THE MANHATTAN

CHRISTMAS BIRD
CENSUS 2007

You might see these sparrows...

photos by Dave Rintoul.
Lincoln sparrow White-throated sparrow
This is the one event of the year that brings out almost eveyone!! Dave Rintoul is the coordina-
tor and compiler - so contact him if you don’t already know who the leaders are or where to bird
(532-0104 or email him at drintoul@ksu.edu). He will get you into one of the six groups that
cover the Manhattan circle (centered at Anderson Hall).

Manhattan CBC Compilation Dinner -- Chili Supper

Join the NFHAS and fellow birders for a potluck supper at 6 p.m., Dec. 15, at the Seniors Service
Center, 412 Leavenworth, Manhattan. Feel free to bring a dish to share. Free-will donations to
NFHAS are welcome. Table service and drinks provided.
Enjoy good food, good companionship, and find out how this year’s count compares to
previous years. If you have any questions on what to bring for the supper or want to help setup,
please call Carla Bishop, 539-5129 or 532-1858 or email: cbishop@ksu.edu
P.O. Box 1932, Manhattan, KS 66505-1932
Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society,

prairie falcon
Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society
Newsletter
Vol. 36, No. 4 ~ December 2007

INSIDE Upcoming Events:

Dec. 6 Board Meeting 7 p.m.
pg. 2-Skylight plus-pete cohen Home of Tom & MJ Morgan
pg. 3-Stargazing 250 Summit Ave.
Printed by Claflin Books & Copies

Dec. 7 STARGAZING -Margy Stewart,

pg. 4-Spooktacular pics 11003 Lower McDowell Rd.7-9 p.m.
B (see pg. 3)
pg. 5-Spooktacular pics Dec. 8 Birdseed PICKUP at UFM 9-12n
pg. 6-Birding Report - kevin fay Dec. 8 Beginning Birding
8 a.m. meet at Sojourner Truth Park
Manhattan, KS

pg. 7-Take Note Dec. 15 - Christmas Bird Census

Dave Rintoul 532-0104
Dec. 17 Olsburg CBC - Gary Jeffrey
468-3587

 skylight plus
Winter’s coming, and though the nights are
pete cohen longer, with clearer air the stars are brighter.
And three of the most prominent perfor-
mance “stars” of the winter show – the con-
stellations of the Big Dog, the Hunter, and the Bull – have a new vaudeville routine to add extra
cheer. If you listen carefully you’ll hear them.

I’m Canis – O-rion – I’m Taurus –

And we have the whole winter before us.
Our stars will shine bright all through every night,
And we hope that you will not ignore us!
So when darkness is coming down early,
If you start feeling saddened or surly,
We’ll dance cross the sky.
So give us an eye,
And a cheer, not a sigh,
And be happy to join in our chorus!:
Oooh – I’m so glad that winter is coming,
I can hear the cold winds humming.
It may freeze up all my plumbing,
But I’ll love my rosy cheeks! I’m Taurus – I’m Canis – O-rion –
I can’t wait to see some icing. And we don’t want to see you cryin’.
The prospect is so enticing; So our stars will shine bright all through every night –
I’ll do any sacrificing And we hope we will hear you replyin’:
Just to walk on snow that squeaks! CHORUS
O-rion – I’m Taurus – I’m Canis –
And what we are here to explain is
That our stars will be bright all through every night
So sing with us, and our refrain is
CHORUS

