B.C. NaturalistFALL, 1983 VOL. 21, No. 3

California bighorn sheep

The Federation of British Columbia Naturalists1200 Hornby Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 2E2

Photo Credit: Tom W. Hall,kindly provided for reproductionby the Fish and Wildlife Branch

B.C. Naturalist is published quarterly bythe Federation of British ColumbiaNaturalist 100 - 1200 Hornby Street,Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 2E2.

2nd Class MallRegistration Pending

DIRECTORYEditor Jude GrassEditorial Assistant

Pamela CowtanLayout Jim AddieAdvertising Hugh AikensDistribution Frank SanfordAdvisory Board Bert Brink

Dick Stace-SmithAl Grass

HONOURARY PRESIDENTDr. Ian Mctaggart CowanEXECUTIVE

President: Mrs. Jade Grass437-7194, 202 - 6444 Silver Ave.,Burnaby, V5H 2Y4

Vice President: K. Hall224-7584, 3849 W. 23 Ave.,Vancouver, V6A 1K8

Treasurer: Natalie Minunzie,534-2116 23293 34A Ave.,Langley V3A 7B9

Recording Secretary: Miss MarjorieSmith,327-1938, 1146 East 60th Ave.,Vancouver V5X 2A7

Past President: Dick Stace-Smfth224-7024, 4274 W. 13 Ave.,Vancouver, V6R 2B6

COMMITTEESConservation Chairman: Ken Hall,224-7584, 3849 W. 23 Ave.,Vancouver, V6A 1K8Education Chairman: Al Grass437-7194, 202-6444 Silver Ave.,Burnaby V5H 2Y4

AFFILIATED CLUBSAND DIRECTORSVANCOUVER ISLANDRegional Coordinator:

Doug TumbullArrowsmith Natural Historical

Society: Pauline TranfleldComox-Strathcona Naturalists:

Jim LunanCowichan Valley Natural History

Society: Edna SlaterMitlenatch Field Naturalists:

Howard TeloskyNanaimo Field Naturalists:

Allan HawryzkiSalt Spring Trail and Nature Club

D. J. Ready

Page 2 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

Thetis Park NatureSanctuary Association

T.B.A.Victoria Natural History Society:

Winston Mair, Douglas Turnbull,William Barkley

Pender Island Field Naturalists:T.B.A.

LOWER MAINLANDRegional Coordinator: Norm PurssellAlouette Field Naturalists:

Duanne van den BergChilliwack Field Naturalists:

Bircham Van HomeLangley Field Naturalists:

Adeline NicolRoyal City Field Naturalists:

Margaret RennieSechelt Marsh Protective Society

Vince BracewellVancouver Natural History Society

V.C. Brink, Jude Grass, Ken Hall,Gwen De Camp, Norman Purssell

White Rock and Surrey Naturalists:Daphne Smith

THOMPSON-OKANAGANRegional Coordinator: Peter LeggCentral Okanagan Naturalists:

Hugh WestheuserKamloops Naturalists:

Keith MacBellNorth Okanagan Naturalists:

Kay Biller, Peter LeggNorth Shuswap Lake Naturalists:

Audrey SugdenOliver-Osoyoos Naturalists:

T.B.A.Shuswap Naturalists:

T.B.A,South Okanagan Naturalists:

Bev GrantKOOTENAYBoundary Naturalists Assoc.

Rosemary SantopintoLake Windermere Naturalists:

T.B.A.West Kootenay NaturalistsAssociation:

Hazel StreetCARIBOOWilliams Lake Held Naturalists

Frances VyseNORTH CENTRAL B.C.Prince George Naturalists:

Don WilsonSKEENATerrace Outdoor Club:

T.B.A.Prince Rupert Naturalists:

T.B.A.PEACETimberline Trail and Nature Club:

Don Johnson

DIRECTOR REPRESENTINGINDIVIDUAL MEMBERS

Chris Siddle

Over theeditor's deskAt this time I would like to welcome

David Stirling to our , contributingwriters section of /the < B.C.NATURALIST. Some of you will knowDavid from the many tours he has led tofar and interesting places around theglobe. Many of you may not know thatDavid has had an important and influen-tial part to play in the natural historyinterpretation in the B.C. Parks Branch.He started out as a Park Naturalist tobecome the chief mentor, teacher and in-spiration for the naturalist who followed

, him down the nature trails of the manyprovincial parks. His articles on naturalhistory have appeared in manymagazines and his fresh and easy ap-proach is appreciated by novice and ex-perienced alike. David has a free hand towrite about whatever he fancies, so wecan look forward to rambles and viewsfrom near and far.

Noted with RegretDr. T. M. C. Taylor, Emeritus Head,

Botany Dept., University of B.C. and aformer President of .the B.C. NatureCouncil died in Victoria hi early August."Tommy," as he was affectionatelyknown, was a fine naturalist and out- -—doorsman, a gardener of note and aformer Director of the U.B.C. BotanicalGarden. He was a graduate in Botanyfrom U.B.C. and from the University ofWisconsin and led Naturalists of On-tario and B.C. on innumerable foraysinto the fascinating realms of plants.V.C.B.

AUTUMNGENERAL MEETING

Grand Forks, B.C.Friday eve., Oct. 21; Saturday, Oct. 22

Field Trips, Sunday, Oct. 23All Federation members are welcome.

Some financial support can be givenF.B.C.N. Directors or their proxiestravelling to Grand Forks.

Details of the meeting will be availableshortly from the F.B.C.N. office, 1200Hornby Street, Vancouver and fromDaphne Hamilton, Boundary FieldNaturalists Club and will be mailed to allClub secretaries.

Plan to attend and enjoy a weekend inthe Boundary country with your fellowNaturalists.

It is also expected that at least oneautumn Regular meeting of Directorswill be held.with one of the VancouverIsland Clubs. /m

DEADLINE FORNEXT ISSUE

OCTOBER 15, 1983

^ F'

President's MessageWriting the President's Message can be a difficult task,

especially when it is your first. But this past summer had pro-vided a wealth of topics so that I hardly know where to start. Itis difficult to open a newspaper or turn on the radio or televi-sion without having ones blood pressure soar.

The summer started off positively enough. The F.B.C.N.Annual General Meeting — hosted by the Sechelt Marsh Pro-tective Society (who did a wonderful job) — provided an en-couraging source of information both from the clubs and in-vited guests. I was most impressed with our clubs' involvementin community work, club offerings to members, grants receiv-ed, participation on advisory committees and government pro-grams such as Ecological Reserves Wardens and ProvincialPark Volunteers. The government representatives from theFish and Wildlife Branch, Provincial Parks and CanadianWildlife Service along with those from the National SecondCentury Fund and Ducks Unlimited told us in glowing termsof the many projects underway to benefit wildlife and thenaturalist alike.

It was shortly after that the sky fell, July .to be exact! I sup-pose the writing had been on the wall for awhile. A case inpoint was the elation felt when the Greater VancouverRegional District voted down the development plan for theSpetifore land in Delta. For the naturalists, as well as the com-munity, this had been a long and bitter battle to save approx-imately two hundred acres of farmland as a regional park. Thearea was especially known to the naturalists as the last haunt ofthe Short-eared Owl in the Lower Mainland. Other areas had

already been destroyed by airports and development. Within aday the vote was overturned by the provincial government andgiven to the municipality. Today we wait for the inevitablesound of progress — the bulldozer.

That decision seemed to trigger a whole flood of 'events.Privatization, cut-backs, and lay-offs became the talk of theday. It was hard to keep track of things.

BEAUTIFUL B.C. Magazine will be turned over to theprivate sector, so it will continue to be published; butWILDLIFE REVIEW (Ministry of Environment), an excellentpublication used by teachers and naturalists alike, andFORESTALK, the Ministry of Forests' award winningmagazine, both stopped publication effective immediately.

Other cutbacks will be of a greater and longstanding effect.The Ministry of Environment budget has been drastically cut.Provincial work on fisheries management, marine resources,pesticide control, water management, surveys and resourcemanagement and wildlife management will all suffer.

Although nothing official has been stated I wonder if thatmeans that funding for non-game species will be taken away.It was just last year that the Fish and Wildlife Branch named anon-game biologist for the province. Where does that leave theVancouver Island Marmot and the Burrowing Owl?

The Ministry of Forests also felt the cuts in harvesting,silviculture, research and forest protection, range and recrea-tion programs.

The Agriculture Land Commission — a government ad-visory committee to watch over farmland preservation — hadits budget more than cut in half.

This certainly does not seem to be an encouraging time forthe naturalist, environmentalist or other outdoors people.Although it is far too early to judge the overall effect of thesemajor changes, we should continue to fight. It is easy to getdiscouraged in times like this. For the time being it will pro-bably mean no new Parks, Ecological Reserves, and no newnon-game wildlife projects, but we must not quit. We cannotafford to lose what we fought hard to win in the first place.After alt it is not just OUR enjoyment of nature that will

.disappear, but that of generations to come. The children of thefuture deserve to enjoy nature too. What greater pleasure isthere than a child's wide-eyed wonder at seeing "living"wildlife, flowers and scenery? Television only tells a story — itisn't "alive".

1 intend to follow in the footsteps of Past Presidents likeDick Stace-Smith and Bert Brink and maintain our contactswith both the political and civil servant wings. Hopefully thisfall we will be able to meet with Ministry of Environment,Lands, Parks and Housing and the Ministry of Forests.ODDS AND ENDS

I would like to take this opportunity to reach out to allmembers of the Federation — the individual members andclub members alike. While it is impossible for me to meet withyou all personally (although I will attempt to get around to asmany clubs as possible over the next few years), I wish toassure you that the Federation, through it Executive andDirectors, does work on your behalf. We welcome cor-respondence from everyone.

This year, at the request of the Vancouver Island Region, wewill be varying the day and times of the monthly Directors'Meetings. Some meetings will be on Mondays in Vancouver,others will be on Saturdays during the day. IN addition we willbe travelling to Vancouver Island at least once a year and willbe holding one meetng in the interior. Dates, places and timeswill appear in the UP AND COMING section of thismagazine.

LOOKING AHEADTo finish up, some of the directions and/or routes of ex-

ploration that I would like to have looked into over the nextlittle while include:a) the F.B.C.N. constitution — yes, I know, I can hear thegroans now! — but there are some points that need examiningand further discussion. EG. delegates, director's and voting atthe A.G.M.b) a committee to develop policy statements on issues of con-cernc) a restructuring of some committees so that they can have amore 'provincial' outlook. I think this is an important featureto draw clubs and their members into a closer feeling for theF.B.C.N.d) an asserted membership drive — to encourage newmembers in areas where we do not have a club, and then toform new clubs through the effort of an F.B.C.N. committeethat would advise on the following and running of such agroup.e) to develop a publication committee to look into and beresponsible for Federation publication on items of naturalhistory in the province. Hopefully such a project would turninto a money making scheme.

These are only a few ideas. If you have any others I wouldwelcome hearing from you.

In closing, I would like to take this opportunity to thankpublicly Bert Brink and Dick Stace-Smith for all theirassistance over the past years in preparing me for the tasks thatHe ahead. They are a hard act to follow.

Jude Grass

Advertising RatesFull Page $200.00H page 100.00!/4 page 50.00For information contact:

H. E. Aikens—433-61604521 Neville StreetBurnaby, B.C. V5J 2G9

per issueper issueper issue

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 3

Wildlife atlasesProgress report

SPRING-SUMMER 1983

After nine years of collecting,transferring and organizing informationon birds, mammals, reptiles and amphi-bians in British Columbia we are finallyprepared to develop species narratives.In fact a prototype for the CommonBarn Owl has now been completed andhs been sent to biologists, ornithologistsand naturalists for comment. Allregional co-ordinators will have a supplyto distribute to interested participants. Ifyou do not receive a copy, and want one,please write me.

Each species account includes a rangemap which indicates known, andestimated range as well as seasonal oc-currences for 1752 grid areas. The nar-ratives accompanying the map includedetailed information, as it relates toBritish Columbia, under the majorheadings, taxonomy, status, distribu-tion, life history and major references.Eighteen sub-headings include suchtopics as reproductive period, mortality,clutch-size, habitat requirements,,longevity, behaviour, bonding, andspecial significance.

The last big chunk of information tobe transferred, from the two remainingbibliographies on birds and mammals,was completed this summer by studentsemployed through EnvironmentCanada. The students, Alice Cassidy,James Curry, Barry Forer, Mark Grif-fin, and Dan Parsons, were again super-vised by Tracy Hooper. Regional co-ordinators served as important com-munication and information sources forkey areas. Gary Davidson (Nakusp),Chris Siddle (Fort St. John), LaurieRockwell (100 Mile House), and JohnWoods (Kootenay National Park)together submitted over 2,000 cards. Inaddition another 6,000 were completed,from historical records, by BerniceSmith, Vic and Peggy Goodwill, RossMacDonald and Win Speechly.

Fish and Wildlife Branch files inNanaimo were made available to us bybiologists Doug Janz and Rich Davis.Two students, Beth Cavers and NancyBose extracted appropriate material.

Note: When submitting cards, pleaseinclude details on location, habitat(general and specific), numbers and fullname of observer.Page 4 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

PUBLICATIONS OF INTERESTIt is encouraging to learn naturalists,

students, and other researchers are mak-ing use of literature listed here. Unfor-tunately we cannot provide copies of thearticles, but those related to British Col-umbia are included in the vertebratebibliographies and are on file at themuseum. Again, all publicationspreceeded by an asterisk {*) have madereference to information sent to themuseum by naturalists.

* Bane!, Vivian A. 1982. ABIBLIOGRAPHY ON THEWOLVERINE, Gulo gulo. British Col-umbia Ministries of Environment andForest Intergrated Wildlife IntensiveForestry Research Report No. 9, Vic-toria. 53 pages.

