Sky Hunters Winter 2007 Newsletter Welcome to the Sky Hunters Winter 2007 Newsletter. We plan on providing a helpful, informative, electronic newsletter on a quarterly basis. Please let us know if you would rather not receive this newsletter by sending an email to accipiter@sky-hunters.org Sky Hunters Environmental Education was founded to teach respect and awareness for wildlife and habitats in California. We take great pride in providing small group presentations geared toward enlightenment, enrichment, and empowerment. Experience has shown us that the personal introduction of these wild creatures will capture your imagination, and hopefully your heart, and our conservation message will be delivered with wildlife and wild places in mind. 2007! Happy New Year! As we settle into the New Year, Sky Hunters takes a look at 2006 with “A Year in Review”. Please take a minute to read about how we did and our thoughts for the future. Tax Time. In looking over your tax forms, are your kicking yourself for not donating enough charitable contributions to non-profits? Start the New Year with a good pledge and make a donation to Sky Hunters Environmental Education now. Your tax-deductible donations will help Sky Hunters continue to provide quality environmental education to our community. Easter is early this year - April 8th and is right around the corner. Give a unique gift to your special someone that will be long remembered. Sponsor a Raptor as your Easter give to someone special. They will receive a beautiful 5”x7” picture of the sponsored education raptor, a certificate of sponsorship identifying that it came from you, and the knowledge that you think so highly of them to sponsor a bird in their name. Please make sure and request by the end of March for timely mailing, certificate not guaranteed for delivery if received after March 31st. Introduction to “Who is Eating Whom” presentation. Ever wondered want goes on in a Sky Hunters presentation. Check out the details of what make our food chain presentation so popular in our local schools. Sky Hunters Nest box program. Updated information on the placement of American kestrel nest boxes in our community. A few boxes are still available for placement, could you be the proud landlords for a new family of locally nesting kestrels?
A Year in Review - 2006Sky Hunters Environmental EducationAs we settle into the New Year, it is a good time to look back and review our accomplishments and plan for the future. I am very thankful for all the new friends I have met this past year and for the lasting relationships that continue to grow and flourish. I am pleased with Sky Hunters’ progress for 2006. We have just completed our second year of operation and have exceeded last year’s presentation totals by providing 120 presentations! Local schools in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties were our primary audience; we reached over 5,500 school children with our message of respect and awareness for our furred and feathered friends. Adult and mixed age group public presentations reached an additional 120 people. Sky Hunters also participated in three Environmental Education Day booths for the community, with estimated attendance of approximately 1,400 local residents. Presentations are generally an hour in length and focus on natural history and the importance of wildlife in our communities. By far the most popular program requested this year was “Who is Eating Whom”, our very interactive food chain presentation. Although we were able to pilot the “Commuting on the Wing” presentation with Bill Overton’s 4/5th grade class at Addison Elementary School in Palo Alto, there has not been much interest in our other three presentations “Dinos to Modern-day Birds” looking at avian evolution through fossils; “Why People Can’t Fly,” on comparative anatomy; and “Commuting on the Wing” on migration. Mr. Overton and his students gave us valuable feedback that will allow us to expand and re-focus some of the materials in the “Commuting on the Wing” presentation. Meet the BirdsWhat about our wonderful birds, without whom there would be no Sky Hunters? I learn so much from these wild creatures every year, and 2006 was no exception. Each and every one of these noble raptors deserved to live its life free and wild, but unfortunate circumstances prevented that opportunity. Sky Hunters tries to make their lives as full and happy as possible. Enrichment and plenty of quiet time to just “hang out” is important. Daily interaction and attention is provided, as well as an appropriate diet, fresh air, and private space. We have two Great Horned Owls, one under permit with Wildlife Rescue, Inc. Our older bird will be 16 years old this spring and This summer was spent working with our Red-tailed Hawk. She came into the program in May 2006 from an elementary school vice-principal, who is also a falconer, and had to get used to me as a new handler. These birds are very smart and don’t always transfer their loyalty willingly. After giving her time to settle in and molt out a new set of feathers, we started training in September to figure out who was the boss. She has definitely decided she is the boss and I let her believe it as long as we get the job done. She is a spectacular example of a large, broad-winged hawk and I know we will form a strong partnership in the years to come. Our American kestrel continues to be the classroom charmer. He is comfortable with most every situation and seems to instinctively know what is needed. He is Sky Hunters’ first bird, arriving in September 2004 just after our permits were approved. When I first started thinking about species of birds for the organization, and how each species would work with the others to provide a lasting impression for our audiences, I knew we needed a Barn Owl. Watch for us in the New Year We will be looking for new ways to encourage you to conserve and protect wildlife and wild places. I am already planning to create an adult slide presentation and am looking at the possibility of more auditorium-sized presentations. While we will always focus on small, interactive groups, we are being asked more and more to present to larger venues. As long as the birds are up to it, so am I. Sky Hunters’ “Sponsor a Raptor” program is underway to help ensure quality care and support for our birds. Our “Sponsor a Presentation” program is also starting to provide scholarships to schools or teachers who can’t find funds for our presentations. We have also created a poster contest to inspire classrooms and individuals to show their support of California wildlife and habitats. Check out the website at: http://www.sky-hunters.org/Meet.html for more information. This past fall Vince Moreschini of Gilroy volunteered to make 150 American kestrel nest boxes as his Boy Scout Eagle project. Sky Hunters is looking at the decline of American kestrels in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties and hopes to increase the numbers with quality nest sites. As these boxes go up we will be monitoring them for occupancy, breeding, and hopefully survival for the next few years. Many factors contribute to the decline or perceived decline of a local, common species, but nest boxes will not hurt the environment or the population. Find out more information at: http://www.sky-hunters.org/kestrelnestbox.htm I wish to thank my husband, Grant, who continues to support my efforts with much love, encouragement, and the financial backing needed to keep us going. Sky Hunters has a dedicated Board of Directors, without whose input, support, (and hand-holding) I would not have enjoyed such a successful year. Thank you, Lisa Konie and Shirley Tavenier, for your dedication, support, and hard work in keeping Sky Hunters moving forward. A special Thank You to our veterinarian, Jane Johnson-Ricker, another calm, rational soul in love with these beautiful birds. To Nancy Conney, of Sky Hunters Raptor Rehabilitation and Education in San Diego, my mentor and friend — what did you get me into? Thanks for encouraging me through each step of the process.
