FIELD TRIPS
HUMMER
Thursday Oct 22 (Date Change!!!)
Meet at 10AM at The Reptile Discovery
Center, 2710 Big John Drive, NE of Deland
on Hwy 92. The cost is $5.00 per person.
We will have a tour followed by the 'Venom
Program'. Bring a brown bag lunch if you
would like to eat in their picnic area
afterwards. RESERVATIONS REQUIRED
Saturday Nov 21
Birding by Ear at Hontoon Island with
Harry Robinson
September 28th Meeting
The Woman’s Club of DeLand
128 W. Michigan Ave.
WILDLIFE REHABILITATION
CENTER
Dr. Erin Holder
6:30 PM Mix and Mingle
7:00 PM Short Meeting
Wheelchair accessible, public welcome
October 27th Meeting
The Woman’s Club of DeLand
128 W. Michigan Ave.
The Water Beneath Your Feet
The story of our West Volusia groundwater.
This 20 minute PowerPoint gives an
overview of the West Indian Manatee; a
short history of Blue Spring and the
importance of water in sustaining our very
existence and that of the plants, animals and
marine creatures that inhabit the area. This
presentation also provides the audience
with a basic understanding of some of the
geological and hydrological features of the
Floridan aquifer that underlies the entire
state and the perils that threaten this great
aquatic wonder.
Presented by Blue Springs Ambassador and
DeLand-Deltona Beacon columnist
William C. Hall.
6:30 PM Mix and Mingle
7:00 PM Short Meeting
Wheelchair accessible, public welcome
THE
NEWSLETTER OF WEST VOLUSIA AUDUBON SOCIETY, INC.
A Chapter of Audubon of Florida and National Audubon Society
Published monthly September – April (except for December)
VOL. 42, NO. 1 September/October, 2009
President’s Message
We are looking forward to seeing everyone at our first monthly
meeting this September! This will be an important meeting as the
membership will be voting on donating funds to the Wildlife
Rehabilitation Center planned for Deland. Dr. Erin Holder and
Maggi Hall will be on hand to provide information about the
center and answer questions. This project originally started as a
Gopher Tortoise Rehabilitation Center, but has changed to include
all kinds of wounded wildlife. This is important because Kathy
Paynter will be retiring this year (though she will still be helping
Dr. Holder with some special cases). The WVAS Board has spent
all summer discussing our potential involvement in this project,
and we are excited at the opportunities to provide environmental
education along with wildlife rehabilitation. For more detailed
information, be sure to attend our September meeting.
This year’s fund-raising efforts will be focused on Audubon
Adventures and the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. To better
educate our membership on what Audubon Adventures is all
about, we will have a display table at each meeting showing the
materials the students receive and information about the program.
Another fund-raiser we’d like to have this year is a garage sale, but
we need someone to volunteer the use of their garage. Please
contact any of the board members if you think you might be able
to help us with this.
We are happy to welcome our newest Board members: Janet
Marks and Harry Robinson will serve as the Hospitality Co-
Chairs, and Vivienne Powis will be serving as Co-Chair for Field
Trips along with Sylva Parillo. Maureen Fitzpatrick will serve as
Historian. As always, look for sign-up sheets at each meeting to
volunteer or participate in chapter activities. We are always
looking for new ideas for field trips and programs, so please don’t
be shy about contacting the appropriate individuals if you have a
good idea!
Karyn Hoffman
LYONIA ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER TO OPEN
On Oct. 17, a larger Deltona Regional Library, all-new Lyonia
Environmental Center and 1,000-seat amphitheater will open to
the public in a day-long celebration. The opening program is
scheduled for 9:30 a.m. and will be followed by an open house
and festivities.
 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Lynn Bates CITIZEN SCIENCE
Robert Chauvin
Tamela Koshiol On October 3rd, West Volusia Audubon is
Richard Garity coordinating the Fall bird count for the Restoration
area in Edgewater, Florida. We are in need of
David Clark
volunteers who are both capable birders, and able
Helen Reilly to walk for 1-2 hours. We will be working with
Glenda Tichenor volunteers from other Volusia Audubon Chapters

NEW MEMBERS
Cecil Cummings and will meet at 7:30 AM. Volunteers will receive
Quigley an orientation packet prior to the count which will
provide background information, maps and
R D Clare
instructions. The count normally takes about 2

WELCOME
Sue Murphy hours, depending on the route being counted.
