Florida Scrub-jay Festival Saturday February 28, 2015

We hope you can attend this festival to celebrate Florida's only endemic bird the Florida Scrub-jay.  Stop by and visit the Space Coast Audubon booth at the Merritt Island NWR visitors center while you're enjoying the festival.  Festival hours are 10:00-3:30.

6th Annaual Florida Scrub-jay Festival at MINWR

Florida Scrub-Jay Festival
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

The 6th annual Florida Scrub-Jay Festival will be at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge on February 28, 2015. The refuge harbors one of the largest populations of scrub-jays in the state.

The Florida Scrub-Jay Festival celebrates the only bird species unique to Florida as well as the scrub-jay’s unique and interesting habitat. The Florida scrub-jay currently is federally listed as a threatened species.  Scrub-jays are bold, curious, charismatic and true Florida natives.

Scrub-jay populations are thought to have declined by as much as 90 percent since the late 1800s due to habitat loss.  More recently, scrub-jays have continued to decline even on protected lands due to inadequate habitat management.  Historically, periodic wildfires maintained the shrubby, open habitat that scrub-jays need to survive.  Now scrub-jays and other plants and animals rely on agencies like the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to use prescribed fire and other methods to maintain the shrubby habitat they need.

The 2015 Florida Scrub-Jay Festival is free and will be held from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The festival will include guided walks, rides around the refuge, kids’ activities, entertainment, and a Scrub-Jay Q&A with a panel of experts.

As the date approaches, you will find more information at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge website. 
The Florida Scrub-Jay Festival moves around the state from year to year. The Florida Scrub-Jay Festival is a collaborative effort of multiple conservation partners, including the FWC.

Jim Eager
Space Coast Audubon Society
Vice President
Program/Publicity Chair

South Brevard Christmas Count Results

The following are the results for the 2014 South Brevard Christmas Bird Count.  Highlights included a Great Cormorant, an American Woodcock, and a Hairy Woodpecker. Many thanks to all of the volunteers who helped make it a success!

Species/Number of birds seen

Species/Number of birds seen

Muscovey     39 American Wigeon    50 Mallard    4 Mallard X Mottled Hybred    26 Mottled Duck    87 Blue-Winged Teal    10 Northern Shoveler    7 Green-Winged Teal (American)    2 Greater Scaup    1 Lesser Scaup    176 Bufflehead    1 Hooded Merganser    25 Red-Breasted Merganser    15 Peafowl    1 Wild Turkey    63 Common Loon    3 Pied-Billed Grebe    40 Northern Gannet    18 American White Pelican    495 Brown Pelican    450 Great Cormorant    1 Double Crested Cormorant    691 Anhinga    78 Magnificent Frigatebird    101 American Bittern    2 Least Bittern    5 Great Blue Heron (Blue)    74 Great Egret    139 Snowy Egret    85 Little Blue Heron    67 Tricolored Heron    41 Cattle Egret    418 Green Heron    19 Black-Crowned Night Heron    19 Yellow-Crowned Night Heron    2 White Ibis    577 Glossy Ibis    2 Roseate Spoonbill    3 Wood Stork    48 Black Vulture    426 Turkey Vulture    255 Osprey    110 Bald Eagle (ad)    10 Bald Eagle (im)    9 Bald Eagle (uk)    1 Northern Harrier    6 Sharp-Shinned Hawk    1 Cooper's Hawk    6 Red-Shouldered Hawk    42 Red-Tailed Hawk    11 Crested Caracara    2 American Kestrel    85 Merlin    2 Sora    1 Common Moorhen    24 American Coot    7 Limpkin    9 Sandhill Crane    309 Black-Bellied Plover    3 Killdeer    230 American Oystercatcher    4 Spotted Sandpiper    3 Greater Yellowlegs    5 Willet    27 Lesser Yellowlegs    7 Ruddy Turnstone    53 Sanderling    270 Long-Billed Dowitcher    2 Wilson's Snipe    62 American Woodcock    1 Laughing Gull    135 Bonaparte's Gull    2 Ring-Billed Gull    486 Herring Gull    69 Lesser Black-Backed Gull    10

