DOCSLIB.ORG

Audubon Comes to the Inner City

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Audubon Comes to the Inner City But this latest effort, dubbed 2020 Vision, In Brooklyn, the center will be in a calls for centers in such areas as: refurbished boathouse under Prospect • A once graffiti-scarred park in East Los Park, which borders the working class Angeles communities of Bedford-Stuyvesant and • A tall grass prairie in a working-class Crown Heights as well as upscale Park section of Lincoln, Neb. Slope. NEW YORK - Nature exists in the con- • A bend of the Rio Grande River in The 540-acre park has long been a crete jungle - and the National Audubon So- Brownsville, Texas destination for joggers, children and young ciety wants to help people connect with it. Fundraising drives are underway for each couples. But only the most enthusiastic That could be by bird-watching around center, which typically costs up to $11 mil- bird-watchers would have been aware a former city reservoir or listening for the lion for an education facility, land and opera- of 200 species of birds passing by on call of a red-winged black bird in the heart tions. In some cases, the society will open migratory paths, or the bullfrogs and bats of Brooklyn. a center in existing city or county parks. In that live there. So the nearly century-old society plans other areas, it might buy a parcel of land. “Itʼs going to make a whole different sense to open 1,000 nature centers by 2020 in Moving into these areas has caused some of pride to Brooklyn,” says Tupper Thomas, economically depressed rural and urban ar- adjustments in the way the society does president of the Prospect Park Alliance, a eas across the country. business. When it wanted to involve chil- coalition of community organizations. The first will open April 26 in Brooklyn. dren in activities at a local park in Los An- Many donʼt even know there are myriad “Itʼs all about building a broader constitu- geles, the issue was crime. Families had to bird species in the vast park, she says. “Peo- ency for conservation,” Audubon President be assured the 225-acre site was safe before ple from Brooklyn are even more surprised Kohn Flicker says. “Itʼs important if people they would send their children. than people from Nevada.” In south Seattle, are going to care about the environment that So the society is spending a year to help more than 70 ethnic groups live near the they have some connection with it.” clean the park and get rid of graffiti while 399-acre Seward Park, where an Audubon The Audubon Society was named for it sponsors activities such as bird-watching. Center will open. wildlife painter John James Audubon. It The center, operating out of a local store- The park was a center of gang has become one of the most influential front, is scheduled to open in fall 2003. activity a decade ago, but it became safer as environmental groups in the nation, but its The society wants to teach more than the city began to stage track meets and ethnic 500,000 members are older and whiter than 30,000 schoolchildren and others who live festivals there. the USAʼs population. within 2 miles of the park about the hum- Community advocates say they would The nature centers offer exhibits and edu- mingbirds and coyotes that live there, just like to see the park become more of a cational programs about nearby birds, other minutes from downtown Los Angeles. natural refuge to be enjoyed by the animals and the environment. The society “Itʼs a great opportunity, especially for the Somalian, Cambodian and Vietnamese hopes to attract young people, immigrants low-income community, because they canʼt immigrants who live nearby in densely and people of color. afford to take their kids to the museum or the packed apartment buildings. “Itʼs going to change us a lot, because zoo,” says Elsa Lopez, executive director of “Itʼs the incredible jewel of Seattle,” says weʼre going to end up having to reflect the Madres del Este de Los Angeles (Mothers of Mardi Roberts, president of Friends of communities that we serve,” Flicker says. East Los Angeles), a community organiza- Seward Park. “We have a lot of low-income “Thatʼs probably the best thing that could tion that has worked closely with the Audu- housing areas, and itʼs just a real opportunity happen to us.” bon Society. “Itʼs an experience for them to to learn about nature.” Many of Audubon Societyʼs original 35 know these people are here. Theyʼre here to centers are concentrated in affluent suburbs. stay. Theyʼre part of the community.”.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Rachel Carson, Sensitive and Perceptive Interpreter of Nature
    CONTRIBUTIONS to SCIENCE, 8 (1): 23–32 (2012) Institut d’Estudis Catalans, Barcelona DOI: 10.2436/20.7010.01.130 ISSN: 1575­6343 www.cat-science.cat focus Celebration of the 50th anniversary of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring Rachel Carson, sensitive and perceptive interpreter of nature Joandomènec Ros1,2 1. Department of Ecology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona 2. Biological Sciences Section, Institute for Catalan Studies, Barcelona Resum. En complir­se els cinquanta anys de la publicació de Summary. On the occasion of the 50th aniversary of the publi­ Silent Spring (1962) sembla totalment oportú retre un meres­ cation of Silent Spring (1962), this well­deserved homage to its cut homenatge a la seva autora, una magnífica escriptora i di­ author is a particularly timely one. Rachel Carson was a talent­ vulgadora de les meravelles de la natura, i recordar el que va ed writer, able to excellently convey the marvels of nature. But significar per a la consciència ambiental, primer americana i it was her disclosure, first to the American public and after­ després mundial, la denúncia dels disbarats que la fumigació wards to the whole world, of the havoc wreaked on organisms, indiscriminada de diclorodifeniltricloroetà (DDT) i altres bioci­ habitats, and human health by the indiscriminate spraying of des va provocar en les espècies, els hàbitats i la salut huma­ DDT and other biocides, by which she will always be remem­ na. Mentre que s’ha atribuït, justament, a Rachel Carson el bered. Rachel Carson is credited, and justly so, as being one of paper de precursora del moviment ecologista, no és tan cone­ the founder’s of the environmentalist movement.
