Hairy Woodpecker (Pic chevelu) Feeding on Staghorn Sumac

15 October 2015

rare, Cambridge, ON

     Fall weather in southern Ontario this year has been especially agreeable, with warm sunny days and an abundance of dazzling foliage.

     This morning, while doing my regular Thursday morning monitoring at the rare Charitable Reserve in Cambridge, it was a distinct highlight to see two Hairy Woodpeckers Picoides villosus feeding on the fruit of Staghorn Sumac Rhus typhina. The drupes of this shrub are densely gathered into a conical formation and covered with hairs.

    The shrub actually has separate male and female plants and the fruit is produced on the female. The name Staghorn Sumac derives from the fact that the bark has a fine velvety texture, somewhat reminiscent of the velvet of the new antlers of stags.

     Sumac is impressive at any time of year, but it really assumes its prominence in the fall when the leaves and the fruit turn a vivid scarlet, breathtaking when struck by sunlight.

     White-throated Sparrows Zonotrichia albicollis was quite common, feeding on the ground, and flitting in and out of cover. It was not the easiest species to photograph today!

     For a couple of weeks now there has been a significant concentration of Rusty Blackbirds Euphagus carolinus, a species which has declined in abundance in recent years.

     Red-winged Blackbirds Agelaius phoeniceus were flocking with the Rusty Blackbirds; curiously the males were in full voice. I could have closed my eyes and easily imagined that I was listening to recently arrived males at a marsh in spring.

     Here is a hatch year male starting to acquire the badge of his gender.

     Both species of blackbird occupied the higher parts of snags, and trees already denuded of leaves, and the chorus was almost deafening.

     Mourning Doves Zenaida macroura were very willing to share the branches with the blackbirds.

     It was interesting, albeit a tad gruesome, to come across the corpse of a small Raccoon Procyon lotor, almost picked clean by whatever predator had been able to capture it.

     The colours of the trees are so glorious that it is hard to resist taking a few more photographs, so let me present, with no apologies for repetitiveness, autumn in southern Ontario at its best.

Birds, Snakes and Spiders

rare Charitable Reserve

Cambridge, ON

6/7 September 2015

      Both yesterday morning and this morning the focus of my activity has been at the above location; yesterday with Miriam when we did our weekly monitoring, and today helping Ross Dickson with his bird banding activities. Given the intense heat, so unusual for this time of the year, bird activity diminishes greatly after about 09:00, but there is still lots to keep a naturalist occupied.

     Several times I spotted this fine specimen of Homo sapiens, of the species Dicksonicus canadensis, where I carefully observed several unique and oft repeated behavioural routines. It seemed to particularly prefer this "hunt and seek in the grass routine," where partial camouflage did little to conceal its body from view.

     Neotropical warblers are packing on fat and preparing to migrate to Central and South America and Miriam and I were very pleased to come across this male Black-throated Blue Warbler Setophaga caerulescens, still resplendent in his breeding plumage.

     A Garden Cross Spider Argiope trifasciata is easily distinuished by the cross pattern on its abdomen. It often constructs its web near a porch light where it has a ready supply of insect prey attracted to the lights.

     Here is the underside of the same spider.

     This individual has clambered onto Goldenrod.

     The Black-and-Yellow Argiope Argiope aurantia is a stunningly beautiful spider, often seen in its large, distinctive web. The female is most conspicuous and is observed more frequently than the smaller male.

     When prey has been captured it is wrapped in a cocoon of silk and stored for future consumption.

     I believe this is the male of the species, but I am not completely sure. It was in the same vicinity and habitat, and was smaller then the females shown above. 

     The web (see above) has a prominent zigzag ribbon of silk (a stabilimentum)crossing the middle. The males are small and, like other male spiders, have armlike sexual organs (pedipalps) used to transfer sperm to the female. This is a costly tryst for the male dies immediately after inserting his pedipalps into the female's sexual organs, his dead body safeguarding the paternity, by blocking other males.

     Many hoverflies sp. (family Syrphidae) were observed, and the one shown below was attracted to the prolific growth of Goldenrod.

     A small group of Cedar Waxwings Bombycilla cedrorum was flycatching from the top of a snag.

     This Northern Brown Snake Storeria dekayi dekayi was sunning itself on a path and as long as we remained still and didn't permit our shadow to be cast upon it, it remained in position for several minutes. It is a small (22-23 cm) harmless snake whose main diet consists of slugs and earthworms.

     The heat was oppressive, but the wildlife had to contend with it in ways we can barely dream of. The snake was a fine end to a naturalist's walk in the meadow.

Migrants at rare Charitable Research Reserve on 23 August 2015

     Every Sunday morning, spring and fall,  Miriam and I monitor a route at the rare Charitable Research Reserve in Cambridge, ON. The statistics garnered from our walk, when combined with those of other monitors in different parts of the reserve, provide a detailed summary of the species using rare for breeding, or passing through as migrants.
     An integral part of this data collection is provided by the teams of bird banders and we always check in with Kevin Grundy and Ross Dickson before and after our walk. Here are Kevin and Ross busy at their banding station.

     By the second half of August many warblers, flycatchers and thrushes are already migrating and several interesting species had just been retrieved from the nets when we arrived, including this Least Flycatcher Empidonx minimus.

     Canada Warbler Cardellina canadensis is a species whose numbers have plummeted in recent years so it was especially pleasing to see this one captured in the nets. Unfortunately, for some reason, most of my shots of this species were blurred and I cannot offer you a frontal view.

