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--Apple-Mail=_DC5B4622-3F34-45A4-B7AD-223782202535 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252 > Subject: [ValleyNature] TV last night and tonight re squirrels, = Kermode bears, etc. > Date: March 26, 2015 at 3:00:40 PM ADT > To: Nature BNS <nature@blomidonnaturalists.ca> >=20 > MARCH 26, 2015 - Last night on PBS-Boston TV, the great series = =93NATURE=94 showed a very interesting hour-long documentary, =93Irelands = Wild River=94, referring to the Shannon River (in sw. Ireland?)(try = pbs.org/nature/irelandswildriver/ to get it on the Internet). I = believe this was a rerun of a 2014 episode, but I must have slept = through parts of it or just didn=92t see the whole thing, but not so = last night. The show was narrated by the film-maker, whose name I = didn=92t get. Among the subjects was the near-disappearance of formerly = abundant shorebirds like lapwings, curlews, and redshanks. But my main = reason for writing this is that he showed and discussed the native = Eurasian red squirrel (which is quite different from our diminutive red = squirrel). The widely introduced gray squirrel (same as ours) has not = yet made it into the Shannon Valley area of Ireland. Grays would = out-compete their native red squirrel (he didn=92t mention the virus = which the gray carries but kills the reds), but so far the reds are = doing well there. This documentary ended with awesome footage of the = aerobatics of huge flocks of pre-roosting starlings (which of course are = native there).=20 >=20 > Interestingly, from my many local contacts in King=92s and Annapolis = Counties who have gray squirrels and red squirrels often in their yards, = so far the two species seem to be co-existing all right, with occasional = chasing but no clear dominance one way or the other. >=20 > P.S. Speaking of TV, TONIGHT is The Nature of Things with David = Suzuki, and the subject is the so-called SPIRIT BEAR or KERMODE BEAR, a = white-coloured black bear that lives in British Columbia=92s GREAT BEAR = COASTAL RAINFOREST, mostly from Prince Rupert northward toward Alaska. = I am currently reading a fabulous coffee-table book, =93Great Bear Wild=94= (2014 or 2015?), by Ian McAllister. Ian puts out the interesting idea = that one reason for the whiteness of these black bears is for camouflage = against the bright sky when the bears are hunting salmon along the = mountain creeks on these islands. >=20 > Cheers from Jim in Wolfville. > _______________________________________________ > Nature mailing list > Nature@blomidonnaturalists.ca > = http://blomidonnaturalists.ca/mailman/listinfo/nature_blomidonnaturalists.= ca --Apple-Mail=_DC5B4622-3F34-45A4-B7AD-223782202535 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/html; charset=windows-1252 <html><head><meta http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html = charset=3Dwindows-1252"></head><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; = -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: = after-white-space;"><br><div><blockquote type=3D"cite"><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px;"><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, = 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>Subject: </b></span><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';"><b>[ValleyNature] TV last night and = tonight re squirrels, Kermode bears, etc.</b><br></span></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px;"><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, = 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>Date: </b></span><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';">March 26, 2015 at 3:00:40 PM = ADT<br></span></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px;"><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>To: = </b></span><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';">Nature BNS <<a = href=3D"mailto:nature@blomidonnaturalists.ca">nature@blomidonnaturalists.c= a</a>><br></span></div><br><div><meta http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" = content=3D"text/html charset=3Dwindows-1252"><div style=3D"word-wrap: = break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: = after-white-space;"><div style=3D"margin: 0px;"><b>MARCH 26, 2015</b> - = <b>Last night on PBS-Boston TV</b>, the great series <b>=93NATURE=94</b> = showed a very interesting hour-long documentary,<b> =93Irelands Wild = River=94</b>, referring to the Shannon River (in sw. Ireland?)(try <a = href=3D"http://pbs.org/nature/irelandswildriver/">pbs.org/nature/irelandsw= ildriver/</a> to get it on the Internet). I believe this was a = rerun of a 2014 episode, but I must have slept through parts of it or = just didn=92t see the whole thing, but not so last night. The show = was narrated by the film-maker, whose name I didn=92t get. = <b>Among the subjects was</b> the near-disappearance of formerly = abundant shorebirds like lapwings, curlews, and redshanks. But my = main reason for writing this is that he showed and discussed the native = <b>Eurasian red squirrel </b>(which is quite different from our = diminutive red squirrel). The widely introduced<b> gray squirrel = </b>(same as ours) has not yet made it into the Shannon Valley area of = Ireland. Grays would out-compete their native red squirrel (he = didn=92t mention the virus which the gray carries but kills the reds), = but so far the reds are doing well there. This documentary ended = with awesome footage of the aerobatics of huge flocks of pre-roosting = starlings (which of course are native there). </div><div = style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: = 0px;">Interestingly, from my many local contacts in King=92s and = Annapolis Counties who have<b> gray squirrels and red squirrels</b> = often in their yards, so far the two species seem to be co-existing all = right, with occasional chasing but no clear dominance one way or the = other.</div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div = style=3D"margin: 0px;">P.S. Speaking of <b>TV, TONIGHT</b> is <b>The = Nature of Things</b> with David Suzuki, and the subject is the so-called = <b>SPIRIT BEAR or KERMODE BEAR</b>, a white-coloured black bear = that lives in British Columbia=92s GREAT BEAR COASTAL RAINFOREST, mostly = from Prince Rupert northward toward Alaska. I am currently reading = a fabulous coffee-table book, =93Great Bear Wild=94 (2014 or 2015?), by = Ian McAllister. Ian puts out