Every June, AAS board members attend a lengthy meeting to discuss and decide the next year’s initiatives and financial decisions. Some projects are new, while some are continuing. The resulting initiatives guide us through our next year of activities.

ALACHUA AUDUBON SOCIETY 2025-2026 INITIATIVES

Summary of Initiatives:

• Connecting Kids with Nature – Young Birders Club
• Purple Martin Nesting Program
• American Kestrel Nesting Program
• Fall Birding Walks

The Board of Directors of the Alachua Audubon Society just completed a very successful annual planning meeting where we mapped out how and where we plan to direct our funding and support for the upcoming 2025/2026 fiscal year. Three successful projects – one educational and the other two conservation-based were approved for continued funding.

Alachua Audubon will continue providing important funding to Alachua County Public Schools to cover transportation costs for 3rd and 4th graders attending Morningside Nature Center and Sweetwater Wetlands Park nature-related educational programs. Several years ago, sufficient funds for bus transportation were eliminated from the school budget, causing 3rd and 4th grade nature programs to stall. For the third consecutive year, and in conjunction with Friends of Nature Parks who organizes the field trips, AAS will provide much-needed funds so these elementary school children can continue to experience nature and learn about conservation.

Our Purple Martin nesting program has produced exciting results with a record number of fledglings at each of the four sites where nest gourd systems were installed. The AAS board voted to expand this successful conservation project by purchasing and installing more gourd systems at Sweetwater Wetlands Park and Prairie Creek Preserve. AAS will also partner with Marion Audubon at Orange Lake Overlook by installing a new nesting gourd system and educational signs at this popular preserve that straddles Alachua and Marion Counties.

Alachua Audubon continues to provide suitable nesting opportunities for the Southeastern American Kestrel, a threatened subspecies that has seen a precipitous population drop throughout its breeding range. Started over 30 years ago by Bob Simons, this successful kestrel program has expanded considerably by partnering with Dr. Ken Meyer with Avian Research Conservation Institute (ARCI) to band and add transmitters to soon-to-fledge kestrels.

Little is known about where and how far this threatened species ventures after fledging and their associated survival rates, but data from this important study are now providing insights into dispersal patterns and survival of this charismatic falcon.

Our Backyard Bird Tour will be returning in February. This self-guided tour will showcase four to six local yards that are maintained to benefit wildlife through native plants, bird feeders, water features, and other wildlife attractants. If you are interested in offering your yard for the Backyard Bird Tour, please contact AAS at contact@AlachuaAudubon.org.

Advocacy for the protection of wildlife and its habitat has and continues to be an important role for AAS. These advocacy actions have included protecting state and local parks, opposing large-scale developments that would impact extensive sensitive habitats, advocating for keeping cats indoors, promoting more habitat for grassland species, protecting wading bird rookeries, and numerous other conservation-based projects. During our recent planning meeting, we realized that many of the important conservation and advocacy efforts by AAS and its volunteers are being forgotten. This spurred us to create a list of the critical contributions AAS has and continues to make in support of the AAS Mission Statement: to foster appreciation and knowledge of birds and other native wildlife, to protect and restore wildlife population and their habitats, and to promote sustainable use of natural resources.

AAS’s long list of achievements is provided at this link. Certainly, there are some accomplishments that escaped our memory. Please check out the wide range of important projects that this organization has embarked on. And don’t hesitate to contact us at contact@AlachuaAudubon.org if you recall an AAS project, advocacy effort or achievement that is missing from this list. Your membership dollars and donations allow us to invest in these actions that support our mission statement. If you are not a member of Alachua Audubon, please consider joining this important conservation organization. You may join at any level here.

Alachua Audubon continues to offer over 100 bird walks annually through weekend outings, Wednesday walks at Sweetwater Wetlands Park, Birds and Brews, the Santa Fe College Continuing Education Program, Bird Rambles, and field trips for school groups. Those outings are posted on the AAS website calendar as they become scheduled.

We welcome your attendance, involvement, and support with the Alachua Audubon Society.

By Debbie Segal, President