And to all of Sky Hunters’ supporters & friends, we wish you all the best for the New Year. Watch for Sky Hunters and let us know how we are doing!
“Who is Eating Whom” – Sky Hunters makes the food chain come alive with an introduction of top of the chain predators, the raptors! To read more click here!
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Sky Hunters Environmental EducationSponsorship and Wish ListWild animals have their own ideas of romance; it is true of our local birds of prey. The female American kestrel can’t seem to resist the male kestrel’s performance of aerial climbing and diving displays while vocalizing, yet it is the presenting of a mouse that makes her his. Great Horned owls are a little more sedentary in their courtship. The male sets up a territory, hooting to defend it and calls to attract the female. She joins in the hooting, getting to know you talk, long before they set eyes on each other. As the hooting becomes a duet, they move closer to each other’s location with the male bobbing to the female. And again, presenting a mouse to show he will be a good provider. This all happens in November and December for early nesting of these birds. While this may not be your idea of courtship and how you would demonstrate your love for that special someone, it is nice to know that we humans are not alone in our quest for romance. Give your special someone a unique gift by sponsoring an educational bird in your sweetheart’s name. Your sponsorship of an Educational Raptor helps provide food, medical care, and updates to housing for one of the raptors and will help us care for these wildlife ambassadors and ensure the success of our educational programs. Your sweetheart will receive a beautiful picture of your sponsored raptor as well as a certificate of sponsorship identifying the gift is from you. This tax-deductible donation will show your love and your wild nature! Sponsor our Great Horned Owl - $250Sponsor our Red-tailed Hawk- $150Sponsor our Barn Owl - $100Sponsor our American Kestrel - $50Enrichment Donations Ideas If you would rather provide a donation for specific items, here is our wish list suggestions that will help provide enrichment and entertainment for the birds.
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Sky Hunters Summer 2006 Newsletter
Sky Hunters Spring 2006 Newsletter
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Either as an introduction or as a refresher to the food chain topic, students and teachers alike find it a fun and stimulating way of looking at the connection of all life, and the importance of a balanced and healthy ecosystem. Our “Hunters of the Sky – Raptor Biology” presentation emphasizing wildlife habitat and our responsibilities in sharing the same habitat, came in a close second in popularity. Thanks to first grade teacher Alma Rogers of Cumberland Elementary School in Sunnyvale, our “Around the Clock with an Owl and a Hawk” storytelling presentation was perfected for the younger students (preschool through 1st grade). We are able to feature the topics of co-existence, respect, and habitat use through a half-hour story, then follow up the story with differences between birds and mammals in a second half-hour of supervised hands-on instruction with bones, feathers and skulls. With Mrs. Rogers’ help, we are planning to develop a new 1st grade-specific curriculum program in 2007. As of this past September, we were also pleased to again offer the “Silent Hunters – Owl Biology” presentation when our newly acquired barn owl began to go out to presentations. 
hasn’t gone out on many programs this year. His declining health has kept him close to home and we are evaluating his retirement and his quality of life. His young buddy, who came into Wildlife Rescue as a nestling in 2002 and who was raised by the original owl, has stepped up admirably, developing his own style in programs. He is a master at demonstrating how an owl can look straight down his back, and is comfortable displaying the impressive wingspan of his species. He reminds everyone that he is not cuddly, and is not above nipping his handler if pushed too far. Both of these magnificent owls are a joy to work with and a privilege to have in our organization.
Little did I know that the individuals chosen for our organization would bring such emotional struggles for me. In August my mentor from Southern California asked if I would be interested in another Barn Owl, this individual birds feathers had never developed properly. After a lot of thought, I agreed to take a look at him, but I wasn’t sure I would be returning with a bird. Well, I did not take that particular individual, but my mentor also had a charming female owl that had fallen from a palm tree at two weeks of age, fracturing her hip. This Barn owl now happily resides with Sky Hunters. With this additional bird Sky Hunters is able to provide all of the programs we had originally planned and mix the combination of birds best suited to each audience.