Call for bird photos
Call for bird photos by Anouk Hoedeman Safe Wings Ottawa is looking for photos of local birds in local habitat to illustrate the Ottawa Bird Strategy, a document we are developing based on the Vancouver Bird Strategy We specifically would like images showing: typical Ottawa bird(s) against recognizable backdrops like Parliament Hill birds in forests, wetlands, river, fields, urban backyards, suburban and rural areas, etc. birds in different seasons (fall colours, winter). Lac Deschênes-Ottawa River Important Bird Area landscaping with native plants [...]
5th ANNUAL OFNC MEMBERS PHOTO NIGHT: FROM HERE TO THERE AND BACK AGAIN
Barry Cottam The fifth annual OFNC members photo night almost didn’t happen. A last-minute glitch forced cancellation of the initial event, scheduled as usual on a January evening to help ward off the winter blues. But Doug Luoma, one of the presenters, just happens to work in the activities department of Villagia in the Glebe Residence. He suggested the ball-room there could accommodate our event and we jumped at the chance. Most of the original presenters booked on and, joined [...]
Jane’s Walk 2018
By Gordon Robertson with input from Sandra Garland Our first Jane’s Walk/Open House was a great success. We were prepared for about 40 people but were pleasantly surprised with about 100. Fortunately, seven volunteers showed up to give walks around the grounds. Thanks to Sandra Garland, Lucy Patterson, Lynn Ovenden, Ted Farnworth, and Marilyn Ward, for donating their time and knowledge. A special thanks to Lynn for making tea and purchasing cookies for refreshments after the walks. Each walk lasted [...]
FWG Volunteer Spring Fling
By Ted Farnworth This year’s Fletcher Wildlife Garden Spring Fling attracted over thirty new and return volunteers. It was a good time to get caught up with old long time friends, and to talk about activities planned this season for the Garden. The potluck lunch was enjoyed by all. Most people join the Fletcher volunteer group to have an excuse to get out and work in the out of doors. We get free exercise and at the same time we [...]
Budding naturalists: OFNC award winners at the science fair
by Lucy Patterson How is plant growth affected by grey water? How can we build better passageways around dams for migrating fish? How does ocean acidification affect clam shells? These questions and more were tackled by bright young scientists at this year’s Ottawa Regional Science Fair. During this event, which occurred on April 6 and 7, 2018 at Carleton University’s “Raven’s Nest,” 164 students in grades 7-12 from the Ottawa-Gatineau region came together to present their science projects. Since 1961, this [...]
Back Yard Garden Black Locust Trees
By Ted Farnworth Stumps of two Black Locust trees removed from the edge of the Backyard Garden this week. Over the years we have watched the Black Locust trees spread up the north side of the ravine at the FWG. The week or so when they are in bloom has brought many oohs and awes from visitors, especially photographers. But as the locusts have grown, they have started to encroach on the Backyard Garden. In fact, they have [...]
CFN Issue 131(3) is online now – have you read it?
By William Halliday, Journal Manager of CFN Have you read the latest issue of The Canadian Field-Naturalist (CFN) yet? CFN is a peer-reviewed scientific journal, which is run by the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club (OFNC). CFN publishes articles and notes on all aspects of natural history in Canada, including articles documenting new species to Canada, novel behaviours of animals, and studies of the relationships between living organisms and the environment. CFN (including its predecessors) has been published continuously since 1880, providing [...]
The FWG’s Amphibian Pond – 2017
by Ted Farnworth South bank of the pond spread with topsoil ready for planting, spring 2017 The rejuvenation of the Amphibian Pond, started in earnest in the fall of 2016, when a contractor brought in heavy duty equipment to dredge out the bottom sediment and spread it out along the south bank of the pond. Early in the spring of 2017, the contractor came back to finish off the pathway around the pond, and spread topsoil around [...]
Nature Quiz: What’s the Story Here? (Feb. 10, 2018)
Macoun Club members discover looped tree (White Pine) On Macoun Club field trips, we regularly encounter strangely shaped trees that are hard to figure out. On last weekend’s outing to Pakenham we found this sturdy White Pine sapling that had formed a complete loop. The tree had recently died, so we collected the loop for the upcoming Awards Night nature quiz. The annual rings at the base showed it to be 61 years old. It had been growing [...]