November 2009, vol. 37, no.3

Hudson River Audubon Society of Westchester, Inc. is a non-profit chapter of the National Audubon Society serving the communities of Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry, Hastings-on-Hudson, Irvington and Yonkers.

Our mission is to foster protection and appreciation of birds, other wildlife and habitats, and to be an advocate for a cleaner, healthier environment.

www.hras.org

DIRECTIONS TO LENOIR PRESERVE

Hudson River Audubon Society of Westchester, Inc. holds its meetings at Lenoir, a Westchester County Nature Preserve, on Dudley Street in Yonkers, New York (914) 968-5851.

By car: Take Saw Mill River Parkway to Exit 9, Executive Blvd. Take Executive Blvd. to its end at North Broadway and turn right. Go ¼ mile on North Broadway and turn left onto Dudley Street. Parking lot is on the left.

The Rivertown NaturalistN e w s l e t t e r o f t h e h u d s o N r i v e r A u d u b o N s o c i e t y o f w e s t c h e s t e r

Fossils, Morphology, and the Evolution of Birdsnovember 18 ~ 7:00 pm ~ lenoir nature center

Before & After Bird Names

Join HRAS and Estelle Bourdon

for a discussion on the Origin of

Modern Birds.

Estelle is a research scientist

at the Department of Ornithology

at the American Museum of

Natural History. She will explain

the ecology of birds based on

her extensive research of the

anatomy and fossil evidence of

living species.

If you’re a fan of television game shows you may recognize the

“Before and After” concept. Name two North American bird species

that have a common word in the middle. Both older and newer bird

names are used.

For example: __________ Sparrow __________

answer: House Sparrow Hawk for House Sparrow & Sparrow Hawk

1) B__________-__________ __________ Sandpiper

2) __________ Dove __________

3) Rock __________ __________

4) Marsh __________

5) Ivory __________-__________ __________

6) B__________ __________-tailed __________

7) H__________ __________ Bunting

8) Eastern __________ Sparrow

9) R__________ __________ Sandpiper (this is an Asian bird)

Answers inside on page 4.

2 The Rivertown Naturalist

You are invited to attend Hudson River Audubon Society’s Holiday Luncheon on

Saturday, December 12, 2009 at 12:00 PM at The Polish Center, 92 Waverly Street, Yonkers

Buffet With Carving Station by Polonaise Catering

$32 Per Person

Special Guest Speaker: Kimberly Flook, Site Manager of Philipse Manor Hall

PIRATES ON THE HUDSON

This will be a lively presentation, during which, through slides, Kimberly will tell us true tales of pirates

on the Hudson River and their fascinating connection to Henry Hudson. She will share with us many

stories of the exploits of pirates like Captain Kidd, Thomas Tew, and Blackbeard, stories from the 1680’s

to the 1720’s, as close to us as Yonkers and as far away as Madagascar.

Checks for reservations must be received by December 1st.Please mail to: HRAS, Holiday Reservation,

P.O. Box 616, Yonkers, NY 10703 or bring to program on November 18th.

Directions and tickets will be sent upon receipt of payment.

Any questions? Please call Michael Bochnik at 914-237-9331

❑ Yes I/We will attend. Enclosed is a check for $_____ for ____ reservations.

❑ Sorry, I/we cannot attend but would like to donate $_____ to further HRAS efforts fulfill its mission.

Name:_________________________________________________________________________

Address:________________________________________________________________________

City, State, Zip Code _______________________________________________________________

Telephone # ____________________________________________________________________

The goose was the first bird to be domesticated by man. An ancient story tells how a flock of white

geese raised the alarm when Rome was attacked by the Gauls, and thus saved the city. Incidentally,

speaking of the ancient Romans, they also ate flamingo tongues and regarded them as a rare delicacy.

saul scheinbach

The Superb Starling (Lamprotornis superbus), one of about 110 starling species in the world, lives a communal existence in east Africa replete with sexual intrigue.

