February Field Trips
Lake Guntersville and Surrounding Area
February 4, 2012
All-day field trip
Lake Guntersville is one of the premier birding sites in the state for observing waterfowl and raptors in winter. During the morning we will make several stops around Guntersville Lake to view ducks, grebes, gulls, coots, cormorants and other water birds. If we are lucky to have good sunshine, you can enjoy some amazing colors and plumage patterns of ducks up close with a scope. We will enjoy a picnic lunch along the Guntersville waterfront.
Following lunch we will have a couple of birding options available to us: a trip to Guntersville lock and dam, where nesting Bald Eagles are certain to be crowd pleasers. As of this writing we are also trying to arrange a visit to the adjacent "Hawk Farm," which has hosted a variety of interesting raptors in recent years. A visit to the state park will provide an up close view of the damage and subsequent recovery from the April tornadoes that ripped through Alabama.
Travel Plans: We will depart at 7:00 a.m. from the parking lot of the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, located at 2612 Lane Park Road Birmingham, AL 35223. The group will caravan up AL-79 North to Guntersville and stop at the McDonald's in Guntersville around 8:30 a.m. for coffee, biscuits, and a rest room break. If you would like to meet us at the McDonald's, turn left at the intersection of AL-79 and US-431, go a few blocks and McDonald's will be on your left after the fork in the road. The address is 1745 Gunter Avenue, 35976.
Be sure to have a full tank of gas, your favorite picnic lunch, drinks, binoculars and a birding scope if you have one. Dress for the predicted weather and bring some extra warm clothing, as Guntersville can be much colder than Birmingham.
Trip leaders: Ty Keith (602-8037) and Susan Barrow (253-8667).
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 01 February 2012 18:37 )
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Monthly Meeting - Join us at the Birmingham Zoo for our exciting and informative Monthly Meetings and featured speakers.
Audubon Teaches Nature - Oak Mountain Wildlife Center and Interpretive Center offer a perfect setting for our family friendly educational series offered on Sunday afternoons.
Flying Wild - Teachers love using Flying Wild with their students. Sign up for a workshop soon!
BAS Executive Director Position Opening - The Birmingham Audubon Society (BAS) is seeking an Executive Director to fulfill its mission of advocating conservation and promoting greater knowledge and enjoyment of birds, other wildlife, plants and habitats through educational programs and events.
Click here for more information.
 The Whooping Cranes are in Alabama, still!! They have officically halted their migration efforts for this year!
UPDATE: Feb. 1, 2012 The Whooping Cranes are still in Alabama and OM has decided to hault their migration efforts this year. They have not posted their plans for introducing the class of 2011 into the wild. Check the BAS website later for details or visit Operation Migration Field Journal.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 01 February 2012 18:48 )
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Lost Soles and Snipe Hunting in the Bankhead
BAS Bankhead Field Trip Report December 3, 2011
 Thirteen field trippers left Birmingham promptly at 7 am and drove to the Bankhead Forest to enjoy the birds, the waterfalls and all the beauty that makes the Bankhead Forest such a delight. Our first stop was the Kinlock Shelter, a massive c liff rock shelter on the western side of the Bankhead, which has attracted  people for thousands of years. American Beauty Berry was in abundantly fruiting at the mouth to the shelter. The protected moist parts of the cliff were filled with ferns and liverworts and lots of other plants. We saw Black and Turkey Vultures, Juncos, and Blue Jays here. A few minutes down the road from the Shelter we stopped at Hubbard Falls. Hemlocks shroud this beautiful 45 degree cascade that rolls into a narrow cliff lined canyon. The path down was a little tricky but offered a great view of the canyon and the falls.
Our lunch break was at the Sipsey River Picnic grounds. We found a beautiful spot beside the river and enjoyed our lunch. Only after lunch did we determine that the picnic tables were on the shelf above the spot where we were  sitting. Here we saw Belted Kingfisher, American Goldfinch, Yellow bellied Sapsucker, and dusky salamanders on the hike up stream after lunch. From the Sipsey River we pushed on to the Brushy Lake Recreation Area.  The wind was blowing and we saw some Pied Billed Grebes, and Phoebes with their creamy breasts. A small brown snake (Dekays ) was also encountered. For our last stop of the day we intended to visit Angel Falls, but the deer hunters made us reconsider and we backtracked to Upper Goldmine Creek falls. This falls is a short hike from the road and no hunters appeared to be in the proximity. We visited the beautiful falls, seeing, Golden-Crowned kinglets and Red Bellied Woodpeckers. Kristin Bakkegard found more salamanders for us at the bottom of the waterfall. During this walk Mat Hunter experienced shoe failure. His entire sole came off the bottom of his boot. As the sun was setting we found ourselves in the dark forest and can clearly report that after an extensive search in this area we found no Snipes. In addition to Kristin and Matt, participants included Ken Archambault, Janice Bonnett, Jim King, Linda Harman, John Morgan, Carolyn and Phil Sankey, Lynn and Bill Niebuhr and Lori Oswald and Hans Paul.
Photos by John Hugh Morgan. View more of John's spectacular photos from this trip.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 16 December 2011 15:14 )
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