Boyd, W. Sean. 1983. AVIAN ANDHABITAT DIVERSITY/DISTRIBU-TION INFORMATION FOR THEPACIFIC AND YUKON REGION. En-vironment Canada Canadian WildlifeService Report, Delta. 46 pages.

* Campbell, R. Wayne. 1983. ROAD-SIDE RAPTOR CENSUS — VAN-COUVER TO KAMLOOPS —MARCH 1983. Unpublished Report,British Columbia Provincial MuseumVertebrate Zoology Division, Victoria. 5pages.

* Cassidy, A. L. E. V. 1983.WINTER ECOLOGY OF BALDEAGLES AT QUALICUM RIVERESTUARY, BRITISH COLUMBIA.B.Sc. Thesis, University of Victoria,Department of Biological Sciences, Vic-toria. 34 pages.

Envi ronment Canada. 1983.ALAKSEN NATIONAL WILDLIFEAREA BIRD CHECKLIST. CanadianWildlife Service,.Delta, British Colum-bia. (Leaflet).

* Forbes, L. Scott, Keith Simpson,John P. Kelsall and Donald R. Flook.1983. GREAT BLUE HERON COL-ONIES IN BRITISH COLUMBIA.Canadian Wildlife Service Report.Delta. 66 pages.

Hannon, Swson J., Lennart G.Sopuck and Fred C. Zwickel. 1982.SPRING MOVEMENT OF FEMALEBLUE GROUSE:. EVIDENCE FORSOCIALLY INDUCED DELAYEDBREEDING IN YEARLINGS. Auk.99(4):687-694. •

* Horwood, Dennis. 1983. EAGLESIN THE PASS. The Islander, 22-25April, 1983. Page 12.

* Nussbaum, Ronald A., Edmund D.Brodie and Robert M. Storm. 1983.AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES OFTHE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. Univer-sity of Idaho Press, Moscow. 322 pages.

* Schueler, Frederick W. 1983.RETICULATE MELANISM INCANADIAN WESTERN PAINTEDTURTLES. Blue Jay. 41(2):83-91.

* Sirk, George. 1983. BIRDS OFCORTES ISLAND ANDMITLENATCH ISLAND PROVIN-CIAL PARK, B:C. CANADA. Issuedby the Author. Copies available for$2.00 from Box 83, Whaletown, B.C.VOP 1ZO. 5 pages.

Woods, John G. 1983. THE BIRDSOF MOUNT REVELSTOKE ANDGLACIER NATIONAL PARKS,BRITISH COLUMBIA — 1982REPORT. Unpublished Report, ParksCanada, Mount Revelstoke and GlacierNational Parks, Revelstoke, 10 pages.

NOTEWORTHY RECORDSUnless otherwise noted all records are

1983.

MAMMALSWe usually associate BEAVERS with

fresh water systems so you can imaginehow surprised F. H. Stevens was whenhe saw one swimming in the ocean offSpanish banks on February 27. Whalesare always exciting to see. On October25, 1982, Nairn Hargrove and RobertHowe watched three HUMPBACKWHALES for nearly three hours,frolicking near the Namu processingplant. Bill Merilees also reported threeanimals, but off Anthony Island(Q.C.I.) on July 11, nine months later.GRIZZLY BEARS emerged from their -•dens in the Kootenays unusually earlythis year. Dave Poll saw fresh tracks

along Vernendrye Creek on March 22.Naturalist Larry Halverson attributedearly emergence to the mild winter, butwondered how the bears might find foodin three feet of snow.

SEA OTTERS are now being seenregularly by hikers along the central westcoast of Vancouver Island. Lome Mcln-tosh saw at least 12 off Nootka Island(Bajo Creek) on April 23. WHITE-TAILED DEER continue to expandtheir range in the province. Three recentextralimitol records are: an adult withsix MULE DEER was seen near Colum-bia River and Frisby Creek by RickBonar on December 30, 1982 andanother adult in the Kootenays seen nearGolden on March 9 by John Woods; oneadult was seen by Rick Marshall andGreg Jones, 3 miles east of the west endof Francois Lake on February 20.MOOSE are very rare west of the CoastMountains. An animal was shot, inAugust, 1981, by Barry Rosenberger, inthe intertidal area south of Buckly Point(west of Blonam Island). Biologist Jor-ma Jyrkannen mentions that this specieshas been reported from Kitsault andKemano as well and are "definitely tothe sea at these latitudes".

BIRDSInteractions between species, whether

behavioural or predatory, are alwaysworth documenting. In late June Lor-raine Faessler watched a COMMONLOON grab a COMMONMERGANSER chick from its broodnear 100 Mile House. The femalemerganser was unable to pull the duckl-ing from the loon's bill and apparentlylater it dived with the chick and ate it.YELLOW-BILLED LOONS are now aregular sight throughout the year on theQueen Charlotte Islands. Peter Hamelsaw 4, in breeding plumage, off RoseSpit on May 8. Nairn Hargrove record-ed the first sighting of a GREEN-BACKED HERON at Namu on June 4.Seven TUNDRA SWANS, wintered (thefirst record for the Revelstoke area)from December 21, 1982 through

p February 16 south of the airport. Thesewere watched by Rick Bonar. With thecontinental interest in BALD EAGLESnaturalists should be encouraged to

report aggregations of all eagles especial-ly from inland areas. Eleven birds (4adults, 7 immatures) seen by Chris Sid-die at the mouth of Halfway River bet-ween Fort St. John and Hudson Hope,on March 22, is then noteworthy.

Rick Bonar documented an incredibleincident at Revelstoke. An unknownraptor flew through two plate glass win-dow panes, spaced about 2 inches apart,in a private home, and was "still travell-ing fast enough to bounce off a kitchenchair ..." Apparently the bird was stun-ned for a few minutes and then hoppedand flew around the room for abouttwenty minutes . . . then flew back out-side using the original entrance hole . . .outside the window was a severely in-jured NORTHERN FLICKER whichappeared to have been struck or graspedby the raptor. A couple of feathersfound in the kitchen, and sent to themuseum for identification identified themysterious bird as an adult NOR-THERN GOSHAWK!

Two of the six SANDHILL CRANESwhich Doug Wilson saw in North Deltaon March 21 were banded, both in Idahoin 1980. Shore birds provided the mostinformation of any group of birds andonly significant occurrence or popula-tion records are listed. The largestnumber of SEMIPALMATEDPLOVERS (2100 +) ever reported in theprovince was seen along the north shoreto Rose Spit (Q.C.I.) by Peter Hamel onMay 8. Adrian Dorst counted 52 winter-ing AMERICAN BLACK OYSTER-CATCHERS on February 7 on ArakunFlats near Tofino. Chris Siddle con-tinues to make the Peace River a highpriority birding area by carefully sear-ching out, and documenting speciespassing through. On May 28, fourAMERICAN AVOCETS, the firstPeace River record, were photographedat the sewage lagoons near Fort St.John. Up to six WHITE-RUMPTEDSANDPIPERS were seen here fromMay 28 to June 6 and on May 30 twoBUFFBREASED SANDPIPERS fre-quented the lagoon area. On VancouverIsland, at the Cedar Hill Golf Course,Tim Zurowski photographed an adultfemale WILSON'S PHALAROPE onJune 3.

Single LITTLE GULLS were seennear Active Pass on April 5 by PeterArcese and at the south end of CharlieLake (Peace River) by Chris Siddle,Michael Shepard and David Stirling.CASPIAN TERNS continue their inva-sion of British Columbia. Thirty-two,seen by D. V. George at Boundary Bayon May 26 is an unusually high number.The second and third records for theQueen Charlotte Islands were suppliedby Mike Force (2 at Alliford Bay on May13) and Peter Hamel (1 at Rose Spit on

May 27). Another bird was seen nearGrenville Channel, on the mainlandcoast on May 29 by Mike McMall andJohn Cooper.

During his Peace River birding tripDavid Stirling found two noteworthyspecies: an immature FORESTER'STERN with BONAPARTE'S GULLS atCharlie Lake on June 12 and a maleRUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRDviewed at a distance of 12m for 5minutes on a telephone wire near Tup-per. A single male ANNA'S HUMM-INGBIRD showed up at D. V. George'sfeeder in Terrace on June 11 and at ar-tificial flowers at Joanna Hastings homeat 100 Mile House in mid-January!

The most exciting news was thatFLAMMULATED OWLS may be morecommon in the province than we ever ex-pected. In June Rick Howie, RalphRitcey, Jack Bowling, and otherslocated one nest and at least 14 separateowls near Kamloops. Rick feels certainthat this diminitive owl has beenoverlooked in the past, mainly becauseof its special habitat requirements andelevation (3-4,000 feet). Dick Canningslocated several birds again in theOkanagan Valley.

A rare coastal occurrence of anEASTERN KINGBIRD was recorded byNairn Hargrove and Robert Howe atNamu on May 30. A WESTERNBLUEBIRD seen near Roberts Creek onMarch 21 by John Storey is the firstrecord on file for the Sechelt peninsula.Rick Howie found a singing SAGETHRASHER near Kamloops on June 28and later Ralph Ritcey photographed thebird. A flock of up to 34 CEDAR WAX-WINGS wintered in the Revelstoke area,with BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS in1982-1983. John Woods also reportsunusually large number of winteringPINE SISKINS and RED CROSSBILLSin the sme area (e.g. 500+ per 70 km ofroad for siskins), and the infrequentlyseen ROSY FINCH (100 on February 1).

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 5

Jack Satterty kept detailed notes onarrival dates for male and femaleBLACK-THROATED GRAYWARBLERS in the Sechelt area anddetermined females arrive about threeweeks after males (April 24 first male,May 11 first female). The PALMWARBLER that wintered at Tofino waslast seen by Adrian Dorst on March 14.

A most unusual northern record of aPURPLE FINCH (male) was reportedby Chris Siddle about 43 km north ofPrince George on January 1.

REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANSStudent Beth Cavers and Nancy Bose,

dragging a marshy area, about 20 x 30feet, near Qualicum, caught 506ROUGHSKINS NEWTS. This specieswas also very common at Grassy Lake inthe west Sooke Mountains in May.WESTERN REDBACK SALAMAN-DERS were abundant in damp forestsnear Hammond Bog on VancouverIsland. Elementary school studentsbrought Myke Chutterer 5 on March 9.

It appears that perhaps GREEN

FROGS survived their introduction intopools near Victoria. They haven't beenreported for years but on July 8 PatrickGregory and Bob Miles saw and heard atleast 20 in ponds in private yards nearthe University of Victoria. Populationsof WOOD FROGS must have been lowin northwestern B.C. this summer. Dur-ing 25 field days in the Haines Trianglearea in June and July only 3 were seen.

R. Wayne CampbellVertebrate Zoology Division

B.C. Provincial Museum, Victoria

Front CoverThe National -Second Century Fund is

very pleased to report its recent acquisi-tion of a 121.8 ha (301 acre) propery 30km. southwest of Vernon to help protectthe only population of CaliforniaBighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis califor-niana) in the North Okanagan. TheShorts Creek band, part of the Westsidebighorn sheep population whichnumbers 50-75, is estimated at 18-20animals. The property acquired iscritical winter range for the sheep and alambing'ground as well as controllingthe entrance to the narrow and sensitiveShorts Creek Valley. The property in-cludes a forested creek bottem and bun-

chgrass slopes representative of thelower stretches of the valley.

The Shorts Creek Valley boasts, alongwith its mule deer, bear, pika, bluegrouse, golden eagles, rock wrens, redcrossbills, goldfinches, and hairywoodpeckers, three rare plants, one afirst finding in B.C., the alpine false yar-row (chaenactis alpina), and has beenproposed as an Ecological Reserve.

Brought to the Fund's attention byMr. David Falconer, the property wasdescribed by the North OkanaganNaturalist Club as "strategically situatedat the entrance to a dramaticallybeautiful and environmentally uniquevalley".

The property will be leased for $1.00to the Fish and Wildlife Branch, B.C.Ministry of Environment, for 99 years tobe managed as a site of ecological in-terest. They will be cooperating with theN.O.N.C. on the management of it.

Anyone wishing to visit this areashould contact the N.O.N.C., the Pen-ticton Fish and Wildlife Office (Mr. R.C. Lincoln) or the National Second Cen-tury Fund in Vancouver (925-1128) fordirections.

Pamela M. Cowtan,National Second Century Fund

of B.C.

MARTENS LIKE PEANUTBUTTER TOO

The pine marten, a skilled hunter thatis as much at home in the trees as on theground, is one mammal that is seldomseen in Kootenay National Park. Themarten is an omnivore and feeds on bothplants and animal material. Its diet isquite varied and may include red squir-rels (a favorite), mice, eggs, berries, con-ifer seeds, honey and peanut buttersandwiches.

We discovered the marten's peculiartaste for peanut butter this spring whilePage 6 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

live trapping small mammals in the parkto determine what species are present.Five traps were set up and in each wasplaced a bone covered with rancid fat. Inone trap, though, we added an extratreat — a stale piece of bread smearedwith peanut butter.

Two nights in a row, we were suc-cessful in capturing a marten in the trapwith the peanut butter sandwich. We'renot sure if we caught the same martenboth nights or two different ones. Ineither case, we know that the best baitfor luring pine martens into a live trap ispeanut butter. I'm not sure what the best

brand would be but my guess would be"SQUIRREL".

Danny Catt, Park Naturalist,Kootenay National Park

Photo — Larry Halverson, ParkNaturalist, Kootenay National Park

STRIP-TREES ACTA "strip-trees" act occurred this spr-

ing at Olive Lake in Kootenay NationalPark. Twenty-six subalpine fir and anunknown number of black bears tookpart in the performance.

Bears strip the bark from the trees tofeed on the inner cambium layer, pro-bably to eat the sweet inner bark likecandy or as a laxative to get them readyfor a summer diet of greens.

