Bookstore News

Bookstore Newsletter
For March, April & May 2009


Wren/ Chickadee Home ickadee home
Nest boxes – Now is the time to think about nest boxes for the birds. We have a good supply of bluebird/tree swallow boxes and wren/chickadee boxes. Most of the bluebird homes are assembled while the wren/chickadee ones are u build. Bluebirds should arrive in Alberta about the 3rd week of March and will commence nest building about the 3rd week of April.


Feeder Purple Martin Home
Bluebird /Tree swallow home
Farmer’s Market 2009 at Red Deer

Share stall #83 with the Kerry Wood Nature Centre
for the 2009 market on an alternating Saturday basis.
If interested call Bob at 403 346 2010.


New Books/Products
For adults:
1. Imagining Head-Smashed-In: Aboriginal Buffalo Hunting on the Northern Plains Jack W. Brink June 2008, For thousands of years the Aboriginal hunters on the North American Plains used their knowledge of the land and of buffalo behaviour to drive their quarry over cliffs.Read about the mass buffalo hunts and the culture they supported before and after European contact by archaeologist Jack Brink.
2. Climate Wars 2008 . A thought provoking and disturbing read by Gwynne Dyer
It gives a terrifying glimpse of the none-too-distant future, when climate change will force the world’s powers into a desperate struggle for advantage and even survival. Price for hc-
For Kids
A great Canada Series –price: $pb-$14.95
1 .Canada at war
2. The Kids Book of Canada
3. Canadian Exploration
4. Great Canadian Women
5. Aboriginal People
6. Canadian History
7. Prime Ministers
8 .Great Canadians
9 .The Far north
10. Canadian Geography.



For Kids/Adults
1.Windsong Action Strap-For secure and comfortable carry of binoculars and Cameras- Keeps the weight off your neck and is adjustable for size.$18.95
2.Bird Call- use this bird calling device to call the birds and have them respond-great price; $6.95
Time for Coffee/Tea



The KWNC Bookstore is proud to make available fair trade /shade grown coffee and teas from JUSTUS COFFEE ROASTERS COOP.
It is one of Canada’s most successful worker-owned businesses based on a firm belief in “people and the planet before profits”.
Fair Trade is an innovative model for international trade, which offers not only a fair price, but respect and empowerment for Third World producers.
All Just Us! products – coffee, tea, chocolate and sugar – are grown naturally, without chemicals, to enhance the well-being of farmers, their communities, the environment and wild-life. The bookstore carries a great selection of Just us coffee and teas.

Backyard wildlife

Ok, so it might be stretching things a little to call this strictly backyard wildlife...

Mary MacKenzie recently sent me these wonderful photos which were taken in June and October at the back of their quarter section.


If you have photos taken in or around Red Deer that you would like to share on our blog, e-mail them to me at interpreter at waskasoopark.ca. Remember to include your name and the approximate date and location the pictures were taken so that I can properly credit you.

Night sky over Red Deer

Admittedly this isn't the most spectacular night photography ever seen, but it's not bad for an autofocus camera snapshot from an apartment balcony. If you click on the photo to enlarge it, you should see a bright "star" and the crescent moon. The star is actually the planet Venus, and it can be easily seen in the early evening sky if you look towards the south.

The photo was taken on December 30th at about 5:45 pm. Right now the moon is waxing (heading towards full moon on the 11th) and is more to the left of Venus, but if you look to the south not long after it gets dark in the evening, they should still both be pretty easy to identify.

New sights.

Although the walking trail I showed you last (part of Iron Horse Trail) is closer to my home, it was nice to be surrounded by more natural settings in the biggest park in town, Parc Lagasse Park (hehehehe... park twice still makes me smile). The park sits along the shore line of Therien Lake, a huge lake bordering the southeast side of town. It's really nice, they have a long boardwalk and bridges with playgrounds, park, bathrooms, etc on the north side and edge of lake (lots of cat-tails) and of course lake on the south side. I thought this was very cool, that they are trying to protect the edge of the lake - the native vegetation there can help protect water quality, prevent flooding, and provide fish and wildlife habitat. So very cool. They even have a couple of observation decks leading out on the lake, and pictures/info on the birds you may see (remind you of any place?). And when I was on the park side, I saw something really interesting...

the trees! How weird, a big trunk in the middle and then a whole bunch of little ones growing all around it... and growing so much... well, up! I'm going to have to check up on what that's all about :)

Sounds in the sanctuary

During a walk around the Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary, my impressions are often shaped by the season. Sometimes, I come back hot & sweaty, other times, itchy from mosquito bites. Sometimes (like in June) the overwhelming memory is smell: when the wolf willow is in bloom, its sickly-sweet odour is almost overpowering. Today, though, memories of two very sounds are what I brought back with me.

