THE BULLETINNEWS AND VIEWS FROM THE RICHMOND HILL NATURALISTS

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...The Mighty OakTips to prevent Bird­Window CollisionsVesper and Lincoln'sSparrows60­Year­Old Momgives birth for 30thtime (or so)...

Why turn out thelights? Earth Hour2011Lots of Buzz aroundPollinator SymposiumWho is your GreenHero?Early Bird gets thebest ticketsWho's on this year'sBaillie BirdathonTeam?

MARCH 2011 — No. 496

Left - Scarlet Tanager -- a "counted bird" from last year's Baillie Birdathon. Seeinside if you are interested in joining the Naturalist Club's Baillie Birdathon team thisyear.

Neotropical Birds - the other end ofMigrationAn evening with Lev Frid

Join the Naturalists on Thursday March 17th for aninformative and entertaining talk on neotropicalbirds with Lev Frid. Lev is a well­known Ontariobirder and naturalist who has followed his passionfrom the far north to the Andes and beyond. Hewill show photographs from his travels in CentralAmerica to illustrate the lives of Canadiansongbirds on their wintering grounds. Themeeting starts at 7:30pm on Thursday, March 17that Richmond Hill Presbyterian Church,Wallace Hall,10066 Yonge St., Richmond Hill (west side, justnorth of Major Mackenzie Dr.)Free admission, all are welcome, donations accepted, parking is freeandrefreshments will be served. For more information, contactMarianne Yake, 905­883­3047 or president@rhnaturalists.ca.

© 2005 Jean-Guy Dallaire

Please don't feed the coyotes!MNR Biologist John Pisapio warns naturalists -- see page 4

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Do you enjoy getting out in the spring and spending the wholeday looking for Wood Warblers and other spring migrants? Ifthat's your cup of tea, maybe you'd like to join the Richmond HillNaturalists Baillie Birdathon Team.Birdathon donations are tax­deductible and 25% of the donationcomes back to the Richmond Hill Naturalists.It's a lot of fun and a great fundraiser for the club as well as forBird Studies Canada.Participants also have the opportunity to win prizes for most birdspecies seen in a 24­hour period and most funds raised.Grand Prize this year is a choice of three Eagle Eye Tours birdingtrips: to Central Mexico, Quebec or Trinidad & Tobago. Otherprizes include spotting scopes, binoculars, bird feeders, hikinggear and many more. All participants get at least one chance towin a prize and get additional chances for each $250 raised.Contact Denise Potter at denise_potter@hotmail.com or call 905­770­4586 if you are interested in joining this year's Richmond HillNaturalists Club team.

Join the Baillie Birdathon Team!

2008 / 2009 RHN ExecutivePresident......................Marianne Yake (president@rhnaturalists.ca...................................905­883­3047)Past President............... Natalie Helferty2nd Vice President......... Position AvailableSecretary..................... Position AvailableTreasurer/Secretary....... Gene Denzel (treasurer@rhnaturalists.ca)Field Trips.....................Joe Agg (trips@rhnaturalists.ca)Environment................. Position AvailablePublicity....................... Position Available (publicity@rhnaturalists.ca)Bulletin Editor............... Denise Potter (editor@rhnaturalists.ca)Membership..................Mike Turk (membership@rhnaturalists.ca)Events......................... Position AvailableOntario Nature Rep........ Marianne YakeWebsite Admin.............. Rod Potter (webmaster@rhnaturalists.ca)Chair of AstroNats......... Heidi DeBond (astronomy@rhnaturalists.ca)

Don't forget to Renew your Membership!Your membership fee helps pay for our monthlyhall rental, website registration, speakers,printing and postage for the Bulletin (allWebsite and Bulletin contributions and editing

are on a strictly volunteer basis), and special events.Please renew by clicking on the "Membership" link on thewebsite at rhnaturalists.ca or at the monthly GeneralMeeting. A single membership is $30; get a membershipfor the whole family for only $35.

