NNDec.28.06 Earl Plato
I have received more calls and personal connections this year about our bluebirds than ever before. Groups of ten or more at one time have been sighted in late Fall. To those bird watchers In Fort Erie and environs do you believe the following statement? “Bluebirds have made a promising comeback with the help of man-made nesting boxes.” Several years ago I heard of Rob Eberly and his passionate desire to re-establish blue birds through the placing of bluebird boxes in the area. I came to call him “Mr. Bluebird man” and rightfully so. With Rob’s help and dedication bluebird boxes have appeared throughout our community especially in rural areas where these beautiful birds really thrive. Do bluebirds have more than one nesting in a season in Niagara? Call me at 905 894-2417 or e-mail me plato1@cogeco.ca if you know
***
Dino DiCienzo Jr. informed me in mid-December of an old problem with Marcy’s Woods. ATV’S.! The Bert Miller Nature Club had planted some 500 trees on the sand banks some years ago. Chance of survival? Not much when trespassing ATV’S run their vehicles on the dunes and rip our little plantings out. I quote from Dino Jr.’s e-mail to me, “This fall brought a few ATV’s. We were able to catch two of them. A different ATV rode up and down the dunes numerous times but by the time I got out he was at Sherkston ( I couldn’t find him ).” Note: Dino Jr. made the comment that the ATV use is still low compared to before. Thanks DiCienzos for trying to protect the forested dunes of Marcy Woods. Final word from Dino Jr., “Spring will be here before we know it so let’s get ready for some tours.” Yes, I’m looking forward to those times. I now have a map to help on tours.
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Two nature questions: Jim Westhouse at Crystal Beach Timmy’s asked me. “Why so less Purple loosestrife in the Town this year?” He’s right. What are the reasons?
Secondly I received calls from two different places in rural Fort Erie about ticks. “Never seen so many ticks before. My dog was covered,” was one callers concern.
Again let me know your comments.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Reflections Spring
Reflections Earl Plato
Reflections. Pleasant memories. What a difference a few warm days this year can make. Warm days and warmer nights in mid-spring can make the difference. On a Tuesday 2009 we headed out mid-morning to Marcy Woods. A faint misting as we took the road through the kennels to The Woods. There they were - a few yellow-headed Coltsfoot’s flowers showing up. Yes, to our left in the wetlands the sound of Chorus frogs. This was going to be a good day. The fine mist kept falling but not enough to deter our mission. That was Marcy pond and hopefully Wood frogs. No Wild leaks yet. A huge nest was to our left a hundred feet in or so. I focused my bird glasses. No globular squirrel nest but a nest well constructed of twigs - Red Tail hawk or a Horned owl? We’ll keep an eye on it. Further along the Lower Trail we saw the buds appearing on the Spice bushes. Soon delicate little yellow flowers will appear on its branches. We spied a single Spring Beauty plant with its delicate little white flowers. We rounded the Lower Trail and headed south toward the pond. We were approaching the pond and I asked for us to be quiet and hear for the frogs. Listen. We could hear the high pitched sounds of the Spring peepers. Not many. Then the sound of the Chorus frogs in greater number. Run your finger over a stiff comb. That’s something like its sound. Then as we approached quietly to the pond. We heard that to many is not a typical frog sound. Two - three - ten - perhaps twenty “quacks”. Yes, the Wood frogs were here. Not too many but Marcy pond once again served as home. I have an excellent slide of a Wood frog but I also sketched one. It started to sprinkle but we continued on to the cabin. Strange to see no seats outside the porch. Our rest seats inside are all gone. No let up in the sprinkle so across the Willwerth bridge we went. Fallen trees - go over or under. Be careful. Down the wet and slippery steps. My old arches were aching. Three things I appreciated this day. Spring unfolding at Marcy Woods; seeing and hearing the Wood frogs once again; and walking with friends and relatives enjoying Marcy Woods. Thank you DiCienzo family.
***
Carl Winger, John Piett, Keith Bailey, and Dave Renshaw. What do they have in common? All recently saw the magnificent Bald eagle in Fort Erie. Dave saw the giant bird off of old Fort Erie. He said that it plunged into the water to retrieve a fish. The Bald eagle has battled back from the threat of extinction because of habitat loss and the pesticide DDT. Welcome back to Fort Erie. Long may you live.
