The Egret Article

By Jeremy Hatt

Every year in September the Holiday Beach Migration Observatory and Essex Regional Conservation Authority host the Festival of Hawks at Holiday Beach, a popular event in Essex County that highlights the spectacular migration of raptors through our area each fall. “Hawk Fest” includes many exciting activities from banding raptors and passerines to observing hawks migrating over the Hawk Tower to presentations and walks.

 ECFNC had a table display at the event this year as well as hosting a joint walk with our friends from the Windsor Feminist Bird Club. We had a great turnout of over twenty people who were enthusiastic about not only birds but plants, insects, and other wildlife we came across.

This resulted in a few new memberships to ECFNC and educating participants on the use of iNaturalist and eBird as well as information on the birds that utilize Holiday Beach as a migration stopover. WFBC also expressed the importance of providing walks that promote inclusivity for marginalized groups and kindly rented out binoculars to those in attendance that didn’t have their own optics.

 The group in attendance was enthusiastic and friendly and we had a great time on the walk. A few highlights included watching a Red-tailed Hawk being released by banders as it zipped directly over the heads of our group, close looks at Great Egrets and Black-crowned Night-Heron in the marsh, an Osprey and Belted Kingfisher both actively hunting for fish, and a pair of somewhat late Eastern Kingbirds hawking for insects around the Marsh Tower.

Our full list of species seen during the walk can be found at: https://ebird.org/checklist/S195261199

For those that don’t know, one of the ways the Club receives financial support is through the Windsor Essex Nature Fund, established by Lil’Reg through the Windsor Essex Community Foundation (WECF). The WECF is a community trust that helps community organizations, like our Club, manage and maximize their financial donations. 

The Windsor Essex Nature Fund was recently highlighted the WECF September Newsletter, stating: “In the 1990’s, the Windsor Essex Community Foundation supported the tree/ shrub planting and river cleanup activities of the Little River Enhancement Group (Lil’ Reg). Later, when the Government of Ontario began matching dollar for dollar funds donated to Community Foundations by charitable groups, Lil’ Reg decided to establish the WindsorEssex Nature Fund.
The WENF is an endowment fund, which means the donations are invested and never spent. Only interest earned from the fund is forwarded to the ECFNC, providing meaningful support for the Club’s projects.” The full write up is provided below.

The Windsor Essex Nature Fund was recently used by the Club to cover the costs of a memorial plaque for founding member Betty Learmouth.

By Aileen Petrozzi

We have lots to discuss!!

We got our grant of $2500.00 from Invasive Species Center.  

We got our Consent to enter agreement from the City of Windsor. (finally after 3yrs of trying) .

Heather and I talked with Karen Alexander, Windsor Head Naturalist to find out a plan to assist Windsor in their future Phrag control.  Windsor will be spraying East Riverside Park around the pond in September. We will then go in and get rid of the dead phragmite.  Using a brush cutter, which we will be purchasing and our cane cutters.   Windsor doesn’t yet have a permit to spray over the water, only water edge.  

We want to get the community involved and will be doing a mailing to the area postal codes.   

Dates for clearing the phragmites in East Riverside Park: 
October 5th 8:30- 12:30p
October 12th 8:30a- 12:30p
October 19th 8:30a- 12:30p

We will decide if further work will be needed.  If you would like to help , let me know.

Bryerswood Optimist Park will be getting sprayed in September also.  Will need to go back and take out the dead phragmites.  Date TBA

Heather and I will be going out to assess one of our members ‘ properties this week.  It’s off 8th concession and the pond is getting out of control with Phragmites.    We will be advising her and hopefully will be able to assist her in this project.  date TBA

We are always looking for more manpower. Willing to give community hours for any high school kids.  Will be posting at High schools nearby. But if you have someone that maybe interested let us know

Going to be a busy year
Aileen Petrozzi

Below is a letter of appreciation from the Society for Ecological Restoration for our participation in this year’s Make a Difference Week!