Migration JourneysGail Gatton, Audubon Washington State Director

my journey with audubon started in alaska, just like many of the birds that migrate through the Pacific North-west. Working with conservation groups in Alaska to protect vital habitats, I developed an appreciation for the spectacle of migration. I would manage to pull myself out of the comfort of a warm bed and head out to the Palmer Hay Flats to experience seas of trumpeter and tundra swans, snow geese, and sandhill cranes taking off en masse at first light, after stopping to feed and rest on their annual journey to their breeding grounds in northern or western Alaska.

Embarking on my own migration to the Pacific Northwest, I again found my way to Audubon as the director of the Audubon Center at Seward Park. Inspired by Audubon’s commitment to engage with diverse communities, I led the charge to create a thriving Center that introduces more than 23,000 people each year to the wonders of nature closest to them – in their backyards and neighborhood parks.

I am excited to take the next steps on my journey with Audu-bon, having recently moved into the position of State Director. Here I will focus my efforts on effective conservation action to ensure adequate food and quality habitat for our marine birds

Snow Geese photo by Jack Meyers

Annual Report To Our Community Fall 2013

as they pass through on their annual migratory journeys. I will work to provide increased protection for our birds that call the sagebrush shrub steppe of eastern Washington home. And I will continue to ensure that people from all backgrounds find their way to conservation and stewardship of our natural world.

I am especially excited that Andrew Jay has joined our team as the new director of the Seward Park Audubon Center. A resident of southeast Seattle, Andrew brings an audacity of vision and an abundance of new ideas for increasing nature education opportunities for urban youth and families.

This most recent leg of my journey has been full of momentum and exploration. I’m thrilled to have a new Director of Bird Conservation, Dr. Trina Bayard, who brings a strength of expertise and remarkable ability to help us hone in on the most important things we can do to protect birds in our state and along the Pacific Flyway. Jen Syrowitz, our Chapter Associate, engages the entire Audubon network in focused, effective conservation initiatives.

I very much look forward to the coming year and all that we can accomplish together. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Joey’s HummingbirdsKimberly Bowen, Development Director

joey manson had never seen a hummingbird before he came to work as the Nature Store Manager at the Seward Center. He said, “I’m from the D.C. area and they don’t hang around there much.” He decided to put a hummingbird feeder outside the window of the Nature Store and soon had hummingbirds coming around, to the delight of Center visitors.

When we had a cold snap two years ago, Joey came in on Thanksgiving Day to thaw the feeder. He said, “The little guy sat there on the bush the whole time, watching me. And from then on we’ve had hummingbirds at our feeders every day. I always tell people, make relationships with your hummingbirds in the winter. They will love you for life!”

My Flyway: Conservation Through Youth Empowerment Andrew Jay, Seward Park Audubon Center Director

as our arctic avian travelers pass through seward park on their way to Mexico, Central America and the warm tropi-cal sun, I am reminded of my own transitions. This month I started as the new director of the Audubon Center at Seward Park after a decade of helping a diverse mix of young people cultivate a wonder and curiosity for the natural world through environmental science, outdoor exploration and play. Growing up on San Juan Island here in Washington, getting dirty and goofing off in the woods was part of my every day.

At college in Florida I learned that my passion was people and that education was where I wanted to spend my professional time. After graduating in 2003, I began a career with Outward Bound and the National Outdoor Leadership School, leading wilderness expeditions across the globe. On each trip my goal was to provide every young person with the tools to understand the complexities of the natural world, work effectively with their team of peers, recognize challenges when they see them and act to resolve those problems on their own.

In 2007 I moved back to Seattle and started Boys and Girls Outdoor Leadership Development (BOLD & GOLD) at the

YMCA with a focus on serving low-income youth. Over six years I grew the program from a small startup that served 30 kids a year to one of the largest wilderness programs in the state that served 1,400 kids on 70 different multi-week expe-ditions each year. After a summer sabbatical climbing moun-tains and working on my home in Columbia City, I joyfully joined the team here at Audubon. At the end of a decade tramping across the globe, my flyway has finally brought me home to my neighborhood to share my passion for under-standing the natural world, goofing off, and empowering the next generation of great conservation leaders.

I’d love to hear your ideas for the Seward Park Audubon Center. Come by to visit or drop me a line at ajay@audubon.org.

Audubon Washington l 5902 Lake Washington Blvd S, Seattle, WA 98118 l wa.audubon.org l 206-652-2444 Seward Park Audubon Center l 5902 Lake Washington Blvd S, Seattle, WA 98118 l sewardpark.audubon.org l 206-652-2444

Joey’s friend Raphael, an Anna’s Hummingbird, outside the Nature Store

Andrew, right, with the BOLD crew on Surprise Mountain

one year ago i joined the audubon fold here in Washington and what a fascinating journey it has been! As a Washington native who’s spent recent years living in other parts of the Pacific and Atlantic flyways, I came to the organization with a background in avian ecology and wildlife conserva-tion, and a long-standing appreciation and concern for our amazing regional biodiversity. My dissertation research at the University of Connecticut allowed me to spend untold hours in hot, buggy marshes in Long Island Sound trying to figure out what in the world drives a saltmarsh sparrow to pick one marsh versus another, and

how they decide where to place their nests once there! On a more sobering note, I also documented the incredible vulnerability of their nests to mere centimeter increases in sea level.

Here at Audubon Washington I am putting my avian ecology skills to use in developing our two primary state conservation initiatives: coastal marine birds and habitats, and the shrub-steppe birds of eastern Washington. These initiatives share a focus on identifying and addressing big picture science needs, engaging Audubon chapter members, providing opportunities for outreach to new audiences, and advancing measurable conservation actions that will protect these birds and their food and habitat.

We already know that the birds using these habitats are at great risk from a myriad of threats — the question is, what are we going to do about it? Answering this question has been my primary task over the last year and one that has involved a lot of reading, asking questions, listening, and formulating and testing ideas. As always, the challenge is not a lack of things to do, but what to do f irst! In the coming year I look forward to spending more time working with chapter volunteers to help shape our new Pacif ic Flyway Initiative to ensure sustainable food resources for marine birds. This campaign promotes an ecosystem approach to our bird conservation work by addressing the issues of forage f ish and aquatic resource management. I hope that many of you will be inspired to join us on this exciting and vital journey.

Birds in Peril: Science to the RescueDr. Trina Bayard, Director of Bird Conservation

Flocking Together in WashingtonJen Syrowitz, Chapter Associate

One year ago, Audubon President David Yarnold flew to Washington State to speak at our annual Audubon Council of Washington (ACOW) meeting because he truly believes that the strength of Audubon lies in our grassroots network of chapters. This message continued at the National Audubon Convention held here in Washington this past summer, where our own Helen Engle was awarded the National Audubon Society’s 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award. “People like Helen truly make Audubon amazing,” said Yarnold. “Her boundless energy and commitment to conservation amazes and inspires those around her. She demonstrates the power of a citizen network like Audubon.”

The momentum continued at this year’s ACOW meeting in Bellevue where we awarded our own Helen Engle Volunteer of the Year Award to Gretchen Starke of Vancouver Audubon. Throughout the day we heard remarkable stories of chapter conservation efforts and impacts that confirmed that we can achieve even more by collaborating across the network.

Gretchen Starke honored by Audubon Washington with the Helen Engle award, with Helen herself. Photo by Mick Thompson

From Grouse Roots to GrassrootsJen Syrowitz, Chapter Associate

native to the canadian prairies, my years leading up to Audubon have been filled with Native American sweat lodges, raptor handling and education, waterfowling, prairie chicken surveys and, more recently, Pacific Northwest explorations and wilderness survival instruction. I bring this spirit of adventure to a position focused on coordinating grass roots conservation efforts and facilitating strong connections among chapters and staff. Jumping in during the start of the legislative session, I worked with the Environmental Priorities Coalition and the Audubon Conservation Committee to mobilize the Audubon membership around clean energy investments and funding for natural resource projects. Through bird-focused messaging, Audubon members helped advance a conservation-centered agenda in Washington State. Going forward, I am excited to explore ways to use technology to facilitate collaboration and exchange of ideas so chapters can work together for the greatest conservation impact.

Washington’s Conservation TrailChristi Norman, Conservation Program Manager

the great washington birding trail program showcases the best places to find birds throughout our state. Now we are harness-ing the power of our citizen science network to preserve them. This year’s focus is the Columbia Plateau in Eastern Washington – a shrub steppe ecosystem like the one I grew up with in Wyoming, with its con-trasts of scorching sun and crunching snow, whistling winds and melodic bird song floating over sagebrush.

Thanks to Spokane Audubon’s leadership, we have made major strides in one year. Volunteer grouse lek counts at Swanson Lakes found 50 percent more grouse than last year and produced the documentation to qualify a new Important Bird Area that will be included as part of Audubon’s 100 most important areas for birds in the nation!

I am jazzed about working with our new talented staff and the eight eastern Washington chapters to protect, restore, and advocate for the shrub steppe ecosystem. We will also partner with Audubon Rockies to guide renewable energy, species conservation, and climate change planning. We are embarking on a songbird monitoring initiative that will contribute citizen science data to GIS models for western states to use in shrub steppe policy and habitat management. And I’ll be out there with chapter volunteers in the pre-dawn this spring, listening for the patter of dancing grouse feet.

Shrub steppe photo by WDFW

Ear to the Ground

Spotted Towhee photo by David Gluckman

Black & White & Red All Over

Pigeon Guillemots are an indicator species of the health of the Puget Sound marine waters. The success of this population depends on a healthy marine environment and an ample supply of fish. Whidbey Audubon Society partners with the Guillemot Research Group to monitor the 1,000 Pigeon Guillemots that gather into colonies to breed in the island’s seaside bluffs. Audubon Washington staff will leverage the findings of this and citizen science programs throughout the chapter network to build the case for protecting food sources for marine birds.

Pigeon Guillemot photo by Craig Johnson“We are citizens working together to bring about change in the way people think about birds and work to protect them and their habitat. The mantle of citizenship is for everyone. Wear it well and we’ll keep growing a strong Audubon across Washington.”

- Andy McCormick, President of Eastside Audubon

Trina on the lookout for Saltmarsh Sparrows

Jen with Great Gray Owl

Have a conservation or bird story, best practice, or tool to share with the membership? Email Jen at jsyrowitz@audubon.org. She distributes collective resources through list servs, e-newsletters, facebook, and the wa.audubon.org website. Want to be in the know? Ask Jen to add your email to the Washington enews list.

For more information and photos from the Guillemot Research Group, see pigeonguillemot.org.

Teen Leaders Conserve their Flyway Habitat

seward park audubon center partnered with ymca earth service corps to provide 234 high school students in ten high-need Seattle schools with after-school science training, birding and restoration experiences. The teens restored 18,635 square feet of habitat and reached 7,490 people with educa-tional campaigns focused on water conservation, non-point pollution and water quality. One group decided to build habitat for their neighborhood birds, including bird houses and signage to raise awareness in their community about the birds of their flyway.