Date: Friday, 11-Sep-2009 7pm
Speaker: Bill Streeter, Delaware Raptor Center

Featuring live hawks, falcons, owls, and eagles. Get up close to these magnificent birds, and learn about their true place in our environment and our collective responsibility to preserve their habitat. This program is great for the whole family.

Date: Friday, 2-Oct-2009, 7pm
Speaker:  Donald "Doc" Bayne, Educator, Sterling Forest State Park

Doc Bayne will venture again into this fascinating topic as a follow-up to his presentation for RAS last spring and his guided walks this summer. Many more images and historical details, which he gleaned from archival resources in Navy archives in Washington, D.C., will illustrate his talk.

A Virtual Tour of the Hackensack River Watershed

Date: Friday, 6-Nov-2009, 7pm (Note: moved to Music Room)
Speaker: Bill Sheehan, Hackensack Riverkeeper

Bill Sheehan will discuss springs flowing from Hi Tor Mountain in New City through Rockland and Bergen County reservoirs, through the New Jersey Meadowlands, and into Newark Bay. Learn about the challenges of the past to protect this critical watershed, and those facing us in the future.

Date: Friday, 4-Dec-2009, 7pm
Speaker:  Francois Vuilleumier, Curator Emeritus, American Museum of Natural History

Celebrate the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth with a presentation by Francois Vuilleumier, Curator Emeritus, American Museum of Natural History. In his lifelong study of birds, Dr. Vuilleumier has visited many places Darwin himself visited in his voyage around the world aboard the HMS Beagle. He will discuss theory versus field work, in research on the origin of species.

**Note: Copies of Dr. Vuilleumier's recent book, Birds of North America, will be available for purchase and signing.**

Date: Friday, 8-Jan-2010, 7pm
Speaker:  Francis Groeters, Catskill Native Nursery

Now that it is winter and the garden is asleep, come hear Francis Groeters from the Catskill Native Nursery present a talk on native plantings for your yard for the spring.  Later in the year, we will take a group tour to the Nursery, located in Kerhonkson, NY, where Groeters specializes in nursery-propagated North American perennials, fruits, shrubs and trees.  Here’s an opportunity to find out which plants are a big draw for birds to visit your garden!

Date: Friday, 5-Feb-2010, 7pm
Speaker:  Scott Craven

The Environmental History of the Mouth of the Croton River will be the topic of speaker Scott Craven whose illustrated talk covers the geologic, natural and cultural history of the lands and waters at the convergence of the Croton and Hudson.  Craven will also detail the connection between Teller’s Point and Roger Tory Peterson, credited with the development of the modern field guide format for observing the natural world.  Craven spends much of his time along the river, kayaking, exploring and reading about its history.

Annual Meeting followed by a presentation titled Newfoundland: Rugged Land, Wild Sea, Strong People. Using images, music and story, Hugh Carola will conduct a virtual journey to this unique and exciting land at easternmost edge of North America. Photos of wildlife from Red squirrels to Humpback whales; birds & wildflowers of all description and the province’s incredible landscapes feature prominently in his program. Prepare to be amazed because Newfoundland is like no place else on earth.  Capt. Hugh Carola is the Program Director at Hackensack Riverkeeper where he conducts over one hundred eco-tours annually along the Hackensack River in New Jersey.  In August 2007, he undertook a 3-week car-and-ferry trip to Newfoundland, during which time he visited numerous communities and natural areas throughout the province. The photographs he took to document the trip form the foundation of his presentation.