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Species of the Day: Striped Skunk

In Rondeau we have one type of skunk, the striped skunk. It is found all across Canada and likes to live areas of mixed forest and grasslands. Although skunks have long claws for digging, they rarely dig their own den. Skunks usually lives in abandoned dens of other animals, such as groundhogs or foxes. Often times they will live under porches or cellars but also likes rock piles and refuse heaps. To make a nest in its den, the skunk will move leaves into its den by putting them under their body then shuffling into their nest. The will use these leaves to line their den.

Breeding time happens in late February and goes until mid-April.  Skunks will usually only mate once a year but a second breeding period is in May for those that didn’t successfully have any kits. The average gestation period is in 65 days and once their born it takes 8 weeks of nursing until they start hunting with their mother and they will eventually disperse. It only takes 8 days before they can spray.

Skunks are known for their special scent glands located in their anus. The glands are about the size of a grape and create a bad smelling, oily, yellow musk. This musk can be sprayed up to 6 metres and the odor can be carried for over a kilometer by the wind. Although the musk has been known to cause nausea and intense pain, don’t panic as skunks give warning before they spray, so if you see one back away slowly as sudden movements may cause them to spray. When skunks feel threatened they will face you will their back arched and tail up. They will then stomp their feet on the found and may perform a handstand. If they are still threatened they will bend its rear end around while still facing you and spray. If you, your pet or anything got sprayed here is a quick deskunking recipe that has been proven to work:

• 1 quart 3% hydrogen peroxide
• ¼ cup baking soda
• 1 teaspoon liquid detergent

 

Mix together in an open bowl and use on sprayed surface. This recipe is safe to use on humans and pets and also on clothing and furniture.

 

For this and other great deskunking tips visit:http://pestcontrol.about.com/od/diyanimalcontrol/a/Get-Rid-Of-Skunk-Odor-Myths-And-Facts.htm

 

Other fun facts:

• Skunks are omnivores and will eat a variety of foods such as mice, eggs, carrion, insects, berries, fish and vegetables.
• Skunks do not like their own smell. They will not spray in their den or in confined spaces.
• They will only travel about a kilometer away from their den.
• Skunks are crepuscular meaning they are most active during dusk and dawn.
• Since other animals are repulsed by the odor skunks are actually less likely to carry rabies than other mammals.
• The skunk spray is used as a base in perfume because of its clinging abilities.
• The skunks biggest predator is the great horned owl, who is un affected by the spray due to its poor smelling abilities
• Skunks have excellent smell and hearing but poor eye sight

Species of the Day: Birds Nests!

Bird nests are a spot in which a bird lays and incubates its eggs. Not all birds build nests, some species lay their eggs directly on the ground or rocky ledges while brood parasites lay their eggs in the nests of other birds. This includes the cow bird which will lay its eggs in the nests of other species, some of which recognize the egg and remove it from the nest while others raise it as one of their own. If a cowbird lays its egg in the nest of a yellow warbler, the warbler will build another nest on top of the previous one and will build up to six nests on top of each other. Most birds build a new nest each year although some refurbish nests from previous years. In most species the female does most or all of the nest construction.

There are a couple different types of nests. One is called a scrape nest which is just a shallow depression in the soil or vegetation that has a rim just deep enough to keep the eggs from rolling away. The nests are commonly lined with bits of vegetation, small stones, shell fragments or feathers to help camouflage the eggs, provide insulation or to keep them from sinking into muddy or sandy soil if the nest is accidentally flooded.

Another type of nest is a burrow. In this type of nest the eggs and young and in most cases the incubating parent are sheltered in the earth. Most use their own burrows but some use those excavated by others. Burrow nests are common among seabirds at high latitudes as they provide protection against cold and predators.

Some birds like to nest in cavities in living or dead wood. A relatively small number of birds, called primary cavity nesters can excavate their own holes. Most species use natural holes or those excavated by other species and these are called secondary cavity nesters. Both can be convinced to use nest boxes and sometimes they are critical to the species survival.

Furthermore there is a nest type called a cup which has a deep depression inside to house the eggs. Most are made of pliable materials including grasses though a small number are made of mud or saliva. Small birds even use a large amount of spider silk in the construction of their nests.

There are also platform nests which are large structures often many times the size of the bird which has built it. Depending on the species the nests can be on the ground or elevated up in a tree. In extreme cases the nests grow large enough to cause structural damage to the tree it is located in.

Finally, there are pendant nests which are elongated sacs woven out of pliable material such as grasses and plant fibers and suspended from a branch. Birds such as Orioles prefer to live in pendant nests.