Reflections. Pleasant memories. What a difference a few warm days this year can make. Warm days and warmer nights in mid-spring can make the difference. On a Tuesday 2009 we headed out mid-morning to Marcy Woods. A faint misting as we took the road through the kennels to The Woods. There they were - a few yellow-headed Coltsfoot’s flowers showing up. Yes, to our left in the wetlands the sound of Chorus frogs. This was going to be a good day. The fine mist kept falling but not enough to deter our mission. That was Marcy pond and hopefully Wood frogs. No Wild leaks yet. A huge nest was to our left a hundred feet in or so. I focused my bird glasses. No globular squirrel nest but a nest well constructed of twigs - Red Tail hawk or a Horned owl? We’ll keep an eye on it. Further along the Lower Trail we saw the buds appearing on the Spice bushes. Soon delicate little yellow flowers will appear on its branches. We spied a single Spring Beauty plant with its delicate little white flowers. We rounded the Lower Trail and headed south toward the pond. We were approaching the pond and I asked for us to be quiet and hear for the frogs. Listen. We could hear the high pitched sounds of the Spring peepers. Not many. Then the sound of the Chorus frogs in greater number. Run your finger over a stiff comb. That’s something like its sound. Then as we approached quietly to the pond. We heard that to many is not a typical frog sound. Two - three - ten - perhaps twenty “quacks”. Yes, the Wood frogs were here. Not too many but Marcy pond once again served as home. I have an excellent slide of a Wood frog but I also sketched one. It started to sprinkle but we continued on to the cabin. Strange to see no seats outside the porch. Our rest seats inside are all gone. No let up in the sprinkle so across the Willwerth bridge we went. Fallen trees - go over or under. Be careful. Down the wet and slippery steps. My old arches were aching. Three things I appreciated this day. Spring unfolding at Marcy Woods; seeing and hearing the Wood frogs once again; and walking with friends and relatives enjoying Marcy Woods. Thank you DiCienzo family.
***
Carl Winger, John Piett, Keith Bailey, and Dave Renshaw. What do they have in common? All recently saw the magnificent Bald eagle in Fort Erie. Dave saw the giant bird off of old Fort Erie. He said that it plunged into the water to retrieve a fish. The Bald eagle has battled back from the threat of extinction because of habitat loss and the pesticide DDT. Welcome back to Fort Erie. Long may you live.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Sketch in Nature. Why not?
The Garrison Road School Gang, all five of us and our wives, just came back on September 21st last year from the Thousand Islands of the St.Lawrwnce River.. We took the three hour boat tour. Beautiful weather and a most beautiful setting. We passed the nests of one of my favourite birds, the osprey. That’s my drawing below. Here is a flashback article.
Like to draw birds? I’ve got the perfect place. It’s the second floor of the Buffalo Museum of Science. Take your sketch pad and find an appropriate mounted bird specie and take a seat. I chose an osprey perched on a branch. ( I added the fish). I have visited this ornithological section many times over the years. It’s a usually quiet place. The late Fort Erie naturalist, Bert Miller, encouraged me to draw birds. I was only ten years old and that early start stayed. I still sketch when I am alone. Encourage your children to sketch in nature, why not?
Like to draw birds? I’ve got the perfect place. It’s the second floor of the Buffalo Museum of Science. Take your sketch pad and find an appropriate mounted bird specie and take a seat. I chose an osprey perched on a branch. ( I added the fish). I have visited this ornithological section many times over the years. It’s a usually quiet place. The late Fort Erie naturalist, Bert Miller, encouraged me to draw birds. I was only ten years old and that early start stayed. I still sketch when I am alone. Encourage your children to sketch in nature, why not?
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
2009 Marcy Woods has been Saved!
Marcy Woods. That’s a place dear to many of us. I have been “Marcyized”. My little office is replete with shots of the precious woods. I have my favourite pics enlarged and plaqued. There’s the cabin, two of my grand daughters sitting in a bed of Marcy trilliums, the pristine lake front, the bridge, the twin oaks of he Lower Trail, the Marcy steps to the higher level, and many more adorn the walls. Friend, Neil Reichelt, made a little sign for me to put on the wall, Marcy Woods 1985-2002. Why 2002?
I visited Marcy Woods (Abino Woods) with the late Fort Erie naturalist Bert Miller as a ten year old kid. I was with him when he transplanted Wild ginger at the base of some of those trees. The years passed. Then in 1985 I met Dr. George Marcy on the Halloway Bay Road. He invited me to sign in at the farm and tour the woods. Friend, Tim Seburn, told me shortly after to ramble Marcy (Abino) Woods as he had been doing. He said, “You’ll love it.” I did and a love affair for me began with a special place, Marcy Woods.
Why 2002? I thought we, the nature loving public, had lost the Woods that year. Spring 2003 will bring the answer. Theres’s room for more than 100 plus Marcy Woods lovers on Saturday, April 26th at 2:00 p.m.
