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--Boundary_(ID_7XiEhlcjaylgidpzOtz/SA) Content-type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT JUNE 30, 2010 - At our home feeders, a single brown-plumaged purple finch showed up. And I heard another disturbed catbird one block north, and later think I heard a singing catbird in our yard. Goldfinches seem to be everywhere and very vocal now for the past week or two. Robie Tufts Nature Centre in Wolfville at dusk: 27+ chimney swifts counted as they dropped into the chimney for the night -- observations from 8:55 to 9:32 p.m. (Sunset 9:03 p.m.) -- sky clear, temp. warm at 21 C., calm -- entry times started at 9:01, next one in at 9:16, 5+5 entered at 9:20-9:22, then stragglers to 9:32 (3 swifts) -- observers Jim Wolford plus 10+ others. JULY 1, 2010 - We spend a lovely Canada Day lunch at Nine Mile Lake (west of Card Lake Prov. Park) at the cottage of Linda and Andy Cann (from Wolfville), with Diane and Jim Ferguson of Halifax. An energetic parental song sparrow was busy catching and carrying unidentified damselflies and other animals along the lakeshore. Every day Andy feeds a large family consisting of a hen black duck with 15 ducklings (formerly 18 ducklings and reported incorrectly as a family of Canada geese). One of the current 15 ducklings is a bit smaller and a social outcast, being chased by some of its siblings on sight, but still hanging around the family and surviving). Andy strongly suspects that other cottage-owners are all feeding this family. The large brood is very probably the product of more than one hen laying eggs in the same nest; such "dumping" of eggs is very common in a large variety of both dabbling and diving ducks. Speaking of egg-dumping of ducks, this past Saturday's (June 26) Quirks and Quarks had a very interesting item that took me back to my graduate student days in southern Alberta, when I was wading in cattail marshes every day for three summers in the 1960's and learning an incredible amount of natural history in so doing. The Q&Q item was on redhead ducks, a rare diving duck in Nova Scotia but common in the Prairie Provinces, and a facultative (not obligate) nest-parasite on other species of ducks, especially canvasbacks but also lesser scaups and other species. Thus they lay eggs in other species' nests and/or lay eggs in a nest of their own. The research question relates to youngsters with foster parents of another species like canvasbacks (think of cowbird nestlings, for example): do such youngsters grow up confused as to what species they are and in terms of whom they try to form attachments with? This study was done in a lab, and only for one season, but ducklings with non-redhead parents were indeed confused. What now needs to be done is the same kind of study for a longer time, to find out how their future reproduction occurs and with whom and how productively, compared with those with parents of the same species. Check out the item on the cbc.ca/quirks Web site. Back in my Alberta days, I used to see dozens of duck broods every day, and those of canvasbacks often contained redhead ducklings, which were bright yellow vs. much browner or more olive-coloured canvasback youngsters. Likewise in nests of eggs, the redhead eggs were very whitish compared to the much darker greenish canvasback eggs or more brownish scaup eggs. JULY 2, 2010 - In bloom now along Wolfville's rail trail: white sweet clover, Canada thistle, and knapweed. Cheers from Jim in Wolfville --Boundary_(ID_7XiEhlcjaylgidpzOtz/SA) Content-type: text/html; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable <html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; = -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana"><b>JUNE 30, = 2010 </b>- At our home feeders, a single brown-plumaged <b>purple = finch</b> showed up. And I heard another disturbed <b>catbird</b> = one block north, and later think I heard a singing <b>catbird</b> in our = yard. <b>Goldfinches</b> seem to be everywhere and very vocal now = for the past week or two.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal = normal normal 13px/normal Verdana; min-height: 16px; = "><b></b><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" = style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana"><b>Robie Tufts Nature Centre in Wolfville = at dusk: 27+ chimney swifts</b> counted as they dropped into the chimney = for the night -- observations from 8:55 to 9:32 p.m. (Sunset 9:03 p.m.) = -- sky clear, temp. warm at 21 C., calm -- entry times started at 9:01, = next one in at 9:16, 5+5 entered at 9:20-9:22, then stragglers to 9:32 = (3 swifts) -- observers Jim Wolford plus 10+ others.</font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 13px/normal Verdana; = min-height: 16px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana"><b>JULY 1, = 2010</b> - We spend a lovely Canada Day lunch at Nine Mile Lake (west of = Card Lake Prov. Park) at the cottage of Linda and Andy Cann (from = Wolfville), with Diane and Jim Ferguson of Halifax.</font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 13px/normal Verdana; = min-height: 16px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana">An energetic = parental song sparrow was busy catching and carrying unidentified = <b>damselflies</b> and other animals along the lakeshore. = </font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal = 13px/normal Verdana; min-height: 16px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Verdana">Every day Andy feeds a large family consisting of a = <b>hen black duck with 15 ducklings</b> (formerly 18 ducklings and = reported incorrectly as a family of Canada geese). One of the = current 15 ducklings is a bit smaller and a social outcast, being chased = by some of its siblings on sight, but still hanging around the family = and surviving). Andy strongly suspects that other cottage-owners = are all feeding this family. The <b>large brood</b> is very = probably the product of <b>more than one hen laying eggs</b> in the same = nest; such <b>"dumping"</b> of eggs is very common in a large variety of = both dabbling and diving ducks.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: = normal normal normal 13px/normal Verdana; min-height: 16px; = "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" = style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana">Speaking of <b>egg-dumping of ducks</b>, = this past <b>Saturday's (June 26) Quirks and Quarks</b> had a very = interesting item that took me back to my graduate student days in = southern Alberta, when I was wading in cattail marshes every day for = three summers in the 1960's and learning an incredible amount of natural = history in so doing.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal = normal normal 13px/normal Verdana; min-height: 16px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Verdana">The Q&Q item was on <b>redhead ducks</b>, a rare = diving duck in Nova Scotia but common in the Prairie Provinces, and a = facultative (not obligate) <b>nest-parasite</b> on other species of = ducks, especially canvasbacks but also lesser scaups and other = species. Thus they lay eggs in other species' nests and/or lay = eggs in a nest of their own. The <b>research question</b> relates = to youngsters with foster parents of another species like canvasbacks = (think of cowbird nestlings, for example): do such youngsters grow up = confused as to what species they are and in terms of whom they try to = form attachments with? This study was done in a lab, and only for = one season, but ducklings with non-redhead parents were indeed = confused. What now needs to be done is the same kind of study for = a longer time, to find out how their future reproduction occurs and with = whom and how productively, compared with those with parents of the same = species. Check out the item on the <b>cbc.ca/quirks</b> Web = site.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal = 13px/normal Verdana; min-height: 16px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Verdana">Back in my Alberta days, I used to see dozens of duck = broods every day, and those of canvasbacks often contained redhead = ducklings, which were bright yellow vs. much browner or more = olive-coloured canvasback youngsters. Likewise in nests of eggs, = the redhead eggs were very whitish compared to the much darker greenish = canvasback eggs or more brownish scaup eggs. </font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 13px/normal Verdana; = min-height: 16px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana"><b>JULY 2, = 2010</b> - In bloom now along Wolfville's rail trail: <b>white sweet = clover, Canada thistle, and knapweed</b>.</font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Verdana"><br></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Verdana" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Verdana">Cheers from = Jim in Wolfville</font></div> </body></html>= --Boundary_(ID_7XiEhlcjaylgidpzOtz/SA)--
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