newfoundland natural history society ...collections.mun.ca/pdfs/osprey/v04-05-1973.pdf1973/04/05...

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•• •• .., o " _ 0 go:> .., '" ", ,,,. oz x C; ; ci ;D:si NEWFOUNDLAND NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY NEWSLETTER THE OS PREY Vol. '+ No. 5 July-October FlosculoU8 Snippets ••••••••••••••••••••••• 70 Letter to the Editor •••••••••••••••••••••• 73 Newfoundland's Wonderful Ponda •••••••••••• 74 New Bird and Butterfly Recorda •••••••••••• 77 The need for t Dlsoeylands' •••••••••••••••• 7B Nature Sketches ••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 79 Atlant1c Salmon ••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 80 Newfoundland Seashores •••••••••••••••••••• 1:S2 Cape Race •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • 84 Inaects ...................................................................... 86 Gre.npe.e. ................................................................ 87 Nues and Things .................................................... 88 Science in the School .............................. 90 Monarch ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 91 Bird New8 ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 92 Oc tober Meeting "Scenery and Geology around St. Johnls A rea". S : 15 p._. Thursday, 18 O ct. Coughlan Col l ege

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Page 1: NEWFOUNDLAND NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY ...collections.mun.ca/PDFs/osprey/V04-05-1973.pdf1973/04/05  · aee ducks and other a1gratory birds aa well aa all manner of pond and abore life

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.., o " _ 0

go:> .., '" ", ,,,.

oz x C; ; ci ;D:si

NEWFOUNDLAND NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

THE

OSPREY Vol. '+ No. 5 July-October

FlosculoU8 Snippets ••••••••••••••••••••••• 70 Letter to the Editor •••••••••••••••••••••• 73 Newfoundland's Wonderful Ponda •••••••••••• 74 New Bird and Butterfly Recorda •••••••••••• 77 The need for t Dlsoeylands' •••••••••••••••• 7B Nature Sketches ••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 79 Atlant1c Salmon ••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 80 Newfoundland Seashores •••••••••••••••••••• 1:S2 Cape Race •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • 84 Inaects ...................................................................... 86 Gre.npe.e. ................................................................ 87 Nues and Things .................................................... 88 Science in the School .............................. 90 Monarch ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 9 1 Bird New8 ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 92

Oc tober Meeting

"Scenery and Geology around St. Johnls Area". S : 15 p._. Thursday, 18 Oct. Coughlan Coll ege

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THE NEWFOUNDLAND NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY

President Vics-president Treasurer Secretary

Ordinary Members

P. O. So.. 1013

ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDlAND

The Executive for 1973-74

Joan Scott Peter Scot t Don Steele Ruth Maunder

Mike Collins Charles Davis Peter Kevan Claire Neville-Slllith Donna Todd

722-2964 834-5459 579-9653 726-0828

579- 6418 895-6979 335- <'281 722-2679 368- 9551

Editor of the Osprey John Maunder 726-6~28 Editorial Address: 7 May-park Place, St . John's, "Hld.

1M October

15 November

13 Decelll.her

17 January

21 February

21 Harch

Programme f,or 19?1-74

Talks - 8: 15 p. m., Coue:h1an College

Scenery and Geology around St . John's -Ar t King

Panel on Forestry Resources

Snipe - Les Tuck

The Arct ic Hare - Jim Inder

Annual General Meeting (speaker to be announced,

S l ide Party

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October Meeting

The October lIIeating w111 feature Dr. Art King or the H. U. N. Geology Department. Tbe subject 18 "ScenerY and Geol ogy around St. Johnts and the Eastern Ayalan" , and i t w111 be well illustrated with elldes and aerial photogr aphs of the area. It proalaee: to be a fascinating and enjoyable evening. Coae f and bring a friend •

