Our Algonquin experience

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

Camping isn’t for everyone, but my family has embraced it since our children were very small. Now that they are adults, our sons (and significant others) still share the enthusiasm. The annual sojourn to Algonquin Provincial Park is now an essential part of our well-being as a family. Tapping into one’s deep-rooted need to survive can be quite therapeutic. Packing quality meals (along with some decadent treats), clothing, and camping gear to be comfortable for a week outdoors can be challenging, which makes it all the more rewarding. The fact that there will be no TV, radio, or landline telephone is also a welcome change. The sound of the wind in the pines, chirping birds, chattering squirrels, and water lapping at the shore, provides an ambience second-to-none.

And we’re off
It’s day one, 5 a.m. The van, the Jeep, two kayaks (one cherry red, the other royal blue), a cedar strip canoe, four bicycles mounted on the bike rack; coolers, backpacks, tents, etc., are all neatly packed into the vehicles. A quick last check of the house, and we set out on our seven-day trip to Algonquin.

Things to do
Besides the camping experience itself, there is much to do in this beautiful landscape, just northeast of Huntsville, Ontario. Hiking trails, day trips on the water by canoe or kayak, spectacular stargazing, picnics, cycling on the highway 60 corridor, the Visitors’ Center, the Pioneer Logging Exhibit, are some of many possible outings. Mountain biking is available on the Mizzy Lake trail. Each time we hike on a guided walking trail and read the accompanying guidebooks at the post markers, we either reinforce prior knowledge, or learn something new altogether. Something that I had forgotten as we walked the Spruce Bog Boardwalk this year, was that if one stepped off the walkway onto the floating mat of peat moss, one could fall through and be preserved until eternity, in the depths of the highly acidic, oxygen-deprived depths of the bog.
Animal life abounds in the Park. During this trip we were able to see the elusive flying squirrel while enjoying our campsite after dark. This nocturnal creature can sail easily amongst the tall pines by spreading the webbing between its front and hind legs. While driving along highway 60, which runs through the Park all the way to Ottawa, and you notice a group of vehicles pulled over on the shoulder, chances are you are about to encounter the Algonquin moose. We have seen bulls, cows and calves many times through the years, grazing in the marshy areas for water lily roots. Roadside salt build-up from the previous winter is also a treat for the moose.

Park inspires visitors
Algonquin Park is the old stomping grounds of the legendary artist Tom Thomson, who mysteriously drowned on Canoe Lake in 1912. His many paintings are left behind to represent the haunting beauty of the Algonquin wilderness. Our personal favourite is “The Canoe.” Another famous one which many will recognize is “Jack Pine.”
The forests of Algonquin have rejuvenated us. Each year, as the trip draws to a close, each family member makes plans for the coming year. The outdoor getaway provides us with a fresh outlook, an appreciation for what we have, and a more positive perspective for what is soon to come. Our rating is FIVE STARS!

Jenipher Appleton: nature at grandbendstrip.com

Help reduce the mosquito population

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

How would you like to dramatically decrease the mosquito and insect population flying about your yard? You could erect a bat house (not popular with those who believe the critters’ll end up in your hair), or…you could try to attract the insect-voracious purple martin to your home.
The purple martin is the largest North American swallow. The family is HIRUNDINIDAE and the species is Progne subis. They lay 3-8 plain white eggs to a clutch, each about 2.4 cm long. The handsome male is uniformly blue/black above and below with a forked tail; the female is similar but light-bellied. Martins resemble the barn swallow but are a few centimeters longer, and stockier in appearance.

Canada’s First Peoples knew benefits
The early Native Canadians realized the martins’ appetite for insects. Around their villages they would place hollow gourds as invitations for the birds to nest. It apparently worked well, both for the martins and for the natives, who had fewer insects to pester them.
Last summer a fellow gardener had supplied me with a packet of mystery seeds. All I knew is that they were some hybrid of squash. They turned out to be swan gourds (named for the long swan-like neck attached to a pear-shaped body). I allowed one to dry over the winter and hollowed out the contents in early spring. So far there have been no martin residents in my natural birdhouse. Maybe next year.

