AL McNAIR
It is with great sadness that I have to report the passing of long-time Nature Barrie member Al McNair on September 14 today. Al suffered an aortic aneurysm on September 8 and was taken to RVH in Barrie. After a lengthy surgery he was placed in ICU and there was hope for a recovery. Despite the best efforts of the staff at RVH Al took a turn for the worse last night and passed peacefully surrounded by his family. Once final arrangements are known they will be posted here.
Al was veery active in Nature Barrie’s conservation efforts and presented many submissions to various agencies to support or oppose developments in the area and was well respected by local agencies. Al worked on several municipal groups dealing with environmental issues within the City of Barrie.
Al was also involved in a number of non-nature related activities and often regaled us with a song from the latest theater production he was involved with. He was a fixture at our meetings and always had time to meet and talk with people
Al will be greatly missed by many. RIP my friend
GREETINGS WE ARE BACK!!!
It has been a long difficult time for us but finally Nature Barrie is back. Your executive has had numerous discussions on how to proceed taking into account the seemingly ever-changing situation with covid-19 and the fact that our membership is likely a prime target demographic.
At this time we will not be conducing field trips, but will be monitoring the situation so we can again offer field trips when the time is right.
Our September, October and November meeting will be virtual meetings via Zoom. Members will be emailed a link for the meeting and the information will also be posted on the Nature Barrie web pages and our Facebook page about a week before the meeting.
We hope to be able to offer in=person meetings starting again in the new year. However, we will have to follow what ever procedures the church has in place and some procedures Nature Barrie will put in place. At this time the church is not allowing use of the kitchen facilities so the will be no refreshments available at the meeting so if you want a beverage please bring your own. Nature Barrie will require face coverings to attend the indoor meetings and encourages all members and guests be fully vaccinated.
The Christmas Bird Count will be held on Saturday December 18 but at this time we are not sure if the wrap-up will be in-person or virtual. Details will be posted, however, if the meeting is in person there will be no potluck dinner nor refreshments..
Brian Gibbon, our treasurer, is working on setting up an e-transfer with the bank for payment of dues. This will make it easier for our members to pay their dues. Details on this will be posted once they are finalized.
As always watch our web pages and Facebook page for updates to the program.
I hope you will enjoy what we have coming up.
Bruce Wilson
President
Ontario's Third Breeding Bird Atlas
Calling all Simcoe County and area Birders!
Ontario’s third Breeding Bird Atlas is set to kick off in the spring of 2021, and we’re looking for birders to make this the most successful effort yet.
The atlas is a five year project intended to document the presence and distribution of all the birds that breed in the province, and to provide data on their relative abundance. Previous atlases were undertaken from 1981 to 85, and 2001 to 2005. Ontario is one of the first jurisdictions anywhere to begin its third atlas, providing valuable information on population and distribution trends over time.
Data is collected by citizen scientists (volunteers like you and me) in the field. The entire province is divided into 10km x 10km squares. The goal is to achieve a MINIMUM of 20 hours of birding effort in every square, recording the birds observed during the breeding season, and documenting evidence of breeding (nest-building, courtship display, feeding young, etc). In addition, volunteers are asked to complete 25 point counts where all the birds seen and heard at specified points in the square are recorded.
I’m the regional coordinator for the Simcoe County atlas region. To assure coverage, I am assigning a birder to each square in the region. This person will ensure that the minimum effort is met in that square. It doesn’t mean others can’t submit records for the square, and it doesn’t mean that the person assigned a square can’t do atlassing elsewhere. 20 hours spread over 5 years is not a huge effort. It could be completed with one visit every year, although the more time spent in the square the better. Personally I find it’s a great way to give you incentive to get out there, sharpen your birding skills, and discover lovely new birdy spots in your square.
Ideally I’d like the birders I recruit to “adopt” a square to be experienced. By that I mean be familiar with most of the birds likely to breed in the region, and be proficient with at least the more common bird songs likely to be encountered. If you are a more novice birder, or unsure of your skills, there will still be lots of opportunity to participate and to sharpen your skills.
More information including detailed protocols and data collection software is available at the atlas’ website at https://www.birdscanada.org/birdmon/onatlas/main.jsp
Most importantly, register at https://www.birdscanada.org/birdmon/onatlas/register.jsp
If you think this is for you, contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. If you have a square you would particularly like to adopt or a general region of interest let me know; I will try to accommodate. Remember though, if your favourite birding spot is in a square assigned to someone else, you are still more than welcome to provide data. This really is a fun project for those of you who, like me, love to get out in nature and have an interest in birds. Good birding! Ian Cook
Lyme Disease in Ontario
Brochure author John Scott and his wife Catherine (Kit), have been researching Lyme and ticks since 1990. For more information on Lyme Disease in Ontario, click this link.
