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| NPS Photo by Ken Block | | "Sarah" at HawkWatch Kids Activities |
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2008 Schedule
HawkWatch
at
Effigy Mounds
National Monument
October 3 - 5, 2008
A Celebration of the Annual Fall Hawk Migration on the Mississippi River
Join the hawks, eagles and other birds soaring above the autumn leaves during the annual Hawk Watch at Effigy Mounds National Monument – a family-oriented event in celebration of the annual fall hawk migration.
All HawkWatch activities are free to the public throughout the weekend.
Activities for kids are a major part of the event. Teachers and volunteers help children with activities such as making owl masks, raptor mobiles, and hawk drawing with pastels. The activities are fun and educational.
HawkWatch at Effigy Mounds operates a count site where Iowa DNR staff, Audubon members, Iowa Nature Mapping staff and volunteers identify and count wild migrants as they fly overhead. Typically several hundred migrants are counted each day, including Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks, Red-tailed, Red-shouldered and Broad-winged Hawks, Peregrine Falcons, Ospreys, eagles, vultures and others. Spotting scopes will be set up around the area, and there will be people to assist in using them and identifying the hundreds of hawks flying over the park.
All the HawkWatch activities are located at the visitor center of Effigy Mounds National Monument. The monument offers a wonderful museum, hiking trails, lookouts over the Mississippi River and, of course, the prehistoric American Indian ceremonial and burial mounds. The Mississippi River overlooks along the trails provide excellent opportunities to view migrating hawks using the Mississippi River flyway, one of the four major migration corridors in North America. Come to HawkWatch at Effigy Mounds and enjoy the fall colors, Iowa’s most diverse park, and celebrate the hawk migration.
Annually, HawkWatch weekend is made possible through the significant efforts of volunteers. Persons interested in volunteering and giving back to their public lands at Effigy Mounds are encouraged to attend HawkWatch events to meet volunteers, learn of volunteer opportunities and needs in the monument, and simply learn about and become involved in raptor education. What a wonderful event to share with the whole family. Don’t miss it!
Hawk Watch is coordinated by the nonprofit Upper Iowa Audubon Society and sponsored in partnership with Effigy Mounds National Monument, the Iowa DNR and the Audubon Society. Funding comes from grants, private and business donations.
For more HawkWatch or volunteer information, contact Pam Kester, HawkWatch Coordinator via e-mail or 563-873-1236, or Ken Block at the Monument 563-873-3491.
All Hawk Watch activities are free of charge. Effigy Mounds is located in northeast Iowa on Highway 76, three miles north of Marquette or 17 miles south of Waukon. For more information please call 563-873-3491.
HawkWatch at Effigy Mounds
Schedule for 2008
Friday PM, October 3rd
•7PM Evening Program at Effigy Mounds visitor’s center • Kay Neumann of S.O.A.R. will present ‘Lead Poisoning in Iowa Wintering Bald Eagles’
With up to one fifth of the lower 48 states' entire eagle population wintering in Iowa during the hunting seasons, lead poisoning has become an alarming problem. Of the 82 eagles admitted to Iowa wildlife rehabilitators over the last four years, over 50 % had abnormal lead levels. Getting the lead out of our recreational activities is the healthiest thing to do for our kids and our eagles! (indoor auditorium)
Saturday, October 4th
8:00 • Bird Hike with Dennis Carter. • Join Upper Iowa Audubon’s birding expert Dennis Carter for an early morning hike to find different species of songbirds, ducks, raptors and others. This hike is a great warm up for HawkWatch!
9:00 • Video — ‘Raptor Force’ • Humans have had a unique relationship with raptors for more than four thousand years, first through the ancient sport of falconry, and, more recently, as scientists and engineers have turned to these mighty birds-from golden eagles, red-tailed hawks, and turkey vultures, to great gray owls and the peregrine falcon-as the inspiration for the latest in aircraft design. (indoor auditorium)
10:00 • Begin HawkWatch presentations, kids activities and live bird programs!
