THE BULLETINNEWS AND VIEWS FROM THE RICHMOND HILL NATURALISTS

November-December 2011 — No. 500

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...

112th CBCA special evening thatwas just "ducky"

The gift of a clear nightskyNaturalists stormNormandaleRobert Bateman comesto Stoufville

Banding Northern Saw­whet OwlsWelcome to theUniverse Lecture Series

The Richmond Hill NaturalistsChristmas Bird Count takes placeon December 17th this year. TheRichmond Hill Naturalists are justone group among thousandsparticipating in the Christmas BirdCount throughout the westernhemisphere. The count began in1900 as an alternative to thethen­traditional practice of theChristmas Side Hunt, in whichsportsmen and women signed onto teams which then went out andvied to see which team could killthe most birds and other animalsin the allotted time. An officer ofthe fledgling Audubon Society,ornithologist Frank Chapmanstarted the new and less lethaltradition of the Bird Census. 27birdwatchers in 25 cities(including Toronto) participated inthat first count; last year morethan 50,000 counters in 19countries from Antarctica toAlaska took part.In Richmond Hill, each yeargroups of birdwatchers of alllevels of expertise cruise theirassigned sections; each grouptaking note of every bird and

every species that they see intheir area. The groups meet atthe end of the day for the annualChili Dinner, where their findingsare totalled up. The club’s resultsin turn are submitted to BirdStudies Canada, which workswith the Audubon Society in theUS and elsewhere to analyze thedata. If you wish to be a counteror to volunteer your back yardplease leave a message withGene Denzel at 905­889­7888 oremail lezned@yorku.caThe Richmond Hill Naturalists arealso looking for people with birdfeeders to open up their backyards for the Bird Counters. BirdCounters would visit volunteeringhouseholds ONCE between 8amand 4:30pm on December 17.They will check the yard to countall the birds and bird species thatmay be seen there for just a fewminutes – maybe longer if youryard is particularly exciting atthat particular moment! You mayalso choose to count the birdsand bird species in your yardyourself on December 17th andreport your results.

Tis the Season! Annual RHNChristmas Bird Count is Dec 1 7th

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2011 / 2012 RHN ExecutivePresident......................Marianne Yake (president@rhnaturalists.ca...................................905­883­3047)Past President............... Natalie Helferty2nd Vice President......... Position AvailableSecretary..................... Position AvailableTreasurer/Secretary....... Gene Denzel (treasurer@rhnaturalists.ca)Field Trips.....................Joe Agg (trips@rhnaturalists.ca)Environment................. Position AvailablePublicity....................... Position Available (publicity@rhnaturalists.ca)Bulletin Editor............... Denise Potter (editor@rhnaturalists.ca)Membership..................Mike Turk (membership@rhnaturalists.ca)Events......................... Position AvailableOntario Nature Rep........ Marianne YakeWebsite Admin.............. Rod Potter (webmaster@rhnaturalists.ca)Chair of AstroNats......... Heide DeBond (astronomy@rhnaturalists.ca)

The Bulletin is published 9 timesper year, from September toMay inclusive, by the RichmondHill Naturalists, and is mailedfree to members. The Bulletin isthe official publication of theRichmond Hill Naturalists, anon­profit organization theobjectives of which are tostimulate public interest innatural history and to encouragethe preservation of our naturalareas.Address Correspondence to:Richmond Hill Naturalists, P.O.Box 32217, RPO Harding,Richmond Hill, ON, L4C 9S3Deadlines: The editorencourages submissions fromany member on any topicrelated to nature orconservation, and in particular,any issue that might be ofinterest or concern to membersof this club. e­mail: editor@rhnaturalists.ca Deadlines arethe 2nd Thursday of eachmonth.Bulletin Advertisers have beenselected because of theirrelevance to member interests.Members are encouraged topatronize our advertisers andplease mention that you sawtheir ad in our Bulletin.Change of Address: Any changeof email or street address shouldbe sent to Mike Turk who printsthe envelopes for the Bulletinmailing.Denise Potter, Bulletin Editor:editor @rhnaturalists.ca647­504­4586Mailing Address: 128 PugsleyAv, Richmond Hill, ONMailing Database: Mike TurkDistribution: Athena AntiochosVisit our Website atwww.rhnaturalists.caSee the Executive List foradditional contact information.

