“The Bird”

Posted January 30, 2011

Occasionally a bird rare to the local scene will show up unannounced and cause quite a stir in the birding community. Take the case of the Anna’s hummingbird presently residing in a homeowner’s yard in Newfoundland. Not so unusual except that it’s winter out east and there are no flowering plants to provide nectar – […]

Owling – It’s a Hoot!

Posted January 29, 2011

Went for a cross-country ski at Laurel Creek on Thursday after work with my wife, son, and several GRCA employees.  We finished up at about 6:00.  People were climbing into their cars and I suggested that we try calling for owls.  We went out on to the bridge directly in front of the nature centre and […]

The Bins are Green – Are We?

Posted January 27, 2011

[polldaddy poll=4455992] My neighbourhood in Kitchener was recently added to the Region of Waterloo’s Green Bin waste program and we’re very pleased to be able to take advantage of its benefits. The menu of kitchen leftovers that can now be diverted from the garbage bag to become a usable garden/yard product is exhaustive. Our home […]

Students tally 21 species over 2 days

Posted January 25, 2011

Grade 4 students studying Winter Birds at the Blair OEEC as part of their Habitats and Communities unit have observed and identified 21 species over the past two days. Many are common birds – chickadees, blue jay, cardinal – but we’ve had a couple of pretty cool sightings as well. The tiny golden-crowned kinglet was […]

eBird – the beauty and importance of ‘citizen science’

Posted January 20, 2011

I was introduced to eBird by a bird scientist friend of mine – a regular eBird contributor – a year ago November, but at the time I did not understand the purpose other than to keep track of which bird species he had seen in his life (called a ‘life list’). Recently, I took the […]

Not the Hundred-Acre Wood

Posted January 18, 2011

Now that the snow at Laurel Creek is getting deeper, the local coyotes have been using our ski trails as hunting paths.  It makes for some grisly discoveries.  Kids seem to think this is pretty neat though. What’s left of this rabbit are the stomach and intestines, the feet, and the tail.  You never seem to […]

Starling, Starling

Posted January 14, 2011

I have seen this video before, but it is fairly mind-blowing.  The longer it goes, the crazier it gets. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XH-groCeKbE&fs=1&hl=en_US]

The Dawn Coyote Song

Posted January 6, 2011

This morning, as I filled the feeders at Wrigley Corners, I was treated to a delightful serenade by Coyote’s (Canis latrans) living behind Miller Lake. The winter sun rises late these days, I usually fill my feeders as it drifts aloft, a break in the clouds put a rosy blush on the snow as the […]

Robins? Ridiculous!!

Posted January 3, 2011

December 21st was the first day of winter, not spring. Yet on Christmas Eve I saw a robin in my neighbourhood, and on Christmas Day another 6 or 8!! My daughter and I were out walking our nearly 15 year-old Brittany, a bird dog, on Christmas Eve when we heard the soft whistle of a […]

Christmas Bird Count

Posted January 2, 2011

On December 18th, I participated in the Kitchener Christmas Bird Count with outdooredguy Al, and another birding buddy, Josh. The Christmas Bird Count is an annual event during which volunteers count birds all day. It’s not highly scientific, but it gives people an idea of what is happening to bird poulations over time. In the old days […]

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