Wingtips

The Prescott Audubon Newsletter

January 2025

View All PAS Field Trips

Please visit the Prescott Audubon Society website by clicking the link above,

for information about field trips and how to register.

Birding in January

Friday – January 17 – Waterfowl Workshop – 3:00-4:30 pm

Saturday – January 18 – Waterfowl Field Session @ Watson

Upcoming Birding in February

Saturday – Feb 1 – Watson Woods Walk – 9:00 a.m

Wednesday – Feb 5 – Gilbert Water Ranch

Click here for Bird Walks at the Lookout

Window on Nature

will be at the

Natural History Institute

126 N Marina Street, downtown Prescott

January 21, 2025

Biology and Current Status of the

Monarch Butterfly

by Cathy Palm-Gessner and Bob Gessner

Cathy Palm-Gessner is a former community college and high school teacher. She is a docent at the Heritage Park Zoological Sanctuary and has worked with Monarch butterflies in Illinois and Arizona.

Bob Gessner is a Professor Emeritus at Western Illinois University. He is a master gardener and served on the board of directors for The Natural History Institute, Highlands Center for Natural History, and Prescott Native Plant Society.

Both Cathy and Bob have served as directors for Prescott Audubon and are research associates with The Southwest Monarch Study.

Meet and greet at 6:30,

followed by program at 7:00 pm

Used by permission from author Rosemary Mosco, https://www.facebook.com/BirdAndMoon

Birding Walks at Bill Williams NWR

Birding walks are being hosted at the Bill Williams River NWR. Regional birder Michelle Brock teaches guests about the resident and migratory bird species that can be seen from the trails at the headquarters office. This is a great opportunity for novice and experienced birders alike to learn and share. Please come and join us and spread the word in the community.

The walks are held every first Tuesday of the month December through April beginning at 9:00 am at the Bill Williams River NWR Visitor Center.

Joey Saccomanno

Assistant Manager

Bill Williams River NWR

Teams phone: 928-543-9462

Northern Pintail

New Signs Posted

PAS has been working with the City of Prescott to manage the SW portion of Willow Lake as a protected area, with modestly limited access. After several months, signs have been set, although in the wrong locations. So, we have much more work to do. Baby steps for birds. We continue to advocate for the birds we work to protect.

2025 Environmental Scholarship

Recipient Announced

The Prescott Audubon Society scholarship committee is pleased to announce that the 2025 Environmental Scholarship has been awarded to Savannah Hollenbaugh, a junior at Prescott College.

This year, we asked applicants to describe their connection to the environment and to conservation, in addition to how they envisioned their degree could contribute to conservation efforts. Savannah stated that her connection started early, growing up in the mountains of southern California, where she “spent a lot of my time outdoors, hunting, hiking, camping, and just exploring the world around me. Nature has always been my safe space.” In high school and again at community college, she organized trail, lake, and beach clean-ups, to bring awareness to pollution issues, and organized participation at city council meetings “to advocate for environmental protection policies.” She earned a Certificate of Sustainability along with her associate’s degree in California. At Prescott College, she is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Studies, where her interest in ecological restoration has led her to restoring the natural ecosystems of Butte Creek, which runs through the campus. She says this ongoing, multi-year campus project has “confirmed that conservation and restoration is the path I want to take in my career after college,” and it is providing her with the necessary skills to do this work.

Savannah will use the scholarship funds to help with her living expenses. As she stated: “I’m deeply committed to protecting the natural world and this scholarship [will] help me stay on track to do that.”

Once again, the scholarship committee is proud that PAS continues to support the next generation of young environmentalists.

Christmas Bird Count 2024

This year's Christmas Bird Count (CBC) must have been the warmest Prescott count day ever. No snow, no ice, high temps at almost 70°.

Also, more notably, it was our 50th annual count, by Carl Tomoff's records! He should know - Carl was the organizer/compiler of the count for 49 years! This year, he passed the baton to Sandy Klinikowski, our Treasurer. And an excellent rookie year it turned out to be. Judging by stories from the many count participants who gathered for the after-party at The Lookout, the day went well. The final tally will include some hard-to-get birds like Williamson's Sapsucker, American Goshawk, Eastern Phoebe, Snow Goose, Tundra Swan, Curve-billed Thrasher, and N. Mockingbird, to name a few. We will have a more complete report once Sandy compiles all the data. We know this much - the CBC means a fun day of birding, always!

Celebrating CBC 2024 with holiday buffet.

Volunteers Welcome

There is a place for everyone who wishes to become more involved in Prescott Audubon. You can join a committee (field trip, scholarship, communication, education). If you are a party person, come help plan and execute annual social events. PAS would like to host an April social event and input would be gladly

received. Our PAS Board could use additional members. We are a friendly group and work as a team. Join with Prescott Audubon so we can continue to advocate for habitat and birds for the future. Send an email to contact@prescottaudubon.org to express interest in any area.

Please visit the PAS FB Group page for more information, as well as fabulous photos and articles from Walt Anderson