Friends of Whitfield
Winter 2015 Vol. 6 No. 1
Newsletter
TheFriendsofWhitfieldWildlifeConservationAreasupportsthisConservationphotosbyLindaHeinze
Areainpromotingwildlifeconservationandenvironmentaleducation.
Calendar
Saturday, March 7
Friends Board Meeting
9 - 11AM
Saturday, March 28
Friends Board
Project Planning Meeting
10AM – noon
Nature Walks
Led by Master Naturalists
Every Third Saturday of the
Month - 9 AM
Saturday, April 11
Annual Membership Meeting
10AM - Noon
Saturday, April 18
Earth Day Celebration
Thursday, April 30
Audubon’s Thursday Birders
Meet at Taco Bell Marsh, Belen
8:30AM
Saturday, May 9
International Migratory Bird Day
Count 7AM
For information: (505) 864-8914
President's Post
Just when you think spring is around the corner, we get
another blast of winter! I’m really not complaining -- we’ll
take all the snow and rain that comes our way. We
certainly need it. If you haven’t been to Whitfield lately,
you’re missing out on the many Sandhill Cranes and other
waterfowl that have been showing up lately. With the
shallow ponds cleared of vegetation and made a little
deeper, we are getting more avian visitors. The cranes
are all over the place, even in the back part of Whitfield.
Take a walk around and you may see something truly
unusual.
Coming up on Saturday, 11 April 2015, we will have
our annual membership meeting from 10 AM to 12 noon.
During the first twenty minutes we will conduct Friends
business and elect new Friends Board members. Then
we will announce the winners of the Friends of Whitfield
4th Grade essay contest. We hope you will all come out
to hear the winners read their essays. After a pause for
some light refreshments, we will have a guest speaker.
Kirsten Cruz-McDonnell, Chief Biologist of Envirological
Services, Inc., will give an informative presentation on
Burrowing Owl ecology and behavior. (Read More on P.3)
We hope to have some really neat Earth Day t-shirts
for sale at the meeting. Earth Day is Wednesday, 22 April
2015. We have two different designs in two different
colors, I’m sure many of you will like them. Please come
out and join us for this event.
Nick Nicolaus
President
POBox170,BelenNM87002
[email protected]
www.friendsofwhitfield.org
facebook.com/friendsofwwca
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Winter 2015
Friends of Whitfield Newsletter
Project Manager’s Update
Ted Hodoba
On the third Saturday of each month we offer
a nature walk with a Whitfield Master Naturalist
around the Conservation Area. This is one of
the many activities conducted by our group.
There is still time to go on a walk to see the
many Sandhill Cranes and other birds we have
this winter at Whitfield.
We will be starting a new class for our
Whitfield Master Naturalist Program. The
Program is ideal for individuals who have a love
for the outdoors, curiosity of the natural
environment, a desire to work with others, and
want to help support conservation measures
that improve land health.
A select group of dedicated participants
(space is limited to 20 participants) will meet on
Wednesday evenings and four Saturdays from
late March into May for classes and hands-on
field trips totaling 55 hours. Upon completion of
classes, participants have one year to complete
a 40-hour service project at Whitfield.
Cost of participation is $85.00 payable at the
first meeting. Applications are being accepted
until February 20th, 2015.
For more information contact Ted Hodoba,
Whitfield Project Manager, at (505) 864-8914.
You can also email Ted for more information at
[email protected].
Dates of the Saturday Nature Walks are:
• February 21
• March 21
• April 18 (Earth Day Celebration)
• May 16
• June 20
• July 18
• August 15
• September 19
• October 17
• November 21
Kids and Whitfield
The Sandia Mountain Natural History Center
(SMNHC) is back for a fourth year to teach the
Ecology Field Program at the Whitfield Wildlife
Conservation Area.
The SMNHC is an environmental education
center that is run through a partnership between
Albuquerque Public Schools and the New Mexico
Museum of Natural History and Science.
Since 2012 the education staff of the SMNHC
th
has met 5 grade students from Belen and Los
Lunas at Whitfield for a 3 hour ecology program.
