Home

Click here to subscribe to PRAS emails to stay up to date on field trips, etc.

Christmas Bird Counts: Dec 14th & Dec 20th
See details on Field Trips page

PRAS Website Feedback Needed
We need your help! We are working to do a redesign on our PRAS website, so please give us your thoughts and feedback. Please click on this link: PRAS Website Survey to complete our 4 question survey. Your responses will be anonymous. Thank you!

Save the Dates: PRAS Programs 2025-26
Join us for the great programs we have planned; save the dates & bring a friend!

Sep 9: Wendy VanDeWalle - 2023 Big Iowa Year
Oct 14: Stephanie Shepherd, Iowa DNR - Citizen Science
Nov 11: Jeremy Withers, ISU - Birding English: Exploring the History of Language Through 50 Birds
Dec: No meeting; please join us for Christmas Bird Counts--see details here!
Jan 13: ZOOM only - To be announced
Feb 10: Dan Cohen - Iowa River Wildlife - See Links page for Dan's Substack.
Mar 10: Ken Heiar, Tom Moon, Bob Frenchick - Nature Photography
Apr 14: Terry VanDeWalle - Turtles of Iowa
May 12: Doug Harr, Iowa Audubon - Native Plants & Native Birds


In the Sky - November 2025
No-vember
No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease, 
No comfortable feel in any member,
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds --
        - Thomas Hood, English poet

Join us for the next Prairie Rapids Audubon Society meeting on Tuesday, November 11 at 7:00 PM in the lower level of the First Presbyterian Church, 902 Main St. in Cedar Falls.

The program for the evening features associate professor of English at Iowa State University, Jeremy Withers, who will speak about content from his forthcoming book, Birding English: Exploring the History of a Language Through 50 Birds (Spring 2026, University of Iowa Press).

To join the meeting virtually, click this Zoom link; meeting ID is 581 087 8571 and then type in 1999 as the passcode.

Jeremy Withers teaches ISU classes on science fiction, environmental literature, and the history of the English language. Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, he has a PhD in medieval literature from Ohio State University, in addition to degrees from the University of Cincinnati. Many of his recent scholarly publications have focused on the relationship between literature and transportation politics and include the books Futuristic Cars and Space Bicycles: Contesting the Road in American Science Fiction and The War of the Wheels: H.G. Wells and the Bicycle. When not teaching or writing, Jeremy can often be found hanging out with his 13-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter, cooking up delicious vegetarian food with his wife, riding his bike, practicing the banjo and guitar, and (of course) birding.

From Old English roots and Shakespearean idioms to Victorian slang and modern online lingo, Birding English charts a dynamic course through English’s past, present, and future by admiring the plumage of falcons, the songs of sparrows, and the flight of ducks. With each of its fifty mini essays in his forthcoming book, Jeremy uses birds as a point of entry into a key moment in the development of English: its origins in the Proto-Indo-European and Proto-Germanic languages, the influence of writers like Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare, the creation of English’s first dictionaries and grammar books, and the arrival of rhyming slang and portmanteaus. Ideal for word nerds and bird nerds alike, Jeremy’s talk will enchant anyone who’s ever been captivated by the song of a bird or the song of a word. (Photo of Saw-whet Owl by Tom Schilke)

Nuclear Matters
By David Voigts
The projected rapid increase in electrical energy needs, particularly for massive new data centers, could derail our efforts to combat climate change unless ways are found to greatly increase the production of clean energy. Nuclear energy could help fill that need with the development of small modular reactors (SMRs).

SMRs are a scaled down version of larger plants with the advantage of being quicker and less expensive to build and safer to operate since the design of the modules would be alike. Once a design is finalized, it could be used to build many modular reactors. In addition, the number of SMRs to be built could be matched to the needs of the site. 

The importance of this new vision for nuclear energy was underscored by the “Atlantic Partnership for Advanced Nuclear Energy” that was signed recently by President Trump and the Prime Minister of Great Britain. Under this agreement, when a reactor design receives regulatory approval in one country, that work can be used to support the design in the other country. This should speed the construction of new nuclear power stations in both countries. Although questions remain, small modular reactors could reduce the gap of needed clean energy. 


Midwest Crane Festivals in November
Check out these great opportunities to see cranes and join other "craniacs"!

Celebration of Cranes Nov 7-8, Sterling, Kansas - Thank you Lyle, PRAS member for telling us about this great opportunity. Anyone fancy a roadtrip to Kansas?! 

Great Midwest Crane Fest Nov 15-16, Baraboo, Wisconsin



Find an injured bird or animal? Call Black Hawk Wildlife Rehabilitation Project 319-939-4635
Note: As of Dec 2024 BHWRP is not accepting sick or injured waterfowl due to the avian influenza outbreak found in Iowa. Find other wildlife rehabilitators

New to Birding?
Check out this great new brochure from Iowa Audubon that gives you all the information about enjoying the activity of watching birds!

Subscribe to our Online RedTail Newsletter
We've gone online now...check out the online RedTail Newsletter on the "Newsletters & Zoom" page and find archived newsletters. 

Song on a Wire - Wikimedia Commons
Bird Flight Patterns and Music Concert Program
You are now able to access the online concert video and curriculum (see link and password below-posted with permission by the copyright holder).
The link provides the full concert video and online curriculum with activities, lessons, extra musical performances, composer interviews and educational games. This resource will remain active through June 2022 (for one year), so utilize it for your programs, personal edification working with your children or grandchildren to teach them about music and birds!

Password:  BFPMC  (case sensitive)

 Subscribe to the PRAS YouTube Channel if you are interested in watching recordings of our past Zoom meetings for which we have permission to post for viewing.


Contribute to our Flickr Photo Stream
Go to this URL:   https://www.flickr.com/photos/prairierapidsaudubon/
Click "Login" 
The email address associated with PRAS's account is:   praudubon@gmail.com
Email praudubon@gmail.com to request password for email; we won't post it here online.
Save the UN and PWD so it is quick and easy the next time you upload photos.
Click the Upload icon (looks like cloud with an arrow) and follow prompts.
Here is Flick's help page for uploads.
Click the Photos link on the above navigation bar to see photos.

Find us on Facebook
We share information about field trips, local sightings, fun and interesting photos and stories about birds, nature, the environment, etc. on our Facebook page. Check it out and like us and "share" our posts. 
Subscribe to: Comments (Atom)