The Bulletin is published 9 timesper year, from September toMay inclusive, by the RichmondHill Naturalists, and is mailedfree to members. The Bulletin isthe official publication of theRichmond Hill Naturalists, anon­profit organization theobjectives of which are tostimulate public interest innatural history and to encouragethe preservation of our naturalareas.Address Correspondence to:Richmond Hill Naturalists, P.O.Box 32217, RPO Harding,Richmond Hill, ON, L4C 9S3Deadlines: The editorencourages submissions fromany member on any topicrelated to nature orconservation, and in particular,any issue that might be ofinterest or concern to membersof this club. e­mail: editor@rhnaturalists.ca Deadlines arethe 2nd Thursday of eachmonth.Bulletin Advertisers have beenselected because of theirrelevance to member interests.Members are encouraged topatronize our advertisers andplease mention that you sawtheir ad in our Bulletin.Change of Address: Any changeof email or street address shouldbe sent to Mike Turk who printsthe envelopes for the Bulletinmailing.Denise Potter, Bulletin Editor:editor @rhnaturalists.ca647­504­4586Mailing Address: 128 PugsleyAv, Richmond Hill, ONMailing Database: Mike TurkDistribution: Athena AntiochosVisit our Website atwww.rhnaturalists.caSee the Executive List foradditional contact information.

RICHMOND HILL NATURALISTS

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Thursday, March 17, 7:30PM ­ General Meeting ­ Speaker Lev Frid on NeotropicalBirds: The Other End of Migration. The meeting will take place at the Richmond HillPresbyterian Church, Wallace Hall. 10066 Yonge St., North of Major Mackenzie Dr., West side.For info contact Marianne Yake at 905-883-3047, or visit www.RHNaturalists.ca.Saturday, March 26, 8:30PM to 9:30PM ­ EARTH HOUR - Join the RHNaturalists at Yonge& Hopkins just south of the Richmond Hill Library and Major MacKenzie Dr. And see the storyon page 6.Thursday, April 7, 1:15PM ­ Botany Group ­ This month's topic is Edible Plants. Hostedby Marion MartindaleTuesday, April 12, 2011 at 7:30pm ­ Executive Meeting. McConaghy Centre. All arewelcome. Executive positions available include: Secretary, Environment, Publicity, Events.Come out to the Exec meeting and see what you think!Wednesday, April 13, 2011 at 6:30pm ­ Bird Group Annual Potluck dinner and Meeting­ Louisiana and Northern Waterthrush - hosted by Martin and Judy Chen, 398 Highcliff Dr,Thornhill. All welcome. Please RSVP to 905­709­0246 if you wish to attend.Thursday, April 21, 2011 at 6:00pm ­ Annual Potluck Dinner followed by GeneralMeeting beginning at 7:30pm. Club Member Mike Turk speaks about the glorious NationalParks of the American Southwest. Richmond Hill Presbyterian Church, Wallace Hall. 10066Yonge St., North of Major Mackenzie Dr., West side. For info contact Marianne Yake at 905-883-3047, or visit www.RHNaturalists.ca.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011 from 6pm to 8pm: Help Maintain Hunter's Point WildlifePark. In partnership with the Town of Richmond Hill, Evergreen invites you to join us and ourcommunity as we steward Hunter’s Point Wildlife Park. Through ongoing care, gardenmaintenance and mulching, you can help maintain this oasis for birds, butterflies and otherwildlife. WHAT TO BRING: Weather­appropriate clothing, sturdy footwear and a waterbottle.Evergreen WILL PROVIDE: Gloves, tools, drinking water and snacks. Meet at Hunter’sPoint Wildlife Park, located on Hunter’s Point Drive, north of Hwy 7 between Bathurst Street andYonge Street. Meet at the northern entrance of the park.Saturday May 14, 2011, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.Tommy Thompson Park Spring Bird FestivalGO WILD, GO BIRDING! Located on the Toronto Waterfront, Tommy Thompson Park isToronto's largest greenspace that provides critical stopover habitat for migrating birds. Over315 species have been recorded to date at the park! Join the Toronto Region ConservationAuthority at the Spring Bird Festival to learn about the amazing phenomenon of migration andthe importance of bird conservation. A variety of activities will be offered for people of all agesand all birding abilities! Please visit www.springbirdfestival.ca for more detail and note thatsome activities require registration.Sunday, May 29, 2011, The 13th Annual Mill Pond Splash, a popular eco­festival hostedby the Don Watershed Regeneration Council, Toronto and Region Conservation, the Town ofRichmond Hill, and the Richmond Hill Naturalists, will be taking place on Sunday, May 29, 2011at Mill Pond Park from 12:00 ­ 4:30 p.m. For more information, please visit:http://www.trca.on.ca/millpondsplash/

Coming Events

Please note: Richmond Hill Naturalists welcomes anyone to volunteer as anouting leader. Contact trips@rhnaturalists.ca if you would like to organizeor promote an outing.