Whatever the reason, it is an in-teresting sight. So, the next time youdrive through Kootenay National Park,watch for the "bear bared" trees.

Larry Halverson,Park Naturalist,

Kootenay National Park

DEADLINE FORNEXT ISSUE

OCTOBER 15, 1983

Ptarmigan Tracks

rMy View from the

Johnson Street BridgeBy DAVID STIRLING

I walk across the Johnson StreetBridge in Victoria most work days and Ialways find the surrounding area goodfor birds and other things. The VictoriaHarbour lies in front of the EmpressHotel and the Parliament Buildings. Itplays host to ferry boats, sometimeswarships and in May the well-adornedyachts of the Swiftsure Race. Beyondthe Johnson Street Bridge the waterwaybecomes the Inner Harbour and Gorgewhich over the first half of its length ischoked with log booms and lined withgrim warehouses. Nevertheless, thiswaterway is great for birds. In the yearsthat I have inhabited the DogwoodBuilding on the corner of Fort andWharf Streets I have seen almost everywater bird on the checklist from red-throated loon to Cassin's auklet.

Most of the harbour birds come andgo with the tides and the fishes —especially the herring that enter the har-bour in March and swim up the gorge tospawn in Portage Inlet. At this timebirds are abundant. So, too, are otherfishermen. From dawn to dusk theGorge Bridge is sinker to fly with smallboys and pensioners seeking quietrecreation and a full frying pan.

While the pretty hooded mergansersare permanent winter residents in raftsof twenty or more, the yellow-throated,

double-crested cormorants are dailycommuters. They arrive on the harbourshortly after daybreak and spend thenext six hours diligently fishing, alter-nating with bouts of plumage drying.Dusk comes early in winter and in thefour o'clock twilight the "fierce cor-morant with wings aslant" flies out tothe safety of his rocky haunts to spendthe long night white-washing the stones.

When the fishes are in one can expectvisitations of western grebes, red-neckedgrebes, three kinds of loons, rafts ofcommon murres and marbled murrelets.At least two pairs of belted kingfishersare around and great blue herons are fre-quent.

The log booms which feed theplywood mills are well used by manykinds of birds as loafing areas. Cor-morants stand around airing their wings,great blue herons find space for solitarymeditation while gulls of several kindspreen and sleep in thick mobs. A closerscrutiny of the logs will reveal manyshorebirds — killdeers, black-belliedplovers, greater yellowlegs, black turn-stones and dunlins resting between tides.On windy days these birds concentratealong a log which is lower than theothers, providing good shelter and mak-ing them almost invisible to theobserver.

The buildings around these waterwayshave wildlife too. Warehouses are in-habited by flocks of multi-coloured feralpigeons and, I suspect, the occasional

barn owl — at least there has been a fewsightings here over the years. Lately,glaucous-winged gulls have discoveredthat the flat roofs make ideal nestingsites. The ivy clad walls of the grand oldEmpress Hotel are infested with housefinches that warble their mating songs inApril while inside a multitude of touristschatter over tea and crumpets. In thewinter dusk hosts of starlings performtheir aerial manoeuvres before settlingdown for a noisy night in the ivy. Starl-ings have few friends but I really enjoythese pre-roosting gatherings — a kindof bilogical storm.

Around the harbour edges there arestill strips and bits of ' 'wasteland''fighting a losing battle with, the city.There is always political pressure toclean up these natural sanctuaries. Goodcitizens visualize the irreverent jungles asmerely hangouts for brown bag com-mandos. The California poppies, yellowbroom, red clover, dandelions, salsify,giant perennial peavine, morningglories, thistles, pasture wormwood, ox-eye daisies and Queen Anne's lace mustbe replaced with the sombre greys andblacks of concrete and asphalt. As a sopto our gardener instinct we will "land-scape" with sterile, uniform junipers.Fortunately, the Esquimau andNanaimo Railway (the controversial E.& N.) is still there. Railway grades arenature's freeways which provide a stripof wasteland environment not only inthe city but also through the coun-tryside. Here poppies and morningglories still blow along the tracks; beetlesstill scuttle along their noisesome run-ways and spider lurk in the their silkentraps.

From the Johnson Street Bridge atsunset in November the view lookingtoward the Legislature Buildings issuperb. One of the finest views in theworld I would say — the buildings fram-ed in lights, the purple, snow cappedOlympic Mountains, the colours andshadows of the piled up clouds of ap-proaching storms. But you must walkand stop awhile to really enjoy the viewfrom the Johnson Street Bridge.

—Illustration: Giaoie PerteF

OOPS, SORRYA note of apology to Frank Sanford

whose name was left off the DirectoryPage under B.C. NATURALIST —EDITORIAL COMMITTEE. WithoutFrank's dedicated service, and his com-mittee of mailers, the bundling, labeling,stamp licking and posting of thismagazine would not be possible.

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 7

About Our ClubTHE WEST KOOTENAY

NATURALISTS

ASSOCIATIONTen years ago in November 1972, as a

result of an Adult Education Course inNatural History, a group of WestKootenay residents, under the guidanceof Bill Merilees decided there was suffi-cient interest to organize a naturalistsgroup.

Thus, the West Kootenay NaturalistsAssociation was born, with Bill as ourfirst president and from approximatelythirty members there are now well overone hundred. Many of our chartermembers are still with us.

We have grown, not only in numbers,but now play an active and importantrole in the community. We senddelegates to various meetings and havemembers on Public Advisory Commit-tees, such as the Creston WildlifeManagement Authority.

Meetings are held once a month atSelkirk College, -except during July andAugust. We are grateful to the Collegefor providing us with a meeting roomand many of the staff members haveassisted us by sharing their expertise onfield trips and at meetings.

The entertainment period of ourmeetings is often provided by the ex-cellent photographers in our club, withslide shows of flowers, birds, cluboutings and local scenery. From burglobe trotting members we have beentaken on trips to China, India,Australia, New Zealand, Europe andAlaska, to name a few.

A highlight of the year is our annualdinner in January which is well attend-ed, in spite of the occasional inclementweather. We have invited guest speakersfor this affair from the ProvincialMuseum, Parks Branch, Fish andWildlife, etc.

We have several outings a month, in-cluding flower and bird identificationsessions, hikes and rambles. Group tripsto Kananaskis, Writing on Stone, theOkanagan, Manning Park and coastalareas have been popular.

One of our important projects is help-ing to develop and maintain the Mel DeAnna trail in to the Champion Marsh,this requires several works parties a year.Two bridges have been built, markersplaced by the many varieties of flowers,trees ,and shrubs along the trail and nestboxes put up. The trail is named inhonour of one of our charter members,Mel De Anna, who died in 1978. Heknew the area well, long before its pre-sent development and recognised itsvalue to the community. A memorialplaque on a stone cairn was erected atthe head of the trail by his friends anddevoted naturalists.

The trail was used extensively byvarious groups, including the localschools, and our members assist onmany of their field trips.

For the past two years we have beenhost of a Natural History day to a groupof Senior Citizens from the University ofVictoria enrolled.in a Senior StudyCourse. Guests are entertained for a dayat the Visitor Centre at Kokanee Park,

enjoying slide shows, rambles anrefreshments.

At the request of the Parks Branch,committee was formed to apply forgovernment grant which would be useto purchase items for sale at the VisitcCentre in Kokanee Provincial Park.

Nature Guides, maps, a coloring bocdesigned by two members of the Conmittee and other items will now be fcsale at the Visitor Centre.

West Kootenay Naturalists assist*the Park Interpreters at the sales countduring the summer months.

We are currently involved in an effcto have a magnificent grove of giacedars in the Lardeau area set aside ptmanently as a park. This area mustpreserved for the enjoyment of preseand future generations.

Keeping bird nest records for the Pivincial Museum, as well as daily bisighting cards, is another activitywhich some members are involved. \e part in the winter bird count (un<

ficial) and recently have been conduct!a spring count as well. Our bird chelist includes 235 species.

The club newsletter is printed quartly and the many hours of work requiiby the competent people who hiedited this publication is sincerely ;predated by our members.

Hosting the Annual General Meetof the F.B.C.N. in 1980 was a new arewarding experience for us. (operation and enthusiasm was the ke;its success.

Association in our own club,Federation and affiliated membersindeed enriched our lives and openew doors.

We will continue to ' 'know nature.keep it worth knowing".

Hazel St

Bird ChecklistMany years of field observations and

carefully kept notes recorded bynaturalists, wardens and park visitors,have resulted in a bird checklist forKootenay National Park.

The list was compiled from sightingsdating back as far as 1937, when J.Munro and McTaggart Cowan recorded79 different birds within Kootenay Na-tional Park's Boundaries. By 1974, thechecklist had grown to 152 species.Now, 179 birds are included; 59 ofwhich are definitely known to breed inthe park. The list also includes 11 specieswhich have not been positively iden-tified, and so are treated as hypothetical.

The checklist provides information ona seasonal status, as well as relativeabundance for each bird. The most com-mon bird seen in Kootenay NationalPark is the Raven, while the rarest is aPage 8 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

Longtailed Jaeger, only recorded once.The newest addition, the Prairie Falcon,was recently seen soaring over themeadows at Kootenay Crossing.

A new revised bird checklist is nowavailable.

Anyone wishing a free copy can re-quest one by writing Kootenay NationalPark, Box 220, Radium Hot Springs,B.C. VGA 1MO.

Larry HalversonPark Naturalist

Kootenay National Park

TREKKERS NOTENepal Trekking withDr. Stephen Bezruchka, doctor of 1982Canadian Everest Expedition

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ARE BIRD WATCHERS"LITTLE OLD LADIESIN TENNIS SHOES*'?

A recent study conducted by Dr.Stephen Kellert from Yale University forthe U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service on ac-tivities of Americans towards animalshas revealed some interesting statistics.In a national sample of Americans an ex-traordinary 25% said they had birdwat-ched in the past two years but surprising-ly only 4% used a field guide. That sug-gests that either there a lot of hot-shotbirders out there or that only a smallpercentage of the population avidly pur-sue the sport. To find out how compe-tent the birders were Kellert asked howmany species each could identify. Only3.1% could identify more than 40species (a mere 0.5% more than 100species) and Kellert defined them ascommitted birders.

"Committed birders*' averaged 42years old and 74% were male. The groupwas highly educated, significantly higherthan non-birders and nearly all other

—^groups that partake in wildlife activities.T~ p Additionally, the average birdwatcher

* was a high income earner and not sur-prisingly, held a professional ,managerial, or executive job. Lastly,

birdwatchers had the highest knowledgeof animals of any social demographicand activity group in the study.

Rob Butler,Canadian Wildlife Services

BURNING FORBETTER FORESTS

Victoria, B.C. — A forester regardsfire in the same way a doctor looks onstrong medicine — taken as prescribed itcan cure; taken in excess it can kill.

"Prescribed burning" is an invaluabletool of modern forest and wildlifemanagement.

Burning gets rid of logging debris, apotential fire hazard. Broadcast-burninga site soon after it is logged is an effec-tive way of preparing the area for a newcrop of seedlings.

Burning can also keep down weedsand other competing vegetation longenough to let tree seedlings get a goodstart, thereby reducing the need forchemical herbicides.

Various burning techniques are usedto control insect and disease infesta-tions, which together destroy five timesas much timber every year as is consum-ed by wildfire.

Fire is also used to improve habitat forwildlife and grazing for cattle. Prescrib-ed burning is a key component in theMinistry of Environment's wildlifeenhancement programs and in theMinistry of Forests' range managementprogram.

The two ministries often worktogether, designing the prescriptions tomeet more than one objective. The sameburn might reduce a fire hazard by get-ting rid of logging debris, prepare a sitefor planting, improve forage forwildlife, open an area for recreationaluse and help control forest pests.

A new, half-hour film entitled "Blackand Green" examines the benevolentrole played by fire in improving forests,rangeland and wildlife habitat. The film,jointly sponsored by the Ministries ofForests and Environment. Copies of thefilm are available from some Districtand Regional offices of both Ministriesand are available in 16mm film orcassette versions.

Ed. note: Clubs would be advised toshow the film at their meetings — it is in-teresting and very well done.

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 9

The B.C. Soil Degradation WorkshopFeb. 17 and 18, 1983, Harrison Hotsprings, B.C.

Dr. L. Lavkulick; Head, Soil Science Dept. U.B.C. has summarized the proceedings forthe B.C. Naturalist

Soil degradation is a serious and com-plex problem, not only in British Colum-bia and Canada, but, indeed, the world.As society continues to demand morefrom the soil resource, man continues toapply new technology to manipulate thesoil to produce more. Much of the ap-plied new technology is for short termeconomic gain and much of the effectsof this new technology is littleunderstood as to its long term effects onthe soil. The fact that soil and landdegradation is acknowledged to beserious is attested to by the number ofpeople attending this workshop.

During the morning session theworkshop attendees had the opportunityto obtain three views. First, of soildegradation across Canada, second,land degradation in British Columbia byforest practices and, thi rd , byagricultural activities.

a. Dr. Coote summarized the soildegradation problem across Canada. Inhis presentation he documented the ef-fects of erosion by wind and water, com-paction, loss of organic matter and fer-tility, acidification and salinization. Dr.Coote presented statistics on the loss ofproductivity resulting from soil degrada-tion. This degradation is a real economicburden to the people of Canada, for notonly does Canada lose products forhome consumption and trade, butdirectly and indirectly the people ofCanada are paying for reclamation pro-jects. He gave us a perspective as towhere we are going if we continue ourcurrent agricultural practices.

