SHERBURNE – For nearly thirty years, the Chenango Bird Club has gathered every month to discuss the state of our winged friends and to do their part in conserving and restoring natural ecosystems. At 7:00 on Wednesday Dec. 11, the Club will celebrate its 30 year anniversary following its regularly scheduled meeting at 6:30.
“We try to take trips out on a monthly basis to watch the bids in different locations,” said Charlene LaFever, member if the Chenango Bird Club.
Said LaFever, “We've maintained a close relationship with the Friends of Rogers, and Department of Environmental Conservation prior to friends of Rogers, so we spend a great deal of our time studying and watching up here.”
The Group holds its monthly meetings at the The Friends of Rogers facility’s' bird cabin. The Friends of Rogers drafted a Use and Occupancy Agreement with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation in April of 2011 after statewide budget and staffing cuts closed the former organization in December of 2010.
The agreement authorizes the Friends of Rogers to continue their environmental and educational mission by continuing several annual community events such as the Chenango Bird Club’s meetings, Earth Fest, Winter Living Celebration and Animals of Halloween.
According to LaFever, while the group primarily focuses on birds, the state of other wildlife in the local ecosystem is often attributed to specific bird populations and health.
One of the programs that the local club sponsors to aid in maintaining accurate records is the annual Sherburne Christmas Bird Count. First conducted in 1901 and managed by the National Audubon Society. The annual count will take place Dec 14, 2013 to January 5, 2014.