City crews are continuing their fire suppression work, removing excess "fuel" (a.k.a. fallen trees) from beside the trail at the south end of the lakes. While it is a bit alarming to hear chainsaws howling in the Sanctuary, it is for a good cause: removing excess fire fuel in the few metres on either side of the trail will help prevent a small accidental fire, for example from a cigarette butt, from having the fuel to let it "ladder" up into the canopy of the dry, old spruce forest. A crown fire would be virtually inextinguishable, and we would lose our old boreal-influenced river valley forest in a matter of hours.

The other sound that I remember is the booming of the ice. Both the Gaetz Lakes have frozen solid (except right around the beaver lodge on the west lake). As of this afternoon, we still do not have any snow, so as the ice blows and the ice shifts, the lakes boom. Very impressive! Maybe it is time to find another small lake or pond to go skating. (Not allowed, in the Sanctuary.)

Jim

trails away :)

I walked the part of the Iron Horse Trail through St. Paul (part of Trans Canada Trail) and I thought I would show you it. It's multi-use so there is a walking path and a motorized vehicle path (ATV's, quads, snowmobiles, etc.)next to it. On the north side of the trail (right) is open country and industrial land (at the far end, they have parks and 10 soccer fields), and on the south side of the trail (left) is the town of St. Paul (residential, commercial and parkland). In the picture, the clump of green boxes is the recycling centre where you can drop off all your recyclables. Pretty interesting, eh? It is a real mix of urban, natural and industrial places.

It's snowing!

It's snowing here in St. Paul, big white heavy and wet snow, perfect for building snowmen and even I couldn't resist a litte snowball fight! I'm hoping this snow lasts even though it's slippery. Why do I want it to stick around? because it makes it so much easeir to find animal tracks! Speaking of, I will be home in Red Deer for Christmas so I am looking forward to checking out the crossing paths Diane pointed out earlier :) I'll let you know if I find anything.

It's a great time to visit us. The new exhibit was created from employee and volunteer submissions. We are a talented bunch.

David Thompson Brigade

The 2008 David Thompson Brigade: Digging Water



A 50 minute video exploring why over 300 paddlers from
around the world chose to
spend 66 days paddling
North Canoes from
Rocky Mountain House, Alberta,
to
Thunder Bay, Ontario,

will be presented

at 4:00 PM
on Sunday, November 23, 2008
in the theatre
at the Kerry Wood Nature Centre.
Presentation host will be Mark Lund,
Route, Safety and Advance Party Leader
for the brigade.

Crossing our paths

I've been busy with school programs lately and haven't had much chance to get out on the paths, but I managed to get out for a short stroll on the Dr George Trail today. It's certainly looking a lot closer to winter than it was the last time I was out: last week's windstorm took care of most of the leaves that were still on the trees, and there was even a thin layer of ice on the West Gaetz Lake (which a family of muskrats seemed to be having a great time playing on. Sorry that I don't have a picture. I found out the hard way that I need to recharge my camera's batteries).

There are still things to be seen and heard in the Sanctuary this time of year, though. The chickadees were out in full force chattering away, and the wind rustling through the dried grass makes some interesting sounds that you really have to stand still and close your eyes to appreciate. And of course there's the cross paths.

We sometimes forget that there are plenty of animals living just out of our sight in the Sanctuary (and in Red Deer's entire park system), but when fall comes the beaten-down trails through the grass and the trees that the animals use on a regular basis become more and more obvious. A lot of those trails intersect with our man-made walking trails, and once the snow comes they become great places to look for tracks and scat to find out just who we're sharing the space with. Moose, deer, coyotes, foxes, squirrels, snowshoe hares, and even the occasional weasel all leave behind their calling cards on the cross paths. You may even find bird footprints from magpies or grouse if you're lucky.

Lucky or no, I think it's fun to keep an eye on what's going on in the cross paths. It's nice to be reminded that we're not the only ones who enjoy Waskasoo Park.

