chart

By Don Bissonnette

   In the Spring of 1989, I found a nesting pair of Eastern Bluebirds near Harrow, Ont. This surprised me, because I knew they were extirpated in many areas. I spoke with some members of our club, & I learned that Essex County did have a very small population of Bluebirds, mostly in the Southern half of the County. 

  I learned that other Nature Clubs (both in Canada & the United States) had set up Bluebird Committees, which managed birdhouse trails in their areas. In the mid-1980s, I had set up 3 trails, so I was familiar with Bluebird trail monitoring.  I wondered if our Club would be interested in having a Bluebird Committee. 

  In 1989 or 1990, I attended a E.C.F.N. club meeting. I stood up, & gave a short talk on Bluebird Conservation. I held one of my birdhouses, for a prop. I asked the group, if any-one was interested in forming a Bluebird Committee, to speak with me at the end of the meeting. Fortunately, a few people did approach me. 

  I wanted this Committee to be successful, so I looked for information about Eastern Bluebirds,Tree Swallows, & setting up birdhouse trails. (This was before the internet!) Fortunately, people in the club sent me articles about these subjects, from magazines. I contacted a member of the Sydenham Field Naturalist’s ‘Bluebird Committee’, & he answered my questions, & gave me some practical information. 

  I spent some time, applying for grants. Our first grant came from Shell Oil’s ‘Environmental Fund’. That got the ball rolling, & we bought some t-bar posts, & birdhouse kits. A home improvement company sold us the kits (unassembled birdhouses). These kits were made with recycled wood, which kept our cost down to $8.33 each. 

Setting Up The Club’s Bluebird Trails​. In the early years,  the Committee members were always on the lookout for good Bluebird habitat. Fortunately, Bill Balkwill contacted some property he knew, & secured permission for us, to set up & monitor birdhouse trails on their properties. The rest of us, did contact people we knew with good habitat, & asked them about setting up trails. 

   A few times, some of us, stopped at a farm, with good habitat. It seems bold, but we knocked on the door, & spoke to the people, who we did not know.  We introduced ourselves, and explained that our Committee was looking for good Bluebird habitat. We asked if we could set up a Bluebird trail on their property, which was good Bluebird habitat.  A few people did say no.  Fortunately, some were enthusiastic & welcomed us. One couple I spoke with, told me they had occasionally seen Bluebirds on their farm, & were planning on setting up some birdhouses. 

 Setting Up Affiliate Trails​ In the early years, some of the local Newspapers reported about our Bluebird Committee. This led to some property owners contacting me, & asking for help in setting up a Bluebird trail.  I did visit some of these people, to determine if they had good Bluebird habitat. 

 If these people had good Bluebird habitat,  I gave them literature about Bluebird Conservation. (This was before the days of internet googling!) Some of these people allowed us to set up a Club trail on their property. 

   Others, wanted to own their own birdhouses, & do the monitoring themselves. Some of these people built their own birdhouses or bought birdhouses from me. These became the Affiliate trails.  Some Affiliates telephoned me, in their first years, with questions. I did my best to answer these questions, or help them find the answer. Some of these Affiliates shared their statistics with us, every Fall. 

The Bluebird Committee Today​ In the recent years, there are 4 monitors of the Bluebird Committee: Joan Affleck, Alan Batke, Graham Brown & myself. We look after the club’s 7 trails which contain 28 houses. Some of us also look after the 3 Essex Windsor Solid Waste Authority Bluebird trails. We also give some of the Affiliate bluebird landlords a hand with washing their houses in the fall, or setting up new houses. 

Bluebird  Trail  Maintenance  Through  The  Year.​

Winter … All of the trails are inspected. Any damaged houses are repaired, or replaced. Soiled or wet Pine Straw beds are replaced. Birdhouses that were taken over by House Wrens, are moved to more open locations, far from any shrubs or trees. Any houses that were not washed in the Fall are washed. Broken hunting perches are replaced. Deceased birds are removed from the houses. 