The program consists of a guided hike and a
variety of hands on activities that give the students
an opportunity to discover the living and non-living
parts of the area. Students use field guides,
binoculars and other scientific equipment to
identify the trees, shrubs and animals that call
Whitfield home.
While they may not be able to see a lot of the
wildlife on their visit, the students learn to identify
the animals using scat, tracks and other signs.
Once they have an understanding of the parts that
make up Whitfield’s ecosystem, the students then
determine how all of those parts are interacting
and working together.
The
students
leave
with
a
greater
understanding of the natural world around them
and an excitement to spend more time exploring
the outdoors.
Albertsons' & Smith's Community Programs
Albertsons' Community Partners program consistently
sends Whitfield a check. This is because you Albertson's
shoppers use your Whitfield scan card every time you shop. If
you don't have this card come pick one up at Whitfield Visitor
Center.
Also, Smith's has their Community Rewards program.
You can link your Smith's card to Whitfield online. Go to
www.smithscommunityrewards.com and enter our number:
NPO #23579.
Photo by Linda Heinze
THANK YOU FOR HELPING SUPPORT WHITFIELD!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2
Winter 2015
Friends of Whitfield Newsletter
The Birding Corner
“THE TOPSY-TURVY-BIRD”
Linda Heinze
Many birders agree that the best birding at
Whitfield can be found in the willows and
Russian olive trees along the western-most
road or in the large cottonwoods. Some of the
passerine species generally noted at this time
of year are Lesser Goldfinches, House
Finches, Spotted Towhees, Song Sparrows,
White-crowned
Sparrows,
Yellow-rumped
Warblers, Northern Flickers, and Whitebreasted Nuthatches.
In this article we will just focus on some
interesting features of our resident Whitebreasted Nuthatches, Sitta Carolinensis.
These little birds are about 5-6 inches long,
have a short tail, feathers are blue-grey on the
back with a black cap and black on the nape,
tawny flanks, and white breast. The male and
female
have
very
similar
plumage.
They generally make their presence known
with a nasal call, “nyek, nyek, nyek” while
climbing a tree trunk or hopping out on the
branches. They use the long, slender bill
to peck at the bark for grubs and insects and
their hook-like claws to hang on to the tree.
Nuthatches are unique in their ability
to climb down the trunk of a tree, head first,
perhaps finding a special cache of food not
seen by other tree-climbing birds on their way
up!
As they hop around in the trees in the
winter, you may hear them calling to one
another. This is probably a mated pair. They
are not shy so will not be bothered by humans
pointing those 'things' with large, dark eyes at
them. There are four species of nuthatches in
the U.S. but at Whitfield we usually only see
the White-breasted Nuthatch. The Redbreasted Nuthatch has been spotted on rare
occasions. A few other names for nuthatches
are "tree mice", "nuthack", "topsy-turvy-bird"
and "yank". On your next walk at Whitfield,
listen for their call and enjoy one of Whitfield's
year-round common birds.
(If you are interested in seeing more data on the
birds reported at Whitfield, check out e-bird at
http://ebird.org/ebird/eBirdReports?cmd=Start.
More on e-bird in a future article.)
White-breasted Nuthatch
Photo by Linda Heinze
Let us Introduce you to the Speaker for
Friends of Whitfield's Annual Meeting
During our annual membership meeting on April
11, 2015, 10AM to Noon, Kirsten Cruz-McDonnell
will give an informative presentation on Burrowing
Owl ecology and behavior, sharing photos and
videos of this charismatic and beloved species.
Kirsten is Chief Biologist of Envirological Services,
Inc., which is a non-profit organization that conducts
wildlife research in New Mexico. She has a B.S. in
Natural Resources from the University of Michigan
and a M.S. in Biology from the University of New
Mexico. She has worked with Burrowing Owls for
over ten years and has led a long-term project on
Kirtland Air Force Base monitoring Burrowing Owl
population trends and reproductive success.