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The RHN Botany group meton March 3, at the home ofMuriel Farrant. After tastytreats, each memberpresented some informationand thoughts on Oak trees.Usually the group discusseswild plants and flowers, butfor this session, leader MarionMartindale had assignedvarious members of theQuercus genus, and it madefor an interesting departurefrom orchids and wildmustard. We learned thatOaks are among the oldestand largest plants on earth,and in some cultures havebeen revered as sacred.The genus includes morethan 200 species, ten ofwhich grow in Canada, mostlyin the East. The fruit(acorns) are food for manyanimals and birds and nativepeople. Many trees springfrom acorns which squirrelsor Blue Jays have buried.The wood is hard, heavy andstrong, and is used forflooring, furniture, boat­building, wine casks andbarrels for other liquids.Marion told of the JacobFisher Bur Oak Tree, over 200years old, near Highway 7and Pine Valley Drive, on landowned by the Glen Group andslated for development.According to the Toronto Star,in a story published in March1985, the developer changedthe lot lines so the tree wassaved from the effects ofdevelopment, because of itshistorical importance. TheBerczy development inMarkham also named a roadand a park after the historicBur Oak found there.

Ancient and Strong, Oak revered in some culturesAnd even some local developers have been made to protect historic Oak Trees

by Ted Hampton

Botany Group: SEATED l-r: Susan Hampton; Marion Martindale; Muriel Farrant; Ted Hampton; Freddy

Whillans

STANDING l-r: Siglint Fitting; Dana Jonak

by Denise Potter

Coming on a pack of wolves whilewading painfully through waist­deep snow was one of the fewmoments in his career of studyingwolves and coyotes that MNRBiologist John Pisapio felt hemight be in a bit of a tight spot.But that pack ran in fear evenfrom a human virtually trapped inthe snow. In all of North America,wolf or coyote attacks on humanscan be numbered on one hand.The attacks that have occurredhave all been linked to humansintentionally feeding the furrypredators.The RHN was fortunate to havePisapio, a Management Biologistwith the Ontario Ministry ofNatural Resources, speak onwolves and coyotes in southernOntario at our February meeting.His fascinating presentationsummarized the findings of yearsof experience tracking andstudying coyotes and wolves, inthe old days with radio tags andhelicopters right up to modern­

day satellite­broadcasting chipsand computers. Pisapio told alsoof the dramatic increase in Coyotenumbers in Southern Ontario ­­an area where they once barelyexisted at all. They are unlikelyto bother humans at all, he said­­ unless humans feed them. Likebears in a garbage dump, thecoyote who learns that humansare a source of food becomes adangerous coyote. Pisapio alsosaid that studies haveconsistently shown that cullingcoyotes doesn't work: they justbreed faster elsewhere andrecolonize. Ironically, just daysafter Pisapio's presentation to thenaturalists, a provincialconservative MPP proposed ahunting "contest" to reducecoyote numbers in Ontario.A veteran "wolf caller" ofAlgonquin Park and elsewhere,Pisapio was persuaded to give usa very convincing sample. Thechilling, carrying howl literally hadmy skin crawling. Please...don'tfeed the coyotes!

Please don't feed the Coyotes!