About 40 percent of starling species are cooperative breeders; the raising of young is shared by the breeding pair and relatives like older siblings, uncles, aunts and cousins. But superb starlings go one step further. They are plural cooperative breeders, forming family groups of up to 30 individuals with several breeding pairs sharing a pool of helpers. This web of relationships is further complicated — the mated pairs are not always faithful. Promiscuity rates among superb starlings vary, but can rise to over 30 percent of offspring within a group. Interestingly, it is the females who seek extra-pair matings.

What drives some birds to cheat while others remain faithful and still others completely forgo reproduction? Dustin Rubenstein, an evolutionary biologist at Columbia University in New York, has been examining the factors that influence Superb Starling mating behavior for over ten years. Three reports describe his findings, which are also summarized in the July/August 2009 issue of Natural History.

For decades biologists have understood that when individuals forgo breeding to help others reproduce, their assistance extends only to kin. In this fashion they still perpetuate their own genes, obeying a fundamental rule of natural selection. Many bird species practice cooperative breeding, and biologists have long suspected that environmental conditions like a shortage of food may cause some birds to become helpers.

The first study by Rubenstein and his colleague, Irby Lovette, in the August 21, 2007 issue of Current Biology provides an answer. They looked at 45 species of African starlings, of which 23 are cooperative breeders, to determine what environmental factor(s) result in cooperative breeding. They found that cooperative breeding is most closely associated with semi-arid savanna habitats, which differ from forests and deserts. Savannas show more variability in average yearly rainfall than any other habitat. The unpredictability causes some birds that might otherwise breed to hold off until they are certain of adequate rainfall — and insects. This flexibility allows the group to take full advantage of the temporal environmental conditions. “When you don’t know what conditions you will be facing in the next breeding season, it pays — in an evolutionary sense — to live and breed in family groups because more chicks survive over the long haul”, said Rubenstein. Thus in each breeding season a calculation is made:

stay home and raise relatives or move out and establish a new nesting site.

How birds make this decision was investigated by Rubenstein in another study in the August 5, 2008 issue of General and Comparative Endocrinology. For ten breeding seasons, from 2001 to 2005 (birds breed March–May and in November), Rubenstein and his colleagues studied a group of Superb Starlings in Kenya. During the dry season (pre-breeding) birds decide their future breeding roles. Each dry season the team captured about 35 pre-breeding birds and measured blood levels of two hormones, prolactin (PRL) and corticosterone (Cort). PRL is associated with egg-laying and feeding of chicks, while Cort is associated with a variety of stressors, including low social rank. They found that the decision to breed is linked to hormone levels. High levels of PRL make birds breeders, while those with high levels of Cort become helpers.

The third study in the May 25, 2007 issue of the Proceedings of the Royal Society investigates what is perhaps the most interesting question of all. What prompts some birds to practice promiscuity?

Rubenstein and his team followed seven family groups over ten breeding seasons in Kenya. During two of these seasons they collected DNA samples from 476 birds, including 247 nestlings. By using a set of DNA sequences that varies greatly among individuals, they could determine the paternity of the nestlings. Fourteen percent of the nestlings were sired by an extra-pair male. Half the males were from within the family group and half from other family groups. Why did some cheating females choose males within the group, while others went further astray?

The scientists found that in prior years females who mated with within-group males had fewer helpers. By mating with an extra-pair male the female gained another helper, giving her a chance to raise more young. But outside-the group males do not become helpers, so why did other females seek them out?

Females who cheated with outside-the group males were pair-bonded to males genetically very similar to themselves. By mating with strangers they introduced new genes into their brood.

“We can break down the reasons why Superb Starling females are not faithful to their mates and see that they have different extra-pair mating strategies,” concludes Rubenstein. “It adds a whole new layer of complexity to the story.”

The story is that female superb starlings trade sex for help in rearing their young or to give them better genes. You might say they cheat for the sake of the children.

