It looks like we’re emerging from a much needed but very wet winter, and now spring is finally in the air. The raptors on my property always start breeding behavior early, and the Great-horned Owls, Cooper’s Hawks, Red-tailed Hawks and Kestrels should have young hatching soon.
Moving from extremely local to national news, after more than a year of discussion, National Audubon Society has decided not to change its name, in spite of John James Audubon’s slave-owning past. With this announcement, there are strong opinions on both sides of the issue. You can read CEO Dr. Elizabeth Gray’s statement about the decision here. Audubon CA and other state offices do not have the option of changing their names, but the over 450 chapters of National Audubon do, and several have done so already. The Yolo Audubon board of directors would like to hear from you on this topic, which they will be discussing in the next few months. Please send an email to Yolo Audubon and let us know what you think.
We will be hosting a clean-up at Babel Slough on May 20, and we need volunteers to make it happen. More information will be posted on this effort in early May, but please consider it, and let me know if you’d like to participate. It’s one of Yolo County’s best birding spots, and it needs our help.
Don’t forget CA Duck Days on April 29. It’s a wonderful family event. Yolo Audubon will have a table in the exhibit area and would love to have more volunteers staff the table. If you’d like to join us, just send an email to Yolo Audubon, and we’ll share more details.
One final note, we will not be able to hold Members Memories as an in-person event for our last meeting on May 17. Instead we will have a Zoom meeting with the always popular John Sterling, who will share images and information from one of his recent birding trips.
Good birding!
— Ann Brice, President