Choosy about lodgings
Hundreds of pairs of martins have been known to nest together. A preferred style of housing is the bird apartment house, or condo. It is recommended to install the condo 40-60 feet from any taller trees. This will deter predators like hawks, owls, snakes and raccoons from attacking the martins or their young. Painting the house white will help to reflect the sun’s heat. Landing shelves should be very narrow to discourage other birds. It seems that purple martins love to be near humans so don’t install your condo further than 60 feet from your home. Any water feature is welcomed as the martins like to swoop down to dip their bills for a cool drink.

Starlings and sparrows are a problem
As if natural predators aren’t enough trouble for the purple martin, there are two non-native enemies which were introduced from England in the late 1800s. One is the European starling and the other is the house sparrow. If either species arrives in spring at the condo ahead of the martins, they will take over the structure. If a martin pair finds a vacant apartment, the starling is likely to enter while the martin is out and destroy the eggs or nestlings. Similarly, the house sparrow is likely to enter and poke holes in all the eggs; the objective being to reduce the purple martin population. Unfortunately, they have been successful.
To discourage the invaders, condo holes can be plugged with styrofoam coffee cups attached to strings until the purple martins’ spring arrival has been observed. Then they can be popped out and the condo can be home to its rightful owners.

For more information about purple martins and how to attract them, see www.purplemartin.org

It’s not too late to attract the rose-breasted grosbeak

The monogamous birds like to rub bills during courtship

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

The rose-breasted grosbeak Pheucticus ludovicianus is one of the most stunning birds you will see in southwestern Ontario. They seem to be even more plentiful in our back yard than they were last year at this time.

Grosbeak Families
Growing up with a naturalist father, I was expected to learn something about wildlife every day. I had frequently been informed (by my father) that the evening grosbeak was a member of the finch family. Consequently, I had always believed that the same was the case for all species of grosbeaks. It seemed like a logical assumption. Wrong again. The evening and rose-breasted grosbeaks are not in the same family at all. The similarity between the two is simply the size of their beaks, which are ‘gros,’ the French word for big.
The evening grosbeak (a beautiful yellow, black and white bird) is a member of the family FRINGILLIDAE, along with other finches like the pine grosbeak, goldfinch, redpoll, purple finch, house finch, crossbills and siskins. The rose-breasted grosbeak, on the other hand, is a member of the family CARDINALIDAE, along with the blue grosbeak, buntings, and cardinals.

Features and Habits
The male rose-breasted grosbeak has a black head, back, and wings with a white breast and an obvious rosy red triangular patch under the throat. The female has brownish upper parts with dark streaking, whitish to buff under parts, and a white eyebrow. Both genders have a large chunky beak, ideal for cracking seeds. They love black oil sunflower seeds. In our back yard, they favour the open tray feeder and the tube-style feeder. They will also eat insects, caterpillars, tree flowers, fruits and berries. We are currently observing ten or more rose-breasted grosbeaks on our feeders at any given time throughout the day. The young males are in their immature phase, with rusty streaked under-parts and the classic red triangular patch not yet developed.
May and early June is their nesting time when they are very busy tending young and eating enough to keep up their energy. They are monogamous and fairly solitary. Male and female rub bills to display affection during courtship. They raise one to two broods per year. If you hear a cheery song, similar to that of the robin only mellower, it is likely the rose-breasted grosbeak. It is not too late to start a feeder to attract them.