There is a dilemma! Economics dic-tate that we must increase productivityof the land. As an example, we add fer-tilizer as one management tool to in-crease production; this results in poten-tial soil acidification which in turn mustbe remedied as this decreases productivi-ty and affects micro-nutrient im-balances.

b. Mr. Young acknowledged that, as aresult of forestry practices, soil degrada-tion is occurring in the province ofBritish Columbia. He illustrated the'ef-fects of construction of roads for timberharvesting, methods of logging and con-struction of landings and the resultanterosion and soil compaction. Mr. Youngemphasized that British Columbia needsevery hectare of land, especially highquality land. Contrary to popular belief,high quality land for forestry is limited.High quality land in British Columbia isbeing degradated by forest operationsPage 10 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

but, more seriously, land is being lost toagriculture and urban settlements. TheMinistry of Forests, as well as the in-dustry, are taking positive steps such asscarification, new methods of logging,prescribed burning and roadmaintenance to minimize land degrada-tion effects.

c. Dr. MacEacheron, addressing soildegradation as a result of agriculturalpractices, gave examples of soil erosionin the Peace River region, compactionand the need for proper drainage inother parts of British Columbia andacidification of soils in the Okanagan.He indicated clearly that soil degrada-tion is of low priority for governments.The problems of soil degradation will in-tensify as we expect more from the land.He asked a pertinent question — "Howmuch degradation can we tolerate"? Heurged soil scientists to take amultidisciplinary approach to look atthe problem of soil degradation. Wemust look at the "through-put" as wellas the "capital-stock" — the soilresource. Dr. MacEacheron suggestedthe use of systems approaches andsimulation modelling in attempts tosolve soil degradation problems. He alsourged that social and economic inputsare needed in order for people, ingeneral, to recognize the seriousness ofthe problems of soil degradation.

What I perceived from the threespeakers was that soil and land degrada-tion are real and recognized, that soilscientists must look at the entire soilresource, not only its inherent produc-tivity but also its allocation to varioususes. We must also do a better job ofcommunicating our concerns with ourpublic and our allied disciplines. Wemust put forth legitimate concerns interms of social and economic conse-quences.

The rest of the workshop addressedmore specific kinds of soil degradationoccurring in British Columbia.

d. Messrs, van Vliet and Novakoutlined the principles of wind andwater erosion. They concluded thatthere was probably little serious winderosion occurring in British Columbia.There was more concern expressedabout water erosion, particularly in theLower Fraser Valley and in the PeaceRiver region. These latter two areas aremost susceptible to water erosion. Thereis insufficient data for assessment ofboth wind and water erosion.

e. Dr. Hoyt informed the group thatwe do have acid rain in British Columbiaand it is becoming more acid. NormalpH of rain is 5.7, Vancouver's rain has apH of around 4.9. Coupled withnitrogen fertilization, especially withsoils of low cation exchange capacity,acid rain is causing problems withregards to aluminum and manganesetoxicities. Dr. Hoyt also pointed out thatfrom 1967 to 1978 there has been an in-crease in acidity in soils of the province.

f. Messrs. Keng and Lowe addressedthe issue of loss of organic matter andthe apparent shifts in the quality oforganic matter. Declines in organic mat-ter content as a result of cultivation alsodecreases soil fertility, cation exchangecapacity, water holding capacity andwater stable aggregates. Monoculture,without organic matter additions, pro-motes organic matter degradation.

g. Dr. J. de Vries discussed soil com-paction throughout the various regionsof the province. He indicated that soilcompaction is serious in most parts ofBritish Columbia, with the exception ofthe Okanagan. Drainage and cultivationof soil at the right water content doesmuch to prevent compaction. Byminimizing compaction, roots of cropscan exploit the soil for needed nutrition.Dr. de Vries stressed that the key togood soil physical conditions is watermanagement.

h. On the topic of subsidence oforganic soils, Mr. G. Wood indicatedthat excessive drainage can cause sub-sidence of up to 2 to 3 contimetres peryear. Subsidence not only is a loss ofvaluable organic matter, but also causesfailures of drainage systems. Mr. Woodindicated that the process is littleunderstood and that there are conflic-ting results in the literature regardingmanagement practices and their effectson subsidence.

i. Water management, which had beentouched upon by Messrs, de Vries andWood, was expanded by Mr. M.Driehuzen. Water management is im-portant at regional and local levels aswell as on site to prevent soil degrada-tion by many activities. Regional watermanagement is often not seen as an im-portant issue but without regional watermanagement farm drainage systems areineffective. Water management is im-portant for erosion control, preventionof compaction and to halt acceleratedsubsidence of organic soils.

r

r

j. Mr. Miller stated that large areas areaffected by» linear1 developments inBritish Columbia. The most serious pro-blems he identified were: soil' erosion:along right-of-ways, subsidence.of areasof permafrost, cut-slope induced massmovements and elevated soiltemperatures. Mr. Miller stressed the im-portance of planning projects and theearly identification of sensitive areas. ,

k. Land clearing also leads, to soildegradation. Mr. Kline identified majorproblems in the Central Interior. Theuse of heavy equipment and the affectsof wind-rows on soil productivity werehighlighted. Also, the time, of year thatclearing takes place should be matchedto soil conditions. Many of the effects ofland, clearing have long term implica-tions for soil productivity and manage-ment.

1. Dr. T. M. Ballard addressed theissues of degradation effects of forestharvesting and site preparation. Hestated that some "degradation" effectsmay be beneficial, e.g. mixing of soilorganic matter with mineral soil orprescribed burning tb release somenutrient capital in overly thick forestfloors. He stressed that timing of opera-tion such as winter logging may decreasesoil degradation. Dn Ballard alsohighlighted the importance of planningfor site specific operations to minimizeimpact and to identify sensitive areas,both of which are often difficult toquantify before hand.

m. With regards to access road related -degradation problems in forestry, Mr.Carr also stressed the importance ofplanning the access road locations.There is no question that access roadslead to mass wasting. It is important tomaintain most of the original water waysto prevent water build-up along road-ways. - .

n. Dr. Ryder brought to the: workshop's attention the importance ofthe time element in land degradation by

:mass movements. Mass movements arenatural phenomena and have been on-going since the Pleistocene. What is im-portant to consider are the effects ofpoor planning and management in sen-sitive areas. Also, management can ac-celerate mass movements.

0. Who pays? Do we need legislation?These were the two main themesdeveloped by Mr. Bertrand as he ad-dressed the topic of "towards soil con-servation in British Columbia." Mr.Bertrand stated that the public must payfor soil conservation as the farmingcommunity is unable to. Further, theneed for legislation was expressed to en-sure soil conservation.

The major themes that weredeveloped by the speakers were:

1. Soil degradation is a serious pro-blem in British Columbia as it is inCanada and many parts of the world.

2. Soil degradation occurs inagriculture, forestry, in lineardevelopments and in all activities whichmay be considered "managed" systems.

3. Planning projects before initiationand a holistic approach to problems withsystems analysis and simulation modell-ing would possibly alleviate many poten-tial degradation problems.

4. Water management is a key to soilmanagement.

5. Better communication, technicaland public, is essential.

PERSPECTIVEThe issues and concerns presented at

this workshop by the various speakers

are real. Many of the problems shouldnot be problems as we have thetechnology and know-how not to causethese soil degradation problems. We arenot looking at the soil resourceholistically and as a system, nor are weeffectively communicating with ourpublic in terms of social and economiclosses caused by soil degradation overthe long term.

I think we have to look at the total soilresource of the province and not con-tinue the narrow view of this isagricultural land and this is forest landand so on. As we heard today, many ofthe problems facing the agricultural landbase also affect the forest land base vizerosion, alienation, compaction, etc. Weurgently need a soil conservation planfor all of our soil resource and we needto document and attempt to quantify thesocial and economic costs if we do not.If we develop policies and legislation forone sector, e.g. agriculture, we simplyshift the problems to other sectors of oureconomy that require a land base. Pro-ducers have to produce in our system ofgovernment. Documentation of pro-blems will not help them produce. As Istated earlier, many of the examples ofsoil degradation we have seen and heardabout during this workshop should notbe occurring as we have the knowledgeand the technology to prevent many ofthese problems. We do need coopera-tion, coordination and communicationto alleviate our soil degradation pro-blems. As van Bavel stated in a 1977 arti-cle in the magazine "Science", we aresolving our problems by substituting oilfor soil. I believe the same applies tomany of our soil degradation problems.We know that certain practices causedegradation and we hope "oil" will curethe problem.

ANIMAL RABIESBRITISH COLUMBIA,1968-1982

Results of the direct fluorescent an-tibody (DFA) test for rabies done onanimals submitted since 1968 from theprovince to the Animal DiseasesResearch Unit, Agriculture Canada,Lethbridge, Alberta were reviewed.

the data indicated an endemic level ofrabies in bats, with occasional flurries oftesting for all other species. In BritishColumbia, bats have consistently pro-vided a .positive source of rabies infec-,tion (cumulative average since 1968 of10%). Dogs continues to be the nextmost common, species sacrificed forlaboratory analysis, although in this

F time period, np positives were recorded,In fact, the only pther .terrestrial specieswith a positive DFA test, for rabies was a

domestic Siamese cat in the Port Alberniarea in 1969. Two (2) human contactswere involved in that case and the sourceof the cat's infection was presumed to becontact with a rabid bat. Since thedevelopment of the DFA test in the late1960s, the laboratory in Lethbridge hasshown excellent correlations (98.93%)with mouse inoculation tests.

In view of these observations, pre-exposure rabies prophylaxis is not in-dicated in British Columbia except in ex-ceptional circumstances. Furthermore,this data highlights the importance ofindividuals reporting the species and thelocation of the animal submitted. Onlyindividuals exposed to indigenous bats,or animals outside the province need beconsidered for post-exposure vaccine.

When specimens are available forlaboratory testing, post-exposure rabiesvaccine is indicated only in cases with

positive DFA results. In the past 2 years,with the availability of human diploidcell rabies vaccine, the amount of post-exposure vaccine utilization has remain-ed stable. There has been some increasein the pre-exposure groups, but thisprincipally represents individuals travell-ing to areas of the world where rabies isa risk in their work.

SOURCE: Wayne A. Everett, MD,Field Epidemiologist (LCDC), Divisionof Epidemiology, British ColumbiaMinistry of Health, Vancouver(reported in Disease Surveillance, Vol.3, No. 12, 1982, published by the Divi-sion of Epidemiology, Preventive Ser-vices, British Columbia Ministry ofHealth).

Canada DiseasesWeekly Report

January 15, 1983Health & Welfare Canada

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 11

AGM ReportAttending an Annual General Meeting

of the F.B.C.N. for the first time, I wasimpressed with two things in particular— (1) the excellent arrangements provid-ed by the Sechelt Marsh ProtectiveSociety as Host Club under the leader-ship of Vince Bracewell; and (2) thesupport and encouragement given to ourFederation by others who share our con-cern for preserving our living space in ahealthy and attractive condition. SeveralProvincial Government Ministries wererepresented, as well as a number oforganizations with objectives related tonon-destructive outdoor activities.

There were lively discussions on someof the Resolutions which werepresented, although the majority ofthem were readily given favourablevotes. It does seem to me, however, thatfor voting purposes there should besome control over how many membersfrom any one Club are entitled to par-ticipate.

The Federation is fortunate in having"quality" people on its Executive, andthe contribution made by TreasurerNatalie Minunzie and RecordingSecretary Marjorie Smith is noteworthy.Congratulations to Jude Grass on herelection as President to succeed DickStace-Smith.

Sam JohnstonChilliwBck FieldNaturalists Club

Bunny Ramsden and Wilma Robinsonof the Alouette Field Naturalists Clubexamine the Elton Anderson Trophy, aWolverine, executed for the F.B.C.N.by Arnold Mlkelson, noted carver fromWhite Rock, B.C. The 1982-83 Award,announced at the Annual GeneralMeeting at Sechelt in May, was made toNorm Purssell of the Vancouver NaturalHistory Society.

Public Service Award presented to Tony Eberts (right), Outdoor Editor, VancouverProvince, president Dick Stace-Smith and incoming president Jude Grass.

Photos by Al Grass

Skagit CelebrationThe Federation of B.C. Naturalists

has for many years supported the RossCommittee (Run Out Skagit Spoilers).Norm Purssell and Bert Brink haveacted as alternates on the Ross Commit-tee for over 12 years. On Sunday, July24, both attended a celebration spon-sored by the R.O.S.S. committee in theSkagit Valley as representatives of theFederation,

The celebration was in recognition ofthe decision by the International JointCommission, the Governments ofCanada and British Columbia, and thePage 12 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

Seattle Light & Power Company andstate of Washington and the U.S.A. todedicate the area as a conservancy. Thearrangement allows for the sale of powerto the State of Washington from otherhydro power sources in B.C., particular-ly from the Pend Oreille River but savesthe B.C. Skagit Valley from furtherflooding by the Ross Dam. A certainpercentage of revenues is to provide forthe maintenance of natural features andis to be shared by the conservancy areason both sides of the internationalborder.

The long struggle to conserve theSkagit has engaged many people from

both British Columbia and WashingtonState — too many to list in this note.Sufficient to say that their efforts wereeminently worthwhile for those who arealive now, but the greatest benefits willbe enjoyed when the populations ofB.C. and Washington are much largerthan they are today. Regrettably becauseof late mailing the Hon. StephenRogers, then B.C. Minister of Environ-ment who steered the agreement throughcabinet could not at tend the"ceremony" nor could Ben Marr, Depu-ty Minister, who has worked so hard onthe agreement with much patience overmany years. Our regrets and thanks.

Endangered Wild Flowers of B.C.

Our next endangered "Dicot" is theBitter root or Sand Rose — Lewisiarediviva — a member of the Purslanefamily (Portitlacaceae), This is a smallfamily of low, succulent herbs. We havefive genera in B.C. of which the SpringBeauty — Claytonia lanceolata — isfamiliar to all of us since it is one of ourfavourite and earliest spring flowers. Alltoo familiar to gardeners is Portulacaoleracea, a sprawling fleshy weed withsmall yellow flowers. This species,Tropical in origin, was introduced toEuropean cultivation as a salad plantand is now a well established weed overhere (and you can add it to your salad ifyou like!). The many coloured "SunPlant" of the garden, Portulaca gran-diflora, hails from Brazil. It's showyflowers have a distinct familyresemblance to those of the Bitter root.