Visit ValerieKent.com

MembershipYour membership fee helps pay for the club'smonthly hall rental, website registration,speakers, printing and postage for the Bulletin(all Website and Bulletin contributions andediting are on a strictly volunteer basis), andspecial events. You can join or renew online byclicking on the "Membership" link on the websiteat rhnaturalists.ca; pick up an application fromany member of the executive, or in person atthe monthly General Meeting. A singlemembership is $30; get a membership for thewhole family for only $35.

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Richmond Hill Naturalists General MeetingsUnless otherwise noted General Meetings are held at Presbyterian Church, Wallace Hall. 10066Yonge St., North of Major Mackenzie Dr., West side.For info contact Marianne Yake at 905-883-3047, or visit www.RHNaturalists.ca.Thursday, November 24, 7:30PM ­ Joint meeting with West Humber Naturalists ­ Birdsand Other Adventures in Machu Picchu with Gene Denzel.Saturday, December 17 ­ Christmas Bird Count. Contact Gene Denzel for more informationat lezned@yorku.caThursday, January 19, 7:30pm ­ General Meeting. Topic: Serpents I have found with GlennReed.

Bird Group MeetingsDecember 14, 2011 Host: Mike Turk Birds: Dicksissel and BobolinkJanuary 11, 2012. Host: Athena Antiochus. Birds: Three­Toed Woodpecker and Black­BackedWoodpeckerFebruary 12, 2012. Host: Joe Agg. Birds: Long Tailed Duck and Northern Pintail DuckMarch 14, 2012: Host: Muriel Farran.t Birds: Whippoorwill and Common NighthawkApril 11, 2012: Host: Joandice Marshall. Birds: Connecticutt Warbler and Mourning WarblerFor more information about the Bird Group contact Mike Turk at turkm@accessv.com

AstronomyObserving every Friday night in Richmond Hill, weather permitting. Contactastronomy@rhnaturalists.ca for more information.

Gull Viewing Above the Niagara GorgeNovember 27th ­ Join the Pickering Field Naturalists on November 27 for a day of viewing Gullsabove the Niagara Gorge. For more information, contact Carolyn King at cking@yorku.ca.

Coming Events

Please note: Richmond Hill Naturalists welcomes anyone to volunteer as an outingleader. Contact trips@rhnaturalists.ca if you would like to organize or promote anouting.

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by Barbara Jackson

On November 9, the Bird StudyGroup met in the warm andcomfortable confines of Gene andCharlene Denzel’s home todiscuss and compare two birds,the Ring­necked Duck and theLesser Scaup. Present wereMuriel Farrant, Mike Turk, MartinChen, Theo Hoffman, Joe Agg,Gene and Charlene, and BarbaraJackson, The weather outsidewas wet and rainy – a mostappropriate atmosphere to bediscussing ducks!The identification of these birdsproved quite challenging for thegroup because of the manysimilarities, and resulted in somestimulating conversation. Boththe Ring­necked Duck and theLesser Scaup are considered tobe “diving” ducks – that is theydive underwater for their foodthat consists mainly of aquaticvegetation and/or invertebrates.However, the Ring­necked is alsoconsidered a “dabbler” – dabblingbeing a foraging technique inwhich the head and neck aresubmerged while the body andtail remain on the surface.The Ring­necked Duck (Aythacollaris) might better be namedthe Ring­ BILLED Duck becausethe black and white rings on thebills of the male and female area prominent field mark. The red­brown neck collar after which itwas named is apparent only onvery close observation, such ason a lab specimen or in amuseum!The Lesser Scaup (Aytha affinis)may also be known as a “Bluebill”because of the blue­gray colourof the bill of the male. Thescientific name “affinis” is Latinfor “adjacent” or “allied”,referring to this bird’s closeassociation to other diving ducks.Scaup may also be derived fromthe bird’s preferred winter food

(shellfish), as shellfish beds inScotland are called “scalps”; or itmight refer to the bird’s alarmcall, which is a deep ‘scaup,scaup’.Both the Ring­necked Duck andthe Lesser Scaup areapproximately the same size ­26 to 46 cm.

