Terrestrial Monitoring

Winter Training

November/December 2012

Agenda

Sign-in

Pick up & drop off data sheets & trail maps

Introductions

TRCA update

Fall survey discussion

� feedback & questions

� photo survey

Winter protocol & safety

Winter survey species

TRCA Update

Watershed Monitoring & Reporting

• TVM 10 year report will be prepared in 2013

• balance of 2012 data needed urgently

Fall survey photo tour

photos by

Daniel Morodvanschi

Giant puffball mushrooms

found in the forest

Site 16

looking west, we are at the

northeast corner of the site

Lichens: Mealy rosette found growing with candleflame – note that the

lobes of the mealy are almost as small as those of the candleflame

(unlike other grey-blue or grey-green lichens you'll see). The photo

was taken through the hand lens – Nice job !!

� including scale in the photo

Lichens: Rough speckled shield

Lichens: Hammered shield

More cool lichens, some not very common in our jurisdiction

Cladonia sp.

Peltigera sp.

Graphis scripta

Cladonia sp.

just starting to bloom – zig-zag

stem helps with identification

Zig-zag goldenrod

Disturbance

Winter Training ProtocolSeason Month Indicator Species Frequency Effort Total

Winter • Jan or Feb

• March

• trees, 3 fauna

• screech owl

• 1 morning

• 1 evening

• 1.5 hrs

• 0.5 hr 2 hrs

Spring • April

• May

• frogs, birds

• spring

flowers, birds

• 2 evenings

• 1 morning

• 1 hr/ea

• 2 hrs 4 hrs

Summer • June

• Jul & Aug

• song birds

• summer

flowers

• 2 evenings

• 2 afternoons

• 1.5 hr/ea

• 1.5 hr/ea 6 hrs

Fall • Oct • woody plants

• lichens

• 1 afternoon • 3 hours 3 hrs

Safety

• Work with a companion

• Compass & map, warm clothing, water, small light

• Avoid walking on ice-covered ponds

• Tell someone where you are going and when you

plan to return

Safety & incident reporting

• site concerns/hazard reporting

• emergency contacts

Theresa - cell: see first page of manual for #

Scott Jarvie - cell: “

Victoria Kinniburgh - cell: “

• moving through site

• awareness of surroundings

• allergies, asthma, epi-pen?

• partner informed of emergency contact for you

Indicator Species - Winter

• porcupine L2

• mink L4

• ruffed grouse L2

• screech owl L4

• eastern hemlock L4

• white pine L4

• white cedar L4

Winter Visit #1

� Importance of protocol adherence

� Jan or Feb, morning, 1½ hours

� Morning – the earlier the better once light – before other people are out

� After a light snowfall is ideal

� Take camera if you have one

� Take binoculars if you can

Mink (Mustela vison) L4

Why mink?

� mammalian predator (carnivore)

� needs healthy riparian habitat

(both terrestrial & aquatic prey)

� year-round resident

� L4 species – good indicator for condition of

urban zone

Photo: Tom Lusk

Protocol: Why winter morning?

� Jan – Feb beginning of mating season – more

active

� easier to observe – trails in snow

� crepuscular –active early morning, as is its

terrestrial prey – very difficult to find later in

day

How to find Mink

• Go early !!!

• Habitat: in & alongside water – riparian zone

• Look for and follow trail of tracks (footprints) in this habitat

• Distinguish from other weasels and raccoon/squirrel/rabbit

tracks

• Measure track (footprint) and trail (series of footprints)

• Photograph if possible - include scale (preferably a ruler)

• follow trail to den if possible – is den in riverbank, wetland,

muskrat den, or is it under cover such as old log in forest?