Labrador Retriever adds quality to life

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

My husband and I are ‘dog people’ and part of our balanced lifestyle is to own a dog. Since we have lived on our country property in Ailsa Craig, we have always had a Labrador Retriever. Molson, a shiny, sleek, black lab, was one of these beloved pets. Even when he was ten years old, people would say he looked like a puppy. His character matched his appearance.
In 1999 we temporarily moved from our property to a rented farmhouse. This was so our home could be torn down and transformed into the timber frame structure it is today. We rented the farmhouse for just over sixteen months and during that time, Molson had more than a few adventures. This article recounts one of them.
The 1870 farmhouse was equipped with a parlour, which we used as our living room. It was connected to a hallway that led to the ample wooden porch. One autumn Saturday morning I sat contentedly with coffee and newspaper, while our son Andrew lay on the rug with a crossword puzzle. The peaceful start to the day was not to last.
It was a refreshingly cool morning and the wooden door to the porch was open, leaving the aluminum storm door to close the entryway. Out of nowhere a loud volley of crashes and thumps came thundering across the broad wooden porch. Molson, ever the watchdog, responded as one might expect; he leapt to the storm door to see what was approaching. As he lunged at the glass, his black head and forepaws shattered the glass and went through. On the recoil he staggered back onto the hall rug, bleeding and yelping. Meanwhile, multiple screams could be heard from the porch and disappearing back to the driveway. Andrew took over the first aid of the ‘puppy’ and I went to investigate the rude intrusion. It turned out that a group of Beavers (not the rodent four-legged type, but the Boy Scouts of Canada type) were out on their annual apple drive. Their leaders, who had remained inside their van, allowed these primary-age children to go thundering excitedly across the front porch of a stranger’s house. One never knows what species of watchdog might be waiting either on the porch or within the house. Not everybody has a friendly Labrador.
I informed the little group that Molson was harmless, but as a result of his protective nature was now bleeding on the hall rug. I suggested that in future they approach strange houses in a calmer manner. After a weak apology from one of the leaders, I took an apple, gave them a $2 coin and bade them farewell. Andrew and I took Molson immediately to the vet where he received stitches inside his nose as well as inside the pads of his forepaws. $250 did the trick.
Molson lived another healthy six years after that event and continued to bring joy and love into our family every day; he passed away last December. Now we have a brand new Yellow Labrador puppy named Fergus to add to our balanced lifestyle. He has a tough act to follow.

Jenipher can be reached at: nature at grandbendstrip dot com

Turkey vulture: master of the road-kill

Nature’s sanitary engineer may remind you of someone you know

Living in Balance
by Jenipher Appleton

What has a naked, red-skinned head, a hooked beak, and is possibly one of the ugliest things you have ever seen? No, it is not someone’s mother-in-law. It is the turkey vulture; the under-appreciated, road-kill-loving turkey vulture.
Ailsa Craig local and naturalist Hank Halliday introduced me to this species back in 1979. I had never seen one while growing up in Muskoka, although the birds are plentiful in that region today. If you see a bird that resembles a soaring eagle, with elongated fingerlike wingtips, it is most likely a turkey vulture. The species name Cathartes aura is Latin for ‘cleansing breeze.’ Go figure.
The name ‘turkey vulture’ originates from the bare-skinned red head, which resembles a wild turkey. The purpose of this ruddy nakedness is to keep the remains of decaying animals from sticking to the vulture’s head as it thrusts into its meal. Yum! Another attractive characteristic is a semicircle of whitish to greenish warts below and in front of the eyes. During hot summer weather the bird will defecate on its own feet to help keep itself cool. When harassed, a turkey vulture will throw up on whoever is bothering it. Charming!
In addition to road-kill, the turkey vulture will eat dead livestock or the dead young of herons. A flock gathers quickly after an animal dies, soaring a hundred meters up, using their keen sense of smell and sharp eyes to specifically locate the prey. Once landed, they make hissing, grunting and growling sounds as they compete for the meal. Just like home.
With a six-foot wingspan, the vulture soars efficiently on thermal air currents, holding the wings in a shallow V and rocking from side to side. It should not be mistaken for the majestic eagle, as the latter soars on horizontally outstretched wings without the rocking motion. From beneath, the wing-feathers of the turkey vulture are two-toned black and gray. Tall dead trees are a favourite perch, conjuring up scenes from old Merrie Melodies cartoons. One day in early spring, I noted a turkey vulture perched atop a stump at the north end of Hyde Park Rd. His wings were spread wide, catching the ultra violet rays of the sun. The Anhinga, a water bird seen in Florida, does the same thing to dry its wings.
It is difficult to drive any distance at all without seeing a dead raccoon, rabbit or skunk. Vultures perform a very important function by helping with the ecological clean up. Although very unattractive, it should be easy to admire the adaptability, grace and importance of this most unappreciated bird.

To contact nature writer Jenipher Appleton, send mail to nature at grandbendstrip dot com.

Bald eagles making a comeback in the region?

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

The bald eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus boasts a wingspan of 183-244 cm. That translates into about seven feet! It weighs approximately 4.1 kg (10 lbs). The snow-white head and neck are distinctive. However, unlike the mature eagle, the juvenile sports a brown head and grayish eyes and could be mistaken for the golden eagle.
The bald eagle is truly at the top of its food chain. Its only threat is man, who is often responsible for loss of habitat and illegal hunting. The eyes of the adult eagle are bright yellow. When hunting, the bald eagle can focus in on prey from an unbelievable distance. This high definition sight is due to a high concentration of receptors in the retina of the eagle’s eye. Which reminds me of when my mother used to say, “I’ve got my eagle eye on you.”
She could spot anything I was doing a mile away.

