Past Issue February 2006
In This Edition:
1) Upcoming Events NABA's MISSION STATEMENT: 1. UPCOMING NABA PROGRAMS AND EVENTS – Feb., Mar., and Apr. 2006: Feel free to invite a friend, or even better, several friends! Fri. Feb. 24. 7:00 p.m. NABA-St. Louis get-together at Sweet Tomatoes, a buffet-style restaurant on the south side of Watson Road just west of Sappington (Crestwood Plaza) and across the street from Lindburg Cadillac. (see story below) Sat. Feb. 25. 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. "Home Gardening Seminar: Workshops for Spring Gardens." Anne McCormack will teach two of the six seminars, "Native Plant Gardening" and "Butterfly and Hummingbird Gardening." Meramec Community College, course #HORT 708. Call 314.984.7777 to register. Fee is $20. Thurs. Mar. 2. 7:00 p.m. "Butterflies and Birds of New Mexico and the Chiricahuas," St. Louis County Library Headquarters. on S. Lindbergh across from Plaza Frontenac. Jim Ziebol and Yvonne Homeyer will present a video of their trip this past July to New Mexico and southeast Arizona. Butterfly highlights include: Pine White, Dull Firetip, Tailed Copper, Arizona and Ares Metalmarks, Atlantis Fritillary, Milbert's Tortoiseshell, Fulvia Checkerspot, Leda Ministreak, Sylvan Hairstreak, several species of Blues, and numerous skipper species; plus many birds, dragonflies and lizards. This program is co-sponsored with the Webster Groves Nature Study Society (WGNSS). Wed. Mar. 22. "Butterfly Gardening" class taught by Dennis Bozzay at Florissant Valley Community College, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Course #HORT 765. Call 314.513.4444 to register. Fee is $6. Wed. Mar. 22. 7:30 p.m. Joint program with the Missouri Native Plant Society (MoNPS), Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center. Chip Tynan of the Missouri Botanical Garden will present a program entitled "Bare Bones Gardening for Butterflies and Hummingbirds Using Native Plants." Members may be familiar with Chip's "Garden Q&A" column in the Saturday Lifestyle section of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Directions to Powder Valley: From the intersection of Interstates 44 & 270, take Watson Road to Geyer Road. Turn north on Geyer for 200 yards to Cragwold Road. Go west on Cragwold for one mile to the nature center entrance on the right, and follow the drive to the parking lot. Enter the building through the left entrance. Sun. Apr. 9. Butterfly Count at Busch C. A. for Mo. Dept. of Conservation. Meet at the Butterfly Garden at 10:00 a.m. Tues. Apr. 18. "Spring Butterflies" class offered at Meramec Community College, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Call 314.984.7777 to register. Taught by Yvonne Homeyer and Jim Ziebol. Sun. Apr. 23. Starts at 12:00 Noon. Location TBA. Tues. Apr. 25. "Spring Butterflies" class offered at Florissant Valley Community College, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Call 314.513.4444 to register. Taught by Yvonne Homeyer and Jim Ziebol. Sat. Apr. 29. Butterfly Walk. Time and location TBA. 2006: Looking Ahead - Butterfly Counts and Walks: Sat. May 20. Tyson Research Center Butterfly Walk. 2. THANKS FOR A GREAT NABA-ST. LOUIS WINTER PARTY--POTLUCK, SLIDE SHOW, AUCTION, AND PRIZES!! by Ann Earley Thanks to all those who participated in and attended our chapter's post-holiday or "winter" party on January 22nd. It was a fun afternoon of eating, socializing, bidding on terrific silent auction items, and enjoying wonderful photos of butterflies and dragonflies submitted by chapter members. About 20 members were in attendance. Special thanks go to Kate Boden and Dave Larson for making this event a success. Kate coordinated, prepared and presented the Powerpoint show of members' photos. In addition to all this, Kate coordinated and managed the silent auction of items donated by members to benefit our chapter's finances. (We raised nearly $300.00 in the auction!) Many thanks go out to chapter members who generously donated items for the auction. And once again this year, Dave hosted the party at Washington University's Tyson Research Center, a great venue for our get-together. Attendance prizes for the party were donated by Mary-Eileen Rufkahr and Yvonne Homeyer - thanks to them, each attendee at the party selected a prize to take home as a reminder of the fun afternoon at Tyson! The food was delicious – including Kraig’s lemon meringue pies (one of which was also auctioned off with some stiff competition and bidding), Yvonne’s new and tasty rice casserole, Sarah’s delicious shrimp dish, and Dave’s “crockpot pizza.” We look forward to another great year of butterfly walks and activities in 2006, which will offer many opportunities for photography and butterfly enjoyment. Best wishes to all NABA-St. Louis members for a new year filled with many butterfly (and skipper) sightings! 