Lewisia rediviva Pursh is a plant ofthe sagebrush country typical of the dryinterior of B.C. where it is found only inthe driest parts — especially in theThompson-Okanagan and the southernpart of the East Kootenay Valley(N.J.T.). Here, in B.C., is the northern

of its range which extendssouthwards east of the Cascades throughWashington and Oregon and intoCalifornia, and east into Montana, Col-orado and Arizona. It is the state flowerof Montana where it is particularlyabundant, giving its name to the Bitterroot River and Bitter root Valley, and tothe Bitter root Mountains just over inIdaho. Along with 'Camas' it probablyhelped to feed the Lewis and Clark ex-pedition. In 1 806 Captain Lewis broughtback a pressed specimen of the floweringplant from West Montana and gave it tothe British botanist Frederick Pursh,who named it Levfisia in honour of theexplorer. Later, when Pursh noticed thatthe dried pressed specimen showed signsof life, he planted it and, when it pro-ceeded at once to grown, he gave it thespecific name of rediviva — "restored tolife". (L.C.)

It is likely that on his outward journeyLewis was familiar only with the roots ofLewisia as an item of Indian food(spitlum). The. Indians dig the root inearly spring when they can be located bythe tufts of leaves. At this time the rootsare tender and their store of starch hasnot been drawn upon to produce flowers

—^and seeds. The stiff, fleshy leaves,W. Almost round in section, push through

i'cm, . ̂

the stony soil after the rains of late sum-mer and proceed to replenish the foodreserves for the following season. They

survive the winter but soon wither in spr-ing so that by the time the flowers ap-pear they have all but disappeared(though in the photography by LewisClark they are still clearly present).Lewis collected the flowering plant onhis return journey and may not haverealized its connection with "spitlum".

The leaves — 2.5-3 cm. long — arisefrom a fleshy root crown which latergives rise to two to five or more flowerstems about 5 cm. long. Each stem endsin a single long, pointed bud, opening toa flower up to 5 cm. or more across.

The flowers vary in detail as to colour,size and number of floral parts. Thesepals vary in number from 5-9, thepetals from 12-18 and from 18-35 mm inlength. (H.&C.) The petals vary fromwhite through various shades of pink todeep rose. The flowers close at night andin dull weather, but they open almostimmediately in bright sunshine. So afeatureless patch of ground can sudden-ly become spangled "with 'water-lily'blossoms as if by magic when the hotsun breaks through". (L.C.) At the cen-tre of the 'water-lily' blossom is a whiteovary and style, the latter cleft intoseveral long stigmas, and numerousstamens with small, bright yellow toorange-yellow anthers. These exquisiteblossoms are beautifully 'set-off by thedark soil from which they spring — as Ihave tried to indicate in my drawing.

The sepals enclosing the buds are palesatiny-brown tinged with green. Abouthalf-way along the flower stalk is awhorl of narrow papery bracts.

Bitter root is well adapted to its dryhabitat. It conserves moisture by pro-ducing its leaves late in the season afterthe heat of summer has subsided andallows them to wither away before theheat of the following summer returns. Itflowers and sets seed quickly and thencompletely dies down to disappearaltogether — but through the hot dryseason lives on in its underground crownand root in a state of suspended anima-tion until the late summer rains bringforth its leaves again. Meanwhile eachseed capsule has broken open — the topcomes off like a little cap — to liberate6-20 brown, round and shiny seeds.

Nancy Turner gives a good descrip-tion of the digging and preparation ofthe root. The fleshy roots are rolled bet-ween the hands or on a rock to loosen theskin which can then be pulled off in onepiece. Next season's leaves and flowersare present in the crown as a small red-orange embryo and this "heart" isalways removed because, along with theskin, it is extremely bitter and, if left,would make the whole root too bitter toeat. The peeled, "dehearted" roots canbe eaten fresh after baking or boiling fora short time, or strung on pointed sticksand dried for later use. Dried roots areboiled or steamed in earth pits. Theroots are almost always eaten mixed withother foods, particularly Saskatoon ber-ries, fresh or dried. Nancy Turner gives amodern recipe for bitter root puddingand tells us that the roots can also bebaked in fruit cakes, since, when proper-ly prepared, they are mild and pleasantin flavour, though still slightly bitter tothe European palate." In the southernInterior of B.C. bitter root was the mostimportant edible root to the Okanagan,Upper Thompson and Kootenay Indiansand a major item of commerce between"have" and "have not"tribes. It was soimportant to the Okanagans that theharvest of the first better roots wasmarked by a special spring ceremonyand, even today, people travel manymiles to get it. (N.J.T.)

Bitter root is now endangered becauseof over grazing and loss of habitat. It isprobably being smothered in some areasby the dense growth of diffuseknapweed which now covers so much ofour dry interior, completely altering theappearance of the one bunch-grasscovered hills. And now that subdivisionsare springing up all over these same hillsto leave — so the theory goes! — thealluvial bottom-lands for agriculture,

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 13

:

human encroachment still further en-dangers this beautiful plant. So, shouldyou feel disposed to try Nancy Turner'sbitter root pudding recipe, please resistthe temptation and leave the plants, asshe says, as "food for the soul". Andclubs with Bitter root still abundant intheir areas should • be looking out forfuture ecoreserves in which the plant canbe protected and its habitat preserved.Otherwise — "look your last on allthings lovely : "!

Two other species of Lewisia occur inB.C...L, columbiana and L. pygmaea,Columbian Lewisia is not restricted tothe Columbia R. Valley as its namewould imply but is also found in thehighest part of Vancouver Island (L.C.)Its flowers are similar to the Bitter rootbut smaller (2.5-3 cm across) and haveonly two sepals and fewer petals. Theseattractive, blossoms arise several to astem from 10-25 cm long, and at thebase of the stem is a rosette of succulentleaves. It is often very abundant locally.

Lewisia pygmaea, or Dwarf Lewisia,is probably commoner than the jecordssuggest because this "tiny alpine'' can soeasily be overlooked. Lewis Clark says itis found in high mountain slopes fromVancouver Island through mainlandB.C. to Alaska. The white, sometimes

C-

pjiik, flowers are only 12 mm across andtheir stem is so short that they nestleamong the7 tuft of leaves which are likethose of the Bitter root in miniature. Ihave found this little plant at 8000 feeton Plateau Mt. in the Eastern Rockiesand on Lightning Peak and Big WhiteMt. in the Okanagan highlands. ThePlateau Mt. specimens have flowers of avivid deep pink while those of theOkanagan were white with pink veins.The tiny leaf tufts would be very dif-ficult to 'spot' in the absence of flowers.

Both these species have relatively largefleshy roots and were eaten occasionallyby the Thompsons and possibly by otherInterior groups (N.J.T.). The roots of L.pygmaea were eaten by the Blackfoot ofAlberta but could never have been of

any real importance as a food source.Moveover the root of neither species isas well liked as that of the Bitter root.ILLUSTRATIONS (A & B to s;

scale)A — Leaves of Lewisia rediviva grow-:

ing in stony soil.B — Group of flowering plants.C — Lewisia pygmaea.

REFERENCES1. L.C. — Lewis Clark, Wildflovters ofBritish Columbia.2. Craighead, Craighead and Davis, AField Guide to Rocky Mountain,Wildflowers. ,3. Flora of Southern British Columbiaby Henry (1915).4. H. & C. Hitchcock and Conquist,Flora of the Pacific Northwest.5. RJ,T. — Nancy J. Turner, FoodPlants of British Columbia Indians Part2/Interior Peoples, B.C. ProvincialMuseum Handbook No. 36.

Joan E. Heriot13422 Westside Road

Vernon, B.C.V1B 1\

P.S, To previous article on Camassialeichlinii. In early June last I saw C,leichlinii and C. quamash in full flowertogether on the outskirts of Victoria.

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THE TOUR PROVIDES:- Transportation to a.nd from Australia

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A SAMPLE OF PARKS TO BE VISITEDAND THEIR WILDLIFE

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Cay • .- MICHAELMAS CAY - Sooty and Noddy Terns-CRATER NATIONAL PARK - Brush Turkey,Pitta, Scrubfowl, White tailed .Kingfisher,Purple, crowned Fruit Pigeon

- AYERS ROCK - Climb the rock,birdwatching

-MacDONNEL RANGE - STANDLY CHASMAND SIMPSON GAP NATIONAL PARK -White Faced Heron, Grey Teal, Fork TailedKite,.Pink Cockatoo and a variety of parrots

-LITTLE DESERT NATIONAL PARK - Emu,Mallee Ring-necked Parrot and Heathwren,Purple Gaped, Yellow Plumed and otherHoneyeaters

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Page 14 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

New Heronry at Revelstoke

PMost naturalists would consider theeat Blue Heron to be an easily observ-

ed bird, but circumstances can make thediscovery of nesting sites a difficult mat-ter. On an early April canoe trip downthe Columbia River in 1980 our enjoy-ment of the spring sunshine was in-terupted by a heron's harsh croak as itsailed past on ponderous wingbeats. Wefollowed its progress with binoculars un-til it landed in a stand of conifers justbefore disappearing from view. After 3seasons of intermittent searching andspeculation only 2 km of paddling re-mained before the location of theRevelstoke heronry was revealed.

When I moved to Revelstoke in 1977 itsoon became obvious that many herons

hemlock and cedar. Several hundredmeters of 'dead reckoning' (wanderingaround aimlessly) brought us to a smallstand of hemlock veterans spared byfires of more than 80 years ago. Wecaught glimpses of excited herons flyingabove the canopy and finally spotted anest in the topmost branches of one ofthe hemlock dominants.

A better look at the heronry has sincebeen provided by visiting the site with ahelicopter on or about the 21st of Aprilin each year since 1980 in conjunctionwith a spring migration survey for water-fowl in the area. There were 12 activenests surrounding a gigantic Osprey nestin one of the center trees in 1980. On 8August I visited the heronry and saw

used the wetland areas along the Colum-bia River and the north end of the Ar-row Lakes Reservoir near the municipalairport. A heronry was indicated by thesudden appearance of juveniles inAugust. The only problem was that Ihad no idea where these birds camefrom, and neither did anybody else Italked to.

During the next 2 years it became ap-parent that the heronry must besomewhere on the west side of the reser-voir about 3 km south of the airport.Birds trading back and forth invariablydisappeared against a mountainside ofunbroken interior wetbelt forest. Mysuspicions could not be confirmed fromthe eastern shore as I had no boat or

tting scope until after the young-ruis had left the nest in 1979.-^-

We beached our canoe and scrambledup a cutbank into second-growth

that 2 heron nests were still active, withadults feeding 4 and 3 nearly fledgedjuveniles. The Osprey nest couidb't beobserved from the ground.

The 1981 helicopter visit showed theOspreys missing as the top of their nesttree had fallen — a new nest was built onthe reservoir shoreline that year about3QO m from the heronry. There were 17active nests and one heron stood up toreveal 4 eggs. A second visit on 5 Juneshowed that all 17 nests containedyoung, with a total of 44 juveniles.

Severe snowfalls during the 81-82winter knocked several of the nestsdown, leaving only 10 nests present onthe 21st of April. The adults flushedfrom the nests and revealed 6 nests with2 eggs and 2 with 1. It may be thatnesting was delayed in 1982 as Maycounts from the eastern shore with aspotting scope showed as many as 25adults at the heronry.

More detailed information has beendifficult to obtain because of poor ac-cess and the dense second-growth con-ifer canopy under the nesting trees. Eventhe use of tree-climbing equipment failsto provide a good look at any of thenests and I hesitate to climb higher forfear of disturbing the hersons or break-ing the rotted tops of the hemlock sup-port trees.

It is always interesting to discover a'new' nesting site, particularly one of thenorthernmost colonies of the Great BlueHeron in B.C. The Revelstoke heronrywas particularly satisfying as at the timeI had not previously seen the Great BlueHeron at a nesting site.

Richard L. BonarBox 2624

Revelstoke, B.C.VOE2SO

WILDLIFEPHOTOGRAPHY

AWARD PROGRAMDucks Unlimited Canada

Duck Unlimited Canada's WildlifePhotography Award Program is design-ed to increase the public's awareness ofthe importance of wetland conservationby encouraging Canadian photo-graphers to depict the value of Canada'smarshes as wildlife habitat, recreationalsites and sources of water foragricultural and domestic use.

Canadian photographers — profes-sionals and amateurs — are invited tosubmit suitable transparencies in threecategories:

Waterfowl Species: Photographs inwhich the birds themselves constitute themajor element within the photographeither as individual specimens or inflocks.

Marshland Wildlife: Photographswhich depict the many species(shorebirds, song birds, mammals, in-sects, plants etc.) that depend onwetland habitat for their survival.

Marshland Values: Photographswhich illustrate the role marshes play inmaintaining the quality of our environ-ment by providing recreational, socialand and economic benefits to the com-munities and individuals who livearound them.

For an entry form write to:DU Canada WildlifePhotography Awards1190 Waverley Street,Winnipeg, Manitoba R3T 2E2

Deadlines for submissions isNovember 30, 1983.

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 15

Coyote and Dog Predation on Sheep

^

Problem animal control in BritishColumbia has been and will continue tobe a subject of considerable concern fornaturalists.