    [Show full text]
  • Audubon New York Before the Joint Legislative Hearings on the New York State Budget January 27, 2021
    9 Thurlow Terrace Suite 100 Albany, NY 12203 Tel: (518) 869-9731 ny.audubon.org @AudubonNY Testimony of Erin McGrath Policy Manager, Audubon New York Before the Joint Legislative Hearings on the New York State Budget January 27, 2021 Chairwoman Krueger, Chairwoman Weinstein, Chairman Kaminsky, Chairman Englebright, and distinguished members of the New York State Senate and Assembly, thank you for granting Audubon New York the opportunity to testify on Governor Andrew Cuomo's Executive Budget proposal for SFY 2021-22. I am Erin McGrath, and I serve as the Policy Manager for Audubon New York, a leading state program of the National Audubon Society. The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. Audubon's state programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners have an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire and unite diverse communities in conservation action. In New York State, Audubon New York leads a network of 93,000 members, 27 locally-affiliated chapters, seven sanctuaries and nature centers, and thousands of annual visitors, volunteers, and partners throughout the state. Before addressing the Governor's SFY 2021-22 Executive Budget proposal and Audubon's 2021 budget priorities, I would like to extend our thanks to you and your colleagues for the 2020 legislative session's environmental accomplishments. Through your and Governor Cuomo's leadership, New York State has achieved nation-leading wins for the environment, including banning the use of Styrofoam and hydraulic fracturing. Moreover, all of this was achieved while providing high levels of funding for our state's environment – providing critical resources to conserve open space, protect and improve water quality, upgrade aging infrastructure, prevent pollution, and make New York State more resilient in the face of climate change.
    [Show full text]
  • Audubon's Warbler
    AUDUBON’S WARBLER Vol. 37 No8 - NOVEMBER 2008 Newsletter of Kern Audubon Society A chapter of National Audubon Society www.kernaudubonsociety.org Kern Audubon Gathering TUES. NOVEMBER 4, 2008 - 7:00pm Join us at Kern Supt of Schools, 17th & L Sts. Downtown Bakersfield (Parking lot: 18TH & K) The Big Picture in a Small Frame: the Natural History of Kern County Alison Sheehey, Outreach Coordinator Audubon Ca’s Kern River Preserve An excellent program is planned for the Nov. 4th meeting as we learn about the natural history of Kern County from its beginnings: geology, tectonics, paleontology, Floristic Provinces, Native Americans, early settlers ...to the incredible diversity of flora and fauna in our modern day. This whirlwind journey is the result of 20 years of reconstructing the pieces on why this region is so diverse. Alison Sheehey’s presentation is an amalgamation of searches of literature, museum collections, interviews with the experts, and her own remarkable field work. Alison’s program will be highlighted by her marvelous photography! Alison Sheehey is the Outreach Coordinator for Audubon California's Kern River Preserve, where she edits the website http://kern.audubon.org and newsletter, develops educational materials, leads field trips and coordinates four nature festivals each year. She moved to the westside of Kern County in 1980 and lives in the Kern River Valley. Her deep appreciation of all things Kern began with explorations of the desert environs of the Temblor Range (the western border of Kern County) where she fell in love with the intricacies of its geology, flora and fauna. Seeing beauty in every natural niche is one of the many talents of "Nature Ali", who is also a talented photographer.