Most species of birds nest individually but some species prefer to nest all together like the Great Blue Heron. By doing so they can benefit from increased protection from predators and may be able to utilize food supplies better by following more successful foragers to their foraging sites.

– V. Nolan (2014)

Species of the Day: Bald Eagle

These fantastic fliers are almost 0.8 m long, with a 2 m wing span.  They have a white head and tail, a dark brown body, and yellow beak and feet.  In flight, they keep their wings fairly flat when soaring.  These Eagles mate for life and add to their huge nest every year.  At 4.5 m, the Bald Eagle’s nest is the largest nest out of all the birds’ nests in North America.

The Bald Eagle gets its name from the white feathers on its head that make it look like it has a balls head, but did you know that the young Eagles do not have white heads?  Bald Eagle’s heads do not turn white until they are 4 years old.  The immature are generally dark all over with some lighter patches as they get older, and they develop an eye stripe in their third year. The immature Bald Eagles can be mistaken for Golden Eagles, which are dark overall, except for the golden nape.

These enchanting Eagles feed on waterbirds, small mammals, and fish.  They occasionally feed on carrion, and sometimes take food from Ospreys.  When the Young are born, both the mother and farther take to feeding the babies.

Rondeau’s large lake and bay make the perfect home for Bald Eagles, as their food source is always nearby, so keep your eyes open for these amazing birds.

Species of the Day: Sassafras Tree

This unique, sweet smelling tree is a part if the Carolinian forest that is found in Rondeau.  The sassafras tree has three types of leaves that may all be found on the same tree. The leaves can be one lobed, which looks like an oval, two lobed, looking like an oven mitt, or three lobed, looking like a bird’s foot print.  It can grow to be 20 m tall and 50 cm in diameter, sometimes even larger.

Sassafras trees are part of the Laurel family, whose members normally have a spicy smell, like cinnamon, and camphor.  Sassafras is not the odd one out in this family, as all parts of this tree, including the leaves, and bark, give off a spicy odor when bruised.

The berries from the sassafras tree are blue and turn red as they ripen in late August.  These fruits are eaten by birds, and squirrels, and once they fall to the ground, they become a tasty snack for foxes and small mammals.  The seed flowers and pollen flowers are found on separate trees.  They are small, greenish-yellow, and appear before the leaves unfold.

This scented splendour is rare in Canada, but can be seen in a variety of locations in our park, including the parking lot of the Visitor Center, so come on over and check out our green wonder.

– A. Young (2014)

 

 

Species of the Day: White-tailed Deer

This common mammal seen elegantly springing across fields or through forests is still a favourite sighting of many. A white-tailed deer is commonly seen on the edges of forests and in fields of crops in the spring, summer and early fall. The deer then move into forests for protection from the elements in the harsh winter season. Deer are actually not nocturnal but rather crepuscular. Crepuscular means they are most active at twilight, meaning dawn and dusk. This is the time you will most often see these animals seeking out water and food. They come out at this time because visibility is challenging which gives them an advantage over predators.

We hear about the history of these deer every day from Rondeau Park visitors. Everyone seems to remember the multitude of deer that roamed the woods by the hundreds and from what I’ve been told by visitors, roaming right up to the car windows as well. I was quite interested in these incredible animals before my job here at the Rondeau Visitor Centre and they still peak my interest today. Besides being told stories from visitors and fellow staff of Rondeau I have spent a bit of time researching the white-tailed deer in books and magazines.

The white-tailed deer can weigh up to a whopping 300lbs and if stretched out could be up to 7½ feet long! These deer have a very large range which covers most of North America. They are herbivores and graze on a variety of plants, nuts, grasses, corn, flowers and may even eat twigs and lichens. A single bound may reach up to 30 feet and they may jump as high as 10 feet! The power of this mammal is really astounding, especially considering they do so much bounding.

Species of the Day: Red Fox

The red fox is usually seen in its red form, which is mostly red, with black feet and black tipped ears, but it can also be seen in its “cross form,” with a black marking across its shoulders and down it’s back, making a cross shape, or its “silver form,” with black hair tipped with silver.  In all colour forms, the red fox always has a large bushy tail with a white tip, which it uses for balance when running and as a cover for its face in the winter.

Although foxes are canides, like dogs and wolves, they have a very cat-like hunting style.  They crouch down and wait for the right moment to strike, and when they find the right opportunity, they jump into the air with straight legs and try to land on what they are hunting, then they stomp on the ground, trying to flatten their prey, which may include mice, voles, other small rodents, and birds.  Red foxes may also eat right out of your garbage can, as these opportunistic feeders have adapted to rural and urban landscapes.