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One slightly more serious note about using the trail system this time of year: please remember that our moose and deer population shouldn't be approached at any time, but especially during the fall rut (mating season). The moose are probably finished rutting by now, but we're only just now heading into deer rut (mid to late November). It's not a bad idea to make a bit of noise when you're out on the trail just to make sure that you don't accidentally surprise a deer or moose.

time to move again :)

I must have been a caribou or something in my past life - your northern correspondant is moving again. Not to the south where it is warmer, where the mass of Canadian Geese I saw around a little pond in a farmer's field will be headed. I will remain north and head almost straight west to St. Paul for November 1st. It will be good to be back in Alberta. I look forward to sharing my northern nature experiences with you from my new home.

What a guy!

Congratulations to Todd Nivens, our Programs Coordinator, for being one of three finalists for the 2008 Red Hat Awards for Customer Service.
There were 1600 nominations for great service in central Alberta, and we're proud that Todd's efforts were recognized!

Fall almost already!

Wow just another week until it is fall. My backyard is getting ready as you can see in the pictures.

I have a lot of nature in my backyard - One thing about not living in the town (I live on the reserve right beside town), we don't have to cut our grass except right around the trailer, which is great. I always liked the idea of just letting things grow or maybe I'm just lazy :) but I love that I just have to take a few steps out of my house and I am surrounded by more than just grass and dandelions. I get to see the busy bee getting the last bits of pollen from the aster (and take pictures of it),and see all the damselflies and dragonflies enjoying the last warm days of the early fall. A big brown dragonfly buzzed past me while I was taking the above pictures. I'm told Meadow Lake was built on swamp land, and the Meadow River is just over a block away so we get quite a few of the wetland species over here. I see some of the ducks have already left the river. And trees surround my place on three sides so I'm looking forward to seeing the true yellow, orange, and red colours of the trees shine through. While everything else is getting ready for winter, I guess I should too, like cleaning my bird feeder as suggested in Kerry Wood Nature Centre's newsletter. I want to provide some extra energy for those busy birds. Hope you are enjoying the nature around you. I look back and see it is almost a year since my last post, wow time has flown. I am in Meadow Lake for another year so I will try to represent the nature of the north a little bit better here :)

Busyness in the Sanctuary and mystery spiders

I was out checking the Dr. George Trail in the Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary this morning when I heard a tapping that made me stop for a moment. It was a Downy Woodpecker foraging in the trees, and I decided to watch it for a while. I suppose I was standing still enough not to be noticed much, because before I knew it I was in a whirlwind of bird activity. Chickadees, Goldfinches, Yellow-rumped Warblers (I was actually kind of proud of myself for recognising those. I'm not much of a birder) and assorted LBJs (Little Brown Jobbies. Handy technical term, that) were all very busy in amongst the poplars. I even managed to end up in the way of a sudden Red Squirrel fight. Apparently somebody was in someone else's territory, and the someone else was pretty quick to let the other one know.

It was a nice, far-from-quiet moment, and the neat thing about Red Deer's park system is that you don't have to be in the Sanctuary to have moments like that. Our city trails are home to an amazing amount of wildlife, and you only have to be willing to slow down and listen to find it. I'm always amazed at the the things people will miss just because they're in too much of a hurry to get to where they're going. The next time you're out for a walk, why not take a minute to be still and blend in a bit more? You might be surprised at what's out there.

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We've had a couple of questions in regards to funnel-weaving spiders lately, and I think it's partly due to a report out of Winnipeg of a possible Hobo Spider bite. I say possible Hobo Spider bite because the reports I've read made it sound as though the doctor on the case was taking his best guess as to what did the biting.

It's true that Hobo Spiders make funnel-shaped webs, but they're not the only spiders that do. The photo above (click on it for a larger view) shows a Grass Spider (Agelenopsis sp.) on her dew-covered funnel web. These spiders are very common along the trails in Red Deer, and they're nothing to be worried about. They're shy spiders which will retreat to the bottom of the web whenever possible and are very unlikely to bite a person.

Another funnel-weaving spider that you might notice is the common European House Spider. As the name suggests, these spiders are accidental immigrants to Canada. You can sometimes find their funnel webs in undusted corners. Again, they're very unlikely to bite a person, and unless you happen to be allergic to spider bites a bite won't give you much more than an itchy bump for a day or two.

If you have questions about your local spiders or any other wildlife, please give us a call at 403-346-2010.

For the Lack of a Camera

Normally I wouldn't advocate peering out your side window (instead of watching the road) while driving. However, on my way to the Nature Centre after lunch today, I had a pair of White Pelicans flying along at treetop level. Considering the trees are growing up from the level of the river bank, that put the birds basically at eye level for me. They were easily keeping pace at about 40 km/h for a few hundred metres. Maybe they were racing.

