November 2000            Volume 31            Number 3

November Program

Living with Fire in the Rockies
Most of us suffered some ill effects from the fires of last summer–breathing in the smoky air or gazing uneasily at the smoke-filled skies to the west. But few of us were as directly affected as Merrill Kaufmann.  Dr. Kaufmann’s log cabin between Fort Collins and Estes Park survived the 1993 Snowtop Fire (290 acres) and the recent 2000 Bobcat Gulch Fire (10, 600 acres), both of which burned across his 40 acres. Measures he had taken to reduce the risk of wildfire damage to the cabin have been covered widely in the news media and have served as an example of responsible land stewardship.  Dr. Kaufmann is a lead instructor on fire effects in ecosystems for senior fire managers across the country. His talk is the result of personal research over the past decade on the historical ecology of forests.  His work on the fire history and landscape ecology of unlogged and ungrazed Front Range ponderosa pinelands is providing the scientific basis for forest restoration in the Upper South Platte Watershed Protection and Restoration Project. This project intends to restore 4,000 to 5,000 acres per year to sustainable forest conditions that are much less vulnerable to catastrophic fire. 

Dr. Kaufmann has authored more than 100 scientific papers, including the most widely distributed Forest Service publication, “An Ecological Basis for Ecosystem Management.” This year he has been interviewed on NPR’s “All Things Considered,” ABC World News Tonight, Denver’s KMGH (Channel 7), and in the Fort Collins Coloradoan. This fall he is scheduled to brief Colorado state legislators involved in forestry, agriculture, and water issues.

WHEN: Thursday, November 9, 2000 at 7:30 P.M. Please join us at 7:00 P.M. to network with other people who share your conservation interests, chat with board members and enjoy refreshments before the program.

WHERE: Ludlow Room, Fort Collins Lincoln Center 417 West Magnolia Street

Fort Collins Audubon Society programs and field trips are free and open to the public

President's Message
Sue Kenney

Fort Collins Audubon Wants You!
Are you a member of Audubon? If not, please consider joining. A strong membership makes our chapter more effective locally and nationally.  Y ou have many membership contact options.  You may request that: 

So if you want to receive only the Ptarmigan, you can—but you must first become a member of Audubon.  Your membership dues help support our informative monthly
programs, publish and mail this newsletter, and promote conservation legislation and many other challenging conservation activities on local, state, and national levels.  Please use the form in this newsletter to join, or call any of our board members for more information.

Help Fort Collins Audubon Clean Up!

Saturday, November 11, 1-4 pm.  Fossil Creek Wetland Natural Area has a multitude of unnatural items on it.  Please help us clean them up!  Since Fort Collins Audubon adopted Fossil Creek Wetlands Natural Area last year, we have done some major trash removal, but more is needed.  This 230-acre natural area in south Fort Collins has long been a birding hot spot. The wetlands support a wide variety of migrant and nesting shorebirds. The upland portion has a prairie dog colony, and several species of raptors are seen throughout the year. Coyotes, rabbits, and foxes also use the site. This area, along with Fossil Creek Reservoir to the east and Duck Lake to the southeast, has been designated an “important bird area.”  We’ll meet on Saturday, November 11, on Trilby Road, just west of Timberline (there’s plenty of room to park there). Come for all or any part of the afternoon; we’ll work from 1 to 4 p.m. and concentrate on picking up trash and debris from the uplands. 

Bring water and work gloves (leather preferred). Wear work shoes or boots, and dress for the weather. Children accompanied by an adult are welcome.  Volunteers must sign a waiver at the clean-up. For information, please call Sue Kenney, at 482-4425 or 224-6118. 

This is a great way to volunteer with Fort Collins Audubon Society and see the immediate results of your efforts. We hope to see you there!

FCAS Field Trips

November 5 (Sunday). FIELD TRIP.  All day.
Reservoir Birding.  Meet at 7 am at the Lake Loveland swim beach (parking lot on the north side of the lake). From there, we will check several local lakes and work our way around southern Larimer County and possibly towards Union Reservoir. In the afternoon, we will visit several reservoirs north of Fort Collins. Time permitting, we may watch roosting gulls on Lake Loveland at dusk. Contact leader Joe Fontaine for more information, 482-4669 after 6 pm, jfontain@lamar.colostate.edu.

November 18 (Saturday). FIELD TRIP.  Half day.
Birding for BEGINNERS of ALL ages! 9 am - 12 noon.  Meet at 9 am at City Park Municipal Swimming Pool parking area (north side of lake). Children must be accompanied by an adult. Bring water and snack, and dress appropriately for the weather. For more information, call leader Beth Dillon, 970-490-2610, dillon_b@hotmail.com.

All FCAS field trips are free and open to the public.  Childrent accompanied by an adult are welcome.  To lead a field trip, or if you have field trip ideas or need more information, contact Nick Komar 970-416-7527 (nick.komar@juno.com)

DATES TO REMEMBER

The Fort Collins Audubon Society meets at 7:30 P.M. on the second Thursday of each month, September through May, excluding December, in the Ludlow Room at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center, 417 West Magnolia Street. Members and non-members are welcome at all meetings, field trips and special events.