.l Field Trip

On Saturday, October 20, • bue .111 leave the M.U.N. Student Park.ing Lot (between the Library and Burtonta Pond) at 1 :00 p.a . Dr. Art King will lead a guided. tour of the aeane r y and geology between Signal H111 and Flatrock. Give

~~~b:~~8~o if ,.::e:~~v: :::~e~D n~h!a~::. t~:: ~:~~~:~~lng ~. People planning to go on the U.1d trip should attend Dr. King's talk on Thursday, October 18 at Coughlan Col lege Auditorlua.

Another Field Tr1p

An all-day canoe1ng t1eld trip and picn1c w111 be held at La Manc he ProT1nc1al Park on Sunday, October 28 , Cweather pe ... itting). La Hanche Pond and m.rab offer Tar1ed habi tata and many abeltered nooke, and canoeieta should aee ducks and other a1gratory birds aa well aa all manner of pond and abore life. A picnic will be held at lunc h-time 80 br i ng your own picnic basketa. Intereated person. or anyone wi t h a canoe to lend, PLEASE PHONE JOHN MAUNDER AT 7266828 AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

To all Birdwatchers

Hany Sunday mornings the Bird Group hold outinga in and around t be St. Jobn's area. Anyone intereated, phone Howard Cl • •• at 726-4813

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70 .

Floscul ous Snippets

In the last issue of the 'Osprey' there was an illustration of Ladys""ck • •

by Mrs. Peacock . This plant was in bloom all of June and it should be in

bloom in early July. It really makes a shoW' in the .eadoW's. An old name

for this plant 1s 'bungalow apr on ' . It is also called Cuckoo-Flower. The

latin name for this plant is Cardamine pratensis L.; ~ is from the

Greek name. kardamon. which was used by Dioscarides for some cress. The

species name pratensle. means . ' of meadows'. There are three other

~ in Newfoundland but t hey do not have such large flowers.

I was looking at the leaves of a Rosemary plant the other day and it

shows remarkable resemblance t o the I Bog Rosemary' which 1 discussed in

the last issue. They both have narrow leaves with urgina rolled under and

a white netting on the upper surface. The leaf of Rosemary, however . is not

such a shiny green. Andromeda may be confused with Kalata po11fo11a Wang,

the Bog Laurel. Kalmia, however, lacks the white netting and its leaves are e · attached with two opposite one another (the leaves

alternate in their attachment along the ste. in

Andromeda) •

Kalmia pol1£olia Wang .• the 'Bog Laurel'.

occurs on the bogs and it is quite a sho r t and

straggling shrub. The flower is deep pink and

saucer shaped. The pedicels (stalks of the

flowers) and litigmas are red. A very striking

plant . The underside of the leaf is il l ustrated

by the single leaf to the right . It has the shiny green margins rolled

under, a white surface and yellow midrib. This plant should not be eaten

Another species, Kalmia angus t ifolia L .• is called Lambkill or Sheep Laurel. •

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71.

Reports verify that it is called Lambkill

for good reason as it has been responsible

for deaths among livestock. It is identified

by having flowers much like !. polifolia

(they are pink, saucer-shaped, and have the

stamens tucked into little pockets). The

leaves are tough, green on both sides. sod

borne In threes, generally. You will note

from the diagram that the new shoots are

well developed before flowering occurs on

side branches. The fruit are dry. brovn

capsules--you can usually find the remains.

There are four species of clover in

Newfoundland snd they can easily be

distinguished. The distinguishing characters are as follows:

Trifolium pratense L. Flowers sessile, red In colour. Trifolium hybridum L. Flo .... ers pedicellate, pink in colour. Trifolium rep ens L. Creeping stem . Flowers pedicellate, white. ~ agrarium L. Flower yellow.

The stems of all but one of these is erect. Trifolium plfatense L .• the

Red Clover is a favourite with bee-keepers. I am sure that we have all

sipped its nectar by sampling the flowers. one by one. The flowers are a

rich red and they are said to be sessile because the flowers are clustered

in a tight head and their bases are attached directly to the end of the

s tem. The flower colour can vary and 80 the attachment of the flowers

s hould be given most attention. The genus name , Trifolium •. means three

leaves and refers to the leaf which consists of three leaflets. Pratense

means 'of meadows I •

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Trifolium hybridua L. is

cOlIIlIKmly knovn as Alsike Clover.

Its flowers are generally pink

and white. The flowers are borne

in a head like Red Clover. but

the individual flowers have a

tiny atalk. This species like

all the others are na turalized

in our country from Europe. The

species name. hybridum, means

hybrid and results from an

earlier misconception about

the origin of this species.

This species along with the

difference between sessile and pedicellate flowers is illustrated.

Trifolium repens L. is the Wh.1te or

Dutch Clover. It is included in

many lawn seed mixtures and is

usually the culprit when it comes

to 'grass stains'. Its stem cr eeps

across the ground with the leaves

and heads of white flowers ris i ng

from it. The species name , repens,

means creeping.

Trifolium agrarium L. is the

yellow or Hop Clover. I t is an

upright plant with small heads of yellow flowers about lem. (3/S") across. It

has the characteristic l eaf wit h three leaflets and stems up to li! ft.

A lovely plant.

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73 .

The various clovers can be used 8S teas. Make it as you would Orange

Pekoe. I have tried Red and White Clover teas. There 1s a difference. I

use d about four flower heads of Red Clover and the resulting tea was 80

refreshing. The White Clover tea was made from mostly leaves and tasted

like a very good green tea. Do yourself a flavourful favor and start

collecting the flower heads and leaves of c lover to dry for the winter now.

But, do not wait until then to make and try the tea. The seeds of clover

are reported to have health-giving properties .

Keep your eyes open for four-leaf clover and have a look at Kalmia

palifalia - it's beautiful.

Peter J. Scott

Letter to the Editor

Dear Sir:

One of the objectives of Oxen Pond Botanic Park is the cultivation and propagation of native flora. Amongst other things this objective necessitates the availability of unlimited quantities of organic matter for conversion into humus. Many plants will live and florish with peat in t heir growing medium but others such as those plants associated with a deciduous forest habitat prefer humus originsting in part from the decomposition of deciduous leaves.

Our supply of deciduous leaves is poor. 80 I would be very happy to receive any that are available . We could accept any quantity from one bag to several tons. As the annual leaf. fall will soon be upon us I though t this would be an appropriate time to make this r e quest to any comber (or friend) of the Newfoundland Natural History Society who may own or have access to fallen leaves .

Thanking you for your assistance in this matter .

Bernard S. Jackson

