The Audubon Observer, October 2025
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REMEMBERING PEGGY POWELL We at Duval Audubon were saddened to learn that one of our finest champions of birds and the natural world passed away in early September. Her obituary in the Florida Times Union sums up her well-lived life and legacy. I recommend that everyone read it for themselves to learn more about the life of this important woman.
As education chair she delivered numerous presentations to schools and youth groups on birds and nature, as well as providing Audubon Adventures curricula to elementary school teachers (grades 3-6) and their students. She understood that our future generations need to learn to appreciate the natural world in order to value and preserve it. She also coordinated the annual Jacksonville Christmas Bird Count for our chapter for many years, and hosted the count tally dinner with her sister Mary Davidson at Mary’s house in Mandarin. They brought together and touched the lives of so many birders and good people over the years through the Jacksonville CBC and participating in other Florida CBCs. I was taken in and had the fortunate opportunity to conduct a CBC with Peggy one year at Huguenot Memorial Park when a Lapland Longspur was wintering there! This rare sparrow species shows up only occasionally in Florida, which is well south of its normal winter range. The list of Peggy’s accomplishments is impressive:
We are deeply grateful for her incredible contributions to our chapter and to the conservation and protection of the birds we all love so much. She will be sorely missed. LIGHTS OUT NORTHEAST FLORIDA (LONF) UPDATE Fall Migration is here and whether you head out to a favorite park or sit in your backyard, take some time to breath deep, listen, and watch for some amazing birds as they pass through our area. Don’t forget to check in on BirdCast.info, the online migration dashboard, to learn how many birds are coming in and which species. With Fall Migration, several exciting activities have kicked off, including our LONF Awareness Campaign to encourage people to turn off all non-essential lights at night from 11 pm to 6 am to help our migrating birds and other wildlife. Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan signed the first “Lights Out Northeast Florida Nights” Proclamation last March, and with the mayor’s support we have climbed to 152 citizens who have signed the Lights Out Pledge. You can be a bird hero, too: click here to join the Homeowners Pledge if you haven’t already. (And in case you missed it, don’t forget to check out the recently launched Aeroecolab Lights Out Alert Dashboard from Purdue University. This is a great place to see how bright the night sky is in your area due to the artificial light at night, and a kind and super cool reminder to honor your Homeowner Pledge promise and keep those non-essential lights turned off at night.)
This past year, we have dug in deeper to learn more about the Acopian Bird Savers product’s effectiveness, installation process, and successful and innovative ways Audubon chapters have leveraged the product to save birds. Several nature centers and homes around the country have successfully installed Bird Savers, and the best news is that after installation your view is still intact. There are many informative DIY training videos to help ensure a successful installation, but your LONF has decided to take it a step further by offering a DIY Acopian Bird Savers Workshop to 20 of our members! Our very own LONF Co-Leader Mike Taylor of the Jacksonville Zoo and Botanical Gardens will be leading the DIY workshop! Our thanks to Wild Birds Unlimited, Jacksonville for hosting the event at their store, but the date and time of the workshop is still TBD. Thanks to generous members’ donations, we have been able to purchase the paracords needed for this first class. You just need to measure one of your reflective windows on your house, then just come listen, learn, and laugh while we save birds, one window at a time! If you are interested in attending the workshop, please contact me at Elizabeth.filippelli@duvalaudubon.org. We are hoping that our community welcomes this project, and we can continue it across all of Northeast Florida. If you are not able to join in, please consider donating to this project; we are an all-volunteer chapter and we rely on the generosity of our amazing members and supporters to continue our work to save birds. BOARD MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: SABRINA LEHMANN
Sabrina’s passion lies in wildlife outreach and advocacy, particularly in independent wildlife transport under the guidance of permitted rehabbers. She works to bridge the gap between the public and the resources needed to help wildlife. Her journey began volunteering with Cindy Mosling at BEAKs, where she discovered her love for teaching others that they can be the help they want to see in our wildlife community. Sabrina also hopes to see resources in Northeast Florida expand to include a raptor reconditioning center one day. When she’s not volunteering, Sabrina works as a sales associate at the Jacksonville Beach Wild Birds Unlimited. Bonus fact: Sabrina's favorite bird is the American Kestrel! Be sure to say hello and meet Sabrina at one of our upcoming outreach events! OCTOBER BIG DAY
Participating is easy: first, sign up for an eBird account if you don't already have one; second, watch birds during that day, for as little as ten minutes or as long as you like; and third, report your bird sightings to eBird - that's it! You can use the free eBird app to report your sightings on your phone (it's so easy), or report them on the eBird website. Your checklists will help scientists better understand global bird populations, serving to identify vulnerable species that need further attention and solutions to protect them. October Big Day is a fun and exciting way to participate in worldwide community science efforts, so get out there and find some birds! UPCOMING EVENTS Happy Fall, y'all! Here's what's happening in October:
Activities may be added after the publication of this newsletter, so check our Calendar of Events for the most current schedule. Hope to see you soon! Duval Audubon Society, Inc.
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Peggy was a leader in our chapter and in the community for many years from the 1970s through the early 2000s. I got involved with Duval Audubon in 1999 and first met her at our monthly meetings/programs at the former Swaim Memorial United Methodist Church (now called San Marco Church). She was always very welcoming but was also a serious, no-nonsense person who got things done. A longtime board member and many time president of our chapter, Peggy lived and breathed birding and sharing that passion with others!
Duval Audubon board member (multiple time President, Education Director)
Our first Fall Migration Kick-off and Celebration event was held at 
Meet Sabrina Lehmann, our new Community Outreach Director!
October Big Day