Cheryl Kenlin RSVP by leaving a message and your contact
Bruce & Carol Johnson information with Karyn Hoffman at 386-290-2751
Ralph Baker or Harry Robinson at 386-943-8342.
Alonda Potts
Mrs Harry Bierley GARAGE SALE
Gale Mattson We need a new place to hold a garage sale.
Brenda Rankin Requirements are some storage space for a
Lester Stoll month or so and room to hold the sale. Traffic
Dana Gass and parking are important considerations. Call
Gale Waters Arnette at 734-5840 for more information.
L Ridings
Janice Spencer MAKE IT, BAKE IT, GROW IT AUCTION
Diane Vanbrunt November 24th
Norman Miller Please gather up your items and help make this
Juanita Schlee year’s event a great fundraiser. Small items will be
Christie Littler on the silent auction tables. Bigger items will be
Martin Singer auctioned at a live auction This event should be
Stetson University
very lively and lots of fun. Ask your friends and
businesses for donation items. Bring lots of guests.
Dr James Price
Make fundraising easy and fun! No program. Wine
David Thorpe and cheese will be served.
Mariellen Teeters
Faye Quinlivan BOARD MEMBERS
Andrea Westmorland
OFFICERS
Robert Liles Co-Presidents Karyn Hoffman 956-1097 alafia1@earthlink.net
Charles Smoak Arnette Sherman 734-5840 arnette@cfl.rr.com
VP Programs John Eggert 736-6922 jeggert@cfl.rr.com
John Strawn VP Conservation Karyn Hoffman 956-1097 alafia@earthlink.net
Carol Magee Secretaries Gloria Winans 789-1445 glor@embarqmail.com
Lynn Bowen 736-1688 Abowen27@cfl.rr.com
Tom Mason Treasurer Marylou Weiner 738-7443 mlweiner@mindspring.com
Barbara Mccann
COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN
Dorothy Champaigne Education Donna Reynolds 228-2783 rondonreynolds@gmail.com
Linda Christiansen Hummer Editor Marge Koshiol 801-5111 marjoriekoshiol@bellsouth.net
Hummer Production Ed Sherman 748-2538 esherman1@cfl.rr.com
Jim Burkhalter Membership Cyndy Barrow 736-6519 abarrow1@cfl.rr.com
Jeanne Bell Hospitality Janet Marks 775-4447 jmarks2450@netzero.com
Harry Robinson 943-8342 sirharrydeland@gmail.com
Zina Franklin Field Trips Sylva Parrillo 734-4821 sylva05@earthlink.net
Joseph Small Vivienne Powis 216-9361 vivienne@lindenleafla.com
Ways & Means Vic & Gloria Johnson 822-9700 vjohnson009@cfl.rr.com
Mr/Mrs Hart Historian Maureen Fitzpatrick 304-4544 maureendaytona@bellsouth.net
Bird Counts John Eggert 736-6922 jeggert@cfl.rr.com
 The Brown-Headed Cowbird Mafia
When I first started birding, my favorite bird was
the Brown-Headed Cowbird. I loved the crazy
whistling songs it produced as well as its beautiful
iridescent feathers. That was until I happened to
pick up an old Audubon birding guide. Unlike my
Sibley guide, the Audubon guide said these birds
were parasites, leaving their eggs in the nests of
other birds. The baby Cowbirds would then
compete with the nestlings for food and possibly
cause some of the other nestlings to starve because
of their bigger size and appetite.
A recently released decade-long study by Jeff
Hoover of the Illinois Natural History Survey
reveals some interesting information about this
parasitic relationship. Hoover wondered why the
host birds did not eject the Cowbird eggs or
nestlings, and began a study in the Cache River
watershed in southern Illinois using nest boxes for
Prothonotary Warblers.
Until this point, it had been assumed that once the
Cowbird laid its egg, it moved on and left the host
parent to incubate and feed the young. But when
researchers removed Cowbird eggs from the Warbler
nest boxes, they found the Cowbird parent was
lurking nearby and would return to depredate the
nest, destroying the host birds’ eggs. Only 60% of
these nests were successful. If researchers left
Cowbird eggs in the nests, the success rate was
greater than 95%, with less than 6% of accepter
nests being ransacked.