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NEWFOUNDLAND I S WONDERFUL PONDS

The innumerable lakes and ponds on our island in some ways a r e

unique. Although many bo r ea l areas e l sewhere in the world also are replete

with numerous smaller and lar'ge r l akes , most of these regions have

continental climat es, with ve ry seve r e wi nters and relatively warm s ummers,

whereas Newfound l and, bei ng s urround ed by marine waters, has cool summePS and

mild winters. The i n fluence o f the Lab r ador Current that washes our shores

insures that we have l onger winters and miserable, cold and wet spring

weather. Perhaps the only place in t he world that is comparable climatically

is the Kamcha tka Peninsula in easte rn Siberia, but there, in contras t t o

the hard i nsoluble pre- Cambrian r ocks t hat form much of the substratum on

which Newfoundland l akes and ponds lie, Kamchatka is • region of active

vulcanism, with r ich, modern vo lcanic soils and rocks .

Especial ly in view of their uniqueness, it is truly shocking to

learn hOW' litt le o ur ponds have been studied scientifically , although to

some extent this lack is be i ng rectified through current studies by t he

Canadian Wildlife Service (particularly by J.J .Kerekes), by the Canad ian

Fisheries Service. St . J ohn's Branch (especially by R.J. Wiseman) and by

some of us at Memorial University o f Newfoundland.

As we all knOW' , our ponds and lakes are invaluable to us as

for dr inking water , f or hydroelectric power, for fishing , for

recreation, snd for their esthe t ic beauty. Some of Newfoundland's l akes

and ponds are among t he mos t beautiful in the world - for example Western

Brook Pond in Gr os Horne National Park, which is about 9 milu (15

kilometers) long, with 2000 foot (610 met «) cliffs plunging down

spectacularl y into the wa t er on both sides along DIOse of its leng th .

water itself is up to 525 fee t (160 meters) deep. Some "pond"!

The

e

e ·

e

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75.

This author has seen Crater Lake in Oregon, Lake Tahoe in California, Lago

• • Maggiore and Lago Como in Italy. Lago de Coatapeque in El Salvador. and many

other beautiful lakes, but not one can "hold a candle" to Western Brook Pond:

But most of our Newfoundland lakes are very fragile. Except for

some of the barachois ponds, which are mineralized by seepage and spray from

the sea, snd except for a few of the ponds along the west coast of our island.

where there are limestone snd other more easily soluble types of rock. our

ponds tend to be very soft and very low in dissolved minerals. Coupled with

our insular boreal climate, this means that they tend not to be very

productive. They are easily overfished - witness most easily accessible

ponds around St . John's and along the TeU. They are very readily ruined by

man'a activities - for example Kent:$Pond in St. John ' s, ruined by sewage

pollution and Long Pond also in St. John's ruined by a combination of

sewage pollution, industrial pollution and by bulldozers and dump trucks

working on the site of the North Campus of HUN.

A very serious world-wide problem today is the eutrophication of

lakes through man's influences . The term eutrophication has just begun to

be used widely in the news media, and is only now appearing in abridged

dictionaries. Essentially, it means the enrichment of waters with plant

nutrients . This enrichment results in the growth of obnoxious quantities

and kinds of algae or of water weeds. Decay of the increased amount of

organic detritus derived from these plants often causes the oxygen content

of the water to decrease, even to the pOint of complete absence of oxygen .

The result may be deterioration of fish quality I the development of

obnoxious masses of stinking, decaying algae floating on the water surface

or thrQwo up on the shore and the production of winter fish kills. Sometimes

there may even be killing of water birds, cattle, etc. that have drunk water • containing poisonous decay products from the algae .

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76.

Newfoundland ponds and lakes will be especially sensitive to such .-eutroph1..cation because of their low mineral content. Por example. in

Hogans Pond, near St. Phillips. where this author has had an opportunity

to undertake a study, there Is a heavy pulae of a blue-green alga

(Microcystis aeruginoas) In the plankton every late 8U1111D1!r and fall. This

species haa not been seen In any other pond in Newfoundland that I have

studied, nor is it reported in any of the (limited) scientific literature on

the ponds of the island. This particular species of alga floats freely in

the water, but it ia lighter than water and in calm weather will float

to the surface. It is one of the most obnoxious of the species of algae

occurring in highly eutrophic lakes.

At the present time Hogans Pond is not grossly polluted with

human wastes, but there are between 25 and 30 so-called s~r cottages

around the lake, and each cottage has its 1IIOre-or-lesa adequate septic tank. _ •

All septic tanks have an overflow and that overflow, even when the tank

functions properly, contains the plant nutrients that lead to eutrophication

(and of course, some septic tanks are poorly installed, or are poisoned

by laundry bleach, or else they fill up and are not emptied by the owners).

Evidently this pulse of Hicrocystis in Hogans Pond is a portent of the

possible future, when the whole body of water can become eutrophic to the

point of becoming esthetically and biologically repulaive.

Newfoundland is still noted for its supply of unpolluted . unspoiled

.... aters. The only way in .... hich this supply can be .. intained as the population

increases and what passes as "civilization" encroaches on us, i8 to take

every necessary precaution !!! advance, because the rehabilitation of ruined

lakes and ponds often is impossible, and always is extraordinarily expensive.

• Charles C. Davia

Biology Dept., HUN

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77.

H,. Bird and Butterfly Recorda tor Oxen Pond

Tbi. auaaer, 2 n •• but tern! •• and 5 n •• birds .ere added to the lists at the OX8n Pond Botanic Park. W1th the additioD 01 the Arctic Skipper (Carterocepbalu8 ~) on July 5, and the Atlantis Fritillary (Speleria atlantis) on AUgU8t 31 •• total or 15 buttertll •• ba.,.s DOW b.en recorded 1n the park. The previoua 13 apeeia. are d.scribed 1n "Butterflie. at tbe Park" , an Oxen Pond Botanic Park publication (1973) by Bernard Jackson. Pre.8r"aUoD and planting 01 flo.ere ahowlng particular attraction to butterflies .111 hopefully draw aore species to the park: in the future.

b~ ...... " .... , t .... 1" u . .. ~r< ·.s

Arctic Skipper Atlant1s Fritillary

The appearance at a Red-winged Blackbird on Hay 28, an E •• tern Kingbird on June 1, • Mourning Warbler and 2 Oli't'e­backed Thruahe. on Septe.ber 6, and a fellowthroat on Septa.ber 7. haa brought the Park bird checklist up to 66 specie ••

Editor'. Note :--

Alice Maunder Sualler uai.tant Oxen Pond Botanic Park