The males of both species havedark purple heads, although thehead of the Ring­necked appearsmore angular. The male Ring­necked has a black breast, backand hind quarters, gray sides, awhite shoulder slash, and a thinwhite border around the base ofthe bill. The male Lesser Scauphas a black breast and hindquarters, but a grayish back anddusty­white sides.The females of both species aredark brown overall, but thefemale Ring­necked has a whiteeye­ring, while the female LesserScaup has a well defined whitepatch at the base of its bill.

Both the Ring­necked Duck andthe Lesser Scaup can be seenalong the shores of Lake Ontarioin winter. Fresh water ponds orsloughs are the preferredbreeding habitat of both species,with the nests being built nearthe water, although the nest ofthe Lesser Scaup can be 100­150feet from the water’s edge.Approximately 6­12 eggs arelaid, again by both species, andincubated for 26 days by thefemale only. The females alsotend the young on their own. Ofparticular interest is the fact thatthe young Lesser Scaup are ledto the water by their motherssoon after hatching, and divefrom a very young age.The evening concluded with thedreaded QUIZ, this time focusingentirely on ducks (thanks Mike),with one question challenging our“inner child” by asking us toname two duck characters madefamous by Walt Disney. We mayhave to grow old, but may wenever grow up!

A Night Fit for DucksBird Group gets daffy discussing Lesser Scaups and Ring­Necked Ducks

Ring-Necked Duck Photo by Rick Leche http://www.flickr.com/photos/rick_leche/

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by Heide DeBondThis wonderful season of longernights is just perfect for enjoyingthe splendours of the universe.No need to stay up late to viewcelestial treasures, just dresswarmly, step outside and lookup. Our old friend, theconstellation Orion rises earlyevenings in the east, Jupiter, thebrightest "star", blazes its pathacross the sky from east to westalmost the whole evening andradiant Venus rises in the westsoon after sunset.As the holiday seasonapproaches you may be thinkingof astronomically­ related giftsfor your loved ones, or even foryourself. Astronomy is awonderful hobby for families anddoes not require expensive orhigh­tech products to appreciatethe night sky. The binoculars youmay already have can be usedto view many objects in thenight sky so you may wish togive books on astronomy withbinoculars such as PhilipHarrington’s ‘Touring theUniverse with Binoculars’ orStephen James O'Meara's bookson ‘Observing the Night Sky withBinoculars: a Simple Guide tothe Heavens’, or his ‘Observingthe Solar System withBinoculars: a Beginners Guideto the Sun, Moon and Planets’. Amust­have book for allstargazers is Terence Dickinson’s‘Nightwatch: A Practical Guide toViewing the Universe’, filled withpractical information and skymaps you can take outside withyou to help you observe whethernaked eye, with binoculars ortelescope.An excellent book for families isPhilip Harrington’s ‘Astronomyfor All Ages’ filled with activitiesfor children and adults todiscover the universe. If you are

considering purchasing atelescope, you should do yourresearch as there are severaldifferent types of telescopesavailable. You should includeopportunities such as our freeFriday night observing sessionsto look through the differenttypes of telescopes first to findthe one just right for you. As afirst telescope we recommend alow­ tech, easy­to­use, 8”Dobsonian telescope as they areyour biggest bang for yourtelescope dollar, offer greatviews and they are family­friendly. You can buy a new large8 inch­mirror Dobsoniantelescope for under $400 with

no worries about proper polaraligning for set­up.If you must have the latesttechnological telescopes andaccessories do your research soyou can find the right productfor your needs. As alwayspurchase from a reputabledealer. We are always willing toanswer your questions at:astronomy@rhnaturalists.ca.

The Night Sky Makes an Awesome GiftGift ideas for astronomy wanna­bes

The Constellation ofOrion lights up the winter sky

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We traveled to historicNormandale on Friday andarrived around 2pm. There are2 bed and breakfasts in thecenter of the village: TheCentury Inn and The UnionHotel. Both are over 100 yearsold but are quite comfortable.The Union Hotel is said to behaunted by a young woman andthere were some strange thingsgoing on which did make askeptic like me more of abeliever. It is beautifullyrestored and well worth visitingjust for that reason. There is agood selection of rooms andmost beds are doubles. It isquiet and sleep comes easily.The breakfasts prepared by ourhost Debbie were spectacularlooking and delicious and areusually three courses bycandlelight. The food is morethan you can eat and providesyou with a good start for theday. She garnishes dishes withthings from her garden such aschives and something calledStevia which is very sweet.