Courtesy of US Department of the Interior
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3
Winter 2015
Friends of Whitfield Newsletter
To Our Valued Members:
All Friends of Whitfield members, both past and present,
are so appreciated. Without your help the Friends would
not be able to fulfill our mission of supporting Whitfield
Wildlife Conservation Area by promoting wildlife
conservation and environmental education. If you have
not renewed for 2015 please do so today!
Membership Application
(Please print neatly)
Name________________________________
Family Members________________________
(if Family Membership)
Address______________________________
City State_____________________________
Zip__________Phone___________________
Email________________________________
Membership Level
__Renewal __New
__lndividual $10
__Senior $5
__Family $20
__Special Friend $60
__Student $5
__Business Sponsor $200
Please check the Volunteer opportunities that
interest you:
__Ambassador ___Education
__Library Help ___Outdoor Tasks
__Fundraising ___Special Events
Please fill out and either mail or bring in
to Visitors Center with your check or
money order to:
Friends of Whitfield Wildlife Conservation Area
PO Box 170
Belen, NM 87002
[email protected]
www.whitfieldwildlife.org
Thank you!
Friends of Whitfield Wildlife Conservation Area is a
registered 501 (c)3 non-profit organization
incorporated in 2008 to support the purposes for
which the WWCA was created.
Friends of Whitfield Board of Directors
[email protected]
President: Nick Nicolaus (2016)*
[email protected]
Vice-President: Hannah Hodoba (2015)*
[email protected]
Secretary: Jeannine Kimble (2016)*
[email protected]
Treasurer: Dolores Varela Phillips (2015)*
[email protected]
Members
Don Heinze (2015)*
[email protected]
Ron Goens (2015)*
[email protected]
Alex Falter (2016)*
[email protected]
*term expires
Coordinators
Ambassadors: Ron Goens
[email protected] or
[email protected]
Classroom Environmental Education:
Molly Madden
[email protected]
E-Mail Coordinator: Dolores Varela Phillips
[email protected]
Fundraising/Special Events: Alex Falter
[email protected]
Media Liaison: OPEN
Membership: Dolores Varela Phillips
[email protected]
Newsletter Team: Dolores Varela Phillips
[email protected]
Jim Rickey
[email protected]
Linda Heinze [email protected]
Nick Nicolaus [email protected]
Outdoor: OPEN
Outreach: OPEN
Volunteer: Madeline Miller
[email protected]
(505)-864-8914
Whitfield Project Manager
(VSWCD)
Ted Hodoba
(505)-864-8914
[email protected]
www.whitfieldwildlife.org
Whitfield Wildlife Conservation Area is located at:
2424 Hwy 47, Belen, NM
© Friends of Whitfield
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4
Winter 2015
Friends of Whitfield Newsletter
A Great Big Thank You for our
NEW WEB SITE!
New Friends of Whitfield Board
Members Needed
We want to acknowledge and thank
Sue Kinzelman for developing our new
web site. We so needed this kind of
expertise! Right now, it is a work in
progress but looks beautiful! More to
come! THANK YOU, SUE!
Check it out!
www.friendsofwhitfield.org
Come lend a hand and enjoy helping Whitfield
Wildlife Conservation Area and its Friends group
make this place even more beautiful than it is
and even more of a delight to visit and learn
about nature.
Whitfield's 5th Birthday Celebration in
December, 2014
Doe Mule Deer Whitfield December, 2014
WE NEED 2 - POSSIBLY 3 - new Friends Board
members. Come to the Annual Meeting on April
11, 2015, 10 AM to Noon and become part of
this exciting group!
Friends of Whitfield Display at Festival of Cranes
Bosque del Apache November, 2014
Taking a Walk in the Snow at Whitfield January, 2015
Heavy Traffic on Whitfield's Trails January,2015
Kudos to all our VOLUNTEERS!
You are so appreciated for all
you do for Whitfield!
We need more of you so come
join the fun and dedication.
Be a
Whitfield Volunteer!
Contact: Madeline Miller at:
[email protected]
(505)-864-8914
Tumbleweed Guy at Whitfield
Photos by Linda Heinze
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5