    [Show full text]
  • Birding Resources for New York Birders
    BIRDING RESOURCES FOR NEW YORK BIRDERS (for the Facebook New York Birders Page and for NYS birders in General) Birding can be a recreational pursuit, a passion, even a career. It is definitely a community of talented and knowledgeable people who believe in sharing information and expertise. If you are new to birding, we encourage you to engage with our community. There are a number of options available in addition to Facebook New York Birders. They include: Subscribing to a mailing list (online systems in which birders report on bird sightings in a specific geographical area), Belonging to a bird club and/or Audubon society, attending their meetings and going on their field trips, Reporting your sightings to eBird (an online checklist program which allows your sightings to be part of a larger database of bird data), Engaging in citizen science programs, like your local Christmas Bird Count, eBird, or the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Nestwatch project, Contributing your time to a conservation project, commenting on proposals in your area that impact on wildlife and the environment. Postings on the FB New York Birders page are mainly concerned with bird sightings and activities like field trips (though many of us are also involved with citizen science and conservation). If you are new to birding, or to birding in NYS, here are lists of mailing lists in the state and of state and regional birding organizations. These are state organizations only, though we also encourage you to check out the American Birding Association (ABA), an organization about birding for birders. Mailing Lists and Listservs for NYS birders Mailing lists and listservs are Internet‐based communication systems.
    [Show full text]
  • THE BIRDS of AMERICA JOHN JAMES AUDUBON 21St Century Edition
    THE BIRDS OF AMERICA JOHN JAMES AUDUBON 21st Century Edition 1 2 About the original edition John James Audubon, The Birds of America Acknowledged as one of the most important and beautiful color plate books ever published, John James Audubon’s The Birds of America is also one of the rarest and most collectable. 21st Century Edition It was published from 1827 to 1839 in sets of four volumes. More than 160 subscribers, The iGroup Press and Yushodo are the exact number is unknown, paid US$1,000 delighted to publish a limited edition of 100 each (US$20,200 in today’s dollars). There is a sets of The Birds of America by John James consensus that fewer than 200 sets were printed Audubon (1785 to 1851). but probably not less than 170. To renew John James Audubon’s master- Line engravings and aquatint by William H. piece for the 21st century, the iGroup Lizars of Edinburgh and more importantly Press and Yushodo have photographed by Robert Havell Jr. of London, transformed the original edition of The Birds of America Audubon’s original life-size watercolors into a using an 80 megapixel camera. The images work of rare beauty. have been digitally processed for the first time and printed on specially made paper. To accommodate these large illustrations, The Craftsmen in Japan have hand made Birds of America was published as a double each book with care, resulting in four elephant folio some 40 inches tall and 28 inches volumes as elegant as the originals. The wide, equivalent to 100 by 68 centimeters.
    [Show full text]
  • The Chicago Region Birding Trail Guide the Magnificent Mile ®The Magnificent Trademark of Gnmaa Is a Registered
    THE CHICAGO REGION BIRDING TRAIL GUIDE THE MAGNIFICENT MILE ®THE MAGNIFICENT TRADEMARK OF GNMAA IS A REGISTERED Photography by Jerry Kumery. Top left: Prothonotary Warbler, Bottom left: Northern Saw-whet Owl, Bottom right: Scarlet Tanager WELCOMEWELCOME Welcome to the Chicago Region Birding Trail Table of Contents The Chicago region is one of the country’s premier inland birding locations. Our climate and topography allow for a wide range of habitat types, from extensive grasslands Welcome ........................1 to forests to marshes and lakes. The region’s proximity Overview Map ..................2 to the southern end of Lake Michigan, the Chicago River and large amounts of protected land in public Using the Guide ................3 ownership allow easy access for birders. Map A: Lake and As stewards of our natural environment, the City of Chicago is pleased to McHenry Counties ............4 share this guide with residents and visitors. We hope that you enjoy good birding on the region’s public lands. Map B: Northern Cook County ....................7 Map C: Kane and DuPage Counties ..............9 Richard M. Daley, Mayor City of Chicago Map D: Chicago North ......12 Map E: Chicago South ......16 To help make birding experiences in the Chicago area rewarding for you, we offer the following suggestions: Map F: Southern 1. Early morning is generally the optimal time to see birds. This is Cook County ..................19 probably most important during the summer, when songbird activity Map G: Will and subsides as temperatures rise. See the listings for the best months Grundy Counties..............23 and seasons. 2. We ask that you stay on the trails and follow the rules Map H: Indiana ..............25 established by landowners to ensure that their property remains Landowner Information......27 healthy for many years to come.