Since the above article was wrttten, Bernard Jackson has passed along 80IDe additional information to me. The 16th speciee of butterfly for the Botanic Park, a Monarch (~ plexippue) was 8een September 1,} feeding on goldenrod. Two 1I0re were spotted September 22 feeding on ~ ..i!!!.!lli. Fred Gullage added the 67th bird species, with a Hourning Dove on October 3 •

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7H.

The need for "Disney Lands"

The countryside today is disturbed more than it has ever been before. Road systems are forever expanding, towns and cities forever sprawling and even the sky is raining bushp!anes over our choices t area s like giant vultures seeking prey.

Coupled with an expanding transportational opportunity 18 a sustained improvement in the general standard of living and availability of personal financial resources. This has triggered off a basic. deep rooted. instinctive human desire to regain aome fonn of contact with t he land. To put it more plainly. more and more people are rushing out in t o the countryside without really knowing why they're doing 90. This is not necessarily a bad thing, of course, 80 long as suitable facilities exist and a basic respect for the countryside is practiced. It is when these two things are lacking to some degree that problems arise.

Probably the greatest number of people using the countryside here in Newfoundland are the campers and picnickers using our provincial and national psrks. I am becoming increasingly convinced that the greates t percentage of these people do not seek exposure to 'real' nature but would instead prefer the luxuries of home, simply in some green and pleasant spot. There is nothing wrong with this until such people star t pressuring the park services and governments to desecrate aress of beauty and natural history aignificance to further their own ends . This is particularly so in an area such as Newfoundland where there really is no shortage of sites for the placement of the desired facilities.

We are running into a situation here in Newfoundland where increasing pressures on our parks service is causing deterioration of quality and aesthetic appeal of some of our best areas. In my opinion it would be far better to have a number of different types of parks or different zones within the larger existing areas rather than stick with the present system.

If people want golf courses, motels, swimming pools, restaur ant s , riding stables, playgrounds, baby-sitting services, theatres and dancing girls in parks ,let's give it to them but not in areas of prime beauty or ecological significance; such areas shouId'"be kept as nature reserves or camping and picnic places for that other segment of the population who like to savor something of the real thing.

These proposed areas of sophisticated facilities; or "Disney Lands" as some of us call them, would each only require a few acres of land a nd could be placed in just about any accessible location where a few trees and a bit of water were present. Large land holdings for such areas are not necessary for if you have ever tsken note along the Trans-Canada-Highway or in existing parks you will have noticed how gregarious these recreationists are. Just like murres jostling together on a narrow c l iff ledge; apparently needing the close physical or visual contact even though surrounded by numerous equally suitable spots!

The provision of a few such areas would create enjoyment fo r I thou.and. of our people and. by taking the pr ... ur. off our more significant L ___ a

_r .... go far in the long-run pre8'NatiO~~~~j~;~~;i~~:;i~;:r:::o:auna.

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79 .

NATURE SKETCHES ,. br & 1,. Ry

Bllberry. va~~!~i: b~ue. ~!gi:O~~tlSh 'bloom .

Bog Rosemary . Frul t o f daucophylle. ~

l1vidum. Geocaulon __ _ Comandr8 • • ___ _ ~~~~~e~: bright orange .

~.~~::. ~

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The Atlantic S.l.on in Newfoundland

J. ... inu on the _alaOD Uebery wae held at the July

a.ating 01 the Society. The two aain speaker •• ere Gerl7 Prat t

(FiBberi •• Ser.,lce, Depart.ent of the En.,lron •• nt) and

Henry Lear (Fieberi8s Research Board ot Canada). 80th

speaker. sa.,e excellent account. of the lite-history, and

algratloD patterns ot the Ne.foundland salaon, .... 11 ..

related conaerYatlon 1I •• aur •• undertaken in the provinc ••

Becaua. ot the .ealth of infar •• ttan provided, only •• all

portion. ot the talk. can be recorded in the PAl'. of our

journal. The ayntbealB below 1_ an .tt •• pt to Sl ... , the •• jor

details of the lite-history of ~ .!!!!!: in N •• rouodl&nd

•• tare. There are two torm. of the Atlantic Salaon in the

pro'f'ince ; the ••• -golng tora and the "land-locked" one ,

(known •• '.al.on peel' or 'ouananich., ) and the ditter.ncee

between thea are nr,. .light. Th. ouananiche breed and teed

in tr •• h w.ter enn if the pond 10. whicb the,. li'1'8 h

cODn'cted to tbe .ea. This article will d.al oDly with tb.

e.a-going aal.oD.

On arriving u the upper reaches of our ri".r. in

.wiftly-flowing sravel-bedded are •• , the teaale diS. a hole

in the sravel with her tail and then rel ..... h.r ess.

into the bole at the ... e ti.e as an accoapanyins aale

releue. his al1t. The feaale then covers up th. tertilized

egge with aore sravel. The covered boh la called a "redd" .

The fe.ale aay then lay aore egs. In the ne.ly exca"ated

area, and repeat the performance until all her egga have

been laid, tertillzed, and co"ered up. Alter epawnins I the

.pent flah aay die or re.ain 10. tre.h water until returning

to the .ea the next spring.

Buried under 12 to 18 inch •• 01 gr."el, the esge develop

during the wint.r, aale tro. predation and fre.zing. The

egg. hatch in .1d-H~ and the tiny U.h 'aer,e, carrying a

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81.

yolk sac, and called ALEVINS. Thea. alevina u •• the tood trOll

their yolk. saC8 and re.ain 1n the Iru'el tor 3 to 5 week ••

They then ••• rge as free-arlmalng FRY J and teed on microscopic

animal and plant lite. It 1. during the fry etas_ that the

Uah are soat vulnerable and tall au)' pre,. to blrcla J .81.

and trout. The fry, in turD, becoa. PARR (called. this because

of the black. bare extending down acroas their ald •• ) and r .......

bl, •• all trout. Parr CaD be .u11,. distinguished tro. trout

by their fork.ed tails. The parr teed on aquatic In •• cta

and other bottom fauna. Bet •• eD 3 and 5 years .tter hatching,

the parr beeo •• silvery in appearance and are then called

SHOLT. The.e move downatream to the 8.a .here they re •• in t

reeding intenaively and growing rapidly for at leut one year.

When the,. return to the river. that apawned th •• , they lIay

.eiSh bet.een 3 and 6 pounds, and are called GRILSE. The

grilse aove upstre .. and apan. It th. Ush ha',. spent 1I0re

than on. ,..ar at a.a the,. ar. called SALMON. Unlike our

n.wl,. introduced PaCific Pink SalaoD, mo.t of th. Atlantic

fOnl. sur.i ••• paning and return to t.he •••• It the,.

o.er-winter in fr •• h •• t.r before _akins the run back to the

.e., the,. are called KELT or 'black salaon' •

.u e •• r,.bodJ' nowad&1a ls probably .ware, the Atlantlc

