A suburban garden week
Sunday 5 October
Our small part of the world, an island afloat in the middle of the mighty St-Lawrence River, is not the only place sweltering in atypically hot weather this year … whatever is the cause, and it can’t be climate change as the mad king south of the border says it can’t be so. Repeatedly 😉. Compared to July and August which were unbearable, things are actually pleasantly sunny at the moment … but for all that I read that Montreal is some 7–10 degrees above seasonal norms, which usually sit around 16–17 °C. about now. No rain forecast for a week or more either. None of that can be good now we are into October. The tail end of the autumn/fall bird migration is coming through and the insects are buzzing as if we were still in mid-summer. Good or bad, I don’t know, but certainly “not right for this time of the year”.
The small selection of photographs that follow were almost all taken in the wildlife garden this past week. I would have added photos of several thousand Canada Geese settled for the night in a bay just along the shoreline - but it was already getting dark when I learned of the gathering. I was told that it was quite something.
Regardless of the weather, the past week has seen the arrival here of Dark-eyed Juncos. Fine, grey sparrows that come south to us for the winter from the far north and which will be with us for the white months ahead. Very welcome little birds that ignore the feeders and take their meals from what they can find on the ground.
The low light about now can be quite beautiful in the early mornings. Here is what we can see as we sit with tea in hand counting birds in the hour before breakfast … as one does.
I say, “as one does”, but in reality not that many people do sit and watch and take notes - whether for their own interest or as part of one of several citizen science projects. I’m sure that it is not that they have no special interest in the natural world around them/us. Conversations I have rather prove the contrary. Perhaps they don’t know how to look, what to look for, how to identify species. I know I am not alone in wondering about ways to improve people’s ability to notice what’s around them - as has been said by others, to know is to care, and to care is to want to support actions that will preserve vulnerable habitats and biodiversity. Start in the schools and youth groups perhaps - as I wrote here a few weeks ago, start by turning over some rocks with the kids and see what’s to be found.
Begin in your own garden. Easy and interesting.
In my own community, many people express a liking for a bosky environment. If I post photographs of birds, butterflies, flowers on the town social media, they get positive responses. The things that really grab people are not the rarities or the unusual LBJs - popular are the big and exciting creatures such as a couple of groups of Wild Turkeys wandering the streets and parks. Gateways interactions, so I don’t decry them. Hawks are guaranteed to engender excitement, as was a coyote loping through a garden recently. But what about the rest? Not all sparrows are the same single species, there are plenty more birds that are black but are not blackbirds and not all yellow-striped insects are going to sting you. Pause and look and notice. Everyone likes birds - we have a garden life list of 124 different species, 93 of which have been seen this year to date. They didn’t just materialise in our garden. They passed through other gardens and parks on the way but for the most part went unnoticed.
Meanwhile, these were amongst some of the life we noticed this week:
Red-breasted Nuthatches (see above) are reasonably regular here but not as frequently seen as are the White-breasted Nuthatches. Here in Montreal we are approaching the southern edge of their breeding range but just now sightings are increasing as some more northerly individuals pass through heading southwards for winter.
This season is, of course, the time for spectacular fungi. Fungi, in particular, that infiltrate dead wood which they gradually breakdown and make available to other creatures, insects in particular. This specimen was not found in our garden - but it’s quite spectacular in the golden hour at the close the day as it slowly consumes its host log.
What animals do kids like best?
Here’s some really interesting data looking at how early in life social conditioning affects the animals boys and girls say they like. It’s predictable (girls like butterflies … who knew) but a bit more nuanced than just that and it has implications for conservation priorities and research funding too. Here’s the link:
If you’ve never seen a hedgehog
I garden to make a small difference, both to me and the lives around me, and I write because we’re in danger and I don’t think the communication of this danger is working (it might do, if it was reported properly or if world leaders acted in accordance with the science). The message just isn’t getting through: I talk to friends about butterfly and hedgehog declines and they look at me like they feel sad for me but not themselves. I talk about 1.5ºC of average global warming and they shrug their shoulders. Of course they do, how can we galvanise hope and action without the facts? And how will you care about the facts if you have no connection with what the facts tell us about? If you’ve never seen a hedgehog, how are you supposed to notice, let alone care, if the species goes extinct?
That extract is quoted from:
… and, Jane Goodall died last week so many of her sayings are being shared around the internet. This one is relevant:
“Only if we understand, will we care. Only if we care, will we help. Only if we help, shall they be saved,”
Where do insects come from?
Jolly good question - and here are some thoughts on it:
On Wednesday there will be much to learn about bees and wasps … subscribers will get the account delivered directly … subscriptions are free.
'Bosky' you say! A new word for me. I like it and the woods full of shrubs!
Thanks Richard for your writing ! Much appreciated! It’s true we get excited about hawks, but we love all our bird visitors to our birdfeeders! After filling the bird bath, a hawk came and spent a little while standing in it this morning. A squirrel nearby stood like a statue! All ended peacefully!