Great Black-Backed Gull    25 Caspian Tern    16 Sandwich Tern    4 Forster's Tern    63 Royal Tern    458 Black Skimmer    300 Rock Pigeon    70 Eurasian Collared Dove    29 White-Winged Dove    4 Mourning Dove    402 Common Ground Dove    37 Eastern Screech Owl    15 Great Horned Owl    2 Barred Owl    5 Ruby-Throated Hummingbird    1 Belted Kingfisher    31 Red-Bellied Woodpecker    89 Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker    6 Downy Woodpecker    16 Hairy Woodpecker    1 Red-Cockaded Woodpecker    9 Northern (Yel-sh.) Flicker    2 Pileated Woodpecker    21 Eastern Phoebe    78 Great Crested Flycatcher    1 Loggerhead Shrike    26 White-Eyed Vireo    22 Blue-Headed Vireo    6 Blue Jay    48 Florida Scrub-Jay    37 American Crow    1 Fish Crow    136 Tree Swallow    3,473 Brown-Headed Nuthatch    15 Carolina Wren    37 House Wren    34 Marsh Wren    3 Ruby-Crowned Kinglet    7 Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher    37 Eastern Bluebird    5 Hermit Thrush    1 American Robin    4,219 Gray Catbird    120 Northern Mockingbird    70 Brown Thrasher    1 European Starling    251 Cedar Waxwing    23 Orange-Crowned Warbler    3 Yellow-Rumped (Myrtle) Warbler    284 Yellow-Throated Warbler    5 Pine Warbler    260 Prairie Warbler    2 Palm Warbler    204 Black-and-White Warbler    3 Ovenbird    1 Common Yellowthroat    29 Eastern Towhee    26 Bachman's Sparrow    8 Chipping Sparrow    36 Vesper Sparrow    1 Savannah Sparrow    147 Grasshopper Sparrow    3 Song Sparrow    1 Swamp Sparrow    10 White-Throated Sparrow    0 Northern Cardinal    105 Painted Bunting    13 Red-Winged Blackbird    17 Eastern Meadowlark    18 Common Grackle    227 Boat-Tailed Grackle    114 Brown-Headed Cowbird    21 American Goldfinch    2 House Sparrow    12 Egyptian Goose*    6

* Non-countable species

February 20, 2015 Space Coast Audubon meeting

Join Space Coast Audubon Society for our February 20^th Meeting

“Brevard Zoo's Role in Florida Scrub-jay Conservation”

WHO:  Space Coast Audubon Society (SCAS)

WHERE:  Rockledge Presbyterian Church, 921 Rockledge Dr, Rockledge, FL.

WHEN:   February 20, 2015 at 7:30 pm

Jonny Baker, Conservation Coordinator at Brevard Zoo, will be our speaker and will be presenting Brevard Zoo's Role in Florida Scrub-jay Conservation.

As the newest member to the conservation department at Brevard Zoo, Jonny is eager to spread his passion for wildlife. Although new to the department, he has been a member of Brevard Zoo's conservation team for the past 5 years during which he was employed as the lead animal keeper in the Wild Florida section. Jonny also co-stars in The Rob and Jonny Show produced by Brevard Zoo through which he and Rob hope to spread their love for conservation to all types of audiences. He is also the treasurer for the Brevard chapter of the American Association of Zookeepers which is dedicated to zookeeper professional growth, enhancing animal care, promoting public awareness, and contributing to conservation.

Not only does the Brevard Zoo contribute to conservation of Florida’s only endemic bird species they also assist in outreach and education.  They lead a team to translocate families of Florida Scrub-jays. Translocations are a tool used by biologists to benefit this species in many ways, and Brevard Zoo has perfected their technique. He will touch on previous translocations as well as the one carried out this past January.

Visit the Space Coast Audubon Society website at www.spacecoastaudubon.org

We look forward to another great turnout.

Jim Eager

Space Coast Audubon Society

Vice President

Program/Publicity Chair

Bioblitz at the Enchanted Forest Santuary

On behalf of the Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands Program and the Enchanted Forest Sanctuary Management & Education Center , I would like to invite you to participate in a bioblitz to be held May 23^rd, 1:00pm - May 24^th, 1:00pm at the Enchanted Forest Sanctuary in Titusville , Florida .

A bioblitz is a 24-hour survey of the biological diversity in a specified area.  The purpose of this event is to catalog the species positively identified within a 24-hour period at the Enchanted Forest Sanctuary, increase the public awareness of the biological diversity in Brevard County, provide a fun and educational recreation activity to the general public, for field experts to have the opportunity to share their passions and knowledge with each other and the general public, and to celebrate International Biological Diversity Day.

We are seeking scientists, experts, and naturalists that would be interested in participating by leading surveys of a specified taxa, helping in the identification of species, and/or hosting talks/tables to educate the public on the species and biodiversity of Brevard County .

Saturday night dinner and Sunday breakfast will be provided to participating scientists, as well as snacks, water, and coffee throughout the 24-hour period.

The Enchanted Forest Sanctuary (EFS) was the first property acquired by the Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands Program.  Located in southern Titusville , EFS protects 472-acres, consisting of 7 different habitats, including oak-saw palmetto scrub, mesic and hydric hammocks.

If you are interested in participating please fill out the attached registration sheet and return to Sarah Kraum by mail ( 444 Columbia Blvd. , Titusville , FL 32780 ) or email (sarah.kraum@brevardparks.com) by February 20^th.

Also, if you know of a scientist, expert, or naturalist that would be interested in participating, please feel free to forward this to them.  We would be happy to answer any questions you may have!

We look forward to hearing from you soon!

Thank you,

 

 

 

Joanie G. Faulls

Sanctuary Steward

Enchanted Forest Sanctuary

Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands Program

321- 264-5185

web: www.eelbrevard.com

Please find us on facebook @ Brevard County Enchanted Forest Sanctuary and on Twitter @BrevardEFS