There are other stars, of course, and one likely to draw attention is Fomalhaut of the Pisces Austrinus (the
Southern Fish) playing solitaire along the SW horizon early in the evening, and diving down about 9 p.m., the first
night of official winter.
As usual, the sky’s brightest star, Sirius, part of Canis Major (the Big Dog) in the singing trio, will be high
in the sky to the south at midnight on New Year’s Eve.
Procyon, the brightest of the two stars of Canis Minor (the Little Dog) will be to its upper left (below
Gemini) and huge and bright Betelguese (Orion’s right shoulder) will be to its upper right. Thus, a winter triangle
to match the summer one of Altair, Deneb, and Vega, all of whom will be sinking in the west. Altair – whose
setting does as good a job of marking west as its rising does of marking east – will leave a little before Fomalhaut
does, blueish Vega a little later, with Deneb (the tail of Cygnus the Swan in the Milky Way) hanging out till about
midnight on the solstice.
Going back to Orion, StarDate informs me that to the people of ancient Egypt that grouping represented
Osiris, the god of the dead. And that a narrow shaft in the largest pyramid, the Great Pyramid of Khufu, pointed
at Orion’s belt at the time that the pyramid was built.
Meanwhile the three of the planets will deserve equal billing this month. Venus is still a prominent bright-
ness rising in the wee hours though closer and closer before dawn. It is Mars, though, who carries the planetary
banner through the nights as the distance between us closes as we overtake him so that he shifts gradually retro-
grade in January – from west to east – each night while staying in company with the Gemini Twins. He’ll hit his
brightest note for the year on the 18th, and will be a cheery red sidekick to the rising full Moon on the 23rd.
Late in the evenings Saturn rises as a companion to Leo’s star, Regulus. Jupiter? – he ducks out early in
the west during the earliest sundowns (from December 3rd to 13th), then doesn’t bother to appear, perhaps sail-
ing off to Tahiti, incognito.
The Geminid meteor shower is due to peak the night of December 13th-14th. The winter solstice occurs
at 12a08 CST on the 22nd. Moon is new the 9th, 11a40; full the 23rd, 7p16.
© 2007 Peter Zachary Cohen
p.  Dec. 2007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter
Well there’s a moon, it’s in the sky Stargazing at
It’s called the moon Margy’s
And everybody is there including
Uranus! Neptune
the B-52’s

Margy had once again scheduled stargazing for
the Bird Runner Refuge. This time she had a prairie
walk planned in case of cloudy skies. The weather
forecast was for the skies to become cloudy in late
afternoon. I obsessively monitored the weather before
heading out. I had consulted all the websites that
predict cloudiness and it seemed certain that once
again we would be weathered out of stargazing. My
thoughts as I headed south on McDowell Creek Road
was about a prairie walk and how to explain to Margy
that I had damaged the view finder to her telescope
and not yet repaired it. But then the skies stayed
clear in defiance of all the predictions and satellite
photographs.
Margy had heavily publicized the event and
we had a big turnout with four telescopes present and
around twenty people. It took me longer than normal
to align the telescope and I must confess it distracted
me from the purpose of the event. I forgot to give a
tour of the constellations which is my strong point.
These new “go-to” have really made it possible for me
to find various objects. Still despite all of that it was a
wonderful night. The viewing area at the Bird Runner
Refuge is great and the skies are the darkest you will
find within twenty miles of Manhattan. There was no
moon in the sky as we had planned it for the night of
the new moon. There was a totally unexpected comet
in the constellation Perseus called Comet Holmes.
To me it has the eerie appearance of a huge cocktail
ice cube. We looked at the Andromeda Galaxy, open
globular clusters, closed globular clusters, Jupiter,
Mars and more. I put the telescope on both Neptune
and Uranus which are both in favorable viewing
position now. But my group was rather underwhelmed
by the sight. I admit that they were small and faint but
still, Neptune and Uranus! Come on people, this is
worth getting excited about!
So I think most people enjoyed the evening.
Margy has scheduled a December star gazing event
and I plan to participate and this time try to remember
to point out the constellations and have the telescope
ready to go. Kevin Fay

STARGAZING DEC. 7, 7-9 p.m.: The public is invited to enjoy the night sky at Bird Runner
Wildlife Refuge, 11003 Lower McDowell Rd. (19 mi. south of Manhattan,) Turn right after the viaduct
and stay on McDowell Creek Rd. as it crosses the interstate; the Refuge is exactly 5 mi. south of I-70, on
the lefthand side. Attendees should dress warmly and bring binoculars. Hot chocolate will be provided.
For more information call 776-8852

The Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society (NFHAS) kicked off the winter season with their first of
three bird seed sales, Saturday November 3. The sale of bird seed is one of the Society’s most important annual
fundraisers. Thank you to 42 members who placed advanced orders for bird seed and many who included a
donation!
The most popular mixes among members were Black Oil Sunflower, Flint Hills Feast and Cheap Cheep.
NFHAS members and volunteers who helped unloaded bags of seed, greeted members, pulled members’ orders
and loaded vehicles, managed the order forms, and delivered seed in-town -- Thank you to Carla Bishop, Walter
Dodds, Kevin Fay, Dick Oberst, Judy Roe, Jacque Staats, and Madonna Stallman.
We welcome all members to stop by the UFM during our next bird seed pick-up, Saturday, December
8, from 9 a.m.-12n. Enjoy a mug of hot cider and browse our selection of FHAS merchandise, just in time for
the holidays! If you are interested in volunteering with other NFHAS members during the seed sale, please
contact Annie Baker, 785-375-4633. (Our final winter seed sale will be in February.) Annie Baker, Coordinater
Dec. 2007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter p. 
 NFHAS Booth at
Sunset Zoo Spooktacular

The recorded sounds of the owls pulled in the children as

much as the candy did!

THANKS to all who helped:

Patricia Yeager, Jacque Staats, Annie Baker, Susan Black-
ford, Kevin Fay, Cindy Jeffrey and guest appearance by
Judy Roe!

The theme this year

was “pirates.” See
the “pirate’s parrot”on
Kevin’s shoulder!

p.  Dec. 2007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter

 More Spooktacular fun

It was a beautiful day too.

However, the prairie dogs
right behind our booth, didn’t
appreciate the owl calls!

Dec. 2007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter p. 

 Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
Birding The frumious Bandersnatch!
kevin fay Lewis Carroll

Beginning Birding Fieldtrip November 2007

The weather was warm and sunny with stiff southerly winds as we met
for the Beginning Bird Trip. Our group was 250% greater in number than the average of the previous two
months. At this rate in just a few months we will be dealing with thousands of participants. Our trip leader said
the birds were at her house so we proceeded directly to Lake Elbo. She was right and the place did not disap-
point us. There we saw big flocks of Cedar Waxwings and Robins. A Merlin tried to make a meal of a Robin but
it was able to escape. On the water we saw Pied-billed Grebes, Buffleheads, Shovelers and a Belted Kingfisher. At
the feeder we saw Red-breasted Nuthatches, White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpeckers, Brown Creepers,
Black-capped Chickadees, and Juncos. We had some time left, so we went to Pottawatomie County State Fishing
Number Two. One of our group, fairly new the area, was amused to hear us talking about “pot 1” and “pot 2.”
The full name is an invitation to abbreviation, is it not? There we saw Meadowlarks, Tree Sparrows, and Harris
Sparrows. We then returned to Sojourner Truth Park and ended the trip having encountered neither a “Jubjub”
nor a “Bandersnatch.” I will skip the traditional trip list (birding term) since I have mentioned the highlights al-
ready. Some may wonder why our trip lists are so short? The reason is we like looking at the birds and that small
number uses up our three hours.
The Beginning Birding Fieldtrip takes place on the second Saturday of the month. We meet at 8:00 a.m.
at Sojourner Truth Park on Pottawatomie Avenue between 10th and 12th Streets (near Howie’s Recycling). Bird-
ers of all levels are welcome. We will go to some local birding hotspot. Wear appropriate clothing but no strenu-
ous activity is involved, just some light hiking. We will return to Sojourner Truth Park by 11:00 a.m.
Kevin Fay

A HOT LUNCH AFTER BEGINNING BIRDING?

Beginning Birding will travel to Bird Runner Wildlife Refuge (11003 Lower McDowell Rd.) on Saturday,
Dec. 8. The McDowell Creek Community Center (3 mi. S of I-70, on the way to & from Bird Runner) is
offering a sloppy joe & hot chocolate lunch from 11-2n on that day, along with hay rides and van tours of
the Flint Hills. Beginning Birders may wish to enjoy any or all of these added events. The cost is a free
will donation to the community center. For more information, contact 776.8852.

The Tale of the Two Penguins

Two penguins side by side deep in thought

Walked on austral ice as is their lot.
“You appear silly to me!
Like wearing a tuxedo you see”
Said the other, “What makes you think I’m not ?”