Identifying trail patterns

• Bounding

• 2-2 bounding

• Alternating

Mice, squirrels,

rabbits/hares

Weasel family including

ermine, mink, fisher, otter

Porcupine, raccoon,

muskrat, beaver, coyote

Measuring tracks & trails

� Track length

� Track width (single footprint) & trail width (set of two)

� Stride

� take series of photos with a ruler lined up to measure track width, trail width, & stride or length

trail width

length

stride

track width

Mink Tracks

� Front foot: 1 to 2" (3 to 5 cm) long &

wide – 5 toes

� Hind foot: same size (+up to 1” if heel

registers) – 5 toes

� Trail width: 2 to 4" (5 to 10 cm)

� Stride: 11 to 38” (28 to 95 cm)

� Pattern: 2-2 bounding

Photos: Jason Shabaga

Mink tracks & trails

� may show groups of 3 or 4 prints

� follow trail - impression of overall pattern

� slides in snow – otter or mink – measure width

Photos: Jason Shabaga

Photo: Garry ConwayPhoto: Glenn Reed

Photo: Glenn Reed Photo: Glenn Reed

Winter surveying

Photo: Pat Stone

Mink

slides

Photo: Glenn Reed

Squirrel

Photo: Glenn Reed

Mink

Red fox

Photo: Glenn Reed

Photo: Glenn Reed

� smaller foot, shorter stride in

relation to width of track; small body

size results in lots of drag even in

quite shallow snow

Ermine (short-tailed weasel)

NOT mink

� tracks were found in forest far from water

� 2-2 bounding pattern with characteristic offset of feet each time

they land (i.e. one foot a little ahead of the other)

� clue to mink – tracks are on ice and lead to open water

� view whole trail and take measurements (but not on thin ice!)

Photos; Pat Stone

Mink Tracks

� NOT mink – feet too large, placed too far apart, width of trail

much too wide (ruler is 6"/15 cm)

Photo: Bernie Taylor

Photos: Derek Basdeo

� weasel family, but is it mink??

� each track less than 2 cm across (3/4")

– foot is too small for mink - most likely

long tailed weasel

� drag mark also suggests this species

Mink (Mustela vison)L4

1o one foot long, skinny, furred tail

2o black/brown colour (small white

spot under chin often visible)

3o tracks in 2-2 bounding pattern; near water; to 4" wide per

pair; pairs 11" to 38" apart; trail may include slides up to

4" wide (submit photo or comment with measurements)

Photo: Tom Lusk

Porcupine (Erithizon dorsatum) L2

Why porcupine?

� one of just 3 mammal indicators

� area sensitive – needs ≈ 100 hectares

� sensitive to fragmentation of habitat – slow moving –

won't survive most road crossing attempts

� critical winter habitat area &

food supply – native trees

� L2 species – good indicator for

rural zone

Protocol: Why winter morning?

� easier to observe in winter when foliage reduced

� if found, site is providing critical winter needs,

i.e. food supply of native trees

� primarily nocturnal – look while still active early

in the morning

� trails & other signs on snow help

How to find Porcupine

• Tracks, signs in forest, along trails, around edges

of wetlands or streams

• Signs – torn hemlock branches on ground – look

up – bark peeled from trees

• Binoculars help

• Piles of scat, urine trails in snow

• Tracks – with belly drag – "mini snow plow trail“

• Alternating pattern – 5 to 9” wide (12 to 23 cm)

Porcupine sign

Porcupine sign

follow the trail & signs

Found him/her

Porcupine sign

Porcupine (Erithizon dorsatum) L2

1o black, dark grey or dark brown

2o no mask on face, or bands on

tail

3o trail in snow 5-9" wide, showing body drag all along

length & may contain urine trails; sign includes fresh

stripping of bark from trees*

*enter description of observation if this characteristic is checked;

digital photo with scale if possible

Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) L2

Why ruffed grouse?

� year round resident

� ground nester

� need for drumming platforms (logs)

� need for winter cover & food supply of native

trees (aspen buds important winter food)

� L2 species – good indicator for condition of

forest in rural zone

Protocol: Why winter morning?

