Program Meetings

Of Ravens, Wolves and People

LCAS and the Eugene Natural History Society are cosponsoring a Zoom program by John Marzluff  "Of Ravens, Wolves and People."

John Marzluff is a professor of wildlife science at the University of Washington (Go Dawgs). His talk will report on the travels of ravens as they forage among wolves, pumas, and people.

He has studied how humans affect birds through habitat fragmentation and increased urbanization, as well as the challenges of conserving birds on islands. Currently he is focusing on the habits of common ravens in Yellowstone National Park. Some ravens in the park commute long distances to exploit human and canine hunters, agricultural subsidies, sewage ponds, and dumps. Travels of 60 miles per day are not unusual. Others beg at picnic grounds and pullouts. One rings a bell for roast beef at the home of a tavern waitress. 

He has written or co-written six books about birds, most focusing on his favorites, the crows and ravens. While his work has focused primarily on corvids (ravens, crows, and jays), he has also worked with falcons and hawks throughout the world. Conversely, he is interested in all the ways that birds affect people. How, for instance, birds influence art or language.

Ram Papish will guide us on a tour of what he terms “the greatest wildlife spectacle in the world.” He will show us herds of wildebeest, zebra, and antelope stretching endlessly in every direction, and give us an opportunity to witness the eternal struggle between predator and prey on the expansive plains of Tanzania.

Looking beyond the megafauna, he’ll share photos of the wonderful and abundant birdlife of the African savannahs, wetlands and rainforests. And, as a bonus, his presentation will offer a window into the mysteries of Mountain Gorillas in Uganda. 

Wearing his science hat, Ram worked as a wildlife biologist studying birds and other wildlife, primarily in Alaska for more than 20 field seasons. Pivoting to his writing and artistic endeavors, he has also authored and illustrated two children’s books:

In a slide show of her original paintings, Janet Essley explores the fascinating life cycles of these long-distance migrants, the amazing physiology, and the conservation challenges they face. The Red Knot (Calidris canutus), a medium-sized sandpiper, is a regular guest along the Oregon Coast during its spring and fall migrations. Extremists among sandpipers, Red Knots migrate longer distances, breed farther north, display faster beach-probing feeding maneuvers, and ingest harder shelled mollusks than other sandpipers. 

Recording scientific knowledge through art forms from around the world, Essley’s Cultural Cartography of Red Knots is a unique collage of human and avian natural history. Research for this project has immersed Essley in shorebird scientific studies and an astounding variety of human artistic expression from around the world. If nothing else, she says, studying migrating birds teaches us that the world is one shared home.

To view the program using Zoom use the link below including the Meeting ID and the Passcode:

The meeting start time is 7 pm and you can "join" the meeting earlier, starting at 6:50 pm. The coronavirus has required many changes in our lives, including to our upcoming Program Meetings. Fall’s Audubon meetings will be online only. The meetings will be “live” on Zoom, but also recorded so that you can access them from the website afterwards.

Colombia is a dream destination for birders. Its avifaunal richness is partly due to the branching of the imposing Andes into three mountain ranges: the Eastern, Central and Western Andes. Two rivers, the Magdalena and Cauca, create the great valleys between these mountains. The altitude ranges from a few hundred feet to over 18,000.

Lane County Audubon Society Board elections will be held at the September program meeting. 

The slate of candidates are all incumbents: Ramiro Aragon, Rachael Friese, Jim Maloney, Ron Renchler, Debra Schlenoff, Maeve Sowles, and Rebecca Waterman.

In this slide show presentation, Eugene author and hiking guru William L. Sullivan will take us on a tour of a dozen new or dramatically changed trails in the area between Salem and Bend. All are featured in the newly released fifth edition of his guidebook, “100 Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades.” Included are a new path along the Deschutes River north of Bend, a new bird refuge trail at Salem, and several reopened trails to wildflowers in the Cascades. He’ll also discuss the effects of wildfires and the Forest Service’s new permit system. Along the way, expect anecdotes about local history, plants, and outdoor lore.

William L. Sullivan is the author of 22 books and numerous articles about Oregon, including an “Oregon Trails” feature column for the Eugene Register-Guard.