     The images below of a Northern Waterthrush Parkesia noveboracensis give a much better view of the bird.

     None of these birds had any noticeable level of fat deposition, so they will still spend a little more time here before they embark on the final stage of their migratory journey.
     For a while I was beginning to question the value of banding in an era when advances like satellite tracking of birds began to deliver such a wealth of information, often with more detail and precision than banding could ever do, and in real time. I mentioned this doubt to Phil Slade, a UK bander with whom I have regular internet contact, and he sent me this link to an article by Ian Newton, surely one of the finest ornithologists Britain has ever produced: http://britishbirds.co.uk/article/bird-ringing-still-necessary/  I think that it is convincing in its endorsement of the value of banding as an ongoing tool and it would make valuable reading for anyone interested in this practice.
     While on our walk we saw a couple of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks Pheucticus ludovicianus including this male moulting into its drab winter plumage.

     In addition to the birds we encountered this really impressive growth of bracket fungus, the largest I have ever seen. ( My good friend Janet Ozaruk advises that this fungus is Shelving Tooth Climacodon septentrionale. Thanks Janet!)
     

     On Thursdays I monitor another route at rare. I wonder what new species will be found then.

Black-billed Cuckoo (Coulicou à bec noir)

     Every Thursday and Sunday I monitor a route for rare, a local land trust and research facility. Miriam always accompanies me on the Sunday route and before actually embarking on our survey we always check in with the guys who are operating a banding station. Last week we arrived just as they had banded a Black-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus erythropthalmus.

     This species is unusual in that it feeds readily on tent caterpillars, a prey which most other species avoid. Periodically, tent caterpillars which are moderately sized species in the genus Melacosoma and in the moth family Lasiocampidae, are irruptive and this year appears to be one of those times.

     Subsequently, Miriam and I heard a Black-billed Cuckoo during our walk and three others had been banded last time I checked. So, there appears to be a correlation between a tent caterpillar outbreak and the abundance of Black-billed Cuckoos. Quite how this knowledge becomes known to the cuckoos I am unable to explain.
     Mayapples Podophyllum peltatum are now in flower and the forest floor was adorned with this species.

     Bracket fungi, which for some reason hold a special fascination for me, were commonly found, some quite magnificent in their size, colouration and structure.

     These organisms are among the many groups of fungi that comprise the phylum Basidiomycota. Ultimately they cause the death of the tree, thereby returning its nutrients to the cycle of growth in a healthy forest.

Kitchener-Waterloo Field Naturalists 80th Anniversary

Kitchener-Waterloo Field Naturalists 

80th Anniversary

10 May 2014

    This year our local naturalists club celebrated its 80th Anniversary, an auspicious achievement by any standards. As Vice-President of the club I was charged with the responsibility of planning and organizing a suitable celebration.

    We were fortunate to be able to host our principal event at rare, a charitable foundation dedicated to conservation and environmental awareness, in Cambridge, a constituent part of the area covered by our club. 

    It seemed fitting to us to plant eight native trees, one for each decade of the club's existence and we invited local dignitaries, politicians from each level of government and other honoured guests to join us in our celebration.

    A suitable plaque was installed to mark the event for posterity. The covering which drapes the sign was made by my wife, Miriam, with a suitable motif representing local birds and other aspects of nature.

         But I'll give you a sneak preview of the inscription.

     One of the quite wonderful features at rare is this amazing old slit barn, dating back to the 1880s, which, with minor work has been restored to its original glory. There are various interpretations of the function of a slit barn, but the one that seems the most plausible to me is that it was used for threshing and the slits enabled the dust to escape. The other suggestion is that the slits were used for rifles without exposing yourself to enemy fire, but since there were no significant hostilities of any kind in this area at the time the barn was built, it seems a little fanciful. The barn is entirely constructed from stone quarried locally and there are numerous fossils clearly visible in the walls. 

    One of the first local politicians to arrive was Ken Seiling the Chair of Waterloo Region (to explain the various levels of government we have here would require more space than I care to give it) and he is seen here with Graham Macdonald, President KWFN and myself.  

Graham Macdonald, Ken Seiling, David Gascoigne

    Another distinguished guest was Caroline Schultz, Executive Director of Ontario Nature, the umbrella group at the provincial level to which our club and many others belong. Ontario Nature plays an important role in advocating for conservation and environmental protection for all Ontarians.

  

    The local politicians were happy to line up with their shovels and help us  plant two sugar maples Acer saccharum.

    When the holes were filled with soil the plaque was unveiled by the distinguished guest speakers.

Doug Brock, Chair, Grand River Conservation Foundation, Stephanie Sobek-Swant Executive Director rare, Graham Macdonald, President KWFN, Caroline Schultz, Executive Director, Ontario Nature

    The club was presented with various certificates to memorialize the milestone in the life of our club. Here is Peter Braid, MP, Kitchener-Waterloo, bringing greetings from the Government of Canada.

     After the tree planting and the speeches a delicious lunch was enjoyed by all.

      

    

    Three different nature walks, and one dedicated to the archaeology of the area, were organized after lunch, all well attended and greatly enjoyed.

    I was unable to make the walks due to a few administrative chores to take care of, but Miriam went on the archaeology junket and even managed a few bird shots.

Western Osprey Pandion haliaetus

Rose-breasted Grosbeak Pheuticus ludovicianus

Hairy Woodpecker Picoides villosus

    We were blessed with good weather and the entire event went off without a hitch. It was a fitting tribute to eighty years of dedicated service to the natural history of our area.