Nighthawk Survey
BBC members are encouraged to participate in this year's migrating nighthawk survey. Scan the skies starting August 9 and report your sightings.
More information...
More information...
What's New With the BBC?
The July to October Blue Book should have arrived by now, if you did not get your copy contact the Membership Secretary. The full schedule is now on the website, as is the 2009 Statistical Report.
The June Pelagic was a success. The August overnight trip is coming up soon, check out the pelagics page for details.
The June Pelagic was a success. The August overnight trip is coming up soon, check out the pelagics page for details.
Time to Buy a Duck Stamp
The new 2010 - 2011 Duck Stamp went on sale Friday, June 25.
Those who have purchased stamps over the decades have contributed over $700 million and protected more than 3.5 million acres of habitat for wildlife and future generations of Americans. Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamps, commonly known as “Duck Stamps,” are pictorial stamps produced by the U.S. Postal Service for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Since 1934, a huge proportion of the funds used to acquire critical habitats in the National Wildlife Refuge System were provided through sales of these stamps.
The Stamp today costs only $15 and is easy to purchase at any Post Office or Refuge office.
There are over 540 individual units within the U.S. National Wildlife Refuge System. Each refuge is managed as a protected haven for birds and other wildlife. Since 1934, a huge proportion of the funds used to acquire these critical habitats were provided through sales of what is today known as Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamps – commonly called “Duck Stamps.” Americans who enjoy wildlife and natural landscapes can thank those who have purchased stamps over the decades for this legacy of habitat conservation for wildlife and future generations of Americans.
Stamps can be purchased at refuge offices, and nearly all Post Offices carry them. Even better, it is extremely cost-effective: fully 98 cents out of every dollar goes directly to acquire land for the Refuge System.
As we move into a time where adaptation to climate change requires flexibility and planning, contributing to this fund increases the capacity of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to acquire and protect sensitive wetlands and grasslands.
Stamps have traditionally been purchased by waterfowl hunters and other recreational users of the refuge system. Additionally, funds derived from Stamp sales go far beyond serving the hunting community. For those who visit refuges, a stamp is a “free pass” for an entire year – for a vehicle full of people at all refuges that might charge for admission.
Some of the most diverse and wildlife-rich refuges in the nation have been acquired with Stamp funds. For a list of refuges and the percentage of their acreage paid for by Stamp purchase, go to www.fws.gov/refuges/realty/pdf/MBCFacres.pdf These include refuges in Massachusetts and New England:
Bosque del Apache in New Mexico 99.4%
Parker River in Massachusetts 99.3%
Pea Island in North Carolina 99.2%
Monomoy in Massachusetts 97.8%
Bombay Hook in Delaware 95.1%
Santa Ana in Texas 94.9%
Laguna Atascosa in Texas 89.1%
Okefenokee in Georgia 88.2%
Anahuac in Texas 87.5%
Edwin B. Forsythe (Brigantine) in New Jersey 85.0%
Blackwater in Maryland 75.8%
Great Meadows 75.4%
Silvio O. Conte 41.7%
It’s not just for ducks. . . . Among scores of other species, birds such as numerous kinds of shorebirds, long-legged waders, and wetland and grassland songbirds, are dependent on habitat derived from Stamp purchases.
The funds not only go to National Wildlife Refuges, but since 1958, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has directed Stamp funds to successfully conserve nearly 3 million acres of associated wetlands and grasslands in the Prairie Pothole Region of the upper Midwestern United States through the Small Wetlands Program, with tremendous benefits to migratory birds, wildlife, water quality, aquifer replenishment, and the environment in general. There has been a major grassland emphasis since the late 1980s to include the acquisition of upland easements to improve the quality of these smaller acquisitions. Beginning in the early 1990s, the Service began to purchase permanent grassland easements to combine with existing or new wetland easements. The upland easement program was initiated because of scientific studies demonstrating the critical importance of grassland habitat to nesting success among birds.
For additional information, go to www.fws.gov/duckstamps/ . Click on “Publications and Resources” for a fact sheet, additional information on the history of the stamp, and other links.
For Secretary Salazar‚s June 16 announcement of $35.7 million for refuge acquisitions and wetlands grants for migratory birds, go to www.fws.gov/news/NewsReleases/showNews.cfm?newsId=411F56EF-F690-E2C1-84D378956E5B1ED . Information about the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission can be found at www.fws.gov/refuges/realty/mbcc.html.
BBC in the News
BBC Trip Leaders Diana Fruguglietti and Paul Ippolito's recent walk at Horn Pond in Woburn was featured in the Daily Times Chronicle.
Common Pasture Viewing Platform Dedicated in Memory of Larry Jodrey and Jerry Soucy
A new viewing platform at the Common Pastures on Scotland Road in Newbury provided by the Essex County Greenbelt Association was dedicated in memory of the Honorable H. Lawrence Jodrey and Gerald Soucy on Sunday, November 2, 2008. See More