Salaoo coosre,.te otf the we.t coaat of Gre.nland when .t

ae., and th1. appear. to be tb.ir •• jor feedins sround.

Th. increased Danish Uahery for thes •• alaon is the a.jor

re.aon for tbe rec.nt decline in salaon .tocks in Canadian

w.tera. It appeara that no .at ter where the aalaon apawn in t.he

Horth Atlantic, the,. .wi. acroaa the Atlantic throush the

Labrador Sea to aouth-.est Greenland. Salaon tassed off Green­

land ba.e been reco •• red troa Ireland, Ensland, Scotland,

France, Spain, Norway t and S.eden on the European .ide,

and the Canadian Atlantic Pro.ince. and the st.te ot Kaine

on the Aaerican .1d. of the Atlantic. Ot th •• alaon otf

Greenland, about 55% are European and the reaainder are

A.aerican •

Joan Scott and Hike Colline

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~2.

Newfoundland Sea. hares

Periwinllea(Littorina spp.)

These include the most co_on .... 11 sna11s on the beaches of Newfoundland. The only other cOlDlOn snail with which they aight be contused is the dog whe1k<.!!!!!!. or Nucella lapillus). However the dog whelk is more slender, often white in colour, rough textured and with a conspicuous pointed spire.

Li-\*o .... \V\o. \,-\-I::o ... ~a

\"'~*"'O'f'''''''' S(),:xcrt· \.,'5

Littorina ~(Edible periwinkle)

\..."\~o"'~"'o.. o~~u.'!Io.-t .... s

This species is large(up to ll:f inches in length) and is coloured brownish-gray with nuaerous dark spiral band •. Old shells a r e often worn down and those found Iowan the shore may be covered with encrusting brown or red algae.

Young specimens can be distinguished frOIl L. obtusatus by the high spire and froa L. saxatilis by the dark brown bands on the inside of the lip.

It is found most abundantly on rocky beaches with aoderate wave expoaure, although it also occurs both on sheltered beaches of s and and .ud,and where there is high wave exposure. It feeds by acraping the fila of algae etc. froa the surface of rock..,or on piece. of the large algae. It i8 lDOat abundant at .id~tide level but does extend below low water. In winter it congregates in large nu.bera under particular rocks or in crevices.

The statua of this animal in the weatern Atlantic re ... i ns unclear. It is generally considered to have been abaent in the weatern Atlantic until the nineteenth century. The firat publiahed reporta of ita occurrence are from Prince Edward Island and near Halifax in 1860 . Fro. there ita apread southwards to New Jersey hs. been docuatented over the psst 100 years. However it has recently been reported sa fossil s

e '

e ·

~: ~~~t::::n::w:~~:d!:::h:!!e:r~::t u:~~~·~:c::~~, t~:.:!:!n~i::~~~~~~~·· e explain.

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8}.

At any rate, according to [u.11 Gibbons, the reason it isn't popular 8S food in North America is that the settlers forgot thllt it was edible. However it remains popular in Europe and deserves ftIOre attention 8S native food in North America.

It now ranges fro. the northern Culf of St. Lawrence south to New Jersey. as atatus in southern Labrador across the Strait of Belle Isle i8 uncertain.

Littar!n. a8zatilie(Rough Periwinkle!)

This is a small species(up to ~ inch) that is solidly coloured brown to black and the ahell. except when water worn in large specimens, is conspicuously ridged . It Is similar to L. littorea in having a high spire. but differs in that the Up of the shell is solidly coloured .

The rough periwinkle is common on all types of beachea and extends well up into estuaries . In different habitats the structure and shape of the shell is also different, but most authors consider all the varieties to be onl!: s pecies.

It is found h!ah on the shore often well above the level of all other marine organis1D8. Many rl!:treat into crevices with the falling tide and in the winter .

This species is found fro. Baffin Island south to New Jersey .

Littorina obtusata(Smooth Periwinkle)

The smooth periwinkle differs frOll! the previous two in its low spire and in being confined almost exclusively to lorge intertidal algae, specially species of Fucus. It is small in sh:e(up to 1.,; inch). The shell is smooth. The colo~ very variable and often seem to be related to the colour of the aleae on which it is living . The range is froll green throughyellow to brown and orange. Some individuals are striped, having apparently changed their colour one or !lOre times . The lip of the shell is a solid colour .

The distribution of thia species seellS to be correlated to the occurrence of the large algae and thus is most abundant at aid tide level on shores with moderate wave exposure. However it is not found or is uncommon on sheltered shores.

The smooth periwinkle has been reported froa Labrador south to New Jersey.

Other species

There are other Littorina spp. found south of Cape Cod and in the Florida region. Littor!na neritoides a s .... l1 species of shores with high wave exposure, that fa ca.tOn in the eastern Atlantic does not occur on our side of the ocean •

Don Steele

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84.

To Cap. Rac •• ith th. C.oN.oF. TOl,lr

Wh.n the Canadian Natur. rederation tour of N •• foundland achedul •• aa rearranged to accOliodate their l.ter arri.,.al ti.e , I found th.t inet •• d of le.d1ng a b1rd trip 1n the St. John'e are., I .&8 in1'1ted to 'go along' on the Cape Rac. foe.il trip in cu. they e •• an,. bird •• Thia .... r.lief eince I no longer h.d to decide .xactly .her. to go to intere.t a coll.ction of birdera fro. all o.,.er the northern part of the continent .o ••• fro. B.C. to No1'. Scotia (tor onc. Newfoundland ie oaitted intentionall,. t) •••• and there .er. one or two good bird spote OD the w., down along the SOl,lth.rn Shor •• The bus .as due to lea,.e the Uni.,.er.ity .t 8:15 •••• (Al,lguat 5 ), but the f.ct that I was dri.,.lng paat the Confederation Bl,lilding at thia ti.e didn't bother .e ••• • • ho ever heard of a buaload of 26 people le • .,.ing on ti •• ? I But the,. did, and it •• s only .ft.r • short chue with flashing lights and a horn blaring, that I ... tinally .ble to board the bue •

... • e droye .outh, the .eather didn I t look too pro.iaing , (drizzle and fog) but at least .e could aee the road ah.ad. At R.n •• s I augg •• ted a abort atop to look for ahore bird. and. atretch our lega. Ten .inuh .... agr.ed on and .e hiked up along the ahore onl,. to find, to our aurpriae, that the bu .... setting oft back tbe • ., •• had co ••• Th. dril'er hadn' t

e ·

::~~:g d~:~:l t!U:l g!: ::!t~n:o ~a:~I,l~a~:t:d w:a~:~e -::i~~a e ' 11ned up along the ehore. wbere fortunately there ... quite a lot to intereat WJ. A pair of Sanderlins., 2 Ruddy Turnatone., a part,. of Yellowleg., and so.e Se.ipal •• ted Plo.,.era preaented no proble.s in identific.tion, but there ... alao a flock of .bout 20 'pe.p.'. Thi. n .. e ia u.ed to cover all of the •• alhat .pecie. of shorebird. whicb, e.p.ciall,. in winter pln.,e, are all v.ry ai.ilar. Onl,. 3 apeci •• are regular in Ne.foundland and at theee the White-ruaped Sand­piper g1.,. •• it.elf aw.:3 as Boon .. it rai.e. ita wins. to fl,.. ot the 2 dark-rUliped specie. I the te .. t Sandpiper i. brown.er and h .. yellowiah-gr.en leg •• hil. tbe greyer Se.ipal.ated Saodpiper haa black 1.ga. Our party of bird a contain.d all 3 ap.cies, .hich g.ve the part,.- ot birdwatchers a good opportunity to ob •• r,.e the.e tin.r point. in bird • • tandins .ide-b,.-.ide. So •• one g.'" the group of ,.ello.le, • • careful look and not1ced • s.all.r. sborter-billed bird .. ons.t the •• It .... L •••• r tello.les_; an UDU.ual fall .,.i.itor to Ne.foundland.

