Our Kitchener-Waterloo falcon chicks hatched on May 6 and 7 and were banded at three weeks of age on May 28. Our three eyases had been well fed by parents Mystery and Mystery Man, so named because they are unbanded birds. The chicks were assessed, weighed, and christened Kawhi (this was during the NBA playoffs when Toronto Raptor fever was running high), Jupiter and Hemera.
On June 15 Kawhi was the first to leave the nestbox at the CTV tower on King St. Jupiter followed him the next day and then Hemera shortly after with a precarious flight to the window ledge just below the lower roof of Grand River Hospital after being enticed by the adult falcons. She did manage to return to the CTV tower before dusk, but was unable to gain enough loft to reach home. Hence she spent the night on a strut below the nestbox. She finally managed to return to the box the next day and over the course of the next two weeks joined her siblings on numerous flights to the King’s Towers roof and over the sports field to the east.
The rest of the fledge watch was fairly uneventful as we watched the adults taking the fledglings on flights farther afield and higher and higher. For the first time in the eight years we have been involved in the fledge watch, we did not have to rescue a downed fledgling even once, a pleasant surprise indeed.
Over the summer the young were schooled in the art of hunting their prey in the air and bringing it to various roof tops in the area. By mid September they were heading south to Central and South America for the winter. We may receive news in the next year or two if our KW falcons return to Ontario to raise families of their own. Meanwhile Mystery and Mystery Man will stay in Kitchener Waterloo for the winter and do it all over again next year.
Many thanks to WRN members Randy Fowler, Christine Alexander, Fraser Gibson, Don Thomas and Sandra Moores who participated in this year’s fledge watch.
As many of you heard at the February Membership meeting, the Ontario Government is proposing changes to the Endangered Species Act. These changes will impact species at risk while supporting easier development. This is not the proper way forward. We need your voice to speak out against proposed changes. You can write a letter or use the Ontario Nature template to sign onto their campaign.
Some WRN members were part of a local protest against Section 10 of Bill 66 on Friday, January 11, 2019.
This legislation threatens drinking water, health, farmland, natural areas and the environment across the province. For a concise summary of the impacts, see this one-page overview put out by Ontario Nature: Bill 66 – What You Need To Know.
The Greenbelt Sign flickr photo by Jimmy Emerson (Creative Commons BY-ND)
Provincial Greenbelt Expansion
Province Seeking Public Input to Protect Important Water Resources
Ontario is taking action to protect important water resources in the Greater Golden Horseshoe by launching a public consultation on expanding the province’s Greenbelt. The province is considering expanding the Greenbelt to include areas in the outer ring of the Greater Golden Horseshoe, an area that is experiencing significant growth and is under pressure from urban development.
The public, municipalities, conservation authorities, stakeholders, and Indigenous communities and organizations are invited to provide input on a study area for potential Greenbelt expansion. The consultation comprises seven areas most in need of protection, including moraines, cold water streams and wetlands such as the Waterloo Moraine, the Paris-Galt Moraine, the Orangeville Moraine, the Oro Moraine, the Minesing Wetland and other valuable water resources that communities rely on for their water supply.
Comments may be submitted at www.ontario.ca/greenbelt, and letters of support should be sent directly to political leaders, or via www.protectourwaters.ca or at an upcoming Open House Meeting before March 7th, 2018.
Open House Meeting
Participate at a public open house being held in the Greater Golden Horseshoe study area. The dates, times and venue locations are subject to change and periodic updates may occur. Please check back often to review the most current information at http://www.mah.gov.on.ca/Page17641.aspx
Regional Chair Ken Seiling – (519) 575-4585 – kseiling@regionofwaterloo.ca Regional Planning and Works Chair Tom Galloway – tgalloway@regionofwaterloo.ca All of Council – regionalcouncillors@regionofwaterloo.ca
David Gascoigne, Emma and Stephen Trink ready to inspect the bees
Almost five years ago, I was reading a newspaper article about the plight of honeybees and was inspired to do something about it. Perhaps you will recall the news headlines regarding Colony Collapse Disorder or “CCD” for short? Suspected causes for this phenomenon include varroa mites, malnutrition, loss of habitat and a new class of pesticide called neonicotinoids. After reading about this catastrophe, I was determined to read every book and watch every DVD I could get my hands on at our local library and spent endless hours searching the internet for information on how to keep bees. After six months of intense research, I finally purchased our equipment which included wooden hive boxes filled with frames, a protective suit, hive tool, gloves and a smoker. Finally, I painted the boxes glossy white, ordered our bees and registered as an official beekeeper with the Ministry of Agriculture (registration is free by the way). Nothing could have prepared me for the wonderful adventure that awaited us!
