Newsletters & Zoom


The Red Tail - The official newsletter of PRAS Chapter
Please note the PRAS newsletter is now digital only. We will continue to deliver monthly digital newsletters September through May except there will be no issue in December. Subscribe to our email list if you wish to receive the newsletter and messages about field trips, programs, etc. Subscribe to the PRAS YouTube Channel if you are interested in watching recordings of our Zoom meetings for which we have permission to post for viewing. 

We are trying to broadcast our regular meetings via Zoom each month. 
Click this Zoom link to connect to our virtual meetings. Meeting ID is 581 087 8571 and the passcode is 1999 


2024 Newsletters, Zoom Recordings & Minutes of General Meetings


Nov 2024: "Introduction to Astronomy" - David Voigts
Watch the recording - presentation begins immediately.

Oct 2024: "Birds and Wildlife of East Africa" - Linda Rudolph
Watch the recording - presentation begins around the 20:46 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Sept 2024"The Grand Canyon - Rim to Rim" - Bob Thurman
Watch recording - presentation begins around the 13:13 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

May 2024: Mongolia: The Land of the Nomads - Ty Smedes
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

April 2024: Iowa's Tallest and Largest Trees - Mark Rouw
Watch recording - presentation begins around the 24 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

March 2024: Assessing How Signs Build Awareness of Iowa Creeks, Rivers, & Watersheds - Steve Hopkins   See slides for this presentation.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Feb 2024: Tending Iowa’s Land: The Search for a Sustainable Future - Connie Mutel  Find minutes for this meeting in the March 2024 newsletter above.
Watch recording - presentation begins around the 20 minute mark.

Jan 2024: Acoustic Research: Barn Owl Vocalizations - Karla Bloem
Watch recording 
 - presentation begins at the 11:00 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting


2023 Newsletters, Zoom Recordings & Minutes of General Meetings

Nov 2023: Beyond the Photos - Jacob Pitzenberger
Minutes of Nov 2023 PRAS General Meeting included in Jan 2024 newsletter link.

Oct 2023: Human Disease on the Wing: Birds, Bugs, and Our Body’s Responses -Jayden Bowen
Minutes from Oct 2023 PRAS General Meeting

Sept 2023: Identifying Migrating Raptors - Mike Havlik
Minutes from the Sept 2023 PRAS General Meeting

May 2023Lessons from the Land, the River, And Nature - Neil Hamilton
Minutes from the April PRAS General Meeting are included.
Minutes from the May 2023 PRAS General Meeting

April 2023Nature Photography: From New Zealand to New Hartford - John McCormick
Watch recording-presentation begins around the 4:32 minute mark
Minutes from the March PRAS General Meeting are included.

March 2023: Wind and Wildlife - Terry VanDeWalle
Minutes from the Feb PRAS General Meeting are included.

Feb 2023: Waterfowl & Upland Gamebirds of Iowa - Kelly McKay
Minutes from the Jan PRAS General Meeting are included.

Jan 2023: Whooping Cranes in the Eastern US Population - Stephanie Schmidt
Watch recording-presentation begins around the 9:44 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting


2022 Newsletters, Zoom Recordings & Minutes of General Meetings
Jan 2022: Bicycling with Butterflies - Sara Dykman
Watch recording-presentation begins around the 9:30 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Feb 2022: Connecting to Our Natural Heritage Through the Lens of Public Art - Reinaldo D. Correa Watch recording-presentation begins around the 8:50 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

March 2022: Patch Birding Makes A Difference - Heather Wolf
Watch recording-presentation begins around the 11:30 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

April 2022Audubon's Rowe Sanctuary and Conservation of the Platte River Ecosystem - Amanda Hegg
Watch recording-presentation begins around the 1:00 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

May 2022: Humanities Iowa: Ding Darling presentation
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Sept 2022: Wildlife of the Pantanal - Craig Meyers
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Oct 2022: The Common Loon - 
Minutes from the PRAS General MeetingWatch recording-presentation begins around the ## minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

2021 Newsletters, Zoom Recordings & Minutes of General Meetings
Jan 2021: Flex Your Mussels, Spread Your Wings: Freshwater Mussels & Monarch Butterflies - Jared McGovern
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 8:25 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Feb 2021: Climate Change & Birds - Rob Schultz
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 14:35 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

March 2021: Fungus Among Us - Fungi in Iowa - Jessica Lancial
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 5:24 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

April 2021: Virtual Tour of Hartman Reserve Nature Center & Wild Backyards - Katie Klus
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 3:40 minute mark
Guide to Backyard Pollinators from Katie Klus, Naturalist @ Hartman Reserve
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

May 2021: Civilian Conservation Corps Projects at Iowa's State Parks - Linda Betsinger McCann
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 20:00 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Sep 2021: It's Not Nice to Mess with Mother Nature: Weather, Climate, and Global Warming - Dr. Robert Dise
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 14:21 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Oct 2021: Driftless Ecology - Larry Reis
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 9:46 minute mark.
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Nov 2021: All the Little Things - Chris Helzer
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 7:57 minute mark.


