Quick quiz

 I went out with the camera for a little while at noon, and I thought that it might be a good opportunity to see what our visitors know about the park. So, here's the first question: Where in the Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary would you find this, and what caused it?

For anyone who's not sure, here's a pretty big clue:

I'll leave it to you to guess what did the chewing, though. Next question: Which of the following plants will we be discussing during my next Edible Plant Walk?

 (Ok, honestly? I took this photo more for the leaf gall than the plant. But bonus points if you can tell me what made the gall.)

And what are the answers? Well, if you think you know feel free to comment below, or you can answer on Twitter @NatureCentre.

Oh, and if you're interested in the plant walk, we'll be going out at 1 pm on July 28, 2013. Admission is by suggested donation of $3/person or $10/family. I look forward to seeing you there!

An update on the Grebes

I'm not entirely sure if this is the same family since we've had several pairs of Red-necked Grebes nesting on the West Lake this year, but since they're hanging around the same area as the nest at the Bird Blind I suspect that it might be. If it is, it looks like they've lost one chick. Unfortunately, that sort of thing happens in nature.

I think it might be the male doing the feeding in the pictures below, but if there's someone out there who knows their grebes better than I do please feel free to correct me in the comments.

Seen in the Sanctuary:

There are lots of families to be seen on the lake at the moment, so be sure to visit our bird blind if you're coming for a walk.

Couldn't resist adding this male Ruddy Duck, even though he's not hanging around with a bunch of youngsters. Today in a short period of time I spotted Ruddies, Blue-winged Teals, Goldeneyes, Mallards, Canada Geese, and Red-winged Blackbirds, and I'm not even particularly good at water or shore birds. Bring binoculars or a telephoto lens, and you're sure to get some good bird views. Oh, and as always, bug spray is a pretty good idea...