Rare in eastern Canada

The bald eagle is common in Alaska and northwestern British Columbia, where up to 3000 may gather at a time to hunt salmon. They sometimes steal from ospreys (a raptor for another story). They also eat carrion and injured waterfowl, squirrels, rabbits and muskrats. Although they are not so common in eastern Canada, Steve Kozak, a citizen of Ailsa Craig who lives on the Ausable River ravine, reports a couple of recent sightings of these great birds. Steve, who watches the wildlife around him with interest, managed a good look at the birds on two separate occasions over a three-month period last year. In each case, the eagle was riding the currents over the river, searching out some unsuspecting fish.
The eagle constructs its gargantuan nest of large sticks and vegetation in the fork of a tall tree or on a ledge, sometimes 60 feet above the ground. Two bluish-white or dull white eggs are laid, 7-8 cm in length. The young, fed by both parents, stay in the nest an amazing 70-98 days. However, they have a great deal of growing to do before they become fledglings and must learn precise life skills from their parents before they can leave home forever.

Sighting can be awe-inspiring

It is not surprising that with all of these attributes that the bald eagle is often a symbol of majesty and strength. On a recent walk with my grade six students in Nairn, we were ambling through the East Williams cemetery when I happened to glance upward to spy an adult bald eagle riding the thermals of a clear blue sky. It was a breathtaking experience to be able to say, “Look! It’s a bald eagle!” I was so enraptured by the sight that I continued to walk as I was pointing aloft, and managed to slam my knee directly into a large grave marker. My apologies to the occupant. My students were suitably amused by their enthusiastic, yet absent-minded teacher.
The following week I was favoured with yet another bald eagle sighting. In early June, while out for a healthy brisk walk just north of Ailsa Craig, I caught sight of another adult male perched at the top of a tall dead tree. I stopped in my tracks and was able to observe him for about two minutes from a distance of about fifty feet. It was a most memorable and humbling experience.
These sightings may be indicators that the eastern population of bald eagles is on the increase. Keep your eyes peeled. You never know what you might see.

Alternatives to the Perfectly Manicured Lawn

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

Meadows can be beautiful

A meadow is a natural expanse of grassland supporting wildflowers, grasses, shrubbery and fodder (not to be confused with a pasture which is planted by humans). Our property, just north of Ailsa Craig, is a long, narrow, three-acre tract of land. The back acre is essentially a meadow. Three seasons of the year it is teeming with life. Countless species of birds, insects and small mammals inhabit the landscape because it offers them food and habitat.
In winter, the insects may be at rest in their cocoon stage on a weed stalk, or lie beneath the soil waiting to emerge in spring. Birds continue to find sustenance from the seed pods of wildflowers (weeds to some), including goldenrod, chicory, buttercups of various types, daisies, and Queen Anne’s lace. Tree branches heaped into a brush pile are stripped as the deer forage for any available energy source. Coyotes and foxes find small meals like cottontails and field mice. Various hawk species patrol the meadow in hopes of a similar meal.
Between our back acre and the adjacent farmer’s field stands an amazing hedgerow. This network of rusting wire fencing, mountain ash, dogwood, raspberry canes, grapevine and a potpourri of other shrubbery, provides effective cover for birds and mammals. Remember Peter Rabbit’s briar patch? He would never have survived without it. I have seen massive flocks of cedar waxwings perched in the hedgerow during migratory stopovers. Various thrushes and sparrows, warblers and finches find cover there as well.
Last year during an autumn walk on the back acre with Molson the Labrador, I witnessed hundreds of tree sparrows foraging throughout the meadow. They were extracting seeds from the wildflowers with the utmost dexterity. Had the area regularly succumbed to the ravages of the lawn tractor, this rich habitat would not have been available to them. All too often, we see large expanses of manicured lawn that could have been left as a natural meadow. With a little encouragement by planting some native wildflowers (black-eyed Susan, purple coneflower, bee balm, etc.), nature will do the rest. Better habitat for wildlife and less greenhouse gas erupting from your lawnmower.

