Island, Howard reported on Friends’ year end results. • Saturday and Sunday, April For the year ending December 31, 2013, 12 and 13 F ROM THE PRESIDENT Friends reported a net income of $2,700 on income of $18,000 and total cash Green Thumb Festival, Walter FWS reorganizes Refuges to meet budget goals.. assets of $23,000, of which $5,000 was in Fuller Park in St Petersburg Historically, the Tampa Bay Refuges have restricted funds. • Saturday and Sunday, April been 3 of the 5 refuges in the Crystal River On the expense side, 26 and 27 National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex. Program Services Today, with the continually shrinking accounted for $9,000, Egmont Key Bird Stewards Federal budget, we are now part of what is of which $5,000 • Begins mid-May and called the North Florida NWR complex, supported the sea continues every weekend which is composed of 9 separate refuges. turtle intern program at Egmont Key. through Labor Day Joining Egmont Key, the Pinellas Refuges, Administrative expenses ran $1,300. All Passage Key, Chassahowitzka, and Crystal labor is performed by volunteers, so Pinellas Bird Surveys River are Lower Suwannee, Cedar Keys, St there is no payroll. We provided direct • Tentatively scheduled for Vincents, and St Marks NWR’s. James support to our Refuges of $2,000 for April 19, May 17, June 14 Burnett, a veteran FWS manager, has been invasive plant control, GPS, and Egmont Key Bird Sanctuary Tour appointed the project leader of the new materials for the guardhouse/visitor complex. Andrew Gude is now the Refuge center upkeep program. • Coming, Summer 2014. manager of Lower Suwannee, Cedar Key, During 2013, Friends increased its Crystal River, Chassahowitzka, and the membership by nearly 20% over 2012 Tampa Bay NWRs. year-end results. Much of this was FWS is in the process of finding someone to achieved by the field trips and special Board of Directors lead the Tampa Bay Refuges. In the events that Friends’ sponsored. As of Barb Howard — President and Treasurer meantime, Stan Garner, central Florida December 31, Friends had 188 members. Sid Crawford — Vice President Zone Officer, is serving as our temporary Joyce Galiardo — Secretary point person. Fortunately for us, Stan has a Directors: Dave Howard, Martha Gruber, Janica long history with the Tampa Bay Refuges Egmont Key Visitor Johnson, Emma Mason, Barbara Meyer, and Dave and has been able to easily step in and Kandz assess what is needed. Center To Open: We are looking forward to working with Volunteers Needed our new managers as each one brings We’re excited that this summer, Contact Information exciting changes to our refuges. Egmont Key’s historic guardhouse Barb Howard at 727.343.1272 or Update on our former manager, Gisela will open as a NWR visitor center. [email protected] Chapa... She and Boyd Blihovde, former Volunteers are needed to staff the assistant refuge manager at Crystal River, guardhouse.on weekends and are married and expecting twins any day Friends of the Tampa Bay National Wildlife holidays throughout the summer. To now! Refuges, Inc. learn more, contact Barb Howard at PO Box 40782 [email protected] or St. Petersburg, FL 33743-0782 call at 727-342-1272. Barb Howard, President or visit us on the web: www.TampaBayRefuges.org

Friends of the Tampa Bay Refuges 3