Posted December 2, 2011
My weather station at the Blair OEEC recorded a total of fifty-four millimeters of rain during the storm earlier this week. 54!! Five and a half centimeters. That’s a lotta rain. 48 hours later the Grand River is still in flood as it drains such a huge watershed. At Doon, just upstream from Blair, the […]
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Posted November 29, 2011
On Tuesday, November 22nd the students in Gill-Ville from Ryerson P.S. enjoyed a great morning at the Blair Outdoor Ed Centre. In addition to checking out the cool creatures, we spent some time talking about migration, climate change, and endangered species. This was special for us because we are learning about the issues polar bears […]
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Posted November 29, 2011
It’s a miserable, soaker of a day today that has caused the postponement of visits to Blair by two Grade 1 classes. But as we grumble and complain and try to skirt the puddles, there is nowhere to hide for our feathered friends. Some birds will wait out the worst of the weather in the […]
Read more about Rain, Rain, Go Away… »
Posted November 29, 2011
Fleece Vest Today I bought a new fleece vest The vest was made in Bangladesh ___________ Fleece is made from plastic And plastic comes from oil Oil comes from sludge that lies Beneath Alberta soil Bangladesh is a country Four thousand miles away Bangladeshis make about Two dollars every day […]
Posted November 22, 2011
It did not take long for the 110th species to find its way to the Env. Ed. Centre property. Each day last week I heard the call notes of the White-winged Crossbills as they flew back and forth over the forest in search of conifers. This year the Eastern Hemlocks and White Spruce have an […]
Read more about Bird Species 110!!!! for 2011 »
Posted November 16, 2011
Yesterday was just a spectacular day on many levels. Classes from Lackner Woods P.S. were out studying the habitats on the property. Besides the beautiful weather, the day was made even more special by all of the sightings and sounds we experienced. Just before the arrival of the bus I was treated to a fly-over […]
Read more about A few interesting sightings… »
Posted November 9, 2011
Just before the arrival of the afternoon class (and the rain) I was gazing above the meadow watching a Red-tailed Hawk drifting towards the east, when a tiny colourful speck caught my eye. I quickly looked at my wrist-watch to confirm the date – November 9th. Lifting my head back up, I relocated it. […]
Read more about The Last of Its Kind??? »
Posted November 7, 2011
Each year, information from many sources is compiled and posted online by Ron Pittaway, a well-known and well-respected ornithologist. I enjoy reading to see which irruptive species might be visiting the local area and which ones are remaining up in the north – all a result of food availability. I had read the forecast when […]
Read more about Winter Finch Forecast for 2011-2012 »
Posted November 7, 2011
On Friday morning I arrived a little earlier than normal. I was setting up for the class and as I was walking around I was enjoying the colours of the rising sun on the frost. I was standing about 15m from the edge of the forest, with my back to it. I heard a ‘fffff’ […]
Read more about Another Bald Eagle »
Posted November 2, 2011
Today with a Gr 7 class from Westheights the 109th species of bird for 2011 flew over us and gave really great views – Bald Eagle! It was a species that most of the students had never seen before (called a ‘lifer’). So a lifer for most and the 8th record for the property since […]
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