Lake Erie Islands Conservancy shares the commitment of its members and island community in the just-released winter issue of Island Green Scene. Highlights include major progress in the acquisition of Coopers Woods, success with the annual bird seed sale and Christmas Bazaar, and bird-banding news. Exciting 2018 events are also identified. Click the banner below to read the complete newsletter online!
Bird Banding Reaches Major Milestone on South Bass Island
Tom and Paula Bartlett banded their 1,000th bird on South Bass Island for 2018 yesterday, November 29, at the Brohl feeders on Mitchell Road. Number 1000 was a black-capped chickadee and is shown here with Lisa Brohl, Tom Bartlett, Teddi Morris, Paula Bartle
tt, and Nancy Welter. LEIC Board Member Marsha Collett stopped by to witness the event as well.
Other birds banded included downy and red-bellied woodpeckers, red and white-breasted nuthatch, house finch, northern cardinal, blue jay, dark-eyed junco, and American goldfinch. Tom and Paula also banded an eastern screech owl at the Lake Erie Islands Nature and Wildlife Center on Giving Tuesday during their island visit. Sincere appreciation is extended to Tom and Paula for their dedication to island bird conservation! Their data is invaluable as LEIC prepares grants to protect more of our island habitats.
USCG Conducts Buoy Removal at Put-in-Bay
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter BRISTOL BAY (WTGB-102), a 140 foot ice-breaking tug, announced its position near Catawba Island at 2:46pm while servicing aids to navigation around the Erie Islands. At 4:12pm the vessel was removing Red Buoy 2 just north of Gibraltar Island. A short while later the ship reported its position near North Bass Island. According to the USCG Web, “CGC BRISTOL BAY became the first Bay Class tug to receive a barge specially designed to perform aids to navigation work. The 120 foot long barge works with the ship to service more than 160 aids to navigation each year.
Courteous crew from USCG BUSL 49424
Also dutifully at work removing harbor buoys were crew members from the U.S. Coast Guard BUSL 49424. This vessel is a 49 foot Buoy Utility Stern Loading vessel utilized to service aids to navigation. This class of coast guard vessel is relatively new; the first ones placed in service in 2001. The 49424 is assigned to the U.S. Coast Guard’s 9th Coast Guard District headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. Home-port is Detroit, Michigan.
Beware Monday Weather!
Put-in-Bay looks to experience a messy weather scenario on Monday and Tuesday. The “hazardous outlook” from the National Weather Service:
Westerly winds will approach Gales Monday afternoon into Monday night.
National Weather Service Paints Early Winter Picture
National Weather Service, Cleveland Office, depicts a wintry scenario in the weather discussion posted Friday evening. A gale warning is in effect from 4am until 10pm on Saturday. WNW winds are expected to top 30mph.
An interesting scenario sets up Monday night into Tuesday as a coastal storm begins to form. The 12Z models show an inverted trough forming west of the Appalachians Monday night with moisture streaming north into the eastern sections of the forecast area. Precipitation type may likely be snow with this event. The models are trending colder with this event. Strong cold air advection and wrap around moisture with this system will keep snow showers over most of the forecast area. Lake effect snow will likely develop Tuesday afternoon and Tuesday night with the potential for more accumulating snow over the traditional snow belt areas.