The Rivertown Naturalist 3

“In most avian cooperative breeders, 40 to 60 percent of offspring are a result of extra-pair matings, but in Superb Starlings, only about 14 percent are fathered by other males.” —D. Rubenstein

Science Watch: Starling Shenanigans

4 The Rivertown Naturalist

Christmas Bird CountsIf you’re looking for a local birding activity

that’s not only fun and exciting, but helps with

valuable winter bird population data, come on

out and help on a Christmas Bird Count. They

are censuses, near Christmas, of the number of

each species of bird seen in a 24-hour period in a

particular area or count circle.

Bird counts will be conducted from December

14 to January 5. Our local one, the Bronx-

Westchester CBC will be held Sunday, December

27, 2009. The Peekskill CBC and the Greenwich

CBC will be held a week early on the 19th and 20th.

There is no particular meeting place for these

events. Different groups of volunteers start at

various locations throughout southern Westchester

and the Bronx and canvas their area for birds. You

can also participate by identifying and counting the

birds at your feeder on the count day and phoning

in the results. For more information, call the Bronx-

Westchester Count Compiler, Michael Bochnik at

914-237-9331, or email him at bochnikm@cs.com

Butterfly Garden Day

We need volunteers to come and help put the Butterfly

and Hummingbird Garden to bed for winter.

We will be moving things around and planting some

seeds and maybe see some errant hummingbirds while

we work.

This activity will take place on Sunday, November 15

from 1pm to 4pm.

For more information, contact Mary Harrington at

914-667-1494 or by emailing TCTallon@aol.com

Thank you very much.

Answers (to quiz on front page)1) Black-necked Stilt Sandpiper (Black-necked Stilt and

Stilt Sandpiper)

2) Rock Dovekie (Rock Dove and Dovekie)

3) Rock Pigeon Guillemot (Rock Pigeon and Pigeon Guillemot)

4) Marsh Wrentit (Marsh Wren and Wrentit)

5) Ivory Gull-billed Tern (Ivory Gull and Gull-billed Tern)

6) Barn Swallow-tailed Kite (Barn Swallow and

Swallow-tailed Kite)

7) Horned Lark Bunting (Horned Lark and Lark Bunting)

8) Eastern Meadowlark Sparrow (Eastern Meadowlark and

Lark Sparrow)

9) Roseate Spoonbill Sandpiper (Roseate Spoonbill and

Spoonbill Sandpiper)

Project FeederWatchOn Saturday, November 21, Kelli and

Michael Bochnik will be leading our opening

Project FeederWatch session for the season.

Please come and join us at the Lenoir Nature

Center to help count the birds and chat with

your Audubon friends.

Please check with Michael at

914-237-9331 for the exact starting time.

On the following day, Sunday,

November 22, Carol Lange will be leading

the second FeederWatch, from 10:30am–

12:30pm. Please join us again!

The Rivertown Naturalist 5

Jamaica Bay National Wildlife Refuge Sunday, November 15, 2009

meet at 8:00 am at wild bird center, central avenue, scarsdale or

meet at 9:00 am at jamaica bay nwr, cross bay blvd, queens.

Jamaica Bay National Wildlife Refuge is one of the

premier birding spots on the East Coast. (Joint trip with

Bronx River / Sound Shore Audubon).

Cape Ann Trip November 28–30, 2009

noon saturday to noon monday

Gloucester is a 4 ½ hour ride from Yonkers, so allow time

for stops and traffic. Meet at 12 noon Saturday at the Vista

Motel where we will be staying. For driving directions, go to

our website hras.org.