    [Show full text]
  • A Guide to Bird Feeding Adopting a Bird Feeding Program on Your Property Provides an Opportunity to Enhance Habitat for Wildlife and to View Birds First Hand
    A Guide to Bird Feeding Adopting a bird feeding program on your property provides an opportunity to enhance habitat for wildlife and to view birds first hand. The actual process of attracting birds can be quite simple and very satisfying. Anyone with even a small piece of land, whether in a rural, suburban, or urban setting, can attract and feed birds with success. How do birds spend the winter? During colder winter months when natural food sources such as insects, berries, nuts, and seeds become scarce, birds readily seek reliable food sources to supplement their wild diet. Birds spend their time in one particular area and travel throughout this territory searching for food all day. Providing bird feeders can greatly enhance the wildlife habitat value of your property. Your goal is to have your property on their list of daily stops. What do birds eat? Just like people, birds have food preferences. For example, hummingbirds sip nectar, wrens eat insects, owls prefer rodents, and finches like seeds. Birds that prefer to eat insects, nectar, and fruit generally migrate to the southern United States and Central and South America during the winter. In these warmer climates, they find the food they need to survive. Most of the birds you will attract to your feeder eat seeds as a major part of their diet. Seeds provide protein and fat that give birds energy and help them stay warm. The beaks of seed-eating birds are especially de- signed for crushing hard shells. You will notice that many birds at your feeder, such as finches, cardinals, and grosbeaks, have fat, large beaks.
    [Show full text]
  • The American Ornithologists' Union and Bird Conservation
    The American Ornithologists’ Union and Bird Conservation: Recommitment to the Revolution1,2 John W. Fitzpatrick3 ________________________________________ Introduction Exactly one hundred years ago, with North America in large-scale, long-term conservation of American birds full-fledged environmental crisis, prominent members of and their habitats will be accomplished only via explicit the American Ornithologists’ Union (AOU) participated coordination among a large and diverse constituency of in major political and social upheaval. A century of organizations and individuals. At national meetings in unrestrained exploitation had reached catastrophic Estes Park, CO (Finch and Stangel 1993, Martin and proportions, with Passenger Pigeons and Eskimo Finch 1995), Cape May, NJ (Bonny et al. 2000), and Curlews representing only the tip of an iceberg. Birds as Asilomar, CA (Ralph and Rich this volume) and at diverse as parakeet, egrets, ducks, terns, and plovers countless smaller ones in between, the methods and were plummeting. AOU leaders, led by one of the goals of PIF have remained steadfast over its first union’s founders and first editor of The Auk (J.A. Allen), decade: find consensus, prioritize action plans, and had argued publicly and lobbied privately alongside mobilize new resources among public agencies, private civic leaders to establish the continent’s first wildlife NGOs, academic professionals, and natural-product protection laws and to monitor their consequences. industries in order to leverage expertise and capacity in a Based on these efforts, the conservationist President collective effort to protect bird populations. Theodore Roosevelt would create over fifty national wildlife refuges by Executive Order and sign dozens of A catchy rallying cry, “keep common birds common,” bills containing conservation statutes before leaving differentiated PIF’s approach early on from the narrower office.
    [Show full text]
  • Learn More About John James Audubon
    “How could I make a little book, when I have seen enough to make a dozen large books?” Birds of America, the culmination of 15 years of passionate study, was a mammoth undertaking. It cost $115,640 (approximately $2,000,000 today) and included 435 life- size prints of 497 bird species, engraved on copper plates by Robert Havell, Jr. and colored by an assembly line of 50 colorists. Printed on “double elephant” sized paper, Audubon laid out the images with an artist’s eye rather than by biological classification, reaping the scorn of ornithological purists, but winning praise even from King George IV. Scottish artist, John Syme, painted his portrait in frontier regalia (which now hangs in the White House). London’s Royal Society elected him a fellow. English and French noblemen became subscribers. “To have been torn from the study would have been as death; my time was entirely occupied with art.” Life after Birds of America was a continuing roller coaster ride for Audubon. He reunited with his family in the United States only to return to England to find that many of his subscribers were in default and that he had lost others due to the poor quality of the coloring of the plates. Yet he continued to add to his collection of bird and wildlife drawings, exploring the west, the Florida coast, and Labrador, and publishing three more books, including an octavo edition of Birds of America that included 65 additional plates. “A true conservationist is a man who knows that the world is not given by his fathers, but borrowed from his children.” After his death, Lucy sold the New York Historical Society all of the 435 preparatory watercolors for Birds of America.