   The broken, damaged houses houses are taken apart. Any decent piece of wood is washed.  I build  and paint ‘new’ houses. ( These houses contain very little new wood.  They are mostly made of good pieces from old birdhouses, & scraps of wood, left-over from friend’s wood-working projects.) 

late Winter & early Spring … All of the birdhouse posts are regreased. (This prevents predation from Raccoons, Possums and other predators.) Any deceased birds are removed from the houses.  We apply Mint oil to the interior of the mice-prone houses, using cotton-balls. The smell of the Mint Oil repels the mice, but does not bother the birds. 

Spring & Summer … Most of us monitor, every 5 to 8 days. (Monitoring can be very irregular in April and May, due to rainy days.) As soon as the young Bluebirds, or Tree Swallows fledge, their nests are removed. A new bed of Pine straw is set in place. 

Fall … Houses are washed out. The inspection doors are left open for a few hours, to allow the interior to dry. A few hours later, when the interior is dry, a fresh bed of Pine Straw is set in place, & the inspection door is closed. Also, during the Fall, a list is made, of which houses need repairing or relocating. Houses that are prone to mice invasions, are left propped open for the Winter. 

Late Fall & early Winter … I collect the nesting statistics from all of the Bluebird And Tree Swallow landlords that I know, in Essex County. This includes our Bluebird Committee members & the Affiliate Bluebird landlords.  Nowadays, I do this with e-mails. Some of the Bluebird landlords do not have computers, so I call them on the phone. (In the olden days, I mailed out a 1 page questionnaire to all of the Bluebird landlords  and the Bluebird trail monitors.  They filled out the questionnaire & mailed it back to me.)  I make a statistic chart, & e-mail this chart back to the people who responded. Also, I send a copy to the Ontario Eastern Bluebird society. 

The Bluebird Committee is run totally on available Grants, a portion of what is raised through the Great Canadian Birdathon, and donations.  If you want to donate money directly to the Bluebird Committee please send a check to Essex County Field Naturalists Club c/o 5200 Matchette Rd. Windsor, Ontario N9C 4C8 (put in memo line-Bluebird Committee). Or through our website essexcountynature.com under membership there is a donation box through Canada Helps, just direct the donation to the Bluebird Committee.  Thank you.

Part of the Detroit River Binational Program

By Ian Naisbitt

It has been 2 ½ years since volunteers participated in a Little River Cleanup Event. On Saturday, 9 April, the Detroit River Canadian Cleanup and the Essex Region Conservation Authority invited Essex County Nature to join community volunteers to clean up a well-known section of Little River. The segment needing a “Spring Cleaning” flows adjacent to the Canadian Tire Store on Tecumseh Road East. The City of Windsor created Teedie Park along the riverbanks and adjacent open areas in this area. As well, the Ganatchio Trail has been extended from the river to the Forest Glade neighbourhood. Today’s cleanup involved both banks of Little River. This cleanup was part of the Detroit River Binational Cleanup Event.

In the past this portion of the river was notorious for shopping carts being discarded into the river to construct a “pedestrian crossing.” Not only did this hinder the flow of the current, but it also collected vegetation and other debris which effectively created a dam. Since 1996, this section of Little River has been cleaned up 15 times and removing shopping carts has become a frustrating routine. Fortunately, media coverage over those years has helped encourage a solution to this vexing problem. A new pedestrian bridge has been constructed! It connects stores on Tecumseh Road with the Forest Glade community. A brilliant solution to the shopping cart crossing that will no longer need to be constructed in the river.

A Tip of the Cap to the City of Windsor for erecting this bridge! Shopping cart problem solved.

The day’s forecast was foreboding. Even so, we just had to accept it and carry on.   
Environment Canada: Cloudy with a 40 % chance of rain showers or flurries. High 8 C. UV index 3 or moderate.
The Weather Channel: Cloudy with snow showers mainly during the morning. High near 5  C. Chance of snow 50 %. Winds WNW at 15 to 25 km/h which Sir Francis Beaufort classifies as a “moderate breeze.”