We .er. luc"" not to haYe had to .at t .ore than an hour before continuing. Tbe bua dri,.er had tound"iii. fu.l .itbout b • .,.ins to retl,lrn all the • ., to st. John'., but it h.d to be puaped into the bu. by ~ .o ••• 80 sallons of it I The journe, to PortU&al Co,.e South ... une.,..nttulj the bu. took

e

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85.

to the grayel roads "ery w.ll, and w. found Hike .inderaon, our guide. waiting for UII as arranged , 1n the thickening .1et . Half an hour later, a startled 11ght-houae keeper at Cape Race looked out ot hie window to tind what .... probably tbe first eyer bUB to arrive at bie door. Unfortunately, he hadn't receh'.d warning of our vie it &8 expected, due to • poor radio link,and we had to forgo our anticipated cup of tea.

A all. or 80 back along the road we dra w to • halt and Hike lead us along a vestigtal cart track, put an abandoned co •• unity where only tbe outlines of houae eit •• could still b. e •• n, to tbe clif! terraces wbich contain the old.at known imprints of Ute in the world (over 600 .ll1ion yeare old). The •• us traces of colonial ani •• le d •• pite tb. Fern-llke appearance ot .ome or thea, (the tirst one I .... turned out to be the imprint or a .et rubber boot, but it .... quite like the real thing). Others are tossilized jelly­U.h, and Mike explained th .. t quite unusual conditions .ere required to preserTe outlines ot 8uch .oft-bodied animals ••• sudden deposita ot large quantities ot volcanic ash. However, these conditions were .et on 3 occasions within a r.w million years, since tosslla are visible on 3 ditferent horizons. These horizons spread under aost ot the Avalon Peninsula and can be detected even at Middle Cove near St. John '., but it is only at Cape Race that the sea and wind have exposed thea so well. ADd 0.11.1,. the eea and the wind can do it. There i8 no practical We:! at the aoaent tor it to be done artit1ciall,.. It 18 perhaps tortunate that the exposure 1. at auch a reaote 8pot. but even here .o.e atteapt has been .ade to dig the. out, which reaul ta in aore being destroyed than can be obtai.ll.ed 1.11. recognizable tora. The area i. to be given legal protection, but it i. unlikel,. that the Governaent would go .. tar .. to prOTide a warden at present.

On the walk acrOBB the barrens, the group w .. tincUng auch ot intere.t. So.e t .. ted tbeir tir.t bakeapple., and the presence ot torest ahade plant. auch .. crackerberrie. (Cornua Canadensis) on exposed barren a was .uch discus.ed. A tew 1b1llbrel looaed out ot tbe .iat, but .ore otten only their staccato call reYealed their pre.ence. A •• all flock ot .ediua-.ized shorebirds was generally thought to be ot Golden PloYers, although they were s.allowed up again too quickly tor anyone to be certain.

ETeryone arriyed back at the bus cheerful, it BOllewbat dup and tired and ready to relax on the bo.e.ard journey. For one re .. on and another, we arrived back 1.11. St. John'. 2 hour. late, and the kitchen at aft in the reaidencea had long aince packed up and lett. So we ended up the day in the lounge with a seal of tried chicken and chips. the atmosphere w ... uch that I wished I was continuing on the tour. I think that any­one who joins tuture C.Jf.F. tours in other parte at Canada will be aure at an enjoyable tise •

Howard Clue

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H6.

The Insects (1)

Insects are some of the most obvious and most troublesome to man of our e · fellow-inhabitants of earth. This is not surprising when we remember that almost one million species of insects have so far been described and named and several thousand new ones are described every year. The number of species in Newfoundland is probably a few thousand, but many insect groups have scarcely been studied here as yet.

General Insect Characters . The bodies of insects can usually be distin­guished lnto three regions. the head. thorax and abdomen. The head bears the eyes, a pair of antennae or feelers and a set of feeding Drgans, the mouth­parts. The mouthparts may be of two kinds, for chewing or for sucking. Chewing mouthparts are found in insects that feed on leaves, seeds, meat or other solid food, and are adapted to cutting off and grinding pieces of f ood. Sucking mouthparts are usually tubular and are found in insects that take liquid food such as blood, plant sap or nectar.

The thorax foms a rather solid box and bears three pairs of legs. No insect has more than six legs and spiders, scorpions, etc are not insec ts . The thorax also bears the wings if these are present.

The third part of the body 1s the abdomen Which, in most insects, bears no obvious appendages. It contains most of the viscera and the anal and reproductive openings are at its hind end.

Insects are covered with a protective outer layer, or exoskeleton, of chitin, a substance that is very inert and resistant to chemical attack. Because it

~ ~ ~~~~:g~; t~~e w!!~ n w~::~o~ \!~ ~~!o g~:~r~~~~~s!m~~r~~~~~t!O a~a~:~d :~~m!~! ~ e ~ The Class Insecta is usually divided into

3 subclasses, according to the development of the wings. The most primitive is probably the subc 1 ass Apterygota, so ca 11 ed because they never have wings and do not appear to be descended from wi nged ancestors.

The only apterygotes that are likely to be noticed in Newfoundland are Thysanura and Collembola.

The Order Tysanura includes silver fish and fire brats. Silver fish are shining, torpedo­shaped insects with three long filaments at the hind end and a pair of long antennae on the head. They are someti.res found in houses or apartments. including one apartment in one of the newer St . John's blocks. where a student of mine used to find them on his floor cleaning up crumbs after the human inhabitants had eaten. They are fast­running and difficult to catch . The cOlJlflOn species in houses is Lepisma saccharina, which may be sufficiently numerous to be a pest, though the amount of damage it does is usually not great, except sometimes in herbarium collections. •

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Thysanura have chewing mouthparts, three pairs of thoracic legs and some paired limbs on the abdominal segments. though a hand lens is usually necessary to see them clearly. The presence of ~ bdominal appendages is one of the reasons for regarding this order as primitive.

Fire brats (Thertnobia domestica) are very like silver fish but live 1n very !>.:ann places. They were known as COnlnon inhabitants of bake houses be­fore the days of DDT and other persistent insecticides. There is one spe­cies (Pe t rob i u5 ma ritimus ) tha t lives amongst rocks on the seashore . They have been reoorted from M1ddle Cove and from the Bird Islands 1n Wi tless Bay . where they are sometimes very numerous in limited areas .

