Chris Hart, Author at Essex County Nature

2023 Events and Pop-ups – A Year in Review

By Chris Hart|2023-12-10T00:10:11-05:00December 10th, 2023|The Egret Article|

By Kristen Derbyshire

By the close of the year, the club will have hosted a total of 54 events! That’s more than one event per week of the year. We’re really keeping you guys busy! Of that total number of events, 41 will have been Pop-ups – smaller scale gatherings which are organized by the Membership Committee to bring us all together for a moment and immerse ourselves in the abundant nature of Windsor-Essex County.

A good chunk of those Pop-ups can be attributed to the Bi-Weekly Walks which are held at Black Oak Heritage Park in Windsor. This idea to host a regular rendezvous at Black Oak to observe the natural surroundings as the seasons change was initially thought up early this year by Howard Williams. Before leaving us a few months ago to move with his wife to the east coast, his contributions to the club were invaluable. The club is happy to continue the bi-weekly Black Oak walks in his absence, turning them into a custom of sorts – in honour of Howard.

As for the remainder of the Pop-up Events the club hosted this year.. Well, the Membership Committee really put some heart & soul into them! The crisp January air could not hinder our zest for the outdoors, and the club began the year of Pop-ups by touring LaSalle Conservation Lands, and the “Grand Canyon of Essex County” – a section of the Greenway. The pop-ups persisted through the brisk Winter months and then finally, we saw the light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel that is Spring. Late March saw us trekking trails at Malden Park and questing for waterfowl at Essex Sewage Lagoons. April and May afforded us endless possibilities, such as watching the sunset on the property of Dave Kraus, being enchanted by the Jane’s Walks guided by our friends Grant Munroe and Mike Evans, celebrating Mother’s Day at Kopegaren Conservation Area, and kicking off our Bi-Weekly Black Oak walks. The Springtime birding bliss and greenery glee carried into Summer, with a Pride Month Birding Walk in partnership with OFO at Ojibway. We continued our affair with the trails of the Greenway, and basked in the balmy Summer air at Big Creek Conservation Area and John R. Park Homestead. We got our first look at Nature Conservancy of Canada’s newly acquired Upper Cedar Creek, which we then toured again in the Fall – upon exclusive invitation from NCC. We watched the autumn leaves fall as we enjoyed the Annual Member BBQ & Matchet Rd Cleanup at Ojibway, and cozied up while we spotted autumn birds at the Big Sit at Point Pelee hosted by Jeremy Hatt and Windsor Feminist Bird Club. With the Winter chill returning, things start to slow down a little bit again – but not by much! We look forward to participating in the Annual Christmas Bird Counts, and the Show & Tell Monthly Member Meeting at Ojibway Nature Centre – both taking place in December, and bringing the year to a comfortable close.

It’s getting chilly out, but we’re not hibernating! The Membership Committee is keeping busy and we already have some exciting ideas we hope to see come to fruition in the New Year. We wish to keep things fresh and sprinkle in some new approaches to Pop-ups. Stay tuned, keep your eyes peeled, to be continued, etc! Special thank you to our members who join us at our Pop-ups. We look forward to having the pleasure of seeing more of you in the New Year!

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and have a Happy & Healthy New Year!

Kristen Derbyshire
Membership Secretary”

2023 Butterfly Count

By Chris Hart|2023-09-11T22:31:43-04:00September 11th, 2023|Uncategorized|

By Chris Hart

Each year, groups of passionate Lepidopterists, excited naturalists, and curious newcomers (…with one person stuck trying to frantically keep track of all the species being yelled out) take to the fields to try and spot as many butterflies as they can. This information helps to provide insight on the abundance and diversity of local populations, as well creating a much bigger picture, through the census reports published by the North American Butterfly Association (NABA). Over 450 counts, which involve surveying sites within a 15 mile diameter, take place across Canada, the United States and Mexico. This year, the Windsor counts took place on the morning of July 8^th. A total of 31 people turned out, spread out across three groups to survey Spring Garden, Brunet Park, and the Ojibway Prairie Provincial Nature Reserve.

For each survey, the sky was cloudy, the humidity was building and the risk of rain loomed overhead. Despite these conditions, the attitudes were positive. When a butterfly (or caterpillar) was spotted, and its identification was known, the name was said aloud for a check to be made beside that species’ name. If unsure of an ID, binoculars or the trained eye of another group member would be called into action. In some cases, butterflies were captured by net for closer inspection. Dragging a net lightly along the vegetation was also used to capture any individuals possibly missed by all of the eyes in the crowd. All individuals were safely released shortly after capture.

In total, there were over 160 individuals observed, with 34 different species identified. Little wood satyr and Eyed brown were the most commonly observed species, while only one individual was seen for several others, including Spicebush swallowtail and Silver-spotted skipper. Almost the full cycle of Monarchs were recorded, with eggs, larvae and adults observed.

These butterfly counts are a great way to collect data, spend time with likeminded people and enjoy beautiful local natural areas. Windsor count events are sponsored by NABA, the Friends of Ojibway Prairie and the Ojibway Nature Centre. Keep any eye out next summer for the dates and locations of the 2024 counts!

Second Annual Pride Bird Walk at Ojibway Park

By Chris Hart|2023-09-10T23:14:33-04:00September 10th, 2023|Uncategorized|

By Jeremy Hatt

On June 17, 2023, seven Essex County Field Naturalists’ Club members joined Jennifer Nantais and me for the second annual Pride Bird Walk at Ojibway Park. This event is a joint venture of ECFNC and the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) and celebrates the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

Now more than ever, events like these are essential for clubs to provide as we see the erosion of rights and a rise in hate and intolerance, especially towards the Trans community. It is so important to experience joy and a sense of community during these times and we hope events like these provide a space for people to experience just that.

Once again, we had great weather for the event, but not quite as cool as it was in 2022! The energy of the group was wonderfully positive and some familiar faces were in attendance as well as people new to ECFNC. Once again, the event resulted in new members to the Club.

Birds were a bit hard to come by but we ended up seeing many of the expected woodland breeding birds of Ojibway including Red-bellied Woodpecker, Great Crested Flycatcher, Warbling and Red-eyed Vireos, White-breasted Nuthatch, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Wood Thrush, Eastern Towhee, Baltimore Oriole, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Indigo Bunting; an amazing assortment of colours.

The newly appointed official bird of Windsor, the Tufted Titmouse, also did not disappoint w/ several throughout the park giving great views. In total, we ended up seeing 33 species of birds and lots of other interesting plants and wildlife along the trails that Jennifer helped teach the group about.

Seeing new Pride Bird Walks popping up across Ontario and even new clubs specifically dedicated to celebrating the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in nature makes me feel a lot of hope. Look out for more events in the future and we’ll see you at next year’s Ojibway Pride Walk in June!

chart

About Chris Hart