The cottage-style garden

Try viewing your front or back lawn more like a cottage-style garden with wildflowers and groundcovers, rather than the stark monoculture of the suburban lawn. Our front yard was once the typical expanse of grass that took the better part of a half hour to mow. Seven years ago we transformed it from lawn to mulched berms, countless perennials, and groundcovers. Periwinkle, English Ivy, Snow-on-the-Mountain and wild violets (which appeared on their own) cover about 60% of the area. The more they spread, the less we have to top up the mulching material. A single grassy walkway takes less than five minutes to mow. The flowers and groundcovers support many species of birds and butterflies.

Defending the lowly dandelion

In the back yard, when dandelions are showing their sunny faces, we do not react with chemicals. Instead we cut them off with the mower. Sometimes the small, tender dandelion leaves end up in a tossed salad. Tolerating a couple of weeks of the flowers going to seed seems merely an inconvenience, when the alternative is chemicals entering the fragile ecosystem. The chemical-free approach still results in a green lawn. The best piece of advice I was ever given is that sometimes we need to adjust our thinking. If more of us applied this concept to how we treat the environment, plants, animals, birds, and humans would undoubtedly be healthier for it.

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Elinor Clarke writes:
I live on 50 acres (a big building lot!) half way between Grand Bend and Parkhill and we thoroughly enjoy our walk around the farm every morning. We have a good selection of birds including lots of hummingbirds, orioles and even a pair of veeries.
We have an unusual happening; we have what I think I have identified as a juvenile cow bird who has spent more than the last two weeks and almost all day, jumping at our windows. We have tried putting a board at the first favourite window and it just stood on the top of the board and continued jumping. Then we tried pulling all the blinds down but as we have windows with no blinds it just moved there. It seems to want to come in.
One day I was in the bedroom and when I moved to the bathroom it followed me to that window. Have you ever heard of such a thing?

Jenipher Appleton:
Thank you for your message. What I understand about bird species that insist on pecking at the windows is that they are very likely seeing reflections they view as rivals. It usually happens in the spring when they are nesting and establishing territories. It is generally short-lived, although some birds are stubborn about it. I have seen cardinals and robins behaving this way; a cardinal persisted at a car side-view mirror for several days in our driveway. Glad to hear that you have the veery pair. We do not, but I often hear them on walks near the woods.

Nature columnist Jenipher Appleton can be reached by mailing us at web at grandbendstrip dot com, Attn: Jenipher

Honeybees and Colony Collapse Disorder – Should We Care?

Our bird expert talks about the bees

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

An unexplained phenomenon has been affecting some of the North American honeybee population. Colony Collapse Disorder is the term being used by scientists to generally describe the dying off of honeybees. Producers in the Ottawa area lost over 50% of their hives over the past winter. Some think the collapse could be caused by viruses, fungi, or long-term effects of pesticide use. Others support the theory that the late onset of this winter caused the bees to produce extra broods; they may have been killed when the cold finally hit as they tended their larvae and pupae. One beekeeper in the Embro area reported finding an empty hive this spring. Finding a hive with dead bees is one thing; a mysterious disappearance is quite another. A University of New Brunswick microbiologist suggests that mites could be a culprit and is researching to develop fungi to fight the tiny mite parasites.

Going to the source
Jim Bender has been a beekeeper in the village of Nairn for the past ten years. He was kind enough to give me a tour of his hives and to explain much about the life cycle of bees and the development of the brood. His wife, aptly named Bea, is the librarian in the school where I teach. When I asked Jim how he had learned the craft of beekeeping, he wisely replied, “I went to the library.” Jim’s hives seem to have survived the winter reasonably well but his friend has reported a decline in population. Jim notes that last fall was extremely wet, which may have caused a decline in available food for the bees to have stored enough away for the winter months. They subsequently may have starved to death.
Whatever the explanation, the importance of honeybees is not to be disputed. Bees are natural pollinators. We actually depend on them for much of our daily food. Without them billions of dollars worth of crops, especially fruits and vegetables, would not develop on this continent. Some Ontario beekeepers provide pollination services to farmers, trucking their own hives to farms in Quebec and New Brunswick. This can cause stress on the bees, which could contribute to the decline in population of the individual hive.

Health benefits of honey
A recent University of California study shows a rise in the antioxidant levels of participants who regularly consumed honey. It contains as many antioxidants as spinach, apples, oranges and strawberries. The darker the honey, the higher the antioxidant level.
Honey contains magnesium, potassium, calcium, iron and phosphate, along with several B vitamins. It can even be used on cuts and burns as a natural antiseptic and healing booster. It is anti-bacterial and draws body fluids and nutrients to the affected area to assist in cell growth and reduce scarring. According to Bea Bender (remember the beekeeper’s wife?) honey needs no special storage because it virtually never goes bad. “It has even been found in ancient pyramids and was still edible,” says Bea.