Dr. David Shackleton and KnutAtkinson of the Animal Science Depart-ment of the University of B.C. recentlyhave published the results of coyote anddog predation on sheep in the LowerFraser Valley. An abbreviated statementof their report, prepared by Dr. S.Mason of the B.C. Ministry ofAgriculture, is given; it is worthy of the"attention of naturalists in B.C. for itrepresents the kind of study theF.B.C.N. has been asking for by discus-sion and resolution at annual generalmeetings for some years.

Between 1979 and 1981, a study ofcoyote and dog predation on sheep inthe Fraser Valley was conducted by KnutAtkinson working with Dr. DavidShackleton at U.B.C.1

The objectives were:1. to determine the extent of losses to

coyotes and dogs by sheep producers inthe Fraser Valley.

2. .to study the behaviour of coyotesin association with predation patterns.

3. to assess the effects of differenthusbandry methods on predator losses.

4. to recommend practical and effec-tive methods for minimizing losses dueto predation.

Predator LossesTable 1 shows losses due to predators

hi relation to total losses on the 112farms surveyed in this study. Clearly,combined losses due to coyotes and dogsranked as one of the most significantsources of mortality, with coyote lossesexceeding dog losses by about two andone-half times.

Ewes LambsTotal numbers in survey 6762 8772Total deaths due to all causes 297 891Loss factors as % of total deaths

Lambing 20.5 51.4Disease & old age - 32.7 6,6Coyotes 28.0 19.9Dogs 12.1 7.1Accident 6.7 4.6Unknown 0 10.4

Table 1: Summary of losses experiencedby sheep farmers sampled betweenJanuary, 1979 and September, 1981 inthe Lower Fraser Valley.

Predator losses were not equallydistributed among the producerssurveyed. In fact 75% had experiencednone at all. Of the farms which did suf-fer losses, predation was often recur-rent. The suggestion was made thatlosses may have been related to either:Page 16 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

a) the behaviour or number of dogsand coyotes in their vicinities.

b) management factors on the farmsthemselves.Coyote Behaviour

Behaviour and range was studied byattaching radio collars to thirteencoyotes. This enabled the investigatorsto demonstrate that coyote ranges variedsignificantly between individuals. Someremained resident with home ranges assmall as 1.3 square kilometers. At theother extreme, one very transient animalhad a range of 220 square kilometers.Clearly, proximity to a den may have lit-tle to do with losses by a particular farm.Analysis of activity patterns indicatedpeaks around dawn and dusk and oftenthroughout the night with some seasonalvariation.

Including the coyotes on which collarswere installed, almost 200 were trappedand examined. Among these were 11suspected coydogs (coyote x dog cross).By all accepted criteria, their status ashybrids was rejected — they werecoyotes.

The coyote breeding season begins inDecember with courtship and pair for-mation, breeding taking place betweenJanuary and April. Pups are born in lit-ters of one to nine, two months afterbreeding. There appeared little relation-ship between livestock predation andstage of the reproductive cycle.

Examination of scats (fecal material)is the accepted method of determiningfood habits in wildlife. The bulk (69%)of the diet of coyotes in the FraserValley is composed" of rodents such asmoles and mice. Rabbits, birds, wildmammals (such as deer) and domesticlivestock (including poultry) make upthe remainder in winter and spring. Theproportions of these are reduced in sum-mer and fall hi favour of fruit andvegetation. Overall, domestic livestockaccounted for slightly less than 4% ofthe total diet.Farms, Husbandry and Predation

Several management factors were ex-amined in relation to their effects onpredator losses. Of these, maintenanceof adequate fencing, night confinementin a predator-proof area, bells on sheep,presence of working dogs and in par-ticular proper disposal of carcassesreduced predation significantly.

Type and condition of fencing was ex-amined in some depth and several in-teresting observations were made.Fences were classified as follows:

1. board fence2. "standard" sheep fence: typically

39 inch hog (page) wire topped with two

strands of barbed or 48" page wire.3. barbed wire: usually 4 or 5 strands.'4. electric; with a low-impedance

energizer.5. incomplete: applying to fences

which did not completely enclose a pro-perty or where major gaps were present.

Not surprisingly, those fences whichpresented the least barrier to predators(board or incomplete) were associatedwith the highest losses. Comparinglosses to fencing costs showed an inverserelationship. The more expensive fences(board and "standard") were less effec-tive than the least expensive (electric).

A fortuitous experience on one farmproved the worth of electric fencing.

Prior to erection of the fence, thefarm suffered consistent sheep losses topredators. The fence was built and forfour months, no losses were sustaineduntil a fire in an outbuilding destroyedthe fence energizer. Although theoriginal fence had not been removed,during the months that the electric fencewas not in operation, the farm again sus-tained losses to coyotes. Finally, theenergizer was replaced, and no furtherlosses were experienced.Control

There are currently a number omethods available which aim to redualivestock losses to dogs and coyotes.Among those considered in the studywere:

1. Shooting obviously depends for itssuccess upon the shooter and thepredator coming into contact, and fordogs this means that they must be in theact of harassing livestock before theycan be legally shot.2

The activity patterns of the coyotes inthis study, and others, is such that theywould not be seen except by the most ar-dent shooter. The costs and manpowerinvolved in an extensive and effectivehunting program would be very high.

2. Trapping has been applied in theValley and is still in effect, but on alimited scale and in response to problemanimals. Again the problem of widescaletrapping efforts is the costs and man-power requirements. Trapping is becom-ing increasingly unpopular with thegeneral public as shown by the latestlimitations of trapping methods in theProvince.

3. Deterrents such as emetics havebeen shown to have only limited andtemporary success in the various fieldtrials. They are particularly limited intheir effectiveness where resident^coyotes are few because new animals -coming into or moving through an areahave to be constantly "trained" to avoid

attacking or feeding on livestock. Asshown by the radio-collar studies in thistrial, a significant number of coyotes are

•^transients.f l The above methods of shooting, trap-' ping and deterrents, also all suffer from

the same problems: there are alwayscoyotes present, there will always besignificant losses and there will alwaysbe ever increasing costs,

4. Poisoning, when applied extensive-ly has shown a degree of effectivenessagainst predators. But it must be appliedextensively to be fully effective, andtherein lies the problem for the LowerFraser Valley. Unlike the areas in whichpoisons were successfully applied, theLower Fraser Valley is clearly notrangeland; it is a mixed farming and ur-ban area with urbanization growingsteadily. This brings in the complicationof denser populations which in turnmeans children for whom widespreadpoisons and poison delivery deviceswould be unacceptable.

The authors of this study conclude

that the method with the most potentialmeasured in terms of effectiveness and.economy is exclusion by predator-prooffences. In particular, they recommendthe use of electric fences3 (figure 2) andthe modification of existing fences withan electric wire on "outriggers" asshown in figure 3. Furthermore, theysuggest that fences with gaps at groundlevel be modified by staking to deterpredators from crawling under.

SummaryCoyotes and dogs accounted for 40%

of the death loss among ewes and 27%of the death loss among lambs in thisstudy. Of the 112 farms surveyed, 75%had experienced no predator losses andthe suggestion was made that losses wererelated more to management factorsthan to the proximity of predators.Maintenance of adequate fencing, nightconfinement, bells on sheep, presence ofworking dogs and proper carcassdisposal were all related to reducedpredator losses.

Of the control methods discussed, the

authors suggest that exclusion withpredator-proof fencing is the most effec-tive and economical.Reviewed by: Dr. Steve MasonProvincial Sheep SpecialistAbbotsfordMay, 1983.'This study was funded by the B.C.Science Council, Agriculture Canada,the B.C. Ministry of Environment andthe B.C. Ministry of Agriculture &Food. Copies of the complete reportmay be obtained from Dr. DavidShackleton, Department of AnimalScience, U.B.C.2Regulations vary throughout the pro-vince. Producers using firearms to pro-tect their livestock should makethemselves familiar with these regula-tions as they apply locally. In somecases, it may be necessary to obtain ashooting permit from either theMunicipality or the Fish & WildlifeBranch, Ministry of Enviroment.3A new Electric Fencing Manual is nowavailable from Ministry offices.

WHY COMPOUND 1080?

There is hardly any aspect of wildlifemanagement that receives as heated a

ibate as the use of Compound 1080 in' and coyote control. Why does the

Fish and Wildlife Branch insist on itscontinued use, in front of all public pro-testation? The answer is simple: whenproperly used, the Compound is not on-ly extremely effective and cheap, butalso safe to humans and other wildlifepopulations.

The Compound got its bad reputationduring the indiscriminate wolf andcoyote extermination programs of the1950's. Then, large baits were laced withthe poison and carcasses were sprinkledwith it from salt shakers; bait stationswere established by the hundreds withinand without livestock managementareas. There is no record of target andnon-target poisonings, but one canassume that they were substantial.

While the use of large 1081 baits con-tinues in some provinces to date, and inthe U.S., continued until 1972; B.C. wasthe first to abandon the indiscriminatecontrol of wolves and coyotes on thecontinent. A program was developedgradually during the 60's and 70's whichswitched from population reductioncontrol of predators in response to in-vestigated and confirmed attacks on

«'estock.Provincial Fish and Wildlife staff

-jveloped a pioneerig use of Compound1081 in small (2-4 ounce) meat baitswhich contain just enough 1080 to kill

an individual wolf or coyote. The Com-pound has many advantages to othertoxicants, and the use of the baits isstrictly regulated. The following pointsmay be of specific interest:

1. The Compound is highly speciesspecific; wolf and coyote baits are com-pletely safe to humans, and to allwildlife which are larger or justsomewhat smaller than wolves orcoyotes;2. The small baits are dug into the

ground, reducing the possibility ofbirds or small animals taking themto a minimum.

3. All individual baits are accountedfor on computer records, and baitsnot taken are removed anddestroyed,

4. The incidence of non-target poison-ing has been extremely low, (36baits/year/province, including 18coyotes which took wolf baits) withno threat to any local populations ofaffected species (mainly squirrels,crows, rats and other highly pro-

• liferate species).5. Contrary to popular belief, secon-

dary poisoning through non-targetanimals feeding on poisoned wolvesor coyotes cannot occur,

6. Compound 1080 does notaccumulate. It is largely detoxifiedin the body, instantaneously dilutedbelow toxic concentrations to anyspecies in water and it breaks downin the soil through bacterial action.

7. Baits are used site-specifically toindividual wolves or coyotes whichhave caused a problem and thenumber of baits placed is adjustedto the number of animals to beremoved.

8. Baits are prepared and placed bywell trained and certified Ministryof Environment personnel.

9. Medical records indicate that inspite of outside manifestations(epileptiform convulsions, excitedrunning, etc.) the actual stress ex-perienced by the animals is probablyless than in most cases of naturaland unnatural mortality.

10. Recover from sublethal poisoning isquick and complete.

While it is understandable that peoplewho care for animals are repulsed by theidea of poisoning them, where a level ofcontrol is essential at all, the use ofCompound 1080 under the presentrestrictions is still the most cost effectivewith acceptable levels of environmentalhazards.

Dr. Frank S. TorapaCarnivore ManagementFish & Wildlife Branch

Ministry Of Environment

Advertise in theB.C. Naturalist

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 17

AN ADVENTURE?Check these exceptional nature-oriented itineraries with destinations like pages from tNational Geographic magazines . . .CHRISTMAS ESCAPE Dec. 17 to 31, 1983 to COSTA RICA, PANAMA including The Canal,Darien Jungle, San Bias Islands, Pearl Islands, Contadora, Taboga, Portabelo, the Orosi Valley,Irazu Volcano, a Jungle Train and 6 day cruise — and more!TROPICAL ADVENTURE Feb. 2 to Mar. 11, 1984 to THAILAND, BURMA, SRI LANKA,MALAYSIA, SINGAPORE, HONG KONG including Kuala Lumpur, Penang, River Kwai, Pagan,Mandalay, Rangoon, Heho, Lake Inle, Bangkok, Kandy, Colombo, the beaches and national parksfor exceptional wildlife viewing. /SURINAME-NATURALLY! Feb. 20 to Mar, 11, 1984 to a unique country with unspoiled jungleand sparse population — a paradise for anyone who enjoys pristine nature. Then to the ABCISLANDS, Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao for more beaches, the birds and Dutch hospitality andcleanliness also enjoyed in Suriname. PLUS BIRDING with DAVID STIRLING and other naturalists.HIMALAYA LIFESEEING Apr. 1 to May 3 - NEPAL, CHITWAN PARK, the TAJ MAHAL —KASHMIR and BHUTAN the real Shangri-la of the Himalayas. Deluxe houseboating, exciting riverrafting, flightseeing over Everest, viewing wildlife from dugout canoes and the backs of elephants.Spring is the best time for bird migrations and 60 foot rhododendron trees in bloom.CONTRASTS OF THE USSR covers the four corners of this complex country and includesKIEV'S SPRING FESTIVAL, LENINGRAD'S WHITE NIGHTS (a phenomenon of nature), CHER-NIGOV, SIMFEROPOL, YALTA, TBILISI, MTSKHETA, RUSTAV, TASHKENT, SAMARKAND,BUKHARA, MOSCOW, PETRODVORETS and PUSHKIN. You sample a few fascinating culturalgroups which create the USSR.

GOLDENEYE TRAVEL LTD.121 - 470 Granville Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6C 1V5 Phone: 683-2381

H E L P ! !Volunteer Naturalists

are needed to leadschool programsthrough the bogenvironment ofthe RichmondNature Park.

Training and teaching techniques on biology ofthe area are provided. Commitment of up to 2hours per week during busy season requested.

Contact Linda Byrne at 273-7015

P.C.A.F. GRANTSAWARDED

The following naturalists clubs applied and received PublicConservation Assistance Fund Grant in May of this year.a) Mitlenatch Field Naturalists Society — $928. for a bird

check list.b) Langley Field Naturalists — $4700. for habitat enhance-

ment on Forslund-Watson Gift Property (purchase andplanting of trees, etc.)

c) White Rock and Surrey Naturalists Society — $300. for abird check list.

d) Boundary Naturalists Association — $2058. for Wildlifehabitat enhancement at Ward Lake.

e) Federation of British Columbia Naturalists $3000. for prin-ting of approximately 5000 copies of Children's Nature Ac-tivity booklet.