    [Show full text]
  • John James Audubon American Naturalist
    John James Audubon American Naturalist The life and work of John James Audubon Education Resource John James Audubon Collection Louisiana’s Old State Capitol Museum of Political History Secretary of State Tom Schedler www.sos.la.gov / www.GeauxVote.com Page 2 John James Audubon, American Naturalist The life and work of John James Audubon This K-12 thematic unit examines the life and work of John James Audubon This publication is developed and produced by the Secretary of State’s Museum Division Education Department Contact Information Louisiana’s Old State Capitol Museum of Political History 100 North Blvd. Baton Rouge, LA 70801 225.342.0500 www.sos.la.gov/osc 2005 Revised 2009 Secretary of State Tom Schedler www.sos.la.gov www.GeauxVote.com Page i John James Audubon, American Naturalist The life and work of John James Audubon This K-12 instructional unit examines the life and work of John James Audubon Table of Contents EDUCATOR NOTES ........................................................................................................................................................ 1 JOHN JAMES AUDUBON, AMERICAN NATURALIST ....................................................................................................... 2 EARLY LIFE .......................................................................................................................................................................... 2 SELF-TAUGHT ARTIST AND SCIENTIST ......................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Urban Audubon
    THEA QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER PUBLICATION OF NEW YORK OF NEWCITY YORKAUDUBON CITY AUDUBON SUMMER WINTER 20142020 // VOLUMEVOLUME XXXVXLI NO. NO. 2 4 THE URBAN AUDUBON Birding during the Pandemic: Member Reports Building a Bird-Friendly New York City Photo Essay: TK Birding The Battery Breeding Bird Atlas III Takes Off Chimney Swift Summer 2020 1 NYC AUDUBON MISSION & VISION NYC Audubon is a grassroots community that works for the protection of wild birds and habitat in the five boroughs, improving BIRD’S-EYE VIEW Kathryn Heintz the quality of life for all New Yorkers. NYC Audubon envisions a day when birds and people in the five boroughs enjoy a riends: In this summer Urban Audubon, our custom is to expound upon the joys of healthy, livable habitat. birding in New York City, just as spring draws to a close. And though this spring’s THE URBAN AUDUBON migration has provided some magical birding, sadly, many of us have had to forgo it in Editors Lauren Klingsberg, Marcia T. Fowle F person. Even those of us able to get outdoors are missing the joys of birding together. Managing Editor Tod Winston Publications Committee Seth Ausubel; The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our world. It has altered the way we live and work. Lucienne Bloch; Ned Boyajian; Suzanne There is tragedy in our community. And yet, there is also hope. Many of our neighbors are discov- Charlé; Diane Darrow; Ivy Jo Gilbert; Catherine Schragis Heller; Mary Jane Kaplan; ering nature in our city’s parks and green spaces for the first time—and they are noticing birds.
    [Show full text]
  • Spring Winter 2018 2014 / Volume / Volume Xxxix Xxxv No
    THE NEWSLETTER OF NEW YORK CITY AUDUBON SPRING WINTER 2018 2014 / VOLUME / VOLUME XXXIX XXXV NO. NO. 1 4 THE URBAN AUDUBON The Art of Mentorship: Nurturing a Young Birder The Audubon Urban Collaborative Network 2018: Year of the Bird Spring 2018 1 NYC AUDUBON MISSION & STATEMENT Mission: NYC Audubon is a grassroots community that works for the protection of PRESIDENT’S PERCH Jeffrey Kimball wild birds and habitat in the five boroughs, improving the quality of life for all New Yorkers. s we make our way through a punishing winter, everyone is eager to welcome Vision: NYC Audubon envisions a day when the spring. For many of us nature-lovers, this season is an especially glorious birds and people in the five boroughs enjoy a healthy, livable habitat. Atime of year. The snow fades away, blossoms emerge, and, of course, migrating birds return. As the most conspicuous of wild animals, birds are often our gateway into THE URBAN AUDUBON Editors Lauren Klingsberg & Marcia T. Fowle nature. The majority of mammals are nocturnal and secretive, while most birds are Managing Editor Andrew Maas diurnally active, and being so colorful and noisy they command our attention, inviting us Newsletter Committee Ellen Azorin; Lucienne Bloch; Ned Boyajian; to appreciate the totality of the natural world. Suzanne Charlé; Diane Darrow; In this, the Year of the Bird—so named as it marks the 100th anniversary of Meryl Greenblatt; Catherine Schragis Heller; Congress’s passing the Migratory Bird Treaty Act—it serves us to refl ect on the unique Mary Jane Kaplan; Abby McBride; Hillarie O’Toole; Don Riepe; place birds occupy in our world.
    [Show full text]