1. UPCOMING EVENTS - August and September, 2005

Below is a list of our upcoming field trips. Feel free to invite a friend, or even better, several friends! An experienced field trip leader will show beginners how to use field marks to identify butterflies in the wild. Beginners and children accompanied by adults are welcome on every butterfly walk and count. Directions to each location are found at the end of the Calendar. Water, hat, and sunscreen are recommended for every outing. Tick prevention methods include wearing long pants and using insect repellent.

Sun. Aug. 7. Butterfly Walk at Two Rivers National Wildlife Refuge (NEW). This is the only National Wildlife Refuge in the St. Louis area. Harvester, Checkered White, Bronze Copper and Dion Skipper are locally rare butterflies that are possibilities on the Refuge. Meet at the Visitors Center of Riverlands at 8:30 a.m.; the group will caravan from that point and cross into Calhoun County, IL by ferry. Facilities are very limited after leaving Riverlands. The terrain is flat, walking is easy, and we will drive from stop to stop. We will finish around 2:30 but people can leave sooner if necessary. There are other ways to go home (and other ferries) that do not require returning to Riverlands. Check a map if you are unfamiliar with the area. Bring lunch. Leader: Dennis Bozzay.

Fri. Aug. 12. 7:00 p.m. NABA Dinner at Sweet Tomatoes Restaurant, a salad buffet. Our dinner in June was so much fun that we want to get together again. Sweet Tomatoes is located on Watson Road about 1/2 mile west of Sappington/Crestwood Plaza, across from Lindburg Cadillac. Look for coupons in the Sunday Post Dispatch. You don't have to RSVP, just come and have a good time."

Sat. Aug. 13. "Bug Day" at Babler State Park, a family-oriented event, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. NABA-St. Louis will have a display table and be part of the fun! See article below.

Sat. Aug. 20. Butterfly Walk at Little Creve Coeur Lake (NEW). Meet at 10:00 a.m. at The Barn behind the Driving Range (explained in directions below). Like Riverlands, this is a popular birding location that also offers an interesting variety of butterflies. This is the only wetlands of any significance left in St. Louis County. Little Creve Coeur Lake was the topic of our March program. We will be walking at least some of the time through grassy fields so long pants and closed shoes are recommended. Tick precautions are a must. Leader: Torrey Berger.

Sun. Aug. 21. Our last 4^th of July Count of the season will take place at Horseshoe Lake State Park near Granite City, IL. Meet at 10:00 a.m. at the parking lot just inside the Hwy. 111 park entrance. Restrooms are available at the meeting location but are more limited on the 203 side (Burger King is the last opportunity). We could see several hard-to-find species such as Checkered White, Southern Dogface, Gorgone Checkerspot, Bronze Copper, Duke’s Skipper and Dion Skipper. Moderate walking involved. The "Tienda El Ranchito" Restaurant on Collinsville Road is a post-count lunch stop. Coordinator: Jim Ziebol.

Sun. Sep. 18. The fourth and last MDC Count at Busch Wildlife in St. Charles County. Meet at 10:00 a.m. at the Butterfly Garden (bottom of parking lot at Visitor’s Center). Leader: Jim Ziebol.

Sat. Sep 24. Our chapter will participate in Little Creek Nature Area’s first annual bioblitz! See article below.

Saves This Date: Sat. 10/8 butterfly walk at Hilda Young C.A.

DIRECTIONS:

Two Rivers NWR: Meet at the Visitor’s Center of Riverlands. We will cross over into Calhoun County, IL on a ferry. Directions to Riverlands: Take I-270 and exit at Hwy. 367 north. Stay on 367 until just before the Clark Bridge that crosses the river into Alton (do not cross bridge!). At the Fisca gas station on the Missouri side of the bridge, turn right into Riverlands and go straight on the main road. The Visitor’s Center is on the left. The Visitor’s Center is closed on weekends; however, rustic toilets are available along the main road – just continue on about a 1/4 mile beyond the Visitor’s Center.

