By: Peggy Tolboom —
When it is time for the annual meeting, I am at my computer when registration begins so I can sign up for the field trips. For this event, I drove through early morning darkness and Austin traffic to arrive at Travis Audubon Chaetura Canyon Sanctuary. I ended up in a neighborhood and wondered if I was in the right place. I learned my hosts, Paul and Georgean Kyle had purchased a wooded lot on Lake Travis ( in the 80’s or 90’s, I forget) and built a home. Over the years they kept buying adjacent lots with the help of their Audubon chapter. The Kyles have donated this land to become Chaetura Canyon. And they are still living in their home.
In addition, the Kyles have been helping Chimney Swifts by building eight feet tall freestanding towers for the birds to nest in. They have also built towers for other landowners who would like to attract chimney swifts.
Chimney Swifts are migrating birds that are losing their habitat for building their nests in hollow trees. They build nests that stick to walls using their own saliva. There is only one nesting pair in each structure. So these towers are helpful for the species. Information about chimney swifts and how to build a tower can be found at chimneyswifts.org.
The Kyles also lead us on a hike through Chaetura Canyon. It was my first experience of one of the ecosystems in the area. It was beautiful with old growth juniper, creeping oxeye, and maybe even a Native American marker tree. This event is 5 stars!
Another event that made an impression on me took place at the Trade Counter at the Austin Nature and Science Center. I brought in some burr oak acorns (from Jan Roger’s tree). These were assigned a point value. Then I chose some petrified wood that also had a point value. This area of the nature center takes up a whole room. It has been in existence for so long, that parents who traded as children are bringing in their children to trade. I also give the Austin Nature and Science Center 5 stars.