Indiana Falconers Association Summer Picnic

[Hunter45]

Don't Miss THE Premier Summer Picnic Event This Year! Great Food, Fellowship, and Program!

[Hunter45]

Final Prep/Comments from IFA President Roger Chastain for the IFA Summer Picnic! Even MORE good news and fun to be had than originally planned.

Hi All,

It’s getting close—the IFA’s annual picnic and raffle on Saturday, August 22, 2015! We’ve got lots of exciting news related to the picnic and important new information from DNR Operations Staff Specialist Linnea Petercheff regarding highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

So here’s the info.:

• Please find an email from Ms. Petercheff below regarding the HPAI. She notes that raptors are highly susceptible to the virus and provides important information regarding the reporting of a raptor’s death after having demonstrated the symptoms set forth below. Please take a moment to read her message.
• As to the picnic, I’m excited to announce that Dr. Clarke, of Hillview Veterinary Clinic, has confirmed that she will be available to speak to us about such things as HPAI, West Nile Virus, and other concerns facing our birds!
• Our schedule is looking like this:
o 9:30 – Begin check-in
o 11:00 – Dr. Clarke’s Presentation (HPAI, WNV, and Other Pressing Concerns)
o 12:00 – 2:00 – Lunch (Chuck Morgan and Greg Inman have been working hard to provide burgers and dogs for lunch!)
o 2:00 – Lauren McGough Keynote Presentation (Travels of an Eagle Falconer Across Several Continents)
o 5:00 – Pulled pork dinner
o 6:30 – Raffle (Glenn Bradley has been working hard to drum up items for our raffle, which will include another telemetry unit from Communications Specialists, please plan to bring YOUR donation for the raffle table!)
o 7:30 – Clean up

Of course, picnic attendees will have the opportunity to enjoy lots of beautiful raptors sunning in the weathering yard throughout the day!

Also, Greg Inman recently picked up the latest edition of Rousing News from the printers, skillfully put together by Bryan Catlin. They’ll be distributed to the membership at the picnic too!

Reminder: Please read Linnea’s message below! My best to you all!

Here’s to fast game and faster hawks,

Roger

From: Petercheff, Linnea [mailto:lpetercheff@dnr.IN.gov]
Sent: Thursday, August 06, 2015 3:20 PM
To: Chastain, Roger

Subject: Testing of Birds for Avian Influenza

Roger,

Please distribute this to your IFA membership –

While highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has been spreading rapidly in commercial poultry operations throughout the Mississippi Flyway, which is where Indiana is located, only one case has been documented in Indiana (Whitley county) in a backyard flock of domestic birds. Since that time, no other birds have tested positive for HPAI in Indiana in poultry or in wild birds.

While no HPAI-infected wild birds have been found in Indiana, there have been some in Michigan and Minnesota, and raptors are particularly susceptible. Wild waterfowl are a natural source of all forms of avian influenza (and always have been), but no HPAI outbreaks thus far have been positively identified as having originated with wild waterfowl. The mode of transmission of HPAI within wild birds is not clear.

If you experience the suspicious death of a raptor that exhibited at least one of the following symptoms, the Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) wants to have that bird tested for HPAI. Birds infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) may show one or more of the following signs:

• Sudden death without clinical signs/sudden increase in bird deaths at your facility
• Lack of energy and poor appetite
• Swelling of the head, eyelids, and neck
• Purple discoloration of the comb, wattles, and legs
• Nasal discharge, coughing, gasping for air, sneezing
• Incoordination
• Watery and green diarrhea

Contact Adam Phelps, DFW waterfowl biologist, at (812) 334-1137 if you suspect HPAI may be the cause of a bird’s death. Bag the bird and keep it refrigerated (don’t freeze it) until it is given to a DFW employee. If you do not hear back from Adam or another biologist within 24 hours, feel free to email me, even if it is a holiday, night or weekend. Birds must be given to a DFW employee in order to be tested for HPAI; do not have the bird shipped or delivered directly to a lab for testing. If the bird was acquired recently, provide the location where the bird came from (as much detail as possible).

The Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) will also be collecting samples from a number of hunter-harvested waterfowl this fall as part of Indiana’s surveillance plan for HPAI.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Linnea

Linnea Petercheff
Operations Staff Specialist
Division of Fish and Wildlife
402 W. Washington Street, Room W273
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Phone: (317) 233-6527
Fax: (317) 232-8150

[hawkman1220]

I was planning on skipping the picnic but now I will have to rethink that idea!

[Hunter45]

As always, it will be good to see you there! It's always good to see our KY falconer brethren

[Hunter45]

With the massive "View" turnout for this year's Sat, August 22, 2015 Indiana Falconers Association Picnic announcement , please help IFA in their final planning with an "RSVP" if you are attending and how many will be in your party.

Do this via E-Mail to IFA President, Roger Chastain at:

Roger.Chastain@nlrb. gov

[Hunter45]

Oh, It's Going to Be a FINE Day for the IFA Summer Picnic!

Sunny!

Chance of rain? ZIP, ZERO, NADA!


High: 80F (by 1 pm - but will be cool (High 60's/Low 70's) before then.)

Humidity: 44% to 57%

Be There or Be Square!

[Hunter45]