Nature Log

2021-05-29 Saw first hummingbird in yard. I heard the vibrating of its wings and looked up to find it checking out my fluorescent pink hat. We found an egg on the ground, likely a chipping sparrow.

2021-05-28 Bumblebee using non-native dandelion as food source.

2021-05-25 Killdeer nesting in client's yard in gravel of xeriscape landscape, in a fairly new subdivision that used to be farm field.

2021-05-23 Checked out nearby swamp. Found a Clustered Black Snake Root (Sanicula odorata), Swamp Chesnut Oak (Querus michauxii), lots of Dwarf Raspberry (Rubus pubescens) and lots of non-native Water Forget-me-not (Myosotis scorpiodes). Also found a cluster of Scaly Ink Cap (Coprinopsis variegata) and lots of Pheasant's Back (Cerioporis squamosus) fungus.

2021-05-22 Skunk in the yard. Hopefully it isn't living under the outdoor bathtub like last year.

2021-05-21 Found a dead Black Swallowtail Butterfly, missing a piece of body.

2021-05-20 Found a dead Mourning Cloak Butterfly, fully intact .

2021-05-19 Saw a Killdeer being chased by a Red-Winged Black Bird for a few minutes over the grand river. A second bird of each species could be heard cheering from the sidelines.

2021-05-18 Heard baby Raccoons making noises in the cavity of the Sugar Maple that the mama nested in last year.

2021-05-17 Saw a female Raccoon climbing around the Sugar Maples. It's likely the mama that raised 7 babies around the nursery last year. Nest is a large cavity in one of the Sugar Maples.

First Ruby Throated Hummingbird of the season for us, observed in Woodstock.

2021-05-14 Last night on the way home, we saw a group of 6-8 deer standing in a circle in an empty field with no crops. One deer did some lunging/ shimmy type motions and then stopped. Then another one did something similar and stopped and then another did some. I wanted to stop the car and watch them but knew it would alarm them and I didn’t want to interrupt.

There’s something beautiful about seeing animals whose behaviour we normally associate with instinct and survival, being playful. We could take a lesson from them. Don’t forget to play. It’s in our nature.

Saw a female Baltimore Oriole in the nursery today.

2021-05-13 Group of about 10 Wild Turkeys in farm field near the quarry. Found out that the a large swamp nearby is considered provincially significant wetland and open to hiking from April to October.

2021-05-12 Saw first Swallowtail Butterfly of the season. It seemed early so I followed around the nursery to confirm it was indeed a Swallowtail and noticed it was a Black Swallowtail.

2021-05-08 Baltimore Oriole was in apple tree, went to try to get a photo and noticed a Robin sitting on a nest in the apple tree. Some Cedar Waxings arrived and were eating something from the apple tree. The Robin left its nest and went in the upper branches to go tell them to leave.

2021-05-06 Heard first Baltimore Oriole of the season and spotted it in the flowering branches of the big apple tree.

2021-05-02 Noticed 2 Bald Eagles coasting high above in the sky near the nursery. So high up that they looked like tiny specks but they were making those intimidating gull like noises they make so we were pretty sure it was them.

2021-04-30 We found Wood Chip Morels in a client's garden. They may likely have been brought in with the wood chips we brought as the area was a dry lawn before. It was raining and they were just emerging so they looked a bit slimier than most morels.

2021-04-28 Found our first morels of the season in a client's yard. They were kind enough to offer them to us but we encouraged them to keep them for themselves or friends.