2020 Newsletters, Zoom Recordings & Minutes of General Meetings
Jan 2020: Forest Bathing: Benefits of Being Out in Nature - Dr. Suzanne Bartlett Hackenmiller
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Feb 2020: Antartica - Stacey Snyder

Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

March 2020: Raptors of the Midwest - Ty Smedes
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting 

April 2020: Program canceled due to COVID-19 safety measures.

May 2020: Program canceled due to COVID-19 safety measures.

Sept 2020: Grassland Birds - Doug Harr
Watch recording-
presentation starts around the 8:00 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting 

Oct 2020: Tracking Bird Migration for Conservation - Anna Buckhardt Thomas
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 12:00 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting

Nov 2020: Bears of Katmai - Craig Meyers
Watch recording-presentation starts around the 5:15 minute mark
Minutes from the PRAS General Meeting


2019 Newsletters & Minutes of General Meeting
Jan 2019: Iowa State Parks - Centennial Celebration - Karl Kurtz
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Feb 2019:  PRAS program cancelled due to weather.

March 2019: Iowa's Nesting Owls - Wildlife Rehabilitation - Bruce and Marlene Ehresman
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

April 2019: Alaska, The Last Great Race - Dr. Jim Kenyon
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

May 2019: Iowa's Prairies - Dr. Daryl Smith

Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Sept 2019: Build It, They Will Come, Enhancing Your Backyard Habitat - Jim Durbin
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Oct 2019: Bound for the Barrens - Vern Fish
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Nov 2019: Black Hawk Wildlife Rehabilitation Project - Linda Nebbe
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


2018 Newsletters & Minutes of General Meeting
January 2018: Backyard Birds - Ken Heiar, Joel & Linda Haack, & Tom Schilke
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

February 2018: Iowa's Endangered Wood Turtles - Jeff Tamplin
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


March 2018: Zambia
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

April 2018: Marsh Birds - Tyler Harms
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


May 2018:  Reflections on Iowa Rivers and their Futures - Jim Pease
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Sept 2018: Sweet Marsh DNR Externship - Stacey Snyder
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Oct 2018: Build It & They Will Come: Pintail Wetlands, Hardin County - Tom Schilke
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Nov 2018: Iowa Outdoors Magazine - Brian Button, editor
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

Jan 2019: Karl Kutz, Iowa State Parks - Centennial Celebration
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


Feb 2019: PRAS program cancelled due to weather.

March 2019: Iowa's Nesting Owls - Wildlife Rehabilitation - Bruce and Marlene Ehresman
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

2017 Newsletters & Minutes of General Meeting
January 2017: A Watershed Approach to Improving the Cedar River - Mary Beth Stevenson, Shane Wulf, & Josh Balk
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

February 2017: Bird Song: The Basics of Identifying Birds by Ear - Scott Garrett and Candace Havely
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

March 2017: Costa Rica Adventures - Bruce Plakke and PRAS Members
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

April 2017: Althea Sherman Chimney Swift Tower - Linda & Robert Scarth
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


May 2017: Madagascar-The 8th Continent, Part 1 - Paul Roisen
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

September 2017: Pollinators in Iowa: Conservation and Management Strategies to Preserve Wild Bees - Ashley St. Clair
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


October 2017: Tales of a World Birder - Dr. Stephen Dinsmore
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


November 2017: Madagascar-The 8th Continent, Part 2 - Paul Roisen
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

2016 Newsletters & Minutes of General Meeting
January 2016: Northern Rockies - Bruce Plaake, Tom Schilke, Tom Moon, PRAS Members

February 2016: Gardening for Butterflies & Pollinators - Donald Lewis
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

March 2016: Spring Ephermerals - Kenny Slocum

Minutes from PRAS General Meeting
April 2016: Training Your Warbler Eyes - Tyler Harms
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

May 2016:  Beauty Around Us - Kip Ladage 

September 2016: Winged Jewels: Dragonflies & Damselflies of Iowa - Ann Johnson
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting

October 2016: Ensuring The Riches of Heritage Valley (Allamakee County) - Bill Witt and Brian Kanhauser
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


November 2016: The Role of Citizen Scientists in Bald Eagle Conservation in Iowa - Stephanie Shepherd
Minutes from PRAS General Meeting


2015 Newsletters
January 2015: Natural History and Identification of Iowa's Shorebirds - Steve Dinsmore

February 2015: Florida Adventures - PRAS members

March 2015: Loon Magic - Ty Smedes

April 2015: Bird Nests: A Tour of Avian Architecture - Bruce Ehresman

May 2015: Fight to Protect Nature - Tivon Feeley

September 2015: Voyage to the Bottom of the World - Ty Smedes

October 2015:  Inside Passage: Bears, Whales Totems - Robert & Linda Scarth

November 2015:  Exploring Bats of Iowa - Russ Benedict, Guest Speaker


2014 Newsletters
January 2014: Things with Wings - Jim Durbin

February 2014: My Birding Trips to Mexico - Francis Moore

March 2014: Purple Martin Landlords - Rick Fisher

April 2014: Freshwater Mussels of Iowa - Jen Kurth

May 2014: Tropical Biodiversity: Why Should We Care? - Jim Pease

September 2014: Becky's Fen: Private Land as a Public Resource - Rebecca Kauten

October 2014: Iowa's Bird of Prey - Jodeane Cancilla

November 2014: Discovering Where We Live - Carl Kurtz