Little Creve Coeur Lake: This marsh is near Creve Coeur Lake but it is not marked with any signs. Orientation: If you would happen to be traveling west on Page Avenue, just before you reach the new bridge that crosses the Missouri River into St. Charles County, look to your left (south) – that open expanse of land is the marsh. To get there, however, you need to be on Creve Coeur Mill Road. From Olive Street Road, turn north onto Creve Coeur Mill Road. Continue past St. Louis County Water Works Road. Soon you will see a driving range up ahead on your left and a railroad track running parallel to Creve Coeur Mill Road. As you approach the driving range, watch for an opening where you can turn left and cross over the RR tracks onto a gravel road. The gravel road is not marked by a street sign but there is a sign for the driving range. This turn-off is 1.2 miles from the intersection of Olive Street Road and Creve Coeur Mill Road. After you turn onto this gravel road, the driving range will now be on your right. If you miss the turnoff and pass the driving range (which will be on your left if you are still on Creve Coeur Mill Road), just turn around, retrace your steps, and then turn right into the driving range. Now that you are on the gravel road, drive PAST the driving range toward the tree line. The gravel road makes a sharp turn to the right. Keep going until the gravel road ends at some barn/storage structures on the left. Park there. You are now behind the driving range. We will meet here and begin our walk. Watch out for stray golf balls!

Horseshoe Lake: From downtown St. Louis, take I-64 (Hwy. 40) across the Poplar Street Bridge and stay on I-55/70 for several miles (do not follow I-64 when it bears to the right - stay on I-55/70 by bearing to the left). Exit at Hwy. 111. Go north (left) on Hwy. 111 and in about 3 miles you will see the entrance sign for Horseshoe Lake State Park on your left. Turn left and you will see the parking lot on your right. Pull in and we will meet here. There are rustic toilets at the parking lot.

Busch Wildlife Conservation Area: From St. Louis County, take I-64 (Hwy 40) across the Missouri River bridge and exit at Hwy. 94. Go left (south) on Hwy 94 approximately 1 mile to Hwy D. Turn right onto Hwy D and go about 1.5 miles to the entrance on your right. Turn right and at the T intersection, turn right again and proceed to the parking lot at the Visitor's Center. Meet at the Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden at the bottom of the parking lot.

2. METALMARK SURVEY MENTIONED IN AMERICAN BUTTERFLIES by Yvonne Homeyer

By now you should have received the Summer 2005 issue of American Butterflies. On the inside front cover, in "NABA News and Notes," our chapter’s Swamp Metalmark Survey is mentioned:

"Missouri contains the most extensive area from which Swamp Metalmarks are known. However, the current status of the species throughout this region is poorly known. If there are many viable colonies throughout the range of this butterfly in Missouri, then the species may be secure. On the other hand, if Missouri has only a small number of widely scattered colonies, then Swamp Metalmarks might best be viewed as globally threatened. To help assess the situation, NABA, led by the NABA-St. Louis chapter, has initiated a survey of Swamp Metalmarks in Missouri."

Scott Marshall, Dave Berry, Ron Goetz and Yvonne Homeyer are the coordinators of the four sites that we are checking this year in Jefferson, Lincoln, St. Francois and Franklin Counties. In addition, Dave Berry has visited a location in the Ozarks in Dent County. The flight time of this species extends into September, so if you would like to help with the Survey, contact Yvonne at homeyerATearthlink.net.

3. WHITE BIRCH PARK UPDATE by Mary-Eileen Rufkahr

In June, NABA-St. Louis members Jeannie Moe and Mary-Eileen Rufkahr met with City of Hazelwood parks superintendent Doug Littlefield about a proposed butterfly garden and nature area at White Birch Park.

During the meeting, Mr. Littlefield explained that there were tentative plans to remove the disc golf course and replace it with a butterfly garden and nature area. Mr. Littlefield’s plans included a wetlands area, pedestrian paths, and a prairie area.

NABA/St. Louis was asked to help in the planning of the project by suggesting garden plants for each area, upkeep and maintenance and other pertinent aspects of starting and maintaining such an endeavor.