3.“SWEET TOMATOES” NABA DINNER is SCHEDULED by Yvonne Homeyer. NABA-St. Louis is having another informal get-together at Sweet Tomatoes Restaurant on Friday, Feb. 24 at 7:00 p.m. No need for reservations - just come as you are. This is a good opportunity to catch up with friends and start thinking about those Spring butterflies that are just around the corner. Buffet price with coupon is about $8.00. Sweet Tomatoes has some excellent pasta, salads, and desserts! 4. KID’S CORNER WEBSITE UPDATES by Mary-Eileen Rufkahr Visitors to the NABA Kids' Corner… as you peek into this part of our website, you may hear the sound of construction... that's because we're "building" a new section for everyone (of all ages) to enjoy... the official grand opening will occur in early March… until then, it may be a real "puzzle" to figure out just what's going on! In the meantime, drop by the Kid’s Corner links or “fun butterfly websites”and check out the newest link with super-cool butterfly info: http://mpin.nbii.gov/insects/kidsbutterfly/index.html Maintained by the The Mountain Prairie Information Node, the site has coloring pages, information on how to determine if what you see is a butterfly or a moth, and photographs of butterflies from around the globe! You can even submit a butterfly-related question for one of their experts to answer personally! That's it for now from the Kids' Corner… we've got to get back to building that new “puzzling” addition! 5. NEW BUTTERFLIES IN TEXAS, provided by Mike Quinn, in NABA-Chat. The article below is Copyright 2006, Digital Chicago Inc. and appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times, Travel News, January 1, 2006: http://www.suntimes.com/output/travel/tra-news-indiana01.html ” Longhorn State attracts butterflies new to U.S.” MISSION, Texas -- Nature enthusiasts in south Texas are catching some of the first-ever sightings of certain butterflies in the United States. A broad-tipped clearwing was spotted recently at the North American Butterfly Association's International Butterfly Park in Mission, Texas, by about a dozen spectators, according to Sue Sill, association executive director. The creature's transparent wings are ringed in orange but otherwise the transparent wings ''look like cellophane,'' Sill said. Also, the region's popular queen and monarch butterflies have been seen. New U.S. sightings are not unusual in the area because the Rio Grande Valley is so close to the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, home to nearly 600 butterfly species. For more, go to www.naba.org and click on '' NABA Int'l Butterfly Park.'' 6. NABA-ST. LOUIS MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION… YOUR OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS, AS OF APRIL 2005: (AT = @ in Email address)
NEWSLETTER ARTICLES WELCOME: If you have questions or suggestions, e-mail Ann Earley (aee623ATprodigy.net). MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION: If you would like to join NABA, please fill out this application. You will become a member of both NABA and the local St. Louis Chapter, if you live within the St. Louis metropolitan area or nearby Illinois area: Name ____________________________________________ Dues are $30 (regular) and $40 (family) per year. Please make check payable to NORTH AMERICAN BUTTERFLY ASSOCIATION. Please mail this form with your check to: Scott Marshall, Membership, 609 West Lockwood, St. Louis, MO 63119. |
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes
it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” - Maya Angelou -
Editor: Dave Larson, Email: larsrblATearthlink.net ("AT" = @)
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