Groups wishing to apply for P.C.A.F. grants should contacttheir local Fish and Wildlife Branch for an application form.Rod Silver, of the Ministry Victoria office, has developedguidelines for grants and copies are available from him c/oFish and Wildlife Branch, Parliament Buildings, Victoria,V8V 1X4. It is also recommended that clubs contact Joe Lzkar or Norm Purssell of the F.B.C.N. before filing a request.This is to help secure sufficient information and ensure thatthe amounts are justified.

Page 18 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

-

Burrowing Owls-Re-introduced toSouth Okanagan

It has been a number of years sincebird watchers have been able to see aburrowing owl in the southernOkanagan, but thanks to the efforts ofsome of the Ministry of EnvironmentFish and Wildlife staff at Penticton, thisyear could be different. And next yearcould be even better if all goes accordingto plan.

In early June this year a large cagedarea was erected over three manmadeburrows on an open hillside in thesouthern Okanagan by Fish and Wildlifestaff, who then went south intoWashington, and with the aid of of-ficials there, captured a pair of burrow-ing owls and their nine newly hatchedyoung. The return journey through thered tape jungle was safely negotiatedand the birds were brought to B.C. andplaced inside the prepared enclosure,where they soon made themselves athome. Nine very anxious days followed.

Since they were unable to hunt forthemselves, except for the occasional in-ect that got into the cage, a Fish andildlife staff member spent a great

amount of time over those nine days ac-ting as a sort of Safeway on legs foreleven hungry birds. It is his consideredopinion that one owl must be a great1deal more efficient than several, man-made mouse traps. However his longhours of care and attention paid off —no complaints were heard from the owlseven if the menu did include on a few oc-casions items not normally encounteredby the birds.

On June 16 the decision was taken toremove the enclosure, and a slow andcareful approach to the area put thebirds down into the burrows which werethen loosely closed to prevent the birdsflying out as the poles and netting werebeing removed. Following the dismantl-ing of the cage they were left alone forabout an hour to calm down after thenoise and disturbance around their tem-porary prison and the wait began.

We sat on a hillside some distance offand watched through binoculars as Or-ville Dyer, who had looked after theowls for ten days, removed the covers onthe burrows.

What now? Would the parents fly outand return south, deserting their offspr-ing? You really couldn't blame them,Four clumsy humans had been clumpingabout over their heads for an our or soand the weather outside by then hadturned very cool, very windy and wasthreatening to rain. We tried a littlebribery, leaving a plentiful supply ofmice in the vicinity of the burrows.

We sat and waited. Nothing. Not amovement. We sat and waited somemore — we sat and waited for two hoursand the only thing that happened wasthat it got windier and we pulled outmore and more cactus spines from thelower parts of our anatomies. By nowwe were fearing the worst, that we hadmade too much noise and the birds hadsuccumbed to shock.

And then we saw movement, the maleemerged from his burrow and stood forsome time examining the change in sur-roundings. Minutes later the female alsoput in an appearance and also stayed onthe ground at the side of the burrow.The male picked up one of the mice thatwe had left, appeared to toss it in herdirection and she retreated into the bur-row with it. They were staying.

Daily visits have been made since byOrville with decreasing quantities offood to ensure that all is well, and at lastreport, it appears from examination ofpellets near the burrows that the parentsare now hunting for themselves. It ishoped to repeat the project next yearand also that our guests of this year willreturn of their own free will. Thanks,Fish and Wildlife, for your efforts onbehalf of those who just like to standand stare.

LesHUI,577 Bennett Avenue,

Penticton, B.C. V2A 2P7

Up and comingSeptember 12 Directors' Meeting, 6 p.m., 1200 Horn-

by St., Vancouver.October 21-23 Fall Directors' Meeting, Grand Forks,

B.C. (See notice).December 5 Directors' Meeting, 6 p.m., 1200 Horn-

by St., Vancouver.

B.C. FORESTSERVICE NEWS

Victoria, B.C. - Forests Minister TomWaterland has ordered an immediatereview of legislation, policies and pro-cedures governing the export of un-manufactured logs from British Colum-bia.

A three-man review team will reportto the minister by June 15. The inquirywill examine the effects log exports arehaving on employment opportunitieswithin the province, wood supply forour industry, and overseas markets forB.C. wood products.

It will consider whether current log ex-port policies are effective in encouraginga strong timber-processing industry inthe province, and whether existing pro-cedures ensure that export applicationsare meeting regulatory requirements.

The study will also look at the termsof reference for the Log Export Ad-visory Committee, a group of industryand union representatives which advisesthe government on log export applica-tions.

Prominent forestry consultant andengineer James T. Trebett of Nanaimohas been commissioned to lead thereview team. He will be assisted by Van-couver lawyer Rick Campbell and byR.C. Scarrow, valuation officer with theForest Service in Vancover.B.C. seeks funding for backlog forestry

Toronto, Ont. - The province ofBritish Columbia is hoping to use a newstream of federal funding to pay for anambitious program of backlog reforesta-tion.

A B.C. proposal, unveiled by ForestsMinister Tom Waterland in a Torontospeech, calls for Ottawa to fund a ten-year, $600-million program of forestrenewal in the province.

"The federal government has in-dicated in recent months it is gettingready to make a considerable investmentin forest renewal, and this is how wewant to use that investment," saysWaterland.

The plan is directed at replantingareas within British Columbia classifiedas Not Satisfactorily Restocked (NSR)or Non-Commercial Cover (NCC) — abacklog of lands denuded in the past bylogging, fire or pests and never properlyreforested.

It would involve the treatment of 65thousand hectares every year for ten .years, at an average annual cost of $60million.

"Some of the best growing sites in theprovince would be returned to produc-tion. And that portion of provincial fun-ding now dedicated to backlog reforesta-tion could be redirected into making

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 19

r

sure we are keeping up with currentforest renewal and intensive manage-ment."

The program would also produce theequivalent of 1,000 year-round jobs foreach of the ten years, the minister add-ed. He called on other provinces to con-sider a similar approach.

"If the federal government wouldconcentrate on dealing with the backlog,the provinces could finance currentsilviculture programs. And the spectreof projected supply falldown which hasbeen haunting the industry would soonbe laid to rest."

Victoria, B.C. - The Ministry ofForests is embarking on its second majorsurvey and analysis of the province'sforest and range resources, which will beused to chart the course of B.C.'sforestry programs into the mid-1990s. Itwill take about 20 months to do the job.

Terms of reference, just released, in-dicate the new Resource Analysis willprovide a greater depth of informationand perspective than was achieved in thefirst of these periodic studies, which wascompleted in 1979.

The project will assess the extent,quality, condition and value of all ourforest, both Crown-owned andprivately-owned, and show what timberis considered economically recoverable.

It will summarize demands for takingland out of forest production and put-ting it to other uses, and it will examinepossible trade-offs.

The Resource Analysis will look athow industry will respond to newtechnology, new products, changingmarkets and a changing wood supply. Itwill examine how population growth,environmental sensitivity and changingpublic attitudes will influence theresource and the way we use it.

A similar assessment will be made ofrange lands and range management. Therecreation potential of the forest andrange resource will form another impor-tant part of the study.

First step in the project, now thatterms of reference have been released,will be to establish a number of data-gathering projects. When these are com-pleted, they will become the buildingblocks for the analysis.

The new Resource Analysis is schedul-ed to be presented to cabinet by the endof September, 1984, and will be publish-ed in the spring of 1985. When com-pleted, it will become the ministry'smost important data base and planningmechanism, used to set goals andpriorities for the next ten years of forestand range management in the province.

Copies of the terms of reference areavailable on request from StrategicStudies Branch, Ministry of Forests,Victoria.Page 20 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

The International CraneWorkshop, Bharatpur, India(1

February 5th-12th, 1983This workshop was sponsored by the

International Crane Foundation, found-ed 10 years ago by two remarkably en-thusiastic ornithologists, George Ar-chibald from Newfoundland and RonSauey from Wisconsin. Determined todo something to help the world's 15species of cranes, seven of which are en-dangered, Ron's parents provided thesite for the l.C.F. at their horse ranch atBaraboo and wildlife artist OwenGromme donated two paintings, printsfrom which were sold to raise funds.Since then the l.C.F. has establishedbranches and projects all over the worldand has been particularly active inJapan, China, Korea, and the SovietUnion. At the Oka Reserve south ofMoscow the Russians have started a pro-pagation program for the Siberian Cranesimilar to that for the Whooping Cranein North America. The success of thel.C.F. was reflected in the 187 par-ticipants at the workshop from 24 na-tions representing almost all the placesinhabited or visited by cranes.

The location of the workshop,Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, isthe most important and impressive

migratory bird sanctuary in Asia. It pro-vides wintering and breeding habitat forthousands of birds. On hasty pre-breakfast walks I identified 108 species— less than a third of the number foundthere. Nilgai antelope, Sambar andCheetal deer, and jackal were also com-mon sights. The sanctuary is of specialimportance to the l.C.F. because it pro-vides habitat for four species of crane in-cluding the rare Siberian Crane.

Appropriately, the first paperspresented at the workshop were on theSiberian Crane, and Dr. Zhou Fu-Changsurprised the audience by revealing that230 Siberian Cranes had been discoveredthis year wintering on the upper YangtzeRiver in Jiangzi Province. This andother papers and slide presentations onthe search for nesting BlackneckedCranes in Ladakh and Bhutan or for theRed-crowned and White-naped Cranesin eastern Siberia and China made ourdelegation's paper on the SandhillCranes of the Lower Fraser Valley seemrather prosaic.

Nevertheless, delegates were in-terested because the 1980 propagatiorfpproject at Richard Tretheway's farm i*Maple Ridge resulted m one of the mostsuccessful releases of captive-rearedcranes ever achieved. Of 31 eggs, 26 hat-ched, 13 birds departed on migration in1981 and at least 7, perhaps 9, returnedin 1982. A further two cranes have beenseen again this year around Burns Bogand in the Pitt Valley, and at least onehas attempted to nest.)

The main lesson drawn from the ex-periences from across the world describ-ed at the workshop is that cranes requirea very high degree of protection fromhuman disturbance. This will raiseserious problems in the remaining lowermainland habitats of the Sandhill Crane(Burns Bog, the Pitt Wildlife Manage-ment Area, and Addington Marsh Sanc-tuary) which are being subjected to in-creasing human use. The situation herecontrasts greatly with the measures.taken in England and East and WestGermany to keep people out of thebreeding habitats of the CommonCrane.

B.C. delegation members, Elizabethand Richard Tretheway and GaryKaiser, had useful discussions on pro-pagation techniques and were greatly en-couraged by the enthusiastic response othe l.C.F. members to continue theFraser Valley program in 1983.

Barry Leach

Book Reviewust Bats by M. Brock Fenton. $25.00oth, $9.95 paperback. ISBN 0-8020

v452-l cloth, 6464-7 paper. 1983,University of Toronto Press, Toronto,Ontario M5S 1A6.

Naturalists in British Columbia willthoroughly enjoy this easily-read, wellwritten and well illustrated book. Batscontinue to be maligned without reasonand far too few people realize howvaluable and how interesting they are. Itmay be hoped that this book will be readwidely at this time when the habitats ofmany of these mammals are beingdestroyed, when their numbers aredeclining and when many of their 850spp. are facing extinction.

British Columbians have good reasonto know more about bats. Although theyare occasionally a minor nuisance inB.C., our 14 species (more than in anyother province) are very valuable inreducing the number of mosquitoes,blackflies and many other insect pestswhich trouble our recreation, fanningand forestry. To naturalists, thefascinating observations on biosonar,predation, diets, and reproduction willbe an additional interest in "Just Bats".

V. C. Brink

Ghost Walker, by R. D. Lawrence.McClelland and Stewart, Toronto, 1983,242 pages, hard cover, $16.95.

The Ghost Walker is the name givenby the author to the mountain lion,cougar or puma. This elusive species sointrigued Lawrence that he spent tenmonths alone in a tiny cabin in the B.C.wilderness studying it. His interest incougars was initiated by visits to Euro-pean zoos and by an unfortunate inci-dent in B.C., when he felt obliged toshoot a cougar in the head rather thanallow a bloodthirsty hunter, supposedlyavenging lost livestock, from disposingof it in a more cruel fashion.

Having conducted some research oncougars and their habitat the authorsought a section of wilderness thatwould have ' 'valleys and waterwayssheltered by mountains, be welltimbered, yet offer a variety of openlocations where deer and other ungulateswould find plenty of winter feed."Then, he made an aerial reconnaissanceof the northern Selkirk Mountains, sawa cougar, and by early October hadtransported by car, canoe and on foot1,100 pounds of supplies, from

jgevelstoke, up the Goldstream River, tor*nch Creek. Here he renovated an

>andoned miner's cabin, made it bear-proof and ready for winter and beganlooking fo cougars.

It is a highly readable account ofcougars, wildlife and wilderness, thestory of personal curiousity, challengeand action being interspersed with scien-tific details on the cougar'scharacteristics, history, range and rela-tionship with man. The relationshipLawrence claims to have establishedwith a zoo cougar, the cougars he en-countered in the Selkirks, as well aswhales elsewhere, is especially intrigu-ing, though even the author debates thedesirability of an anthropomorphicviewpoint.

Given the author's committment to •wildlife and wilderness, clearly evidentin this book and his latest on the na-tional parks, it is surprising and disap-pointing to find little explicit referenceto the values of the Selkirk Mountains inparticular and threats to this wilderness.The Columbia Valley he drove along isnow ravaged and drowning behindRevelstoke Dam and a new mine andreservoir have been developed in theGoldstream Valley. The assault on theSelkirk Mountailn wilderness and thecougar's range is increasing andrelentless, hence, a reference to thismight have provided a more valuableconclusion to the book. It could alsohave been improved and enhanced had amap of the area and some photographsbeen included.