When the researchers inserted a piece of wood
with a smaller access hole into the nest boxes and
then removed the Cowbirds’ egg, no nests were
ransacked because the Cowbirds were unable to
squeeze through the smaller nest hole opening to
depredate the nest.
The researchers concluded that the reason the host
birds allow parasite eggs in their nests is because
their own young will have a greater chance of living
(because the Cowbirds won’t ransack the nests).
They also found that the predatory tactics of
Cowbirds extended to Warbler nests that had not
been parasitized, ransacking unparasitized nests 20%
of the time (they call this tactic “farming”),
suggesting that Cowbirds do benefit from their own
predatory behaviors. It is believed that because of
loss of habitat, there will be greater pressure on the
more than 100 species of birds the currently accept
Cowbird parasitism. Look out Sopranos—the
Cowbird Mafia is in town!
Karyn Hoffman
PROPOSED BYLAWS CHANGE TO BE
VOTED ON AT THE OCTOBER MEETING
BYLAWS
WEST VOLUSIA AUDUBON SOCIETY, INC.
Revised 1/28/03
ARTICLE V. BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 4. The Board may spend up to $250.00 without prior
approval by the general membership.
The WVAS board would like change the $250 limit to $500.
The $250 amount was set in 2003 when we had a much smaller
bank account and just about everything cost less.
AUDUBON ADVENTURES
It’s Audubon Adventures time again. It’s time to sign up as a
sponsor of this exciting program designed by National Audubon
to teach 4th and 5th graders about their natural world. Science
is again a FCAT component this year in the public schools. The
Audubon Adventures kit is gladly received by local teachers
trying to increase their students' information level!
Please consider being a sponsor! To become a sponsor of an
AA class, we ask for your check for $46.65, which pays for 4
issues of the newspaper, with each student receiving his or her
own copy, 4 posters, and a teacher’s manual packed with
information, research materials and fun ideas. Besides
introducing environmental science to students, the program
also meets national language arts standards.
Sponsors may share the cost of a class. You may select your
preference of a school, and teacher, or you can leave it to
Donna to decide for you. Marylou Weiner, our treasurer, will
accept your check at the meeting, or you can mail it to WVAS,
P.O. Box 1268, DeLand, FL 32721-1268. Thank you for making
the decision to become involved, or to continue with the
program.
Donna Reynolds
Education Chairman
It’s more important than ever to sponsor a class. The
teachers have very limited money to spend on their
classes this year. With the current economic
situation, teachers have less personal money and less
county money for their rooms.
Please join Audubon of Florida on October 23 and 24 in
St. Petersburg for the 2009 Audubon Assembly and
dialogue on Coastal Conservation and Climate Change.
All-inclusive Assembly registration package is only
$120/person if booked on or before October 6, 2009.
PACKAGE includes programs, workshops, pizza party,
cocktail reception (with cash bar), Friday evening
banquet, breakfast, two lunches, and field trips.

WEST VOLUSIA AUDUBON SOCIETY, INC.
P.O. BOX 1268, DELAND, FL 32721 - 1268
PLEASE EXPEDITE DELIVERY
HAS MY MEMBERSHIP EXPIRED?
The date above is your expiration date.
734-4773
775-2600
2085 S. Woodland Blvd.
DeLand, FL 32720
FAX: 386-734-6999
NONPROFIT ORG.
US POSTAGE PAID
MID-FL, FL
PERMIT NO. 20578
DATED MATERIAL
PLEASE EXPEDITE DELIVERY
DATED MATERIAL
FL Lic. # AL 11216
The business cards that you see here are from individuals
that have donated money to help support our newsletter.
ARNETTE SHERMAN, REALTOR®
Please support them in their business if you can. Cell 386-748-1499
Office/fax 386-734-5840
e-mail arnette@cfl.rr.com
www.edshermanrealty.com
ED SHERMAN REALTY LLC
1325 S. Spring Garden Ave.
DeLand, FL 32720
Vivienne Powis R.N.
administrator
386.740.9117
vivienne@lindenleafla.com
1180 Jackson Ranch Rd www.LindenLeaFLA.com
DeLand, FL 32724
EMAIL: olenasty@ hotmail.com FL Lic. # AL 11216
Website www.volusia.org/birding/wvaudubon.htm