Anyways, I had no camera with me and even if I did, even I wouldn't try the photography/driving combination.

The pelicans we have here are apparently younger, unattached males who live separate from the breeding colony that migrates farther north. They're basically teenage boys. They've got the size and colouration of the adults but none of the social skills.

And, they're big. Last week I sat in a kayak and was within a paddle's length of Bald Eagles, swooping down out of the trees to grab fish from the ocean. Trust me, Eagles are big. They're a significantly huge bird. However, these adult-sized Pelicans are another thing altogether. With a body that's double the size of the eagle and a wingspan that can be up to a metre longer, these are massive animals.

And yet watching them glide up and down the river, pivoting tightly within the confines of the banks and trees and then gently touching down on the water, they're incredibly graceful. If you have a chance to spend some time near the river over the next few weeks, bring your binoculars and your camera. They'll probably be gone in a month or so; migrating back to the Sea of Cortez, the Baja and the Gulf of Mexico for the winter.

The Green Sound of Silence

There was an amazing thunderstorm here a few days ago. The lightning was almost continuous, the rain was torrential, and the power was off for almost an hour (at least it was at my house).

Thunderstorms like that don't scare me. In fact this one, with its lengthy late evening power disruption, gave me ample time to reflect. And in my relaxed, reflective state I came to a startling revelation: nowadays, there is rarely an opportunity to enjoy true silence.

Think about it. When was the last time you experienced true silence? I'm not talking about the silence that comes when you've stepped outside the office for a quick breath of fresh air or turned your computer and cell phone off for the day after the kids are in bed. True silence does not exist in those scenarios: the traffic still flows by and the fridge is still buzzing. I'm talking about silence like people used to know it: no power lines, no traffic, no endless EMF generation. It's the kind of silence that can only come from nature; from immersing yourself deep in a forest or, in my case, enjoying a late night power outage. And it was refreshing.

We need silence. Noise is stress and silence is the cure. So if I have learned only one thing from this experience, it is this: we need to make room for silence in our lives.

An added benefit is that, in order to create silence, we need to do one of two things. One, we have to turn off all of our gadgets (at least for a little while) or two, we need to get out into nature. We can do both, of course, and save a bit of energy while we're at it. Think of it: if all of us dedicated just one afternoon a week to creating and enjoying silence, we would be calmer, more balanced, and working to save the planet in the process. It's a win-win, really.

I would like to dedicate this post to energy-saving silence. Try it, you'll like it.

Seen in the Sanctuary:

Ducklings on the West Gaetz Lake

Wood Frog. I'm not sure what this little frog was doing on the path in the middle of a hot day, but wood frogs in general can often be found away from water this time of year. You can tell it's a wood frog by (amongst other things) the black "Lone Ranger" mask around his eyes.

As always, click on the photos for a larger version.

Arachnorama

Sorry for the slightly silly post title. This is just a good time of year for those of us who like spiders, that's all. Keeping your eyes open for webs in the trees, in the grass, or even, as in this photo from last year, on the viewing decks can lead to some interesting glimpses of the goings-on in a spider's life.

This is also the time of year that we start to have a lot of spiders brought into the Nature Centre for identification. Many of the female spiders are getting ready to lay eggs and are looking a bit big and scary. The good news is that we have very few spiders in Central Alberta that can give much of a bite (to humans, that is. It would be a different story if you were an insect), and even those that can aren't likely to bite without being provoked.

The spider we get the most questions about in August is a large orb weaver called a Jewel Spider or Jewelled Araneus. I posted some information about these spiders a few years ago, so rather than repeat myself I'll just direct you to that post here. The important thing to remember before you reach for the pesticide is that even though they're big, Jewel Spiders are fairly shy spiders that aren't likely to bite. As a bonus, if you have Jewel Spiders -- or any spiders, really -- around your house, you'll have much less of an insect problem than you might have otherwise.

Seen in the Sanctuary:

Great Blue Heron on the West Gaetz Lake. Sorry the shot isn't clearer -- my little camera doesn't have much of a zoom.

The joys of yarrow

I'd like to thank everyone who came out for my edible plant walk this afternoon, even after the sudden change of venue (Fort Normandeau was going to be a busy place so we moved the walk to the Nature Centre).

For those interested in edible plants (or those who would like to know what the post title above means), I have one more scheduled walk coming up in August. This one will be at Fort Normandeau -- really -- on Wednesday, August 6th, at 6:00 pm.

Give us a call at the Nature Centre (403-346-2010) to pre-register.