What does the fox say? The red fox can make about 20 different sounds, from screaming during the mating season in early spring, to gekkering, a sound foxes make when they are fighting, to their alarm call, which up close sounds like a cough, but sounds like a bark from far away, used to warn other foxes of danger.  Foxes normally communicate with each other using body language, rather than vocalizations.

– A. Young (2014)

Species of the Day: Snapping Turtle

The snapping turtle is a common reptile to see along ditch banks, in any marsh or pond area and sometimes crossing roads with a grumpy attitude. These turtles are sometimes cranky because they’re quite different from the typical turtle. The snapping turtle lacks a large plastron, (which is the bottom half of the shell that covers the belly). While most turtles can pull their limbs and head into their shell, the snapping turtle cannot. Therefore it’s only means of defense is running away (slowly) or trying to fight off its predator. The snapping turtle is very much prehistoric looking which makes them easy to identify. This turtle has a long tail equipped with sharp looking spikes which separates it from any other turtle in Ontario. Along with the spikes on the tail, the shell also has spikes! These spikes are flatter and more rugged looking and are usually covered in algae and mud. If you’ve ever seen a snapping turtle you know they are one of Ontario’s largest turtles! They can have up to a shell length of 50cm and can also weigh over 30lbs!

The snapping turtle is common in Southern Canada from Saskatchewan to Nova Scotia and everywhere in between. This turtle will hibernate in the muddy bottom of wetlands through our cold Canadian winters and actually breathe through their bum when they run out of oxygen! The cloaca is the vent at the rear of the turtle where eggs, urine and feces are all released. A part of the cloaca, the cloacal bursae, is a membrane that allows gases to pass through it. Oxygen is taken from the mud and enters directly into the turtle’s blood stream. Snapping turtles can breathe through their butts!

If you see one of these monster sized turtles remember that they’re an important aspect of the environment they live in. The snapping turtle is often seen crossing busy roads so keep your eye open and try your best to avoid running over these cool creatures of the not so deep.

Species of the Day: Common Five-Lined Skink

Ontario’s only lizard can be found basking in the sun on logs and rocks across dunes, forests or open meadows. These lizards are quick! This blue-tailed reptile is commonly mistaken for their much slower moving friend, the blue-spotted salamander which is actually an amphibian and not a reptile. The skink is covered in scales and is not slimy but actually quite smooth and can grow up to 20cm long. The stripes and blue tail are picturesque of what a skink may look like but these are just juvenile skinks. In fact, as the skinks get older they lose the blue colouration of the tail and may be a grey to grey brown colour. A skink’s tail is blue because it gets the attention of a predator. It is a great trick because if a predator strikes at the tail the skink can drop it and dart off to safety. No need to worry about our little friend though. The tail will grow back soon after it has been dropped at a rate of about 6mm a week.

The Carolinian populations in Canada are endangered while the more northern populations are of special concern. The greatest harm to these speedy animals that they can’t out run is habitat loss. The destruction of Carolinian forests has lowered the areas for habitat dramatically. There are only four to five isolated populations in the Carolinian zone! Along with development and destruction of Carolinian forests, road mortality is another major threat the common five-lined skink is facing.

Now that you know a little bit about the common five-lined skink you can maybe catch a glimpse of one scurrying away under a log or boardwalk!

– J. Pickering (2014)

Species of the Day: Ruby-throated Hummingbird

 

This fascinating little bird only weighs between two and six grams! Their wings beat about 53 times per second! The ruby-throated hummingbird is the most commonly seen hummingbird because its range is large and includes central and eastern North America as well as northern Mexico. This common hummingbird is easily identified between other birds because it is so small and moves so quickly. There are some issues when trying to identify this hummingbird from an insect that looks quite similar though. This moth is named the hummingbird moth for a good reason, they look almost identical at a quick glance! Along with the hummingbird moth, another 17 species of hummingbird in North America and Central America are very hard to distinguish from the ruby-throated. They vary in throat colour, shape and flight patterns. The ruby-throated hummingbird is usually emerald green on the back, belly and head. The male has a red throat and white chest while the female has an all-white throat and chest.

If you think you’ve discovered a rare yellow throated hummingbird sorry to disappoint you but it is common! It may just be the ruby-throated hummingbird that is covered in yellow pollen from the flowers they were sipping nectar from. Nectar feeding involves sticking their long beak into a flower to slurp out the nectar from the middle of it. Being dusted in pollen is a good thing because they are pollinating many flowers across a landscape as they move from one to another!

A hummingbird feeder can be put up on to a hook pole along with other bird feeders in your own backyard to attract the ruby-throated hummingbird. They like an easy-to-make mixture of sugar and water! Try this simple little setup to bring in this magnificent bird for a closer look.

– J. Pickering (2014)