All volunteers were dressed appropriately for the weather Mother Nature served.

Thankfully, the sun came out and brightened up our spirits as the clouds drifted by. Volunteers worked from 10 a.m. to noon, cleaning up litter and other assorted windblown trash that accumulated over the winter. Our efforts are worthwhile since the amount of garbage collected (1884 pounds/ 855 kilograms) will benefit the health of the river ecosystem and the wildlife that use it. New items to add to our list of kinds of trash collected: a slow cooker and backpack.

Cleanup Partnership included:
City of Windsor
Detroit River Canadian Cleanup and Public Advisory Council
Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario/ Windsor District
Essex County Nature and the Junior Egrets
Essex Region Conservation Authority
Little River Enhancement Group and the Dragonfly Elders
Wildlife Preservation Canada

Mute Swam Looking at their Reflection after Preening Feathers

By Howard Williams

For grandparenting reasons, Carole Donaldson and I moved to Windsor in October of last year and we have often been greeted by ‘Welcome to Windsor’.  We specifically settled close to Jackson Park, specifically for dog walking but imagine our delight when we experienced all the other aspects of that park: the many over-wintering birds followed by the spring-flowering trees and migrant birds (see photos from Jackson of Killdeer, Great Crested Flycatcher, Cooper’s Hawk and Cowbird.

When not busy in the garden which is rapidly becoming a haven for Carolinian species, we visit most of the Essex County Conservation areas as part of a naturalist circuit, making sure that we visit most about every two weeks or so to catch the rapid changes.  Each is a gem, very different in terms of their wildflowers, trees and birds.  Most of the conservation areas are densely wooded which makes birdsong all the more delightful in that it is not competing with the traffic and emergency vehicle noise that is so apparent in the city. The hawk photo above was taken of him standing guard for his much larger mate who was nest-sitting in early April.  

Amongst the early spring flowers we have seen Spice Bush, Mayapple, Wild lily of the Valley and Blue Phlox.

On a brief negative note but sticking with natural history, we are saddened to see so much litter in both the conservation areas and in the city parks.  For me it tells of a pervasive lack of pride in part of the community for which I blame poor parenting.  We try to keep humble by countering it with daily litter pickups in Jackson Park and I have seen Essex County Field Naturalists’ Club (ECFNC) members pick it up in the conservation areas too but know that the change to a less careless society has to start with the young.  Did you play your part?

As part of my contribution to the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas, I monitored the Cooper’s Hawk nest in Jackson Park, only to find it abandoned after a succession of cold and stormy days in April. We hope that the hawks have found more sheltered accommodation elsewhere in the area.  Please keep your eyes skinned in the south end of Victoria Avenue area.  

In Colchester our stay there in late April included access to an owl nesting box, containing a pair of Eastern Screech Owl.  

In Windsor, the many hollow concrete lamp standards in the city seem to be preferred nesting locations for European Starlings and House Sparrows, currently, many lamp standards are noisy with hungry chicks and the busy comings and goings of care-worn parents.

Hillman Marsh, like many of the conservation areas has been a joy for both birds and plants, As you can see from this photo, Blanding’s Turtle have been straining to see us during our visits there.

Late-May and early June will find me downtown at dusk looking at chimneys, trying to spot Chimney Swifts before I get picked up for vagrancy.  At the Windsor Market this month I managed to spot ten Chimney Swifts diving and swooping over the city streets. 

I first visited the St. Clair ESA (Environmentally Sensitive Area) a few days ago and found amongst the typical woodland wildflowers this Glaucous Honeysuckle climbing along the fence.

One reason for writing this piece is that I am pleased to report that the ECFNC has been our successful gateway into the community.  Those who regularly move from one province or country to another will recognise that to meet people you need one or more of the following: young children, socialised dogs, or a club to join and get involved.  We score two of these: a greyhound and an organisation that promotes our insatiable appetite for the natural wonders of this county.  

Thank you ECFNC.