Kevin Fay (based on a joke from tv show Twin Peaks)

Got a good birding story/encounter? Please share it with us - in “Bird Tales” WAITING
TO HEAR FROM YOU! Send me your “tales” photos welcome! e-mail cinraney@ksu.edu,
or mail them to me at 15850 Galilee Rd., Olsburg, KS 66520

p.  Dec. 2007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter

 Take Note

Dec. 7 - Stargazing
Dec. 8 - Birdseed Pickup
Dec. 8 - Beginning Birding
Dec. 15 - Manhattan CBC
Dec. 16 - Wakefield CBC
Dec. 17 - Olsburg CBC
Dec. 30 - Junction City

If you can’t make the Manhattan CBC, there are plenty of other ones
-- such as Wakefield on Dec. 16th, Olsburg on Dec. 17th, or Junction
City on Dec. 30th. Just go to
ksbirds.org/2007CBC.htm
to check other CBC in Kansas.
Local Events of Interest:
Dec. 4, 2007 5-7 p.m. the National Geographic photos of the Flint Hills will open at
the Junction City Arts Gallery (107 W. 7th)
Jan. 5, 2008 -Eagle Day at Tuttle Creek, Corps of Engineers

Recycling:
Go Green Curbside Recycling is a new business offering a great service. They offer an easy and cost
effective way to recycle. Residential customers can have their recyclables collected two times a month or on a
weekly basis. It is the goal of Go Green Curbised Recycling to help increase recycling in our community by
making it more convenient. For more information please call 410-8010 or email gogreencurbside@yahoo.com
And of course there is Howie’s Recycling for those of you who can do it yourself!

Dec. 2007 Prairie Falcon Newsletter p. 

 Northern Flint HIlls Non-profit Organization
Printed on 100% post-consumer U.S. Postage Paid
Audubon Society
recycled paper Permit No. 662
P.O. Box 1932
Manhattan, KS Manhattan, KS 66502
66505-1932

Return Service Requested

Published monthly (except August) by the Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society, a chapter of the National Audubon Society.
Edited by Cindy Jeffrey, 15850 Galilee Rd., Olsburg, KS 66520. (cinraney@ksu.edu)
Also available on-line at www.ksu.edu/audubon/falcon.html

Subscription Information: Introductory memberships - $20/ NFHAS Board

yr., then basic membership is $35/yr. When you join the Northern President: Patricia Yeager 776-9593
Flint Hills Audubon Society, you automatically become a member Vice Pres. Cindy Jeffrey cinraney@ksu.edu 468-3587
of the National Audubon Society and receive the bimonthly Audu- Secretary: MJ Morgan
bon magazine in addition to the Prairie Falcon newsletter. New Treasurer: Carla Bishop 539-5129
membership applications may be sent to Treasurer, NFHAS, P.O.
Box 1932, Manhattan, KS 66505-1932. Make checks payable to COMMITTEE chairs:
the National Audubon Society. Membership renewals are handled Membership: Jacque Staats
by the National Audubon Society and should not be sent to the Programs:
NFHAS. Questions about membership? Call 1-800-274-4201 or Conservation:
email the National Audubon Society join@audubon.org. Northeast Park Jacque Staats
If you do not want to receive the national magazine, but Butterfly Garden Susan Blackford
still want to be involved in our local activities, you may subscribe Education:
to the Prairie Falcon newsletter for $15/yr. Make checks payable to Land Preservatin Jan Garton
the Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society, and mail to: Treasurer, Newsletter Cindy Jeffrey cinraney@ksu.edu 468-3587
NFHAS, P.O. Box 1932, Manhattan, KS, 66502-1932. Fieldtrips: Patricia Yeager, Hoogy Hoogheem 776-9593
RARE BIRD HOTLINE: For information on Kansas Birds, sub- At-large: Tom Morgan, Paul Weidhaas, Kevin Fay
scribe to the Kansas Bird Listserve. Send this message <subscribe
KSBIRD-L> to <list serve@ksu.edu>and join in the discussions. Audubon of Kansas Trustee: Hoogy Hoogheem

Contacts for Your Elected Representatives ( anytime) Write, call or email @

Governor Kathleen Sebelius: 2nd Floor, State Capital Bldg., Topeka , KS 66612. Kansas Senator or Representative _________: State
Capital Bldg., Topeka, KS 66612. Ph# (during session only) Senate - 785-296-7300. House - 785-296-7500. U.S. Senator Roberts <Rob-
erts@senate.gov> U.S. Senate, Washington DC 20510. or Brownback <Brownback@senate.gov> U.S. Capital Switchboard 202-224-
3121. President G.W. Bush - The White House, Washington, DC 20500.