next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
previous message in thread
Index of Subjects
Index of Subjects Pembroke is on the upper Ottawa River, very close to the boundary of Algonquin Park - which makes sense as a gathering place for swallows. The site mentioned in the book by Mike Mcall, Kingston, has been known for many years and is used in the tourist literature of the area to attract people on eco tours etc. Kingston's inner harbour is (or was) on a swallow migration route that included large areas of the shore region of Lake Ontario. Tens of thousands of swallows would gather there in July and August - I don't know if that is still the case. The same concentration occurred in nearby Prince Edward County which is virtually an island sticking out into the lake. Sandbanks Provincial Park was a great area to see swallows at the same time period. The quote from the book that bothers me is the reference to an island in the river near Bancroft. I am going from memory, having spent considerable periods in the Bancroft area as a prospector many years ago. The York River goes right through the town and although interesting, is hardly a major river. I don't remember any islands, and if there were any they probably wouldn't be big enough to house more than a few swallows, let alone 175,000. However, maybe I missed something, I wasn't looking for swallows at the time. There is a large lake nearby, Baptiste Lake, which seems to me to have a few islands but that doesn't match the description. Jim's suggestion of Pembroke matches much better, but it is as far away from Bancroft as Kingston is, only in the other direction. This is an interesting line of discussion, especially if we can identify critical points other than Brier Island for local migrations. Of course the point may be moot if the swallow population doesn't rebound from its current dismal levels. Does anyone know of any potential locations? John Belbin - Hantsport -----Original Message----- From: naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca [mailto:naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca]On Behalf Of Jim Wolford Sent: October 30, 2007 11:15 AM To: NatureNS Subject: FW: [NatureNS] Whither our Swallows Back in the days when Peter Whelan was writing wonderful weekly columns in the Saturday Globe and Mail, there used to be huge swallow roost in a big cattail marsh near Pembroke, Ontario, wherever that is. I know that post-fledging swallows often form big flocks during that time leading up to emigration, and any bird that forms big flocks (except starlings, of course) becomes more difficult to encounter if the number of flocks is limited. We used to have big post-fledging flocks of tree, bank, and barn swallows perching on the wires around the Wolfville sewage ponds out on the dykeland east of Wolfville, but apparently not so in recent years? Cheers from Jim in Wolfville ---------- From: Mike McCall <mikemccall@xcountry.tv> Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:47:50 -0300 To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca Subject: [NatureNS] Whither our Swallows I recently picked up a book on nature as experienced in Ontario and found the answer to the question "Where do all the swallows disappear to after their young have fledged?" The answer for Ontaronians, that is. The authors tell me that in the interval between fledging and migration, 175,000 swallows gather on an island in a river near Bancroft, Ontario. Another 100,000 gather in the marsh near Kingston, ON, at the mouth of the Cataraqui River. To what destination do our swallows head when the kids are out of the nest. Is it in N.S.? N.B.? or is there a gathering place in Maine? Freeport perhaps, now that the Loonie is doing so well? Mike McCall
next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
previous message in thread
Index of Subjects