However, the book does draw atten-tion to a neglected species and aneglected area and is by implication acall for consideration of other speciesand wilderness conservation. Lawrenceparaphrases Thoreau when he says: "Iwas earnest to explore and learn, par-ticularly about the puma; and I also re-quired the mystery to continue forever,for without it I know that I would findlife very dull." Readers, top, may expectto learn from the book but will also bereminded that the mystery of wildernessand man's relationship to it remains forus all to explore.

John MarshTrent University,

Peterborough, Ontario

"The Management and Silviculture ofLodgepole Pine in B.C.; an InterpretiveReview'' prepared for the ForestResearch Council of B.C. by Reid, Col-lins Nurseries Ltd., Jan. 1983, ob-tainable from Forest Research Council,7671 Alderbridge Way, Richmond, B.C.

"Grassland Ecology and Classifica-tion" Symposium Proceedings June.1982 Province of British ColumbiaMinistry of Forests, ed. A. C.Nicholson, A. McLean, and T. E.Baker, 1450 Government St., Victoria,B.C. V8W 3E7.

New PublicationsEFFECTS OF ESTUARINELOG STORAGE ONJUVENILE SALMONLevy, D.A., T.G. Northcote, R.M.Barr. 1982.Westwater Research Centre, TechnicalReport No. 26. Vancouver, 101 pages.

GREAT BLUE HERONCOLONIES INBRITISH COLUMBIAForbes, L. Scott, Keith Simpson, JohnP. Kelsall, Donald Hook. 1983.Canadian Wildlife Service, Delta. 66pages.

THE EFFECTS OF SNOWON WILDLIFE — ANANNOTATEDBIBLIOGRAPHY and THEEFFECTS OF FOREST ONSNOW COVER — ANANNOTATEDBIBLIOGRAPHYShank, Christopher, Fred L. Bunnell.1982. Forest and Wildlife Group, Facul-ty of Forests, University of B.C., andpublished jointly by the Province ofB.C. Ministry of Environment andForests. 58 pages.

EYED HAWK-MOTHPhotographed at Manning Park in earlyJuly. Note how the forewings are cryp-tically patterned. When disturbed, themoth shows its underwings, with their"false eyes". The face-like effect isthought to be a startle pattern \gto frighten predatory birds at leastenough so that the moth can escape withits life.

Al GrassB.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 21

Make this the year you

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Some Bird Feeding Notesfor Campbell River —Discovery Islands

During the past few weeks, I have hadvarious inquiries regarding the practiceof feeding birds in winter. Although it isobvious that many people are concernedabout the welfare of our winteringnative birds, I know that improvementsin providing the basic necessary condi-tions for attracting and feeding them canalways be made. Usually, our wild birdsneed little assistance in order to surviveour mild damp winters, but during thesnowy weeks, we as concerned in-dividuals, can do much to ensure thatmore will survive. Indeed, by being moreeffective and complete in our provisionfor all of our winter birds, we can beassured that all their needs will be met.

The most important and crucial facetregarding the feeding of birds in winteris that once we begin to feed, we shouldcontinue through until spring. It is betternot to start to feed, than to feed for afew weeks and then stop. Birds come torely on this extra sustenance, and manywill die if they are left without a depen-dable supply. A bird with a full stomachof nourishing foods can survive the mostextremely cold nights; any with less thanenough will perish.Page 22 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

I used to begin my feeding program inearly October, and stop at the end ofApril; in most years, these months arecrucial. And, virtually all my feedervisitors not only survived, but thrived.

Secondly, in any feeding program, wemust provide a dependable supply ofwater — preferably near the feeders. Allwintering birds need water for drinkingas well as for bathing. Although theycan survive by using snow as asubstitute, fresh water is preferred andmust be provided in any completefeeding program.

I always provided water in the form ofa cement bird bath. Water was keptthawed by the use of a small electricheating element. In cold weather, thebirds used the bath constantly for drink-ing and bathing, requiring a frequentrefill every four hours, as well as at leasta daily cleaning. The usage of the waterat times exceeded that of the feeding sta-tions. I am certain that my feedervisitors were better equipped to survivebecause of the fresh water available.

In addition, one of the most impor-tant characteristics of a successfulbackyard feeding program is thepresence and/or the creation of ade-quate areas of cover. Birds must haveplaces to rest, and hide from theirenemies, ie. Hawks, Cats. Truly, a thriv-

ing garden with various shrubs, mixedhedge plantings, and thick evergreens isoften quite adequate. Another attractivemini-bird refuge can be created by usingthe old Christmas tree as a base, with oldtree branches and other garden refuse(corn stalks piled on top). I found that a'brush pile' was a truly important areaof cover, as well as a convenient restingand sunning place — especially duringdeep snow. And, bird houses, especiallythose built for Owls and Woodpeckers,are sometimes used for shelter at nights— but they should be cleaned before ourwinter bird feeding program begins.

Of course, the most important andcritical aspect of helping our winter birdsis the provision of various foods, insuitable feeders. (I would emphasize thatkeeping any food dry is of prime impor-tance; and not only do the birds wasteless dry food and as a result save usmoney, it has been discovered that wetfood can be harmful to them — grainsoften go sour and mold in a wet feedercausing illness and disease to birds.)

More important is the choice offoods. All birds have their specialpreferences and we can often waste i(and money) by choosing the witypes of food. For the most part, apie, but nourishing diet will satisfy anybird species.

A most common staple, white bread,is not recommended. Unless whole'wheat or other grain breads are provid-

^—«d, or are combined with other food,3ms, we are doing the birds great harm.

A Junco or Sparrow which goes to sleepafter a day feeding of white bread maynever survive until morning.

In my experience, grain, fruit, andsuet or beef fat are the main foods to of-fer at any bird feeder. During times ofextreme snow and ice, we should providea little grit with the seeds as some speciesrequire grit in the digestive process.

Mixed canary seed and sunflowerseeds are two favorite foods of finchesand sparrows. Also, chick stratch(cracked corn and wheat) is relished bymany small birds and is a popular fooditem because of its low price. Plaincracked corn is another good choice andis popular with Ruffed Grouse (they docome to feeders!) and Red-wingedBlackbirds.

Other grains available and eaten byvarious birds include: millet (Juncos),rice (Rock Dove), rapeseed (PurpleFinch), buckwheat (Sparrows). Oats canbe provided, but only in combinationwith other foods. Untreated raw oats areusually more preferred by most birds.

Peanuts are also excellent at the feedertable, and are a favorite of Steller's Jays

/"?Kttl Chickadees. And, peanut butter is( ' nutritious and can be served in many

ways. But, it MUST NOT be servedstraight. In combination with otherfoods or mixed with cornmeal, peanutbutter is a treat for most birds. Peanutsare included in our most widely usedcommercial bird food mixture —although in very small quantities.

Two relatively unknown grains whichwe find in this mixture and which mostbirds quickly find are pine nuts andsorghum.

Other foods, such as whole grains ofwheat, are also included in such mixes,but are usually wasted. Thus, often wecan buy appropriated varieties of seedsand create a mixture that the birds willnot waste and that is more economicalfor us.

Coconut in the shell is also recom-mended, but must not be serveddessicated or ground.

Some birds, especially Robins andVaried Thrushes, relish various types offruit. Apples are a favorite and quan-tities of unsaleable fruit are sometimesavailable at supermarkets. Also prefer-red are grapes, raisins, and currants.Always serve suet with any fruit because

>^provides energy so efficiently. Wildr\t gathered in fall, can also be used to

supplement the bird feeder, ie. Salal,Huckleberry, Blueberry, Elderberry,Crabapple.

By far, the most important andvaluable food we can provide is suet orbeef fat. Not only is it a prime source offood energy and is eaten by most birds,suet can be served in so many ways andcombined with other foods. Suet-filledsmall holes drilled into wooden logshung in trees, suet cakes in foil dishes,and pieces of raw suet in mesh onionbags are only a few ideas on how to servethis vital bird food. (Pork fat is notrecommended; although drippings frombacon and oven cooked meats can becombined with other foods, and seem tobe favoured). Woodpeckers are especial-ly fond of suet and are certain to be at-tracted when a reliable and regular supp-ly is provided.

Some birds, such as Starlings andJays, tend to be overly zealous in theirfeeding, and can empty a feeder quickly.It is for these useful and common birdsthat a separate feeding table in the openat the rear of the yard could be provid-ed. Because these birds are quite easilydisturbed and will eat almost anything,various items that we usually do notassociate with winter bird food willsatisfy them. Examples are meat bones,kitchen scraps, raw vegetables and oldfruit, stale cake and breads, and suet. Inthis way, we can satisfy the needs ofthese resident species and keep theirpresence at our regular feeders to aminimum.

A most critical necessity, whenfeeding birds, is to keep feeders clean.At least once per week we should brushout old seed and droppings; and if

PHOTOS WANTEDWe are looking for cover shots and

other captionqd photo's for the B.C.Naturalist.

Cover shots should have a seasonaltheme and be black and white prints nosmaller than 8x10. Other submissionsshould also be black and white prints

necessary wipe off the feeding shelveswith a damp cloth. Disease is an ever-present .- threat, to birds, and a cleanfeeding station will do much to preventit. " • : ,,,"

And, finally, please do not feed birdsif you have a cat, or have them frequen-ting your yard. Cats are the greatestkillers of backyard birds, and should beeliminated from your backyard if youfeed birds. It is so simple — if you musthave cats then don't attract birds. Youwill be subjecting the birds to thedangers of sudden death, and we allknow that ali cats will instinctively killwhether we train them or not. So,please, be sensible, and re-examine yourpriorities before considering a birdfeeding program.

Three informative books concerningevery aspect of attracting birdsthroughout the year are available. Theyare The Hungry Bird Book by RobertArbib and Tony Soper, TalingerPublishing Co.; Feeding Wild Birds InWinter, by Clive Dobson, Firefly Books;A Complete Guide to Bird Feeding byJohn Dennis.

If you have further questions regar-ding any facet of bird feeding, you maycall me at 286-6607. There is so much toexperience in the world of attractingbirds to a backyard; and your successwill depend on your efforts, as well asusing some of the advice given here or byreferring to the recommended books.

Because we cared enough to help themnow, more birds will have survived toserenade us this spring,

By H. A. Telosky

and no smaller than 5x7 with good con-trast. Portfolios also accepted.

Please label with subject matter or ti-tle, name, address, phone number. UsePENCIL only and DO NOT write onpicture, press or use labels. All photoswill be returned.

MembershipD Regular $10.00 D Active 25.00 D Patron,D Sustaining 15.00 D Contributing $,50.00 D Life

D Affiliate (non-profit organization) — $10.00 and up.O Associate (profit organization) — $10.00 and up.

Send to:Membership Chairman F.B.C.N.100-1200 Hornby Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 2E2

100.00200.00-

NameAddress" Postal CodeMembership Class Amount Enclosed $.Renewal New

B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983 — Page 23

Trips for NaturalistsBaja California, Western Mexico, Yucatan Peninsula

Join us this winter on a trip to warmer climes. Nine day Baja California tours (December 6-15 &January 4-13) feature desert vegetation, coastal exploration and seafood sampling. During theChristmas season (December 18-January 1) our Western Mexico Birding Tour visits Mazatlan,San Bias and the Sierra Madre Occidental. 250-300 species of birds are expected including Mili-tary Macaw, Tufted Jay, Red-billed Tropicbird and Rufous-necked Wood-Rail. In February our 15day Adventure in Mexico is scheduled, featuring the Yucatan, Oaxaca and Mexico City. ViewMayan ruins, snorkel in the warm Caribbean, bargain at Indian markets and see the BalletFolklorico. Write for itineraries.

Arizona and Texas BirdingSpring birding in Arizona and Texas is great! Observe hummingbirds in the mountains of south-east Arizona, explore neotropical woodland along the Rio-Grande (see Plain Chachalaca, GreenJay, etc.) and watch spring migration along the Texas coast. The tour is in three sections. Join usfor one, two or all three of them: Southeast Arizona March 17-27, West Texas March 27-April 5,Texas Coast April 5-14.

Summer 1984Our program includes tours to the Okanagan, Southern Alberta, Peace River, Yukon, QueenCharlotte Islands and Vancouver Island. Ask for details and we'll send you itineraries as they be-come available,

Send for Itineraries and a 1984 ProgramSwiftsure Tours Ltd., 119-645 Fort Street, Victoria, B.C. V8W1G2 (604) 388-4227

THE PHOTO COLLECTION"THREATENED SPECIESAND HABITATS OFBRITISH COLUMBIA ANDTHE YUKON"was prepared for, and first publiclyviewed at, the symposium of threatenedspecies and habitats held in Vancouver,B.C., in March 1980 under the auspicesof The Federation of British ColumbiaNaturalists, Douglas College and theB.C. Fish and Wildlife Branch.

This display was made possible by thegenerosity of many photographers inproviding fine photo slides, by ColorificPhoto Labs Ltd., Vancouver, in prepar-ing the color enlargements, and byfinancial assistance from Pacific MetalsLtd., Vancouver.

The collection is available for displaypurposes and arrangements can be madeby writing to:

Chilliwack Field Naturalists:P.O. Box 23,

Chilliwack V2P 6H7Contributions in aid of transportationcosts for the photo display may be madeto The Federation of B.C. Naturalists.

Page 24 — B.C. Naturalist Fall 1983

Bert Brink and Natalie Minunzie receiving copies of the Ministry of Environment -,newly published "Land for Wildlife" proceedings from Rod Silver, Habitat Conser-vation Fund. Photo by Al Grass