Public Service Announcements

 

 

RoadsScholar.com -Adventure Travel with Distant Learning Education

 

Birding Pal - where birders find each other

 

Save Rincon Rainforest

For a Canadian charitable tax receipt, mail cheques to:
Rincon Rainforest Fund/Tropical Conservancy, 94 Four Seasons
Drive, Nepean ON  K2E 7S1

 

 

FUNGI ARE US

Fungi come in a huge variety of sizes, from microscopic soil organisms to some of the largest entities on earth (mostly underground growth). Fungi come in a vast range of shapes, from the elegant to the bizarre. Fungi span the spectrum of colours, from dull tans and browns to spectacular indigos, crimsons and yellows. Fungi provide a pleasure and challenge to identify. 
In short, fungi are fascinating, fun, and fetching. 

The study of fungi is termed mycology. In Ontario, there is only one organization dedicated to the study of fungi, the Mycological Society of Toronto. Now in its 25th year and with over 250 members, the MST is eager to share its expertise with other interested naturalists. From puffballs to polypores, stinkhorns to slime moulds, boletes to bird's nests, the MST 
provides many learning opportunities, such as: 

- Regular 1/2-day outings in the spring and fall 
- Identification course for the beginner/intermediate 
- General meetings with interesting speakers 
- Annual weekend retreat with professional mycologists in attendance 
- Annual fungi fair - free admission to members 
- Quarterly newsletter full of interesting articles 
- Occasional workshops on microscopy, etc. 
- Free field checklist with ~500 species 
- Lending library - free borrowing privileges for members 
- Discounts to members on field guides, etc. 
 

For more information: Check out the MST website at www.myctor.org . Or contact our 
Information Director, Pat Burchell at (416) 444-9053. 

How to join the MST:
Membership runs for 12 months from time of joining. Send a cheque payable to the Mycological Society of Toronto, for $25/household (1 year) or $65/household (3 years) to: 

Stella Tracy - Membership Director, 
Mycological Society of Toronto, 
812 Burnhamthorpe Road, Suite 2106, 
Etobicoke, Ont. M9C 4W1 
 

 

Ontario Nest Records Scheme

     Having noticed the early spring reports of nesting activity (eg. Red-necked Grebes, Great Horned Owl, Peregrine Falcon, etc.) on this web-site, I have been prompted to request that subscribers submit any of their nesting records to the Ontario Nest Records Scheme (ONRS).
     This long-running an extremely important monitoring program has been accumulating breeding data on provincial birds for the past 43 years, and it includes all available nest records (historical and current).
     Birders are urgently requested to participate and to fill out nest cards for all active nests found. Requests for blank nest cards and annual reports should be sent to: 
Ontario Nest Records Scheme
ONRS/Ornithology - CBCB 
Royal Ontario Museum,
100 Queen's Park,
Toronto, ON   M5S 2C6 (416)586-5523
Good nest-finding!
George K. Peck

 

Just a reminder that Ontario Parks has switched to a new campsite
reservation system. Campers must reserve their site by phoning
1-88-ONT-PARK, or by going to www.OntarioParks.com.

Don Davis, Toronto, ON

 

Volunteers Needed to Survey Breeding Birds! 

The Canadian Wildlife Service and Bird Studies Canada are looking for enthusiastic birders to participate in the Ontario Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). 

One of the oldest surveys of breeding birds in North America, the BBS is conducted by volunteers who follow a fixed roadside route once each year at the height of the breeding season. The resultant data are used to determine long-term population trends in North America's breeding birds, which may reveal long-term changes in land-use, environmental contaminants, or climate.  Currently, there are more than 3700 active BBS routes across North America.

BBS routes are 24.5 miles (39 km) long and consist of 50 three-minute stops, each 0.5 miles (0.8 km) apart. At every stop, volunteers record the total number of each bird species seen or heard within about 400 metres. Volunteers are encouraged to survey the same route for as many consecutive years as possible to maintain consistency of reporting. 

More than 75 routes in Ontario need surveyors due to the retirement of long-term volunteers. Some routes are close to major cities such as Cornwall, Peterborough, Welland, Brampton, North Bay, Timmons, Sudbury, and Thunder Bay, while others are more out-of-the-way. We need your help with both, but especially with the remote northern routes.

To participate, you need to be able to identify birds by sight and  sound, and must to be committed to surveying your route for several consecutive years. People unsure of their birding skills are encouraged to go along with an observer who already surveys a route until they become familiar with local bird songs. 

To become a volunteer for the Breeding Bird Survey, examine the
map and list of available routes on BSC's webpage <http://www.bsc-eoc.org/bbsroutes.html and decide which route you would like to survey. Send your route request to: 

Becky Whittam 
BBS Ontario Coordinator 
Bird Studies Canada, 
P.O. Box 160,
Port Rowan, ON N0E 1M0 
1-888-448-BIRD 
email: bwhittam@bsc-eoc.org

Ron Ridout
Bird Studies Canada/Long Point Bird Observatory
P.O. Box 160
Port Rowan, ON N0E 1M0
519-586-3531
rridout@bsc-eoc.org
<http://www.bsc-eoc.org

 

WORLDTWITCH(tm)- Finding Rare Birds Around the World

 

 

 

"The Monarch: Butterfly Beyond Borders"  See  below.


 

The Western Lake Ontario Environmental Coalition (WLOEC) began its monthly public forums last March with a meeting on the relationship between the Red Hill Expressway and the demise of downtown Hamilton.

EXTRA!  EXTRA!  READ ALL ABOUT IT!
Hamilton's Red Hill Valley
Get involved re. Federal Environmental Assessment
Friends of the Red Hill Valley
don.mclean@hwcn.org

 


 

Field Studies on Flight Tactics 
and 
Navigation of Migrating Butterflies
In North America

Participation in the Tactics and Vectors research program is open to all individuals interested in helping to solve some of the mysteries of butterfly migration.  Work at your own pace.   Select from two levels of difficulty for your field studies.  See Discovery Channel announcement above.

This writer provided a demonstration of monarch butterfly tagging during a trip to Mexico in February, 1997, and this footage was included in the documentary.


Additional Information


 

 

*      visitors since February 15, 1998

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