John Ph1ppe

Greel1peace

The Greenp •• ee Foundation is a Canadian group who have sent shipe to places in the Pacifie Ocean to protest the explosion of nuelear deviees. In past years, the N.N.H.S. haa sent letters of protest to the Freneh ~ba •• y to show our cone ern about French nuelear testing. In reply we ba'Je reeeived fat en'Jelop8. of material whieh politely tells ua of the needs and benefits of nuelear deviees.

This year we did not write the Freneh Qab&.B.,., e 'n n though they eontinued to teet at Muroroa A.toll. Reeentl,.. the Evening orelegr .. reported that, according to the National Radiation Laborato,.,. of New Zealand, radioactivity in air and rain haa increged. Thi. year, another 'blow-back' occured when the wind changed toll owing the blaat and took tall out belond the 'noraal dispersal area' and into populated areas ot the South Pacific.

Don't you think that we should make our 1973 proteat in another fora?

The Executi'fe of your Society met on Thursday, Septamber 27. and .. ong other things it tull,. discussed this matter. We decided that (1) we were unan1llously in tavor ot aending money to show our support tor the Greenpeace Foundation in Vancou'Jer. and (2) that we would Urst bring the i8sue betore the .e.bership.

Pleaae let u. know your teelinge at or be tore the next meeting •

Joan Scott

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88.

Ba •• 10U ."er wondered why blo1os1ata induS. 1n &1,,1nl .'ur)' plant or creature that the,. discO'fer a hideoua 2 or 3 parted Latin nu_ inst.ad of ••• naible ordinary a ... 11ke "robin" or "buttercup"? If you ha"s, you are certainl,. DOt alone. In .any cu •• tbe.e 80-called acientific n .... are lonl . alaoat unproDoWlcabl., and •••• lns17 apo •• ible to r •••• b.r. Take the ca •• of good old P •• udopleuronect ..... rleanu8 • be t ter known 1n. K •• roundland .. the ".inter tlOl,lnder". Ie there really any nud, you .~ ask I

ole you 1I1Sbt expect there are .any perfectly •• naibl. reaeon. for th18 practice. Qne ot the .oat aportant 1. that by u81nl an internationally unique nu. tor .ach orlanl ••• (u'en th ••• DU ••• .,. chans. now and then), • Japan ••• aCienUat, for instance, .111 moat l1kel,. und.r.tand. what creature or plant beloDg. to a particular D .. a utter.d b,. lat' •• ~ a Ru •• ian, a Canadian, or a South AIIarican. Thi. abilit,. to co_uDicat. with others about a .peciUc thing i a a basic r .... OD for bothering to pigeon-hal. and u ... thiDg. i n the Urat place.

An,.on. who h .. aana«ed to Ugure out local 0. .... for thing • • '1'80. in their own town or yillage, will r.aliz. that atandardized n .... are •••• utial if .!!!Z kind of us.fuln •• a ia to b. had in a n .... The Yariet,. of local D .... i. ott.n incr.dibl., eY.D within a 8i.en town, l.t alOD. b.twe.n di.tan t point •• Of cour.e there is alao the add.d proble. that the .ajorit,. of orlani ••• d.o not attract .uch attention and uaual11 do not .!!!!! local a. .....

Th. confusion which follow. i. a brief illustrat10D of .0 •• of the problell8 which m..,. ariee wh.n local bird. D .. e. are ue.d. What can ,.ou think, for instance, .h.n the aaall aealull aoat wid.l,. known as the Kittiwake (and aCientlfical l ,. call.d Ri •• a tridactyla) i8 referred to .. th. "tickl.-lacell

(ud. .&ft1 variations of this) in Witleas B~, N •• foundland ( and aan,. other are .. ), but? .ilea to th. aouth in Bauline Eut it ia call.d the "ice-partridge" (a n ... al.o appli.cl ln ao •• plac •• to one or aore of the Ivory Gull, Iceland Gull and Glaucoua Gull), and in .till otber ar ... thia .... 11tUwua ia known (at l.ut in it. juyenile pluaa&.) .. the "lady" or "lad,.blrd" • .le if thia ian't bad .noUlh, the tern (aci.ntiUc all:t on. or aor. of the St.rna apaciea) ia a "pa,ytrick" or "at.ri n" (or ... ariationa) in W1'"Plac •• in N •• foundland, but i. a "tickl.-lac." (111) ... (re •• aber the kittiwake 1) in Baulin. Eut, and a Herrins Gull (I It) in at l ... t ao •• plac •• near Sal.onl.r. If w. 10 further fro. hoa., the N.wfoundland "turr" or "baccalleu bird" i8 b.tter known .. the "aurr." in th. re.t of North Aaerlca, as the "Iutll •• ot" 1.n Britain,

e ·

e

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&S the "10m1'1" 1n Denmark, .. the "zeakoet" 1n Holland, etc., etc.,.te. Are you contused? The list 18 endless.

If by now you baY. decided that local oaa.8 are otten only useful to the pereon uttering theil, and turther.ore you are lett baftled by strange-Bounding scientific Damee, you • .,. perhaps throw your banda up 1n despair. Hut there 18 really no need to get depr •••• d. For anyone intereated, scientific nues are really Yery ea8Y to learn, remember and use. The aecret or learning scientific names 18 to learn the. frOID the atart. If you are told by • friend that a at range bush 1n a bog 18 a "!:11W.A", you .111 probably re.e.ber thia n ... in future .bOYe all others, enD it you find out later that eoa. people call it "a.eet gale". Another aid 18 to find out what the l.tin 0 ... 8 sean. FO£hinatance, our friend the kittlwake baa 3 toea (the normal 4-(hind) toe i8 reduced in thia specles); hence the species nue "tridactyla" or "three-toedll • Another good idea is to sit down in front of one of tboae great long ju.b1e. of letter. and figure out wbere the syllables begin and end. It· • .. azing what order will instantly beco.e e1'ident. It' a really worth the effort.

Having aaid all thia. I will add tbat when organi ••• are referred to oft.n by large nUlibera of people of ... arying back­grounds, as in tb. case of birds and c.rtain otber fuiliar tbing., it may b. useful to have a siaple co_on nu. a"ailabl •• Juet i.agine •• ntioning offhand to a friend that you caught a Kyoxoc.phalu octodecia.pinoaus off th •• nd of the coaaunity wbarf just as tbe Yicious beast wu about to gobble up a Strongloc.ntrotu. dro.bacl.nsi. I If nothing .l.e. it would .ound a bit snobblsh.

Th.re haa b •• n an atteapt to standardlze co_on n .... of so.e groups of organi •• s; birds in particular, Undoubtably tbis latter .ffort wa. ln r.spons. to th. great popular in ... ol ..... ent ln bird-.atcbing, but th1s standardization of bird n .. e. breaks down outside a particular country or sub-continent. A.s a result. lt is usual for a scienti.t or .erlous bird-watcb.r to refer, at least locally. to a "razorbill l1 or a "puffin" instead of an .!!9.! ~ or a Frat.rcula ~.

Ho.e .... r, alaost as few p.ople use the .tandardized co •• on nues as the .cientltic n ..... and a collection of local nues of things Can be a valuable asset to anyone trylng to co_unicate on a local level. Th. editor would be .,ery grateful if me.b.r. and fri.nds .ould let hi. know of any particularly inter •• ting local nu.s you com. across. If you don·t know the proper n ... t an al hrnat. n ... or good descr1ption wl11 probably suffice. The locality where the nue is used i8 also iaportant. Here i8 a .upling ot a few (without localities) :

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::::!::b~:~:r!o(;:;;:~=:)~'~II:!~:Y;!!~~" (~~:~i!~1::)7)' e ~ "ear.is (not th. real earwig)" (eentlpede), "juniper, tuarack." (larcb) t "bobber" (yellow water-lily) t "b.wk, ha&down" (shear •• ter), "twl111ck" (y.llowlege) •