RICHMOND HILL NATURALISTS

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The Bird Group gathered on ourusual 2nd Wednesday of themonth, this time at the home ofJoe and Berthe Agg, who kindlytook over for Martin Chen whowas down with the flu. Theweather was abominable, butstill a hardy group of BarbaraJackson, Muriel Farrant, AthenaAntiochos, Mike Turk, and Geneand Charlene Denzel braved theelements to discuss the Lincoln’sand Vesper Sparrows. These areboth birds which can be seen inthe GTA, although for theLIncoln’s it will mostly be inmigration, and the odds for theVesper outside of migration willbe better a little North of here.They both depend on particulartypes of habitat, with the Vesperpreferring early successionalfields, with some tall shrubs orshort trees for perching/singing.The Lincoln’s prefers moisterareas, with lots of cover, and isin fact much easier to hear thanto see. These are bothhandsome birds, with beautifulsongs. We were surprised whileplaying the Lincoln’s song whenan univited guest appeared; abeautiful black cat on full alertcame stalking into the room, andseemed quite miffed when thesong turned out to be comingfrom an ipod!In addition to the usual informeddiscussion on the birds, weworked our way through aninteresting quiz prepared byAthena. This was an apparentlystraightforward multiple­guessformat, but it turned out thatthere was plenty of room fordisagreement on theinterpretation of the questions.During our discussions we hadbeen well­nourished by variousgoodies prepared by Berthe, butbefore we left we were pressedto sample a specialty of theBeauce region called ‘Joe Louies’,a chocolate confection. With

some of us vowing to be moreabstemious the next day, weadjourned a little past 9.Next month’s meeting will be atMartin and Judy Chen’s home,and will be the occasion of ourannual pot­luck dinner, startingat 6:30. As usual guests arewelcome to join in, just let thehost know in advance.

Lincoln's sparrow - photo by Gene Denzel. Lincoln's is similar in appearance to its fellow Melospiza

cousin Song Sparrow, but Song Sparrow's eye streak is usually much stronger, Song Sparrow

jowls are usually paler, chest is whiter with darker, broader streaks compared to the finely-streaked

buffy breast of Lincoln's. Though similar to both in appearance, Vesper is from the genus Poocetes

and sports almost no eyebrow, or a pale eyeline rather than dark. Vesper has a distinct white

eyering and distinctive white outer tailfeathers.

Lincoln and Vesper Sparrowsby Gene Denzel

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Earth Hour began in Sydney,Australia in 2007. Participantsturn off all non­essential lights andelectrical gizmos for just ONEHOUR, for one Saturday eveningin March. Now in its fifth year, theidea has spread around the globeand people from all walks of lifeand all political ideologiesparticipate.Even in Ontario, where wehave both the astoundinghydro power of Niagara Fallsand several nuclear reactors,as of 2007 more than half ofour electricity comes fromburning fossil fuels.Canadians rank seventh inthe world in the amount ofenergy generated overall, andwe are one of the veryhighest users of energy percapita. Does it have to bethat way? Turning off thelights for one hour is astatement in support ofenergy conservation andglobal connection.It's a way to show yoursupport for using LESSenergy to have a greaterquality of life. Byparticipating, you are showingyour government and yourneighbours that you really docare about energyconservation, about climatechange caused by burningfossil fuels for electricity, andabout the other impacts ofelectricity creation on theplanet. You're showing thatyou recognize that the costsof using electricity go farbeyond the 8cents perkilowatt hour that we pay inOntario.Earth Hour 2011 is March26th, from 8:30pm to9:30pm Eastern Time.For one hour:Instead of watching, try listening.

Instead of staring at the tv, sit inthe dark and tell stories to eachother.Instead of playing computergames, just for one hour playcards or a boardgame bycandlelight.If you're musically inclined, have asingalong or an acoustic jamsession.Invite friends over for a candlelitdinner and conversationLook at the stars. The sun sets at7:36pm on March 26 and thelast­quarter moon won't riseuntil after 3am. If the sky isclear (and after this winter we

aren't sure we still believe incloudless skies); and if enoughpeople and businesses turn outtheir lights in Richmond Hill, thestargazing could be awesomeby the end of Earth Hour.Saturn rises at about 8pm andshould be visible in the sky.Join us at Yonge & Hopkinsjust south of the RichmondHill Central Library andMajor MacKenzie Dr.For more information aboutEarth Hour go tohttp://wwf.ca/earthhour/

Why turn out the lights?

RICHMOND HILL NATURALISTS

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From the American BirdConservancyMillions of birds die every yearflying into windows, because theycan’t tell reflections from trees,plants and sky. Most of thosewindows are on houses.Never had a bird hit yourwindow? Perhaps you have beenlucky—so far. More likely, youhaven’t been around to see orhear it when it happened, and thebird has either flown off to dieelsewhere or been scavenged bya neighborhood cat, raccoon, orcrow. But the odds are thatsooner or later, your windows willkill a bird. Here are some quickand affordable ways to protectbirds from your windows. Theseshould be applied to the outsideof the glass to break upreflections.Research has identified solutionsto alert birds to windows. Theeasiest of these involve applyingvisible markings to the outside ofwindows in patterns that the birdscan see while requiring minimalglass coverage to keep your viewunobscured. Although we don’tyet have all the answers, weknow that most birds will avoidwindows with one­quarter­inch­wide, white, vertical stripesspaced four inches apart, or one­eighth­inch, black, horizontalstripes spaced one inch apart.More complicated or irregularpatterns will also work as long asthey follow the general spacingguidelines specified above.1. Apply Tempera paint (availableat most art supply and craftstores) freehand with brush orsponge, or use a stencil. Temperais long­lasting, even in rain, andnon­toxic, but comes right offwith a damp rag or sponge. Findstencils at www.michaels.com,www.amazon.com, or downloadstencils for free atwww.spraypaintstencils.com.

2. Use tape to create patterns.Duck brand tape comes in arange of colors and tears easily,to make lines of different widths.Chart tape (www.magnatag.com)comes in a range of widths (tapemay require a utility knife toremove).3. Most window films designed forexternal use are not patternedand will not deter birds. However,interior window films come inmany colors and styles, and canbe applied on the outside ofwindows to prevent collisions (seewww.thesunshieldpros.us,www.fauxdecorandmore.com).CollidEscape, designed forexternal use, is see­through fromthe inside, opaque from theoutside(www.lfdcollidescape.com).4. If you don’t want to alter theglass itself, you can stretchlightweight netting, screen, orother material over the window.The netting must be severalinches in front of the window, sobirds don’t hit the glass afterhitting the net. Severalcompanies, (www.birdbgone.com,www.birdscreen.com) sell screensthat can be attached with suctioncups or eye hooks (also see

www.nixalite.com,www.birdmaster.com).5. What about prefabricateddecals? Decals are a well­knownalternative to the techniqueslisted above. However, to beeffective, they must be spacedmore closely than recommendedby manufacturers and so mayblock more of the glass surfacethan other options(www.pines.com, www.windowdressingetc.com). Ormake your own! Arti StickWindow Color paints come in 18colors and are marketed forchildren. Drawings on sheets ofplastic become translucent asthey dry, and can be peeled offand applied to windows (visitwww.budgetartkids.com,www.dickblick.com, andwww.artsuppliesforartists.com).Window tape patterns are easy toapply and provide an effectivedeterrent against bird strikes.Tempera paint is a washable,long­lasting, and non­toxicsolution to preventingbird/window collisions.For more information, visit:www.abcbirds.org

You can save birds from flying into windows!

For Toronto-area information visit the Fatal Light Awareness Program: http://www.flap.org/

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60-year-old Mother has new babyfrom Bird Studies CanadaA few weeks ago, the oldestknown wild bird in the NorthernHemisphere was spotted atMidway Atoll National WildlifeRefuge in Hawaii. The bird, afemale Laysan Albatross namedWisdom, is at least 60 years old;she is also a new mother.

Wisdom was spotted withher chick a few weeks ago byJohn Klavitter, a U.S. Fish andWildlife Service biologist and thedeputy manager of the MidwayAtoll National Wildlife Refuge.She has sported and worn outfive bird bands since she wasfirst banded by U.S. GeologicalSurvey (USGS) scientistChandler Robbins in 1956. At thetime, he estimated the albatrossto be about five years old.Robbins rediscovered Wisdom in2001, when she was at least 50.“She looks great,” saidBruce Peterjohn, the chief of theNorth American Bird BandingProgram at the USGS PatuxentWildlife Research Center inLaurel, Maryland. “And she isnow the oldest wild birddocumented in the 90­yearhistory of our USGS Fish andWildlife Service and Canadianbird banding program,” headded. “To know that she canstill successfully raise young atage 60­plus, that is beyondwords. While the process ofbanding a bird has not changedgreatly during the past century,the information provided bybirds marked with a simplenumbered metal band hastransformed our knowledge ofbirds.”Wisdom, Peterjohn said,has likely raised at least 30 to35 chicks during her breedinglife. Almost as amazing as beinga parent at 60 is the number ofmiles she has likely flown. Adultbirds average about 50,000miles annually, so Wisdom hasflown at least two to three

million miles since she was firstbanded. That’s the equivalent offour to six trips from earth tothe moon and back again, withplenty of miles to spare!Plastics Ingestion in Marine

Birds Gaining More AttentionPlastic pollution in marineenvironments and its impact onmarine life is an increasingconcern. The issue was the focusof 15 presentations and aworkshop at last year’s WorldSeabird Conference, summariesand abstracts from which areavailable on the Seabirdswebsite. Off the BC coast, thereis a swirling mass of plasticdebris trapped in the NorthPacific Gyre, sometimes referredto as the ‘Great Pacific GarbagePatch’.Until recently, few studies havebeen undertaken to quantifyplastic ingestion by seabirdsusing Canadian waters. In 2010,a series of Northern Fulmarcarcasses collected by BCBeached Bird Survey volunteersand Parks Canada staff in theTofino­Ucluelet area, followingpersistent November 2009storms, were analysed byStephanie Avery­Gomm, aMasters student at theUniversity of BC (UBC), as partof a collaborative study betweenUBC, Bird Studies Canada,Environment Canada, and theBC Ministry of Agriculture’sAnimal Health Centre.Preliminary results from stomachcontents analyses are startling:of the 36 Northern Fulmarscollected on the west coast ofVancouver Island, all but onewas found to have ingestedplastic. Further details about thisstudy will appear in theupcoming Spring Issue ofBirdWatch Canada.

Who is yourGreen Hero?Do you know a green hero?Ontario Nature is now acceptingnominations for our annualconservation awards given toindividuals, groups, governmentagencies and corporationsdedicated to protecting nature inOntario. The deadline fornominations is fast approaching:March 31, 2011. Please visit ourconservation awards webpagefor more information and todownload a nomination form.Award winners will berecognized at Ontario Nature's80th Annual General Meetingand Gathering on June 11 – 12,2011 at the Ganaraska ForestCentre, in the heart of the OakRidges Moraine. Event proceedswill support the NatureGuardians program. For moreinformation, contact LaurenWright atlaurenw@ontarionature.org or1­800­440­2366 ext. 271. or goto the Ontario Nature Website.

You're Invited toOntario Nature'sAGMHelp celebrate eight decades ofconservation at Ontario Nature's80th Annual General Meetingand Gathering on June 11 – 12,2011. Festivities will include agala dinner with live music, fieldtrips exploring unique wildlifeand habitats, nature workshops,and a kids nature camp. TheAGM will be held at the beautifulGanaraska Forest Centre in theheart of the Oak Ridges Moraine(north of Port Hope). For moreinformation, contact LaurenWright atlaurenw@ontarionature.org or1­800­440­2366 ext. 271.

RICHMOND HILL NATURALISTS

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Flock to Point Pelee National Parkfor the annual Festival of BirdsApril 30 through May 23.Registration for hikes and specialprograms begins March 1. Thisyear's guest speakers includeAlvaro Jarmillo and DonKroodsma. Alvaro Jarmillo, oneof North America’s top birdidentification specialists, willdeliver a talk entitled “How inthe world did they get here? Abirder’s view of the how and whyof bird migration” on Friday, May6 at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $12each. Mr. Jarmillo will also leada special hike on Saturday, May7 at 7:00 am. Space is limitedto 12 participants. Cost is$25/per person.Don Kroodsma has studiedbirdsong for forty years and is arecognized authority on avianvocal behaviour. He will sharehis passion and knowledge ofbird song in his talk called“Singing Life of Birds” onSaturday May 14 at 6:30 p.m.Tickets are $12 each. Don willalso demonstrate his researchmethods in a workshop on

Sunday, May 15 at 5:30 a.m.Space is limited to 20participants. Cost is $25/perperson.This year, in addition to thetraditional Festival of Birdsprogram of guided hikes andworkshops, Point Pelee NationalPark and the Friends of PointPelee will be introducing newprograms and services. The newGuided North­end AfternoonHikes which begin at the MarshBoardwalk will be offered May 7through May 15 at 1:30 p.m.

Registration required. Cost forthis hike and other birding hikesoffered through the Friends ofPoint Pelee is $15/per person.2011 marks Parks Canada’scentennial. Join the celebrationwith the”100 Species Challenge”.Find 100 species of birds duringyour visit to Point Pelee NationalPark and you will be rewardedwith a special commemorativepin! For more information andto register, visitwww.festivalofbirds.ca or contact519­322­2365.

2011 Festival of Birds at Point Pelee National Park - Dare totry the 1 00-species Challenge!

The Early Bird gets into the best events at SpringFestivals

It may still be icy and wet outside, but spring is in the air! Registration is already underway forthese popular nature festivals.

Carden Nature FestivalEnjoy the amazing diversity of the CardenAlvar and raise funds for the Naturalist ClubtooOnline registration is now available for the CardenNature Festival, June 3­5, 2011. Don't delay: signup for your favourite events now before it's toolate! There are more than 130 activities scheduledto suit everyone from the lawn chair birdwatcherto wilderness explorers and plenty in between foradults and kids, but space IS LIMITED!

Go to www.cardenguide.com and follow the link.Please enter the Goup Number code 0511. If atleast 12 people from the Richmond Hill Naturalistparticipate the group rebate to our club would be25% of the total or $6.25 per weekend pass. orsharing so generously. Some events are free,most cost $6.00 per person including children,some cost more. A weekend pass is $25.00 perperson. Many thanks to the CouchichingConservancy for sponsoring and organizing thefestival, for promoting this unique and beautifulpart of Ontario and for sharing so generously.

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Naturalist Club Member Deb Chute attended the

Pollinator Symposium on Feb 26th and gives us

this report.Sponsored by Pollination Guelph[www.pollinationguelph.ca], thisfourth annual PollinatorSymposium was a fund raiser fora Pollinator Park planned for theEastview Landfill Site in Guelph.Vicki Beard, Guelph Ward 2Councillor and Vice Chair ofPollination Guelph spoke of thepublic gardens in Guelph thatnow have Native Plant PollinatorPlots. The 112­acre PollinatorPark is gradually moving throughthe proper channels to getstarted.Have you ever thought of flies aspollinators? Well, Dr. StephenMarshall has. This Professor atthe University of Guelph andauthor of Insects: Their NaturalHistory and Diversity, 2006 led usall chuckling through hishumourous presentation aboutthe world of flies and fly “wanna­bees” as pollinators. (The term"Wanna­Bee" came from "A Guideto Toronto's Pollinators" by TheDavid Suzuki Foundation).Other symposium topics included:

Upcoming 2nd annual“International Pollinator Week”in Toronto, Brickworks, June 20to 26, 2011 (SabrinaMallach, 2010 recipient ofCanadian pollinator advocateaward from NAPPC, NorthAmerican Pollinator ProtectionCampaign)“The Plight of the Bumble Bee:What you need to know aboutthese furry pollinators”.(York University’s Sheila Colla.Look for her new ID for BumbleBees book due out next

January, 2010)www.savethebumblebee.com“Comparing the Valueof Native and Non­native Plants forPollinators” (VictoriaMacPhail, Outreachand PublicityCoordinator forPollination Guelph)“Creating SustainableLandscapes” (JeffThompson, NativePlant Source)

You may want to savespace in yourcalendar for nextyear’s symposiumusually held inFebruary or Marcheach year.Bee inside harebell Photo by Deb Chute

Pollinator Symposium

Fly Bee Mimic or "Wanna-bee" referred to in Dr. Stephen Marshall's talk on Flies as pollinators