This was a hybrid meeting, broadcast on Zoom.
Call to Order: Navin Sasikumar
Call to Order: 7:30 PM
Attendees: 14 viewers.
In person: 10 (plus Navin, Nilesh)
Gregg moved to approve minutes of the last meeting and Bert seconded the motion. The minutes were approved unanimously.
Committee Reports
Membership
No report.
Field Trips – Nilesh Shah for Linda Widdop
If you wish to lead a field trip, contact Linda: linda@techimpact.org
Upcoming field trips:
| DATE | TIME | TRIP | LEADER |
| 11/9/24 | 8:00 – 10:00 | The Discovery Center | Rob Bierregaard |
| 11/16/24 | 8:30 – 10:00 | Robbins Park (w/LBA) | Nilesh Shah |
| 11/17/24 | 9:30 – 2:00 | Forsythe NWR (w/LBA) | Leigh Altadonna |
| 12/7/24 | 8:00 – 10:00 | The Discovery Center | Navin Sasikumar |
Conservation
No report.
Billings
No report.
Banquet – Navin Sasikumar
Navin reminded us about the details of the banquet. It is scheduled for next Friday, the 15th of November.
Cassinia
No report.
Communications
No report.
Announcements
Linda Rowan mentioned that there is some likelihood that the Frank Windfelder bench will be in place later in November.
Christmas Bird Counts:
Radnor count is being organized by Phil Witmer.
The Liberty Bird Alliance count will be held on December 14th. Interested parties are welcome to sign up through the Wyncote Audubon Society website.
Local Notes
A European Green Finch was spotted in Delaware County on November 6th.
Manny Dominguez spotted a juvenile Red-headed Woodpecker.
Bert Filemyr noted that Bombay Hook NWR is historically dry. It will be difficult for winter Ducks when they arrive. Many shorebirds are to be seen before and after high tide.
Marty Dellwo noted that Heinz NWR water levels are high. Many species of winter ducks are present. He also said that this year there appears to be large numbers of Tufted Titmice.
Linda Rowan reported that she sees Wood Ducks in the stream behind her house in Levittown.
She echoed Marty’s observation about Tufted Titmice.
Nilesh Shah mentioned the presence of two pairs of Wood Ducks at the Talalmore Golf Course in Ambler.
Doug Wechsler said that over 50 Wood Ducks were seen at Valley Green Inn in the Wissahickon Creek.
Programs: Navin Sasikumar
Programs for the rest of 2024:
- November 15th – Annual Banquet
- December 13th – “A Closer Look at the Gulls of North America”
- December 19th – Photo contest (Remember to submit your photos!)
Evening Program
This evening’s program was presented by a group of students from Prof. Jennifer Uehling’s lab at West Chester University. The topic was “What can we learn from cavity-nesting songbirds?”
All of the research was based on birds found in a set of nest boxes installed on the South campus of West Chester University and at Stroud Preserve. Eastern Bluebirds and Tree Swallows are seen to breed in these boxes.
The first student, Chris Smith, looked for correlations between insect biomass availability and breeding success of Tree Swallows in these nest boxes.
A joint presentation by Victoria Moreira and Sage Forsythe covered the discovery and categorization of microplastics found in fecal samples taken from the birds.
The final presentation by Hailey Melvin showed the comparison between the trash found in the suburban (South Campus) and rural (Stroud) boxes.
You can watch the recording of the talk on the DVOC YouTube channel.
Adjournment
After the presentation and some questions, the meeting was adjourned at 9:00 PM.