Medway & Millis December 2017

Page 16 Medway & Millis Local Town Pages www.localtownpages.com December 2017
You Can Be Part of the Christmas Bird Count!
Millis Circle to Bird, Gather Data on
December 16th for National Audubon Effort
By J.D. O’Gara
It’s been a tradition for 118
years, 47 years in this area, and
you can join in! For over a century,
the National Audubon
Society has conducted the annual
“Christmas Bird Count” to
gather information about bird
species populations.
“It started in New York City,
and is now in this hemisphere
from Canada and Alaska all the
way down to the tip of South
America,” says Elissa Landre, Director
of Massachusetts Audubon
Society’s Broadmoor Sanctuary
at 280 Eliot Street, Natick. The
“Millis Circle Count,” she says
will take place in the 24-hour period
of Saturday, December 16th.
“The circle I compile for is
centered in Millis, Mass.,” says
Landre. “Each circle is 15 miles
in diameter.” The Millis Circle
includes such towns as Holliston,
Norfolk, Wrentham, Franklin,
Millis, Medfield, Medway, Sherborn
and Hopkinton—just a
handful in the radius.
“The intent is to count every
bird you can within each circle
during a 24-hour period,” says
Landre. Starting at midnight on
Saturday the 16th and going to
11:59 p.m. the evening of the
16th, novice ornithologists in
those areas, both in teams led by
captains at certain locations in the
area or right in their own backyards,
keep a tally of every bird,
reporting the largest group of one
type of bird that they see at one
time.
“It started in 1972 in Millis,”
says Landre, who heads up the
team in Holliston. She says anyone
can volunteer to participate
in the count. She assigns team
leaders, such as Jack Lash, of
Franklin, who will be bringing
students out in the field in that
area this year, and Skipper Farwell,
of Norfolk, who heads up a
team at MCI Norfolk.
“I assign people, says Landre.
“They get in touch with me
through the Mass Audubon website
(www.massaudubon.org) and
let me know, so I can cover as
many areas as possible. There are
some groups that go out for owls
in the predawn hours of Saturday
morning, and others start closer
to seven. I start at Broadmoor
and bird for a couple hours here,
then head to Sherborn and Holliston.”
Landre says folks can just bird
at their feeders for a minimum of
15 minutes.
“You count, for example, every
chickadee you see at one point in
time. If people feed birds and
want to keep track of what they
see and report that, that would
be great,” she says.” You’re going
to count only the maximum
number of birds you see at any
one time of the same species for
a minimum of 15 minutes. The
point is to try not to double count,
although that even happens in the
field.”
The group later gathers at
Broadmoor for soup and a wrapup,
with sector leaders report
what they’ve seen. Landre submits
the data to the national level.
Over the long period of time
the count has taken place, trends
and changes in bird populations
have become evident.
“Any one year will give you a
snapshot, but it won’t give you
enough data to look at trends.
If you look over a longer period
of time, you see trends, and you
have to ask yourself why.”
Some of the changes, for example,
have been a dip in scavenger
species such as herring gulls
and fish crows.
“We think we know why,” says
Landre. In early years, when the
Christmas Bird Count first began
in the area, there were many
open dumps. “All those gulls and
crows ended up at the dumps.”
Nowadays, these areas have been
turned into recycling centers and
treatment facilities, so the scavengers
moved on.
Another change, says Landre,
is an increase in some species not
seen here in the 1970s or 1980s.
“The Carolina Wren is moving
up from the south, and so is
the red-bellied woodpecker,” she
says. “Milder winters could make
it easier for them to survive.”
Loss of habitat has decimated
other bird populations in
the area, such as the American
Kestrel, and hairy woodpeckers
have given way to more downy
woodpeckers. Similarly, food
sources play a role, as with blue
jays, which increase or decline
BIRD COUNT
continued on page 17
fluoride
Now Accepting New Patients
High quality dentistry for the whole family in an affordable caring manner at a state of the art office.
Esthetic and Cosmetic Dentistry
Emergency Appointments (including dental trauma)
Conscious Sedation for children and adults
Orthodontics - braces and Invisalign
Root Canals • Implants • Dentures
Laser (tongue ties and frenectomies)
Same day, evening and Sunday appointments.
Shabtai Sapir DMD - Pediatric Dentistry
Minda Sapir DMD - General Dentistry
$
57 EXAM
includes exam, 2 bitewings,
cleaning and fluoride
(with coupon for uninsured only ($250 value)
EXPIRES 1/31/18
FREE orthodontic or
Invisalign consultation
EXPIRES 1/31/18
Use your 2017 insurance and FSA benefits
before the end of the year
65 Holbrook St., Suite 210 • Norfolk, MA 02056
(508)850-6992
www.norfolkfamilyandpediatricdentistry.com
Christmas Dinner
TO GO • AT YOUR HOUSE
New England
Steak & Seafood Restaurant
~ announces ~
ROAST PRIME RIB OF BEEF
LET US DO THE WORK FOR YOU
COOKED OR READY TO COOK YOUR CHOICE!
Call 508-478-0871
Full Boneless Prime Rib
Feeds approx. 14 People
Includes: Mashed
Potatoes, Au Jus and Dessert
$349.99
Half Boneless Prime Rib
Feeds 7 People
Includes: Mashed
Potatoes, Au Jus and Dessert
$199.99
Cinnamon Rolls $12.99 doz • Onion Rolls $12.99 doz • Pumpkin Bread $12.99 doz
All orders must be in by Dec. 22 & picked up on Dec. 24 between 1pm & 4pm
BONELESS FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE
INCLUDES = PRIME RIB COOKED OR UNCOOKED MASHED
POTATOES AU JUS AND DESSERT
“NOTE PLEASE ORDER EARLY”!!!!!!!