We have begun a project to remove the large stand of invasive Glossy Buckthorn that surrounds the fen at Haehnle Sanctuary.  Under a program managed by the US Fish & Wildlife Service, equipment has been brought on site to start the eradication of an old stand of buckthrons.  Tom Eitniear of the USF&WS has brought in Dennis Marshall to mow down these invasives.  They will work on this another few days this year, but only a portion of the stand will be removed this year.  This project will continue for the next several years.  For videos, see our JAS YouTube feed.

Chipper machine at work

View of work area looking east from Dike trail

Form this morning's visit to the Burke Lake Banding Station.  The highlight of the morning was the capture and banding of a young mourning warbler.  Here is photo of him in the hand of one of the interns at the station just before he was released back into the wild. 

The photo brings to mind a play on words to an old cliché: "A mourning warbler in hand is better than two in the bush."

Doug has shared some photos from Tuscon, AZ on Friday, August 7th.

The hummingbirds, the Steller's jay and a yellow-eyed junco were photographed by the Iron Door Restaurant at the summit of Mt. Lemmon, near Tucson.  The restaurant has three hummingbird feeders and they seemed to be fairly busy with hummingbirds while we were there. 

 They have a veranda where you can have a nice lunch and watch the hummers. 

 

The Steller's jay and the junco were perched right across from the veranda, so photography was a snap (no PUN intended).  The jay photo was so close that the image is full-frame with no cropping.

Posted by Connie Spotts

Concerned citizen, Krissy Kerwin (Pictured) was shocked and then very angry to see the Sandhill Cranes being fed junk food and harassed by others.

This pair of cranes have been returning to the North side of Jackson for years. They nest in the wetland near Sam's and bring their young out to meet the public every year. Karen Richards (Owner of Culver's) said "That in the Spring the male crane (when the female is pregnant) is very aggressive and pecks the heck out of black cars in which he can see his reflection and thinks it is another male. They have been known to come to the front door and drive thru windows and peck constantly on the glass. They seem to be on a schedule for I know what days they will appear at Culvers. 

The group walks in the street and even up to the busy Buddy's Gas Station. Krissy jumped into action and called Jackson Audubon, so with her donation along with Jackson Audubon and Derek Dobies (assistant mayor) the six Do Not Feed The Cranes signs were ordered. This past summer the signs were placed at Sam's, Sav-A-Lot Foods, Culvers, Cracker Barrel, and Buddy's Gas Station. Eleven people showed up to help including two guys from the Army, Blackman Township Supervisor Pete Sancek and several Audubon members. 

Thank you to all that helped and Culver's for giving us a free lunch. Thank you Krissy for caring and organizing this project. One person can make a difference. The project made the news so hopefully this will take care of the problem.