West Island Wildlife #1 A new venture ... A 14 page illustrated "webzine" to introduce readers to the amazing variety of wildlife and plants to be found in the green spaces, parks and gardens of the West Island of Montreal. This is the first of what is hoped to become an occasional [...]
Species #16 to #22 Dates: 15 March and 21 March 2020 These were the "Lifeforms of the Day" for the past week ... they originally appeared on this Facebook page. If you would like to follow that page you will get a new species to enjoy and learn about each day until some [...]
1000 Species - One a Day Although I was never a train-spotter (non-Brits will want to look up the nerdish significance of that) I have rarely been able to resist keeping lists of things. In particular I have kept lists of bird species that I have seen, which will not surprise anyone who [...]
Bluebirds in Mid-Winter !!! It's the 17 January, the sun is shining from a clear blue sky, temperatures are -16C (with windchill -27C) and there we are, sitting in the warm reading the papers when a small bird lands in the viburnum bush just outside. A quick glance, not expecting anything other [...]
Bruce Spanwing Moth A couple of days ago we saw a pale moth flying across the garden - late November, snow on the ground, temperatures around zero or below - and shrugged as it flew away. This morning we got a closer look at it, or a relative. I am reasonably confident that [...]
Right at the very northernmost limit of their range, two Carolina Wrens are settling in for winter in a garden west of Montreal. A serendipitous snatch of hand-held video. ** The first Wren appears from behind the dark chain-mesh feeder at about 12s and the second flies in to join it at 30s. I [...]
As the weather cools down (thank goodness) the first tints of autumn are beginning to appear and many leaves are starting to look tired. We have a large bank of mixed dogwoods on the southern edge of the garden and it is full of juvenile Song Sparrows, Purple Finches, House Finches all searching for [...]
Finally - birds are returning, flowers are starting to appear, albeit in small numbers, and buds are swelling as we draw close to the first week of May and the “Great Greening” of spring. The first daffodil to flower has appeared and plenty more are putting up buds. It’s a funny thing, back in England [...]
A quiet week in the garden with several cold nights, very cold nights to make everything keep its collective head down. Nevertheless, signs of approaching spring with birds such as the American Crows and Northern Cardinals making obvious signs of looking around for mates and nesting sites to make more American Crows and Northern [...]
7 January 2017 A moderately cold week to start the new year with a great dollop of heavy, wet snow followed by freezing rain in the middle of the week so that the snow cover is rather crunchy and sitting on a layer of ice. It will be doing what it is supposed to do [...]