By Pat Saxton
Museum Administrator

Bird week was a great success for the Turks and Caicos National Museum and their partner, the UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum (UKOTCF). After almost nine years in the planning stages, these Trails have become a reality due to a grant from the Carnival/TCInvest/TCIGovernment Infrastructure Fund.

This little Grey Kingbird was ready for the tour!

There is now a “Walking Bird” and a “Driving Bird” tour on Grand Turk with clearly marked trail signs, placed on downed telephone poles which were donated and installed by Turks and Caicos Utilities.

This week long event, commencing on July 11, had an “early bird” walk with students and teachers from HJ Robinson High School and Dr. Mike Pienkowski and Ann Pienkowski showed the students the wonderful birds found along the Salina’s.  After the bird walk the students went to through the Botanical Garden, next to the Museum. The DECR loaned five pairs of binoculars for this event.

The Bird Drive Tour on Thursday evening, July 14, was a sold-out event. Twenty-two adults and two children rode on a bus donated by Caribbean Tours International, who also supplied 22 pairs of binoculars. What an event, even the birds cooperated! With Dr. Mike Pienkowski leading the group, even the novice birder was fascinated by the amount of different birds seen so very close.

Dr Mike Pienkowskit leads the first Bird Bus Tour

Flamingo’s took off from Town Salina just as the bus was approaching, giving the group a firsthand look at these beautiful birds in flight. An Osprey sat on the remnants of a windmill, posing for the group to take photos. We saw Black Necked Stilt five day old chicks wading in the Great Salina while their Mother watched carefully. There were ducks aplenty at South Wells, and Egrets, Pelicans and Herons at North Creek. One very brave Cattle Egret even walked in front of the bus over 100 yards as if to say “follow me for the best birding ever”.

Flamingos on the student bird walk

After this wonderful Bird Tour the group went to Jack’s Shack to have a tasty meal. Jack donated some of the proceeds of the evening back to the Museum.

Friday morning, July 15, we had the Official Opening of the Bird Trails. Ms. Lillian Swann Misick cut the ribbon with many guests watching. The guests then proceeded into the Osprey Beach Hotel where Dr. Mike had a short presentation about the importance of these Bird Trails. All participants received a lovely Osprey Commemorative Lapel Pin.

Ms. Lillian Swann Misick Officially Opening the Trails

The Turks and Caicos National Museum would like to thank the following supporters that made these events so successful.

Carnival/TCInvest/TCIGovernment Infrastructure Fund
Caribbean Tours International
DECR
Jack’s Shack
Misick’s Bakery
Osprey Beach Hotel
Turks and Caicos Utilities
UKOTCF

For more information about the tours and to purchase copies of the guides,  Contact us at the Museum.

Bird Trail Card for the Driving Tour

By Jackie Garbarino
Museum Shop and Volunteer Manager

Museum with its red roof, October 2010

In an effort to cut fuel costs and decrease our carbon “Big Foot” print, we have painted the Museum’s roof white. There are some environmentalists who think that we could greatly reduce the earth’s temperature and reduce carbon emissions if we all had white roofs.  Something to think about.

We will let you know if this effort decreases the power bills for air conditioning our exhibits and artifacts and, of course, we humans as a side benefit. We are also hoping this white elastomeric coating will eliminate the mysterious leak that has plagued the “buzzer” room for years, if not centuries. We need a good rain to assess that, so start your rain dancing now!

Museum with its new environmentally friendly roof, July 2011.

By Pat Saxton
Museum Administrator

The last two weeks have been crazy busy and exciting. For a small Museum, we sure do have a lot going on!!

First we had to say goodbye to Nikki Miller Jennings our “tour guide extraordinaire” and Children’s Club Manager.   Nikki is going to Munich, Germany for awhile.  We are all hoping that Grand Turk will call her back at some point and she will once again become part of our team at the Turks and Caicos National Museum. 

Here is a photo of our effervescent Nikki!

On Thursday June 9, the Museum hosted a party for Georgia Dunn Belk and Bill Belk and a few friends to tour the Museum and Botanical Garden. Also in attendance was, HE Governor and Mrs. Wetherell who were the first to see some of our new acquisitions from Mr. Hugh Hutchings.  Mr. Hutchings has generously donated a ceremonial sword that was used by his Grandfather, Hugh Houston Hutchings in the late 1800’s along with some medals.

Also gifted were other medals from his father, Mr. Charles Hutchings. Look for an article in the Fall Issue of Times of the Islands to read more about this important collection.

Pictured are HE Governor and Mrs. Wetherell looking at some of the new acquisitions.

Some of the other guests learning about the New Botanical and Cultural Garden

On Saturday June 10 the Turks and Caicos National Museum hosted the students from the Spirit of Bermuda, see the June 12 blog.

Then on Sunday June 11 we hosted a film crew in to do a commercial for the One Caribbean Weather Channel with none other than Joey Stevens complete with Bob the parrot. See link

http://onecaribbeanweather.wordpress.com/2011/06/17/thank-you-turks-caicos/

And if that was not enough, TCU (Turks and Caicos Utilities) has generously donated both manpower and their auger to install the poles to hold the Bird Drive and Walk signs around Grand Turk. This is a monumental undertaking and the Turks and Caicos National Museum cannot thank TCU enough for this wonderful gift.

The Bird Trails will officially open the week of July 11, 2011. Turks and Caicos is proud to the first country in the Caribbean to have a sanctioned bird trail. Bird Trail cards will be on sale at the Museum for all you birders.  Having the Salt Ponds named as protected areas will ensure that our lovely birds will have a place to call home for years to come. Be sure and follow the blog to see all the news about “Bird Week” to be held July 11-15. Also thank you to the UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum for partnering with the Museum to bring this important tour to the Turks and Caicos. The Carnival Corporation/TCInvest Government Infrastructure Fund awarded a grant earlier this year to the Museum and UKOTCF so that a Bird Walking and Driving Tour could be established.

And last but certainly not least, you will be seeing a change come over Guinep House.  AND Construction is currently painting our roof with a bonding agent to prevent leaks. Color will also change from red to white to help with energy costs.  If you have not been to the Museum lately, you are really missing out. Come in and browse our wonderful Guinep House Gift Shoppe that has many locally hand-made gifts. A variety of books and sea glass items along with handmade baskets are only a few of the items available. Our friendly staff will show you around the Museum and the gift shop!

By Pat Saxton
Museum Administrator

On Saturday morning  we had a visit from the Captain and crew of the Spirit of Bermuda, a sail training ship designed and built to provide students an authentic learning experience on board a replica  Bermudian-type schooner built between 1810 and 1840.

Spirit of Bermuda Captain and crew arrive at the Museum

Captain Simon Colley and his crew learned about the Molasses Reef Wreck, and how Bermuda and Turks and Caicos were very much intertwined in the early 18th century. Many of the residents of the Turks and Caicos are decedents of Bermudian families. Some of the teachers came upstairs to view the new Hutchings collection (see other blog) as the Hutchings name is a popular name in Bermuda.

On Saturday evening we were invited by Captain Colley to a reception at the Cruise Center, where plaques were exchanged between Governor Wetherell and the Captain. Students took anyone on the ship that wanted to tour the Spirit of Bermuda. A slab of Bermudian limestone was also presented to Salt Cay’s “White House”. We watched on Sunday as the Spirit of Bermuda, under full sail made its way to Salt Cay for a day, then onto Dominican Republic to help construct homes as part of the students learning experience.to learn about the islands history and the many differences between Bermuda and the TCI.