10:00 • ‘Hawk ID for Beginners’ • Mike Havlik. This program will give you the basics on identifying different hawks in flight. Take this opportunity to learn some key fieldmarks in a fun atmosphere, and create your own id. guide. (indoor auditorium)
11:00 • ‘Return of the Peregrine Falcon’ • Bob Anderson, Director of the Raptor Resource Project, and special guest speaker at HawkWatch 2008. Returning the "Falcon of the rock" to the Mississippi River cliffs; a ten year review. Bob will speak about the efforts it took to return the Peregrine falcon to its historic haunts on the Mississippi River cliffs.
12:00 • Effigy Mounds designated priority Important Bird Area • The National Audubon Society has designated Effigy Mounds National Monument and Yellow River State Forest and surroundingnortheast Iowalandscape as the priority Important Bird Area (IBA) along this stretch of the Mississippi River. Jon Stravers and Mark Peterson from Audubon will discuss the significance of this designation in terms of agency partnerships, and in terms of on the ground bird conservation and monitoring, and how activity at this IBA relates to other IBAs along the entire stretch of the Mississippi River.
1:00 • ‘Hunters of the Sky’ • Kay Neumann of SOAR (Save Our Avian Resources). Kay will talk about birds of prey basics. Keen eyesight, a specially equipped beak, and strong talons set raptors apart as hunters. Join Kay with live birds of prey for a closer look at what makes raptors unique and essential links in the natural food chain.
2:00 • ‘Migration- around the world and back again with a bird’s brain’ • This multimedia presentation looks at migration and homing ability in birds. You’ll get a glimpse of the winter vacation destinations of some North American raptors and a few other notable migrants. Insights from recent research will be shared probing the mysteries of how birds navigate, because they can, and do, go home again. (indoor auditorium)
3:00 • ‘Return of the Peregrine Falcon’ • Bob Anderson, Director of the Raptor Resource Project, and special guest speaker at HawkWatch 2008.
Kid’s Activities will run from 10:00am — 12:00pm and 1:30pm — 3:30pm. All activities are free! So enjoy yourself & go WILD!!!
Sunday, October 5th
10:00 • ‘What do the birds have to teach us?’ Naturalist and educator, Mike Havlik, will explore what birds can teach us about living in the modern world. (indoor auditorium)
11:00 • The Iowa DNR will present a program on birds of prey in the state and their biology and habitat. (indoor auditorium)
12:00 • ‘Hunters of the Sky’ • Kay Neumann of SOAR (Save Our Avian Resources). Kay will talk about birds of prey basics. Keen eyesight, a specially equipped beak, and strong talons set raptors apart as hunters. Join Kay with live birds of prey for a closer look at what makes raptors unique and essential links in the natural food chain.
1:00 • ‘Hawk ID for Beginners’ • Mike Havlik. This program will give you the basics on identifying different hawks in flight. Take this opportunity to learn some key fieldmarks in a fun atmosphere, and create your own id. guide. (indoor auditorium)
2:00 • ‘Migration- around the world and back again with a bird’s brain’ • This multimedia presentation looks at migration and homing ability in birds. You’ll get a glimpse of the winter vacation destinations of some North American raptors and a few other notable migrants. Insights from recent research will be shared probing the mysteries of how birds navigate, because they can, and do, go home again. (indoor auditorium)
3:00 • Kay Neumann will present ‘Lead Poisoning in Iowa Wintering Bald Eagles’ • With up to one fifth of the lower 48 states' entire eagle population wintering in Iowa during the hunting seasons, lead poisoning has become an alarming problem. Of the 82 eagles admitted to Iowa wildlife rehabilitators over the last four years, over 50 % had abnormal lead levels. Getting the lead out of our recreational activities is the healthiest thing to do for our kids and our eagles! (indoor auditorium)
We appreciate your feedback and ideas regarding HawkWatch, ourpresentations and kid’s activiites. Please talk to a HawkWatch Volunteer, and let us know what you think.
HawkWatch is co-sponsored by the Upper Iowa Audubon Society, Effigy Mounds National Monument, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Diversity Program and National Audubon’s Upper Mississippi RiverCampaign. It is powered by the boundless energy of volunteers, and operated on a shoe-string budget...
...All of which add up to an event filled with enthusiasm & fun.
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