Inspecting a frame of bees with brood and capped honey visible
While my original motivation was to help these important pollinators, I quickly realized the sweet reward of raw wildflower honey which we were starting to harvest in great abundance by the second year! In addition to honey, I also collected the wax which we now make into homemade lip balm and candles. This has proven to be a richly rewarding hobby for our entire family and a lot of fun too! Last year, I purchased a child size suit which enabled our kids to join us during hive inspections.
Emma Trink in a Bee Suit
I feel privileged to have this opportunity of being a beekeeper; I am constantly learning new things about bees and developing better strategies for managing my hives from other beekeepers at our local Grand River Beekeeper’s Association. It is richly fulfilling to know that I am doing my part to help these important pollinators. It was Albert Einstein who wisely stated that, “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.” This is the challenge we face right now and failure is not an option.
Stephen and David Gascoigne inspecting bees in St. Agatha
Pollination provides one of the clearest examples of how our disregard for the health of the environment threatens our own survival. About 75% of all crops require pollination, often by bees, but sometimes by flies, butterflies, birds or even bats.
In southwest China, they are forced to hand-pollinate their apple and pear orchards because their excessive use of pesticides has completely eradicated their entire wild bee population.
Farmers in these areas carry pots of pollen and paintbrushes to individually pollinate every flower! Obviously this is not a viable solution to the problem as there are not enough humans in the world to pollinate all of our crops by hand.
Another problem is the increasing lack of natural habitat for pollinators. Admittedly, the situation in China is one of the most dramatic cases in the world today but there is increasing evidence from around the globe pointing to unsustainable farming practices which are incompatible with the long term survival of our pollinators.
So, what can be done? Promising studies conducted in both Europe and North America have shown that planting strips of wildflowers on farms or leaving patches of natural vegetation such as forests, can greatly boost pollinator populations including honey bees! According to these studies, these practices increase populations of natural predators, which decreases the need for pesticide use.
Frames of bees at the St.Agatha apiary
In Ontario, our government can no longer ignore the increasing scientific evidence which clearly shows that neonicotinoid insecticides are highly toxic to honey bees and other beneficial insects. Part of the problem is that these potent insecticides don’t break down quickly in soil. They are water soluble and easily run off into local water systems, where they can harm aquatic insects also. The province has promised to reduce the number of acres planted with neonicotinoid-treated corn and soybean seed by 80% by the year 2017. This is a good start but is it too little, too late? Several years ago in Europe they implemented a five year ban on neonicotinoid insecticides after determining that they posed an “unacceptable” danger to bees.
In the United States alone, crop pollination by insects is estimated to be worth $14.6 billion to the economy. Some pollination is done by domesticated honeybees, like blueberries and almonds but the bulk of pollination of most crops is done by wild insects like bumblebees.
Without bees, our diets would be rather boring. How would you like to survive on wheat, barley and corn, and little else? Raspberries, apples, strawberries, peas, beans, melons, tomatoes, blueberries, pumpkins and many more all rely on pollination. Most importantly, imagine a world without honey!
Bees and other insects have provided free pollination for our crops for millennia. They will continue to do so if we learn to recognize their importance and return the favour by providing them with what they need to survive.
St.Agatha apiary at Sprucehaven
Stephen and his wife April have been beekeeping hobbyists for the past 5 years. They currently manage 12 hives located in Teeswater and St. Agatha. Stephen received his undergraduate bachelor’s degree in Science (BScN) from McMaster University in 2006. In his professional career, Stephen worked in an acute care setting at St. Mary’s General Hospital as a Registered Nurse for several years. For the past ten years, he has been working in a management role in long term care. He is a member of the Grand River Beekeepers’ Association and joined the Waterloo Region Nature Club earlier this year. April and Stephen are the proud parents of five beautiful children and live in Kitchener, Ontario. If you are interested in getting into beekeeping Stephen would be happy to answer any questions you might have and is willing to mentor new beekeepers! Please email him directly: stevetrink@hotmail.com
2015 – Warmest Global Year on Record (since 1880) By NASA Scientific Visualization Studio – https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov / Goddard Space Flight Center – https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsRegional environmental organizations have invited our five local Members of Parliament, who have all confirmed attendance, to a public consultation on climate change that will be held on August 18th at 7 pm in the Kitchener City Hall Rotunda. To RSVP, please click on Waterloo Region Town Hall – Federal Climate Action Consultation.
By Haljackey (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia CommonsThe Government of Ontario is conducting a Co-ordinated Land Use Planning Review and a key component of this review is the future of the Greenbelt. The Greenbelt was created to preserve prime agricultural land and key natural and hydrologic features like the Niagara Escarpment and the Oak Ridges Moraine. We call on our membership to campaign for an increased Greenbelt to protect vulnerable water supplies and natural areas and to decrease urban sprawl. For more information view the following links:
