Audubon in Action

Movers & Shakers

A Conservationist to His Core

Donal C. O'Brien Jr., who has served as chairman of the board of directors of Audubon for almost 15 years, is stepping down this year, in December. During his tenure, he has compiled a unique record of achievement. O'Brien first joined the board in 1976 and served through 1988, the last five years as chair. He rejoined the board in 1991, which means his service has spanned 25 years and the administrations of four Audubon presidents. We spoke to O'Brien recently at his office in Connecticut.

Question: What do you think have been Audubon's major achievements in recent years?
Answer: Creating a clear vision for the future. We have the mission right: "To conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth's biological diversity." And we have a great leader, in John Flicker, to help us realize our mission.
Q: What do you believe were your most important contributions as chairman?
A: From an organizational standpoint, supporting our strategic plan's goal to create state offices in all 50 states. We have 27 in place at this time, and we hope to have one in every state by the end of the decade. From a programmatic standpoint, leading the effort to create Important Bird Areas [IBAs] across the United States. Personally, this goal was my highest priority. I believe IBAs will be Audubon's defining conservation initiative in the Western Hemisphere.
Q: What specific things should Audubon do in the future?
A: Complete the goal of establishing 50 state offices. Complete the goal of identifying and protecting 5,000 IBAs in 50 states by 2010. Be the leader in international bird conservation, especially in the Western Hemisphere. We are well on our way to achieving the first two goals. We have a long way to go in accomplishing the third.
Q: What about relations between National and the chapters?
A: In the states where we have state offices, the relations are generally good. However, many chapters feel threatened by the state offices' and National's focus on Audubon centers. We need to do a better job of recognizing the value of Audubon chapters and involving them in our strategic plan for Audubon's second century.
Q: Will you tell us about Audubon's 2020 Vision to build a network of nature centers?
A: Audubon's 2020 Vision is now defined in terms of "rolling" one- and five-year goals. Audubon centers are important to our goal of creating a culture of conservation, but we must also be in a position to address immediate threats to birds, other wildlife, and their habitats. We cannot wait until 2020 to do this. Conservation is our ultimate goal. If we do not achieve conservation, we will have failed to realize our mission.
Q: Do you want to talk about the most rewarding aspect of your long service on the board of directors?
A: The most rewarding aspect of my service on the Audubon board has been the opportunities it has given Katie and me to travel around this great country, to visit places we would never have otherwise visited, and to meet people we would never have otherwise met.

—Frank Graham Jr.

Audubon Center
Banding Together for Birds

Banded at the sanctuary, the black-and-white warbler favors mature deciduous forests; it is the only North American warbler to regularly forage on bark.

Photo by Victor Schrager

This year marks the 80th birthday of the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center, making it the father of all Audubon centers. Almost the entire 14-acre patch of land in Oyster Bay, New York, was donated in 1923 by W. Emlen Roosevelt as a living memorial to his cousin, a patron saint of conservation. The place was a favorite boyhood haunt of the president's, and, fittingly, his grave overlooks the property's north end.

Trish Pelkowski, the sanctuary's director, gives me the grand tour. The north acreage is wild; thick woods populated by mature tulip trees and evergreens provide shelter for the 125 species of birds that frequent the sanctuary. In front of the center building is a garden lush with inkberry bush and cardinal flowers, Christmas fern and wild geranium, growing back now that autumn's here. In the understory, a migrating ruby-crowned kinglet has paused for a moment's respite. "So many birds stop to rest here," says Pelkowski. "It's a place where you feel the meaning of sanctuary, of being in this safe place for wildlife."

The sanctuary is committed not only to saving birds and Long Island's increasingly threatened ecosystem but to fostering communities that place a high value on the natural world. More than 100,000 people a year take part in the center's educational programs on subjects from forest ecology to "A World of Insects." Pelkowski says the center enjoys a happy marriage of education and research. "Songbird and raptor banding have been an integral part of the work here for 20 years, as well as on Long Island's beaches and the nearby Hoffman estate. It's a crucial and universal tool for the study and conservation of birds."

Just about every avian species in North America has been banded since the Smithsonian's Paul Bartsch decided to band 23 black-crowned night herons in 1902. In the United States and Canada more than a million wild birds are being banded each year; 60 million have sported ankle bracelets since 1908.

Lorraine Bondi-Goldsmith, licensed bird bander and volunteer extraordinaire, offers to demonstrate the art of banding. A mist net is rigged near the center's sliding doors, offering those inside a discreet view. Ernest Mutchnik, wildlife caretaker, mans the record book, in which each banded bird's unique number is entered. The Bird Banding Lab in Patuxent, Maryland, where today's data will be sent, issues 23 standard-size bands, as well as 5 others fashioned to fit the smallest of hummingbirds or the largest of trumpeter swans. "Banding is a difficult thing to teach," says Bondi-Goldsmith. "Typically, I have people watch the first few times, then have them try removing some of the larger species from the net, such as blue jays and grackles, before taking the smaller chickadees, wrens, and warblers. But there is one rule that everyone must follow: Find out which side of the net the bird flew into [to make getting it out as safe as possible]. How? By looking at the rump, the last part of the bird to go into the net."

Almost immediately a brown creeper is in the net. Bondi-Goldsmith steps outside and carefully extricates the tiny speckled creature. "I take the wings out first," she says. "Everyone develops their own technique, but when I tried the method of feet first, they would always get tangled up in the net."

Yellow warblers win some rounds against brown-headed cowbirds, which parasitize up to 40 percent of their nests. By ingeniously building a floor over the interlopers' eggs, they prevent them from hatching. Nests with two stories are common, and as many as six stories have been reported.

Photo by Victor Schrager

The diminutive bird is brought inside, all but invisible in Bondi-Goldsmith's hand, save for the curve of its slender bill. "I'm holding it across the palm of my hand, head and neck between index and middle finger," she explains. "The rest of the fingers are wrapped like a loose cage around the bird to keep it secure." Bondi-Goldsmith checks the creeper's wingpits. Its weight is good, and it has completed the annual molt of its feathers.

Mutchnik fixes a silver band around the creeper's leg and enters its preassigned number. "I call it their social security number," Bondi-Goldsmith says with a laugh. The numbers enable scientists to track the dispersal, migration routes, longevity, and nesting sites of North American bird species, as well as to monitor endangered species and mortality causes. "Over the last few years we've recaptured several wood thrushes that were banded here—we can tell by the number. The presence of a cloaca or brood patch on the bird tells us that they're using the area to nest. When you think about it, it's pretty amazing—they've survived the migratory flight up from the Yucatán, thousands of miles."

Our bird, though, grows impatient. We step outside—Bondi-Goldsmith opens her hand. Whoosh! The creeper disappears into the woods, its identity forever assured. If you find a band or recover a banded bird, report it by calling 800-327-2263.

—Sydney Horton

for information: Call the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center at 516-922-3200 or go to www.audubon.org/affiliate/ny/trs/.