Honeybee facts
Canadian Honey Council
• one colony can produce over 100 pounds of honey
• one colony can pollinate an acre of fruit trees
• bees can fly at 15 mph with wingbeats of 200 times/second (much faster than the hummingbird)
• the queen bee may lay 2000 eggs per day
• it takes 556 worker bees to gather a pound of honey
• the average life span in working season is six weeks
• the value of pollinating fruits, vegetables and legumes is ten times the value of the honey produced (1 billion dollars in Canada)
• honey is one of the safest foods (harmful bacteria cannot live in it for any length of time)

The bottom line
Bees pollinate 25% of all fruit produced for human consumption and many of the vegetables and legumes we need to survive. Bees create a natural healthy food called honey. Bees are an integral part of nature’s delicate chain. So… should we care about honeybees? The answer is a resounding “Yes!!”

To contact nature writer Jenipher Appleton, send mail to nature at grandbendstrip.comAttn: Jenipher.

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Birding more beneficial than you might think

Living in Balance
By Jenipher Appleton

Living in balance can be enhanced by our connections with nature. The way in which we are brought up can have a great impact on our view of natural surroundings. I am just a country girl, having lived in rural southwestern Ontario for the past 28 years. I was born and raised in Muskoka in a family of nature enthusiasts. I am also an elementary school teacher, and have been for so-o long that some of my students’ parents were taught by me. Yikes! Barring catastrophes, over the next series of articles I hope to share with you some insight and ideas for living in balance with the ecosystem.
Birding is one of the world’s fastest growing sports. Millions of people, through organized birding activities, contribute billions of dollars to the North American economy. This fact is a very hopeful sign for the birds themselves. You see, the more we know, observe and understand about our feathered friends, the better we are able to protect them for the future. Their presence here is a legacy which warrants our respect. At the rate we are destroying habitat with our daily activities, it is predicted that over the next hundred years we will lose 1200 species, or one in eight (R. Bateman, Birds).

Birding and ecology

Ignorance of how ecosystems work is directly related to the amount of negative impact we have on the earth and its species. Birding is a perfect vehicle to help raise awareness of ecology and nature’s delicate balance. My own interest in birds began early in life in the forests of Muskoka where my father taught me how to identify the names of the native species. He was exceptional at bird calls; whistling their specific song would often fool some of them to come in quite close. This provided us a much better look. Supplying me with books like Ernest Thompson Seton’s Wild Animals I have Known and a subscription to The Young Naturalist magazine also helped to instill a respect for wildlife in general.
Although cultivating a love of nature in the young is important, many nature converts do not embrace such activities until well into adulthood. It is never too late to take up a hobby; especially one that invites you into the great outdoors. Changing from a couch potato into a birder hiking through woods and fields can have incredibly positive health implications, both physically and mentally. Your blood pressure is bound to decrease and your sense of well-being to increase.
Sharing my enthusiasm with my own offspring is the ‘piece de resistance’. One night when our son Andrew was seventeen, he climbed a ladder outside to scrape some wet snow off the satellite dish. When he reached the top, his face was level with an open vent. Something caught his eye and he shone the flashlight inside. When he came back into the house he said, “Mom, you’ll never believe what I just saw!” He had come face-to-face with a screech owl seeking refuge from the snapping cold. The fact that Andrew was so excited by the encounter was a reward for me. I’m sure that it was not only the owl ‘whooo’ was wide-eyed.

Where to birdwatch

Birding opportunities in our immediate area are within easy reach. Visiting Point Pelee to see the spring and fall migrations, a Sunday drive to just north of Greenway to see the Tundra Swans, or Jack Miner’s naturalist museum at Kingsville are a few examples. Plenty of websites are at your fingertips to entice you further afield. However, so many species can be enjoyed right in our own back yards if we just create the habitat for them. Sure signs of spring are the rose-breasted grosbeak, white-throated and white-crowned sparrows, and goldfinches in their bright yellow plumage. I have filled the hummingbird and oriole feeders in anticipation of their arrival. One more example of trying to live in balance.

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