Mr. Littlefield has recently contacted Mary-Eileen to report that the project, unfortunately, is indefinitely "on hold." It is his hope to get the project on track again sometime in the future, and he hopes NABA/St. Louis will again be agreeable to help.

4. "KID'S CORNER" WEBPAGE ADDITION by Mary-Eileen Rufkahr

Attention NABA/St. Louis members . . . Check out the newest section of our web site . . . The Kid's Corner! - http://www.naba.org/chapters/nabasl/kids.htm

In an effort to attract young people to butterflying and provide them with the necessary resources to pursue the avocation, we are offering this area just for them (and all kids at heart).

Right now, there is a selection of links to "fun" butterfly-related web sites, which offer everything from coloring pages to virtual jigsaw puzzles to tips on how to record their sightings to beginning map skills. A list of butterfly-themed books (both fact and fiction) is also available. Books for grades preschool through eighth are listed.

In the next few months, more features will be added to the "Kid's Corner"!

A special thanks goes to Dave Larson for being so receptive to adding this new section to the web site and for implementing the ideas so quickly.

If you have any good quality children’s butterfly web sites, books or other ideas to add to the kid's corner, please contact Mary-Eileen Rufkahr at: MerufkahrATaol.com.

5. MEMBERS IN THE NEWS:

Anne McCormack has won 3^rd place in the "Native Plant" category of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s contest for the best gardens in the metropolitan St. Louis area. That is a significant achievement, and one that Anne definitely deserves. Anne has a wide variety of plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies at her Kirkwood home. A Rufous Hummingbird spent several weeks at her garden in late fall several years ago, nectaring on Pineapple and Mexican Sage, which were still in bloom. Since that time, Anne’s garden has been known as the "Kirkwood Bird Observatory." Two years ago, about 15 of our members visited her garden on one of our chapter Garden Walks. Check the Saturday edition of the Post on 8/13/05 for more information about Anne’s garden. And thanks to Linda Virga for encouraging Anne to enter this contest!

6. LITTLE CREEK BIOBLITZ INFO…

NABA members. . .save Saturday, September 24^th on your calendar. Our chapter has been invited to participate in Little Creek Nature Area’s first annual bioblitz! This bioblitz is being geared toward elementary school-aged children and their families. NABA/St. Louis will have a table at the blitz. Members will be handing our informational literature and supervising a kids’ nature activity. Watch our September newsletter for more details!

7. ST. LOUIS IN THE NATIONAL NABA SPOTLIGHT by Ann Earley

NABA's national publication, the American Butterflies quarterly, features St. Louis in the Summer 2005 edition, from cover to cover! NABA members receive this publication as one of their membership benefits and will find St. Louis included in the "News and Notes" items in the inside front cover of the latest issue, where our chapter's Swamp Metalmark survey, currently in progress, is discussed. The inside back cover of this issue includes "Hot Seens" and mentions an early Monarch sighting April 15 at Lambert Airport by St. Louis chapter member and treasurer, Dave Berry. Thanks for putting St. Louis and our chapter in the national spotlight!

8. JOIN THE FUN AT BABLER'S BUG DAY by Ann Earley

Babler State Park is hosting Bug Day, a family-oriented event, on Saturday, August 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Information displays and activities will take place in and around the park Visitor Center. Our NABA chapter will have a display table at this event, and other organizations will also be represented, so plan to come out to the park and bring family and friends. For additional information, contact Babler State Park at (636) 458-3813.

Directions to Babler State Park: From the intersection of Hwy. 40 and I-270: Take Hwy. 40 west from I-270, 9.5 miles to the Long Road Exit. The exit goes off to the right, crosses back over Hwy. 40 and becomes Long Road. Continue straight, through the signal, on Long Road about .8 mile to Wild Horse Creek Road (Long Road dead ends here). Turn right on Wild Horse Creek Road and go about 3 miles to Hwy. 109 (there is a BP/Amoco station on the corner). Turn left on Hwy. 109 and go about .8 mile to Hwy. BA. Turn right on Hwy. BA and go about 1.5 miles to park entrance on the right.

9. MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION