Scythes vs. dog-strangling vine
by Sandy Garland Tuesday-in-the-woods day and my trusty crew of Catrina, Mirko, and Kate arrived right on time. Unfortunately, it looked like rain, so we stayed around the centre for a while watering (the plants that don't get rained on) and potting up more seedlings: Gray Goldenrod and Upland White Goldenrod. As the sky cleared a bit, we sharpened the scythes and set off for the field north of the woods to do battle with dog-strangling vine (DSV). This week, [...]
Tuesday afternoons in the woods
by Sandy Garland When our ash trees were taken down last spring, not only did they leave enormous "holes" in the Old Woodlot, but they also caused damage to other trees and plants when they fell and were dragged out of the area. Increased light means the ground vegetation is likely to change. All this prompted us to form a regular work group to restore this habitat and create a mixed woodlot full of a variety of native plants, shrubs, [...]
Nest boxes for mason bees
This very small bee was exploring the various nest holes in this bee box. This tiny bee is in the Tribe Osmiini, and in the genus Heriades (thanks to Bug Guide for identifying the genus). by Sandy Garland Mason bees are named for their use of mud or clay in their nests. They belong in the genus Osmia in the family Megachilidae. At the Fletcher Wildlife Garden, we have found Blue Orchard Mason Bees (Osmia lignaria) as well [...]
OFNC communications: follow up to 2015 member survey
by Linda Burr Education and Publicity Committee Thank you to all of our members who participated in the survey on communications this past January. The electronic version was distributed by email to 658 members and a paper survey was distributed by mail to 115 members. We received an incredible 395 responses (39 on paper, 356 on-line), which is a response rate of 51%! Considering that a 10% return rate is viewed as good for these types of surveys, it shows [...]
Migrants at Parc national de Plaisance
by Rachelle Lapensee with photos by Sandra Dashney and Arlene Harold Virgina Rail photographed by Sandra Dashney This park includes the largest wetlands in the Ottawa area, and the trip was timed to coincide with the end of spring waterfowl migration. What a fantastic and successful birding trip to PARC NATIONAL DE PLAISANCE today [Sunday, 26 April]! I was so happy and honoured to have had the opportunity to co-lead our group with Mark Gawn! We saw a [...]
Laid Back Birding
by Bev McBride The Laid Back Birding event at Mud Lake went well this morning. About 15 people tolerated the cold wind to follow me around the trails (with Dave Moore bringing up the rear). We encountered 34 species in a good mix of spring migrants, winter visitors, and year-round residents. Migrants included Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Eastern Phoebe and Song Sparrow along with Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles. Ring-billed Gulls have returned in force, covering their nesting colonies on the north [...]
The Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club welcomes YOU to the 2015 OFNC Awards Night
By Bailey Cooke Every year, the Ottawa Field-Naturalist’s Club hosts an awards night to take the time to say thank you to those who have made major contributions to the club over the previous year. This year, the event will take place Saturday April 18th in the basement of St. Basil’s Church, at 940 Rex Avenue. All members of the club are welcome to come out and support the many important members who help keep Canada’s oldest natural history club [...]
Ottawa Regional Science Fair: and the winners are…
by Lucy Patterson, Education and Publicity Committee Allan Leveille (left) and Shamus McCoy are this year's winners of the OFNC award for their science projects From creating bioplastics using potatoes to developing a concentration method for trace elements in water samples, the Ottawa Regional Science Fair is full of surprises! Since 1961, this volunteer-run event has encouraged students from grades 7 to 12 in the Ottawa-Carleton region to design, develop, and present research projects in science and engineering. [...]
Ontario Reptile and Amphibian Atlas: a call for sightings
By Bailey Cooke Bailey Cooke is a second-year University of Ottawa student in environmental science. This winter, Bailey is volunteering with the OFNC through the Community Service Learning program. Spotted Salamander Ontario is home to 15 species of snakes, 8 turtles, 1 lizard, 13 frogs/toads, and 11 salamanders. But, with approximately 35% of Ontario’s amphibians and 75% of its reptiles listed as species at risk, chances of spotting some of these rare, hidden jewels are quickly decreasing. Threats, such as [...]