Following the talk by Dr.Sheldon the night before I wentto the pier at 5 am to see themeteor shower. After lookingstraight up for the longest timeI gave up after seeing nometeors. The sunrise over LakeErie is very lovely though. Asyou look across the lake the theglow from the U.S. cities isquite evident. Cleveland inparticular was very brightagainst the partly overcast sky.Erie Pennsylvania is directlyacross the lake fromNormandale and Buffalo is off tothe east.We saw thousands of birds.Many were stopping inNormandale on their migrationfarther south. In the morningNormandale was alive withexcited birds soon after the suncame up. The noise from themwas like nothing I have everheard. There were mostlyRobins with a mixture of otherbirds. Before noon they weremostly gone and next morningthe whole thing was repeated.

The location seems perfect for arest /overnight stop formigrating birds with a creek,sheltered valley, lots of treesand food. On the way down weobserved hundreds of TurkeyVultures soaring above. Theywere likely migrating as wellbut I believe they could also befeeding on leftovers from deerhunters. Deer and duck huntingwas in full swing. Each morningsoon after 7 the gunfire startedand went on all day.Saturday was our touring daywith a start at Pt. Dover docksand Silver Lake.There is awonderful farmers market therewhere you could even buy freshLake Erie perch. Someone haspurchased the old AmherstIsland ferry for 100k and has ittied up there. Later we madeseveral stops out on Long Pointincluding the bird observatorywhere banding was in progress.A hot outdoor lunch was eatenin the parking area. We alsovisited the Bird Studies Canadareserve at Port Rowan wherebanding was also being done atthe Bird Studies Canada lookoutThousands of waterfowl wereobserved as well as other birds.They seemed undisturbed bythe gunfire. On the way back toNormandale we stopped atTurkey Point which of course iswell known for its wild turkeys.None were seen this trip. Laterwe had a very nice supper atthe Century Inn. On oneoccasion we saw a monarchbutterfly struggling in the faceof high winds off the lake. It'sa miracle they make it all theway to Mexico.Sunday was departure day butnot before a visit to the TurkeyPoint overlook. The day wassunny and bright and wecleaned up litter in the area.

Naturalists storm Normandale...Joe Agg's account of the RHN Club field trip to Normandale and Long Point October 21­23

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Next we visited SpookyHollow. It is a very unusualbut wonderful area nowowned by the HamiltonNaturalists. There is fungus,mosses and licheneverywhere., some of whichI have never seen. SpookyHollow is a real jewel withmany types of tall maturetrees. Legend has it thatlong ago a peddler wentmissing near Spooky Hollowand black smoke was seencoming from the chimney ofthe only house in the area.Hmmm! There have beenghostly sightings in this areaas well. We picked up litternear the entrance but thetrails are well kept andclean. On the road outthere is a fine growth ofbamboo grass. ( The DDOused to have it as well)Following Spooky Hollow wevisited a locally grownpeanut outlet (Kernels) anda bird seed outlet (Royal)followed by lunch in theSimcoe town park. Theokept track of the birds onthe trip and there were lots.It was wonderful to have anexperienced birder like himand he more than kept up.Joan just keeps on learningand is ready to purchase herfirst binoculars. We had funand and enjoyed ourselvesthoroughly.Norfolk County really isCanada's South Coast withhealthy palms growing anda golf course that is open allyear. I can't wait to go backand visit some of theremaining 35 birding spotswe missed on this trip. Atleast a week is required tosee them all.

. . . and on to Spooky Hollow

Many of the trees on the Spooky Hollow trail wore skirts of moss andgarlands of different kinds of fungi. Here's a picture of a tree barnacledin a white fungus. Can anyone identify it?

The adventurers refuel...Andre and Berthe Agg, Theo Hofmann, andJoan Euell. Photos by Joe Agg.