Where? In Stevensville, at the Fort Erie Conservation Club, 2555 Ott Road. Bob McDonald of CBC’s “Quirks and Quarks” will speak. Bertie Elementary students, who made the excellent video on Marcy Woods, will be recognized along with political dignitaries who have supported the purchase of this Carolinian gem.
Marcy Woods has been saved - Great news here in 2009
The DiCienzos of Niagara Falls purchased the Woods and are preserving it. Yes, I still arrange for walks once again.
I visited Marcy Woods (Abino Woods) with the late Fort Erie naturalist Bert Miller as a ten year old kid. I was with him when he transplanted Wild ginger at the base of some of those trees. The years passed. Then in 1985 I met Dr. George Marcy on the Halloway Bay Road. He invited me to sign in at the farm and tour the woods. Friend, Tim Seburn, told me shortly after to ramble Marcy (Abino) Woods as he had been doing. He said, “You’ll love it.” I did and a love affair for me began with a special place, Marcy Woods.
Why 2002? I thought we, the nature loving public, had lost the Woods that year. Spring 2003 will bring the answer. Theres’s room for more than 100 plus Marcy Woods lovers on Saturday, April 26th at 2:00 p.m.
Where? In Stevensville, at the Fort Erie Conservation Club, 2555 Ott Road. Bob McDonald of CBC’s “Quirks and Quarks” will speak. Bertie Elementary students, who made the excellent video on Marcy Woods, will be recognized along with political dignitaries who have supported the purchase of this Carolinian gem.
Marcy Woods has been saved - Great news here in 2009
The DiCienzos of Niagara Falls purchased the Woods and are preserving it. Yes, I still arrange for walks once again.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Snakes Anyone?
Snakes Anyone? Earl Plato
What continues to fascinate an almost five year old little girl? As parents and grandparents you would probably say dolls. Not so entirely with Ashlyn. This little granddaughter loves nature - bugs, worms and yes, snakes! Her parents watched in amazement as she latched onto the tail of a garter snake as it entered its burrow. Ashlyn pulled and pulled. She wanted to see the snake up close. The snake won out. No fear only curiosity for her. Let’s not dampen this gift of learning about new things but temper it with good advice. Not all snakes appreciate a pull on their tail! This article is about an ugly but relatively harmless snake found in Niagara. It’s the Northern water snake. I say ugly but late naturalist, Ed Teale, said, “a rather pretty banded reptile.” I have met the water snake as a youth at the Plato pond on Bertie Road and recently on Point Pelee Island. It’s not attractive to me. I remember cousin Sam yelling out, “It’s a water moccasin!” Sorry Sam, no water moccasins ever existed naturally in Niagara but we all reacted. “Try to stone it!” The water snake will strike repeatedly at you when cornered. It is often killed because of this defensive reaction. No, it’s not poisonous but can inflict a puncture that bleeds freely. This snake has an anticoagulant quality to its saliva. I remember Johnny showing us his bitten finger as the blood flowed freely. Ashlyn, avoid any snake that does not flee and tries to strike at you. Yes, even a garter snake can coil as it tries to defend itself. Be curious but be careful. In May look for this snake around area ponds. Ed Teale, who lives on about the same latitude as us, wrote the following in early may back then: “Up until yesterday we had one resident water snake in our pond. ... yesterday morning I saw it had been joined by a stranger. By noon a second newcomer had made its appearance. By evening a third had arrived. This May pond is a rendezvous, a mating place, that has drawn water snakes from the surrounding area. ... our snake is a female, thick bodied, older, and almost black in colour. The males are younger, brighter, more reddish in hue. ... the males try to mate with the one female without any evidence of fighting among themselves. Next dawn we will see only one, the resident female.” My memory as a youth says that that ugly, thick bodied, black snake at Plato pond was a female water snake. If you have a reptile guide look it up. Check your snakes around our May ponds. Let me know if you see any Northern water snakes.