Vista Motel, 22 Thatcher Road, Gloucester, MA 01930 978-281-3410 ~ $85–$95 a night

Cape Ann is a peninsula which juts out into the Gulf of

Maine just north of Boston. In winter the rocky shores are

good for sea watching especially with easterly winds. In

winter one can expect to see Common and Red-throated

Loons, Red-necked Grebe, Horned Grebe, Common

Eider, Harlequin Ducks, Long-tailed Ducks, Black, Surf,

and White-winged Scoters, Red-breasted Mergansers,

Great Cormorants, Black Guillemots, Razorbills, Purple

Sandpipers, Snowy Owls, Snow Buntings and Northern

Gannets and if we are lucky King Eiders, Murres, Dovekies

and Barrow’s Goldeneye.

Itinerary

Saturday: We’ll take a look at Halibut Point for both land

and sea birds.

Sunday: Halibut Point State Park / Plum Island

Monday: Flexible, will depend on the weather and what

birds we missed.

New York State Waterfowl Count Sunday, January 17, 2010

meet at 7:30 am at van cortlandt park

Meet at Van Cortlandt Park Golf Course parking lot in

the Bronx, south end of the lake at 7:30 am to conduct a

census of waterfowl in the area. Rusty Blackbirds may also

be found in the marsh.

Take the Major Deegan / I-87 to Exit 11 – Van Cortland

Park South. At the light, make a left, then another left at

the next light.

Hudson River Audubon Field Trips

The Hudson River Audubon Society is now on Facebook. See the link on our web page at www.hras.org. Become a fan! See photos from our field trips! Join our discussion board! Get updates from our events on your news feed. PS: if this is all Greek to you, then you’re not on Facebook.

Common Loon

HUDSON RIVER AUDUBON SOCIETYOF WESTCHESTER, INCP.O. Box 616YONKERS, NY 10703

DATED MATERIALPlease Expedite

NON PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDWHITE PLAINS. NY

Permit 7312

HRAS BOARD MEMBERS & VOLUNTEERSPresident/Field Trips BochnikM@cs.com Michael Bochnik 914-237-9331

Vice-President judisaul@aol.com Saul Scheinbach 718-884-4740

Conservation barbpaul@optonline.net Paul Steineck

Treasurer paul200bea@optonline.net Paul Oehrlein 914-693-2569

Secretary judisaul@aol.com Judi Veder 718-884-4740

Education Bev186@aol.com Beverly Smith 914-965-5553

Walter Chadwick mrcnaturally@optonline.net 914-237-5791

Publicity JNTT3456@aol.com Jeanette Johnson 914-965-7541

Membership Carollange@aol.com Carol Lange 914-668-5101

Programs/Season’s Lynnbshaw@msn.com Lynn Shaw 718-549-2380

Butterfly Garden TCTallon@aol.com Mary Harrington 914-667-1494

Science judisaul@aol.com Saul Scheinbach 718-884-4740

Circulation William Van Wart 914-376-2401

Hospitality kellimike@verizon.net Kelli Bochnik 914-237-9331

Educator mrcnaturally@optonline.net Walter Chadwick 914-237-5791

Feeder Watch Carollange@aol.com Carol Lange 914-668-5101

Development/Bluebird Trail pamalama@earthlink.net Pamela Sullivan 914-591-7399

Lenoir Liaison dac4@westchestergov.com Danniela Ciatto 914-968-5851

Rivertown Naturalist Editor tralac@verizon.net Sandra Wright 914-674-9147

Join The Hudson River Audubon Society of Westchester!

Every membership supports Audubon’s vital efforts to protect birds, other wildlife and natural habitats. Membership includes a subscription to Audubon magazine and affiliation with National Audubon. As a member, you will also receive our chapter newsletter, The Rivertown Naturalist, and an open invitation to all our guest lectures, field trips and events.

siGN Me uP As A New MeMber. oNe yeAr for $20.

Name

Address

City

State Zip Code

Telephone

chAPter No c9Zr200Z

Send check and this application to: National Audubon Society

P.O. Box 422250Palm Coast, FL 32142-2250

Please make check payable to National Audubon Society.

6 The Rivertown Naturalist

✄www.hras.org