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Long Point, Bird Studies Canada FieldStation, Fall, 2011Chung and I arrived at the small banding hut onthe Long Point Road at about 8:00 p.m. on Friday,October 28th to find the process for that night infull swing. There were at least 6 little owls bandedthat evening. Bands are carefully chosen for thebird’s leg size and applied in such a way as toallow the band to twirl freely around the leg. Thebirds seem to be utterly oblivious to the band asthey never seem to pick at the band in an attemptto remove it.It was encouraging to find a group of local Grade7 students crowded into the banding hut thatnight and excitedly taking in all the proceedings.We were all introduced to the intricate process ofmeasurements. The wing length is measured.Blowing on the chest feathers shows the amountof fat that has already accumulated under thetransparent skin. Wetting the feathers on the headhelps to ascertain how much the skull has closedover. A fully closed skull means a mature adult

bird. Telling the age is often done by looking atthe wing and tail feathers to see how much newgrowth is occurring. Then, of course, the birds areweighed before being released.We were told there is quite an extensive trainingsession before anyone is allowed to carry out thebanding process. I can certainly understand why,as it is not easy to judge all these factors.It was surprising to me to see how docile the littlebirds were. Some of the other species we sawbanded during the day were feistier and would tryto pick at the bander’s cuticles. They seem toknow where it is most tender. The banders jokedabout crying out in pain all day whenever theyhad an overabundance of Chickadees andCardinals.When released after being in the hut with thelights, the Saw­whets often sat placidly on thebander’s hand or shoulder for quite awhile tryingto regain their night vision. One little owl flew upinto the trees and stayed there a long timelooking down at us as if trying to figure out whatin the heck had just happened to it.That was our first night. It was clear and cool withvery little breeze.The next night was a wash­out. It was rainy andno owls were found even after four trips around tocheck the nets. The nets are checked every 20minutes to make sure that no owl is left hangingin the net pouches for very long.So glad we allowed two nights for this wonderfulexperience!

A banderexamines aNorthern Saw­Whet Owl afterbanding it todetermine age,weight, sex, fatresources, andoverallcondition.Photo by DebChute

Banding the Little Northern Saw-whet OwlsDeb Chute recounts a late October night of Owl Banding

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RHN members who enjoyed Dr. Shelton's talk inOctober (and those who missed it) now have anopportunity to take a deep space tour with Ian andDr. Tuba Koktay, 2 of Canada's most respectedastronomers.I. Welcome to the Universe!Learn about some of the most beautiful andexciting objects in the nighttime sky, and be shownhow to find these objects for yourself. Nov 23II. Seeing Further, Fainter.A look at the tools used by amateur andprofessional astronomers, with recommendationsfor those who already own or are planning to buy atelescope. Nov 30III. Exploring the Neighbourhood.Spectacular recent discoveries and new explorationin our Solar System. Dec 7IV. Is there anyone out there?Both fun and serious looks at whether life existselsewhere in the Universe. Dec 14

V. Will the World Really End in 2012???Our modern understanding about the age of the

Universe and a critical look at the claims that the

world wil l end in 201 2. Dec 21

For more information and registration detai ls,

please visit http: //astro.rhnatural ists.ca or email

astronomy@rhnatural ists.ca

by Marianne YakeThis past October, Robert Bateman spoke atStouffville's Spring Lakes Golf Course and signedbooks and artwork for local residents. I enjoyedand was very impressed at the time he spent witheach person. One young artist said he had spent alot of time sketching. Robert advised him to "goout, enjoy nature and make observations in orderto fully understand your subjects". The young manthen said that he had seen a "grey wolf". Robertasked where he had seen the animal, noting it wasunusual to see one around here. "Was the tail up ordown?" Down was the answer. "Then you likely sawan eastern coyote", the elder artist concluded.Robert again encouraged the young artist tocontinue his education out in the natural world.He signed a painting of a barnyard scene. Thispainting was the only reminder of a heritagestructure that has since been demolished. Hementioned that he was on a local heritage advisorycommittee in Burlington and had seen the loss ofmany heritage buildings.I thanked him for his generous donation to the

Richmond Hill Naturalists many years ago. Heremembered that he had done two presentationsfor the RHN and was happy to hear we are still veryactive.

Robert Bateman inspires in Stouffville

Photo: Robert Bateman, Marianne Yake and Joyce Horner

Explore the Universe with Ian SheltonLecture series at Richmond Hill Public Lbrary