At 6:02 pm Vice-President Barbara Saunders opened the meeting.
Vice-President Saunders introduced Anita Sanchez who presented on “Carolus Linnaeus and the Naming of Everything.” Using photographs from her children’s book, “Karl, Get out of the Garden,” Ms. Sanchez explained how Linnaeus’s love of nature began in his childhood garden, and while his mother nagged him to become a lawyer, he followed his passion and became one of Sweden’s most famous sons. Ms. Sanchez described Linnaeus’s classification system, including the division of everything into two kingdoms – plant and animal – and the shocking effect of his descriptive language about plant parts. She also explained the seven classes he established, from Aves, his favorite, to Paradoxa, a class of animals that were either extraordinary to him or potentially imaginary. She concluded by saying that while his birthday is a national holiday in Sweden it should be celebrated more widely as his system allowed people from all over the globe to be able to effectively communicate about the natural world.
At 7:30 pm President Andrew Rubenfeld called the regular meeting of the society to order.
Recording Secretary Thomas read the minutes of the January 9, 2018 meeting and they were approved as read.
Secretary Thomas announced three new member applications, Ms. Maureen Farrell and Mr. John Karwowski, both nominated by Rochelle Thomas and Mr. Robert Shapiro, nominated by Stephen Chang. The nominations were approved unanimously by the membership.
President Rubenfeld announced that new field cards were available for purchase and reminded the membership to pay their dues. He stated that new society buttons and the last of Sarah Elliott’s books were available on the stage. He encouraged members to bring books for donation at upcoming meetings.
President Rubenfeld then reminded the audience about the upcoming Annual Dinner on March 13th before reading the slate of officers who are up for election. The candidates included: Barbara Saunders for President, Lydia Thomas for Vice-President, Anders Peltomaa for Secretary, Ruth Hart for Treasurer, Hamish Young for Recording Secretary and Jon Hyman for Editor. He stated that nominations can come from the floor and should be sent to Secretary Thomas by the end of the month. He clarified that only members can submit nominations.
At 7:36 pm President Rubenfeld introduced Bryan Watts, Research Professor at the College of William and Mary, who presented on, “Tracking Whimbrel: Moving Toward full life Cycle Conservation in a Migratory Shorebird.” Professor Watts began his presentation by illuminating the fact that shorebirds are some of the most migratory species on the planet. He then described the migration cycle of the Whimbrel, explaining their stop on the Delmarva peninsula to refuel on fiddler crabs, increasing their weight by 50% before flying for five days straight to the breeding grounds in the Arctic. He highlighted the struggle that Whimbrels face in the Canadian Maritimes due to a surge in blueberry farming and the fact that as the Arctic dries out the breeding zones have been shifting. He concluded his presentation with the story of one of the birds in his tracking program, Hope, who was featured in a book by a children’s author in St. Croix, stating that even though tracked birds show that Whimbrel populations are now 20% below sustainable levels, it is possible to shift mindsets and make policy and enforcement changes.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:49 pm.
Respectfully submitted by
Rochelle Thomas, Recording Secretary