by Lottie Bushmann

Hello all!

I hope this note finds you enjoying the beginning of fall weather and the migration of species through our area. Columbia Audubon has many ways for you to be involved either through birding, counting birds, counting down honeysuckle, learning about the Boone Co. Nature school or helping work with 2^nd graders.

If you need help finding those fall warblers, just check out our list of field trips the next few weeks. With wonderful folks leading, you’re sure to get on a new bird or two. In particular, the Chimney Swift Roost Watch that was rescheduled for this Wednesday Oct. 2 is an amazing spectacle and there is a First Friday walk this week as well.

We also hope you’ll join us at the monthly meeting being held this month at the Boone County Nature School. It opened this past month and has been busy hosting its first groups of 5^th graders. Come join us on Wednesday, Oct. 9 as we check out the grounds surrounding the school as well as the building itself. I’m excited to hear about Ragan and Joe’s experience this past summer as Hog Island scholarship recipients, and how they plan to put that learning to work at the Nature School.  We’ll meet at 5:30 at the school building and I’m planning to go just a bit earlier to check out the Council House that we helped fund.

As always, there are many ways to be involved in Audubon here in Columbia. If you’re of the yard work, clean-up mindset consider joining our joint workday with the Missouri Conservation Corps headed up by Stephen Bybee. We’ll be working on invasive removal at Bonnie View Nature Sanctuary, adjacent to Columbia Audubon Nature Sanctuary (CANS). As the saying goes “many hands make light work” and nothing could be truer on this day. There are jobs for all abilities and there will be pizza!!

We are also hosting the 11^th annual Band With Nature 2^nd grade program at CANS. This is a fun event to volunteer for plus the 2^nd grader’s enthusiasm is infectious. We’re looking for volunteers!

Several members sat down with Dark Sky Missouri, a chapter of the International Dark Sky organization to discuss how CAS can help further the cause to reduce light pollution in Columbia. For those of you interested, the Dark Sky Missouri president gave a great presentation at the 2023 Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative Conference, and his slides are available in the sidebar at www.mobci.net. As we have further discussions, we’ll be sharing more information. In the meantime, especially during migration, turn the lights off for the birds!

If you’re looking to find friendships within our Missouri Community of birders, consider meeting up to carpool to the Big Sit event at Swan Lake. This is a fun event complete with a potluck meal. Come or go all day or join the carpool and meet some new friends. Bake some cookies to share or grab a bag of chips to contribute.

Details for all of these events are on this webpage. With so many activities to choose from we hope you find one (or two!) that works for you.

See you soon!