� easier to observe in winter – less foliage, and

may find tracks

� more active early morning & dusk

Ruffed grouse

� foot adapted for winter – scales expand – act like snowshoes

Clark, G. A. 2004. Form &

Function: The External Bird. In

Handbook of Bird Biology,

Cornell Lab of Ornithology (S.

Podulka et al.,eds.). The Cornell

Lab of Ornithology. Ithaca, NY.

Drawing by John Schmitt,

from Fig. 3-39 on page 3-45,

reproduced with permission

Ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus)

� Look/listen in forest – cover all forest

area

� Wing noise when take flight

� Tracks:

� track size: approx. 2 x 2 inches (5 cm.)

� hind toe not visible, or smaller than others

� single line of prints

� about half the size of wild turkey track & similar in

shape

Photos copyright by Walter Muma

Used with permission

See more photos at:

www.wildwoodtracking.com

Ruffed grouse tracks

Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) L2

1o when flushed - brown bird with loud wing flutter

2o tracks chicken-sized, raised hind toe often

not seen in track

3o chicken-sized bird

Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) L4

� climax species in our native forest

� moist slopes

� winter food/shelter for porcupine

� L4 species

� sensitive to over herbivory

� survey all coniferous indicators

in winter – easier to observe

Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) L4

1o single flat needles on a

small stalk in a flat

arrangement on branch

2o needles very short with

pale stripes on back

Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) L4

Photo: R. Shachak

White pine (Pinus strobus) L4

� also a climax species - mature forest

� upland forest – drier

� L4

� sensitive to over herbivory

� target species for forestry

� often planted in restoration

� enter comment if trees you

find appear to be planted; also if

you observe regeneration (seedlings)

White pine (Pinus strobus)

L4

1o soft needles in clusters of five

2o cones open loosely,elongated (8-20cm),woody

Careful:

Norway spruce cones are similar

size, but closed and with papery,

not woody scales

White cedar (Thuja occidentalis) L4

� swamp, wetland habitat

� thick growth provides cover for resident

fauna species

� often planted – enter

comment if trees

appear to be planted

White cedar (Thuja occidentalis) L4

1o evergreen tree with

flat scaly leaves, not

needles

2o tiny brown cones in

clusters

Careful:

Don’t confuse red cedar with this one –Note “messy” growth form of native white cedar vs. “neat” garden variety red cedars; red cedar has blue berry-like fruit, not straw-coloured cones

Winter Visit # 2

� Importance of protocol adherence

� March evening

� ½ hr visit

� after dusk, i.e. ≈7:00 pm(19:00) earliest start till Mar 10

� clocks change on 11th, plus sunset gets later

� go ≈ 8:00 to 8:30 pm (20:00 to 20:30) later in month

Eastern Screech Owl (Megascops asio) L4

Eastern Screech Owl (Megascops asio) L4

� avian predator

� year round resident

� good indicator urban zone

� out-competed or preyed on

by larger owls (great-horned)

� tree cavity nester

� March is breeding season

� nocturnal

How to find Eastern Screech Owl

� Deciduous woods & wetlands (swamp or marsh

with dead standing trees)

� Play call, listen and wait 2-3min

� Move and try again if no response

� STOP playing as soon as response heard or if

another owl responds (enter comment)

� Continue to wait quietly – may fly right in to

investigate

� one or both of pair may respond

Eastern Screech Owl (Megascops asio)

1o call is a mournful horse-like

whinny and/or a deep trill

2o sings at night

3o about the same size as a

grey squirrel

* responds to recording - play where

there are large deciduous trees, & at

wetlands with dead standing trees

• www.allaboutbirds.org

• identification, habitat info., range maps,

photos & sound files for N. American birds

• Book: Tracking & The Art of Seeing, How to

read animal tracks and sign

By: Paul Rezendes

Birds & Tracking Resources

Wrap up

� Questions?

� Online data entry

� Hand in fall data and trail maps

� Sign in sheet

� Pick up winter data sheets

Contact

Theresa McKenzie

Terrestrial Volunteer Coordinator

416-661-6600 Ext. 5658

tmckenzie@trca.on.ca