.lnytblng .1 •• of intereat 1n thle 11ne would aleo b. appre­ciated. Looking tor •• rd to reeel"lng your contribution. 800n. Watch out tor the "boot-era.lere".

John Maunder

Science in the School

So •• teacher. are born acience teachere, 80 •• achi • .,.. this at.tuB, and others bay. it thrust upon the •• AIIensst the broad.st aia8 of such people .uet be to prepare studenta tor 11'f'108 ordinary 11 •• 8 with 80 •• appreciation and ~­standing of the natural and physical 8cienc ••• or cours., the first re.ponsibility 18 to teacb a acience clll'riculu ... Thi. narrow Aia haa tbe diaad.antage ot not being adapted to local experience •• Soaebow, the science ot tbe curriculua au.t be connected witb the probl.ae ot Olll' country. proTince, and .ettle.ent.

Here are a few ide .. troll a U.N.E.S. C. O. booklet by R.A.Ste.en. call,d .Out-ot-school Science Activitie. for Touns ~eople'. (Available direct tro., UNESCO, Plac' d, Fontenoy,

5 Paris-1e, France ••• 1n Engliah). Club. are an excellent .eana to .park interest and participatIOilin .cienc, education. Witb regard to running a group, let the .tudenta do it. Go to the •• eting. and b. a reeourch person sitting not at the tront tacing the., but &IIong or behind the •• Even atudenta as young .a grade 5 will appreciate thia approach. Your only general aim abould be to sti.ulate them toward follo .. lng th.ir own inter.ata. Whether they .. ant to haT. speak.r •• viait places of scenlc, co ••• rclal, or natural significance; aee special aovies; develop hobbies; ha'u • group proJectj aue •• u.eWl diaplAJ or a collection of ....... d; your role ia .er.ly to help thea .chieve it. G.neral aubJect. whlch aa:r be ot current int.reat include: - .. ater pollution, en,rgy. tiaheries, forestry, environmental eftects ot ro.ds and other con.truction, auaeu.s, national and proTincial park., population, aaoking, etc. More sp.cifically you ailjbt find :rouraelt helping to collect intor •• tion on .0.' ot the.e: -i.pact at • local industry; uae and .bus, of • river; .. ater supplies and garbage; Ne .. foundland birda, .... al_ and plants;

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or aaybe the g8010«1' of your area. Local new.papera otten have tiled collections ot clippings on theae topics, and in my experience have been soat helpful in giving 118 ace ••• to thea. Libraries are also very helpful. Once you get started, you wl11 tind that cutting coluans out ot papers youraelf 1s very worthwbile, and Buits your purposes and interest. better. Other actlYlt18. such ... acience tairs, cupa, ••• tings •• uaBUlls, and active nature cODser'V.tioD. all can grow troll a school club and are covered in this book.

Funds are always • problem. Ho.ever you do not get Iloney without a planned program tor spending it. Pr.aent a detailed plan to ODe of the bigger industries in your area and ask for help. Ooveruent and professional bodies can and do help, and ot course parente will do all they can to aid someone doing a little extra tor their children. There are Canadian groups which can giye you turther advice and put you in touch with international bodies. The Youth Science Foundation ot Canada, 151 Slater St., otta.a, K1P 5H6, Suite 302 has a newaletter which you can receiYe 10 lIlonths of the year tor 11.00 per year.

Joan Scott

Did YOU see a Monarch Butterfly recently?

During September, an unusually large lIIigration ot Monarch Butterflies paased through Newfoundland. It you saw any and aade notes at the ti •• , please get in touch with Bernard Jackson TODAy •••• I repeat, TODAY, 80 that Bernard _.y include your intOTii"'"" an article on "£ii"8"Honarchs tor the next Osprey.

ThankeJ --

Subscription to the Natural History Society of Newfoundland P.O. Box 1013, St. John's

(or Dr. D. H. Steele , Biology, M.U.N .• if more convenient)

Family membership. . • . . • . • • . $5.00 Junior membership (16 and under) •. 1.00 Student mcmbt"rship .••••••. 2 . 00 Corre8pondin~ membership (resident over 50 miles from St. John's) 2.00

N.~, ______________________ _ Tt"lephone Number ______________ _

Address, __________________________________________ _

M.U.N. Address, if applicable ____________________________ _

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st John I s Bir d Group News _ August and September

This is t he pe r iod of the pe ak of the fall migration when many "f our insect eatill8 birds leave u s for the south . Some late dates, ell f r om Oxen Pond i n September, are: '~ourn1n.g 6th, Ye l l owthroat 7th , Bleck-t h r oated Green 10th , end Ble ck ­poll Warbler on 27th . A Ruby - c r owned Kinglet was s een there on 11 Sept . and Beven ~yrtle Wa r blers on 4 Oct. Meny of our miE!:r8nt sparr owB e.re ha rdier a nd sti ll with us, but a linc oln ' s a t Oxen Pond on 27 s ept . 1s worth mentioning . Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs ne s t well t o the nor th of Newfound land , but pas s thr ough Rnd winter here. A flock of 50 Snow Bunt i ngs on 29 Sept. at Ca pe Spear (MF ) wa e one of the earliest r ec ords, but Longspurs a re rare at any time; so recorda of about 10 at Flfttrock on 29 Sept . (DB) a nd 25 at Cope Spear on 30 Sep t. are especially inte r est i ng . They a re probabl y often overlooke d

J..o.plo.r..C'l LO'jsplAr ~""+·u6'

l' Si.w.ilC\. .... , b",~ hells ",,,,,It M

Dr",.!- r ~ .... br • .,,,, (ro",,"' .

becau se of their BpEl r row-like appear ance p-nd preference for remot e windswept 8i tea.

Autumn stoms often brinp: birds from the south e nd weet . A Li ttle Blue Heron at Long Pond t first identified by JW on 3 Sept . and last seen on 8th was the l"Iost unusual of "these . Deapi te its name this was a largi sh pure white immature bird with blueish bill e nd yellow-@"reen legs . ThE' adults are blue-grey and Bi ttern­s ized, only "littl e " in com­par ison with Great Blue Herons .

Thr ee Fsstern Kingbirds were Bee n at Blackhead on 13th Sept. (1lP) . On 4 Oct. a femsle Balti-more Oriole appeared at Oxen

Pond , Bnd t here have been several reports of Mourning Dove s s i nce ea rly September . A probabl e Lea s t Te rn at Petty Harbour on 16 Sept . (~ a nd HG) would a l so c ome int o this category.

The only unusual shore bird was a Dun11n well s e fiD at 10 f t. t hrou8h f ive pa irs of binoculars at Burton 's Pond on 9th Sept.

lS'1'BG} . There were a Js 0 some lat e repor t s: Spotted Sandp iper Bear Cove ) and Gre a ter Yellowlegs (I.e.M'anche Park) on 30 Sept . SJBG) snd Golden Plovers on 5 Oct . - 13 at Sallnonier (IJI'I' )

and 1 at P leasantvi lle (HJC). Birds of pr ey have been f a i r l y Bcarce , but single J.4'arsh

Hawk s were Been at Oxen Pond (between 31 AUfl,: . and 3 Sept . ) and Cepe st Franci s (Sept . 9,J,q) and t here a re the usual repor ts of ftfe r l 1ns (Pigeon Ha wke) a nd Sharp- shinned Hawks .

(Obse rve r s: Don Barton , Howard Clese , Herb Gaskill , St J ohn ' s Bird Group, Mike Parmenter , John Welle). Pleaee send writ t en r epor ts to Howe r d Clase by the 2';th of each month , late repor t B by phone .

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