What continues to fascinate an almost five year old little girl? As parents and grandparents you would probably say dolls. Not so entirely with Ashlyn. This little granddaughter loves nature - bugs, worms and yes, snakes! Her parents watched in amazement as she latched onto the tail of a garter snake as it entered its burrow. Ashlyn pulled and pulled. She wanted to see the snake up close. The snake won out. No fear only curiosity for her. Let’s not dampen this gift of learning about new things but temper it with good advice. Not all snakes appreciate a pull on their tail! This article is about an ugly but relatively harmless snake found in Niagara. It’s the Northern water snake. I say ugly but late naturalist, Ed Teale, said, “a rather pretty banded reptile.” I have met the water snake as a youth at the Plato pond on Bertie Road and recently on Point Pelee Island. It’s not attractive to me. I remember cousin Sam yelling out, “It’s a water moccasin!” Sorry Sam, no water moccasins ever existed naturally in Niagara but we all reacted. “Try to stone it!” The water snake will strike repeatedly at you when cornered. It is often killed because of this defensive reaction. No, it’s not poisonous but can inflict a puncture that bleeds freely. This snake has an anticoagulant quality to its saliva. I remember Johnny showing us his bitten finger as the blood flowed freely. Ashlyn, avoid any snake that does not flee and tries to strike at you. Yes, even a garter snake can coil as it tries to defend itself. Be curious but be careful. In May look for this snake around area ponds. Ed Teale, who lives on about the same latitude as us, wrote the following in early may back then: “Up until yesterday we had one resident water snake in our pond. ... yesterday morning I saw it had been joined by a stranger. By noon a second newcomer had made its appearance. By evening a third had arrived. This May pond is a rendezvous, a mating place, that has drawn water snakes from the surrounding area. ... our snake is a female, thick bodied, older, and almost black in colour. The males are younger, brighter, more reddish in hue. ... the males try to mate with the one female without any evidence of fighting among themselves. Next dawn we will see only one, the resident female.” My memory as a youth says that that ugly, thick bodied, black snake at Plato pond was a female water snake. If you have a reptile guide look it up. Check your snakes around our May ponds. Let me know if you see any Northern water snakes.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Bird calls
Nature article by Earl Plato
“teacher-teacher-teacher” That was what we heard deep into a wetlands with knee boots. Naturalist Ernie Giles, Debbie a botanist and me a nature lover sloshed along. South of Niagara Falls is an extensive wetlands called Willougby Marsh. No visible trails. Ernie our fauna and flora expert stopped. There we three marvelled at the tallest Jack-in-the-Pulpit I had ever seen. Almost four feet tall! A Cooper’s hak soared over on this bright but very humid day. It was late June. Ernie Giles the complete naturalist. Keen eyesight, keen hearing and a wealth of knowledge makes up this man. Ernie stopped. He heard scratching sounds. He motioned to Debbie and I to stop. Look below. That was what we saw. An ovenbird was emerging from its nest. My first. This warbler gets it name from its peculiar ground nest. What we saw that day resembled a miniature Dutch oven. The ovenbird is olive-brown above and white below with dark streaks. Some call it a wood warbler. Ernie smiled at us two teachers. “Do you know its call?” it’s a loud staccato song - “teacher, teacher, teacher.”
We watched as the ovenbird oblivious to us entered its side entrance. A neat bird for this old teacher.
***
“Peter, Peter, Peter” That was a familiar call. I walked down the lane at Bruce Beach on the Lake Huron shore. Across the road in a thicket I recognized the call of a Tuffted titmouse.This sparrow-sized social bird adopted us on this last week ofuly of 2009.
Loud and clear just outside our beach cabin came the morning greeting - “Peter, Peter, Peter” Another neat bird. Look it up if you don’t know it.
“teacher-teacher-teacher” That was what we heard deep into a wetlands with knee boots. Naturalist Ernie Giles, Debbie a botanist and me a nature lover sloshed along. South of Niagara Falls is an extensive wetlands called Willougby Marsh. No visible trails. Ernie our fauna and flora expert stopped. There we three marvelled at the tallest Jack-in-the-Pulpit I had ever seen. Almost four feet tall! A Cooper’s hak soared over on this bright but very humid day. It was late June. Ernie Giles the complete naturalist. Keen eyesight, keen hearing and a wealth of knowledge makes up this man. Ernie stopped. He heard scratching sounds. He motioned to Debbie and I to stop. Look below. That was what we saw. An ovenbird was emerging from its nest. My first. This warbler gets it name from its peculiar ground nest. What we saw that day resembled a miniature Dutch oven. The ovenbird is olive-brown above and white below with dark streaks. Some call it a wood warbler. Ernie smiled at us two teachers. “Do you know its call?” it’s a loud staccato song - “teacher, teacher, teacher.”
We watched as the ovenbird oblivious to us entered its side entrance. A neat bird for this old teacher.
***
“Peter, Peter, Peter” That was a familiar call. I walked down the lane at Bruce Beach on the Lake Huron shore. Across the road in a thicket I recognized the call of a Tuffted titmouse.This sparrow-sized social bird adopted us on this last week ofuly of 2009.
Loud and clear just outside our beach cabin came the morning greeting - “Peter, Peter, Peter” Another neat bird. Look it up if you don’t know it.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
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