Spring SKIP Week 5: Thieves, Sneaks and Trickery!

Park staff Alida and Morgan joined the SKIP crew again this week to tell us a whole lot of things about biodiversity, which is really just a fancy way of saying "a variety of living things." We quickly learned that adaptations and interesting ways that different organisms reproduce go a long way toward ensuring there are lots of different species on Earth, which is a very good thing.

Alida and Morgan started off by telling us about cowbirds and how they have a tricky way of reproducing. Basically, they observe the nests of other species of birds and then sneak in and lay an egg when the mama bird pops out for some food. Mama bird returns and ends up raising a cowbird with her own brood. Cowbirds are often bigger than the original nesters, so they tend to gobble up most of the mama's energy, putting her own babies at a disadvantage. This was all demonstrated using SKIP babies and a big cowbird baby (volunteer Jane), with Alida as a mama phoebe.

We also learned about pumpkinseed "sneaker" fish. Pumpkinseed males fan pebbles away on the bottom to make a nest. Then they work to attract females, who come along and lay their eggs. Since the bigger, stronger pumpkinseed males attract the most females, the smaller males don't often get a chance to reproduce. These smaller males will mimic females (not usually by wearing wigs, though!) and hang around until a real female comes along, then sneak in to fertilize her eggs while the bigger male isn't looking.

Next up we heard about the red trillium, which is pretty to look at but smells like rotten meat! This scent attracts flies that want to lay their eggs in the "meat." Instead they end up searching around on the smelly flower, indadvertently collecting pollen and spreading it to other smelly red trilliums as they continue to hunt for the source of the "delicious" smell. Camryn made an excellent fly in the demonstration with Alida and Morgan.

We learned about other creatures with interesting adaptations, too, such as fireflies and the underwing moth, which has brightly coloured underwings used to scare predators. Next we played a firefly murder mystery, which was a modified form of tag. Each player got a firefly card: some male, some female and some large (photuris) and some small (photinus).

When told to freeze, everyone found a partner and compared cards. Males and females that were the same size were safe, as were two males that were the same size or two females that were the same size. Photuris females, however, tend to devour smaller fireflies, though, so in that case there would be a "murder" and the smaller player would fall down in a heap!

After the game we divided into four groups and set out for different starting points around the Lally Homestead site for a scavenger hunt. Each team had lists of things to look for in different areas, such as a great blue heron, mushroom, woodpecker holes, dragonfly, yellow flowers, common mullein, elm tree, white pine tree, milkweed, ants and much more. Everyone had a great time discovering items from the list and also wrote down a number of interesting finds that weren't listed.

Afterwards we reconvened at the clubhouse for a great snack provided by Pat. A big thank you to Alida and Morgan for their interesting and informative program, along with Skipper Pat and volunteers Jane, Judy, Beth and Steph. Next week Tim will be back to take us on a tour into the past!

Spring SKIP Week 4 - Birding!

This week at SKIP was literally for the birds!

On another sunny gorgeous day at Murphys Point, our participants met at the Lally Homestead to learn something about birding. The program was led by Park NHE Senior Interpreter Alida Lemieux, assisted by Friends NHE staffer Morgan Brown. Following a general overview of what makes birds special - with the help of the modelling abilities of one of our SKIP kids - Alida and Morgan talked about Brilliant Bird Adaptations. This featured four interesting birds common to the area: the great blue heron, pilleated woodpecker, ruby-throated hummingbird and turkey vulture.

First Alida and Morgan talked about how the great blue heron is specially equipped for hunting fish and frogs in the water thanks to its silent stalking, long legs and special beak. We played a freeze tag game in which the kids pretended to be fish and frogs in a pond that were being hunted by two herons (Alida and Morgan).

Next the special adaptations of the pilleated woodpecker were demonstrated, including its "internal helmet" that helps protect its brain against concussion from all the hammering it does on trees. Then, another model tried on the special beak of this woodpecker, which features a long, sticky, barbed tongue that's perfect for retrieving ants from the holes in the tree.

Next up was the ruby-throated hummingbird, which burns an enormous amount of energy with its extraordinarily rapid wing movement - which we all tried to duplicate. Three of the kids then tried their "beaks" at retrieving "nectar" from a jar. It was soon seen that the specially adapted beak and tongue of the hummingbird is unique for the job.

Finally we learned about the rather yucky adaptations of the turkey vulture, which make is specially equipped to find and eat dead animals (carrion) for food. This includes an enhanced sense of smell for finding the meal, and then some interesting methods of discouraging other predators from taking it away. We also learned why the turkey vulture has a bald red head. With one participant wearing a turkey vulture-type skull cap and another wearing a feathery sort of wig (like a "regular" bird), we quickly learned that carrion (or cotton balls) doesn't stick to a bald head.

Next we set off for a hike along the Lally Trail to do some birdwatching. We stopped and listened and observed and in less than half an hour we counted about a dozen species, including a red-eyed vireo, ovenbird, great crested flycatcher, phoebe, great blue herons, red-winged blackbirds, eastern bluebird, scarlet tanager, turkey vultures, yellow warbler and rose-breasted grosbeak.

We returned to the clubhouse where Judy helped us to make nifty little hummingbird feeders using glass jars with red lids and bright decorations. They should be dry and ready to go home for testing, along with the sugar-water recipe, next week.

We ended with a fantastic snack provided by Skipper Jane, who not only brought delicious mini muffins made from a variety of great fruits and vegetables, but also provided sticks of rhubarb and some sugar for us to try.

A big thanks to our program leaders Alida, Morgan and Judy, along with our many volunteers: Jane, Heather, Beth, Pat and Steph. Next week, Alida and Morgan will be back with "Thieves, Sneaks and Trickery" - a biodiversity program that talks about some of the sneaky things plants and animals do.

Spring SKIP Week 3 - Misunderstood at Murphys Point

Our SKIP participants were treated to a beautiful sunny day at the Lally Homestead and no bugs to speak of for the third week of the spring session.

This week's program, led by intrepid interpreter Tim Wood, was called "Misunderstood at Murphys Point" and gave us all a great perspective on some area animals that have an undeserved bad reputation. Tim demonstrated how messages can get mixed up by playing the telephone game. He whispered a message to one of the kids, and we were all amused by how much it had changed by the time it had been whispered to each participant.

Tim had a wide range of props to show us. First we learned about the little brown bat. This flying mammal uses echolocation to find mosquitoes - so it is not "blind" as some might believe. We learned about its habitat and habits and some of the threats it faces, including a deadly fungus that is spreading into Ontario. He showed us skulls from a wolf, coyote and fox - all members of the canine family - and talked about some of the troubles they face as humans continue to encroach upon their territories, which means we haven't always gotten along.

We played a game of "Bat O Polo" to demonstrate echolocation. A few participants were blindfolded (the bats) and called out "bat!" while the rest of the kids (the bugs) responded "O Polo!" and tried to avoid being tagged. The game was interrupted by the surprise guest appearance of a young black ratsnake, another misunderstood creature, that proceeded to demonstrate its fantastic climbing abilities by scaling the side of the Lally Homestead. This led nicely into Tim's discussion about this threatened species and how roads, development and human fears have led to difficulties for the snake. He passed around snake skins and then showed us a live captured black ratsnake. Everyone had an opportunity to feel how a snake's skin is actually warm and dry - not cold and slimy!
The fisher, a mammal that has recently returned to this area thanks to improved habitat, was also discussed. Tim said this shy creature is an efficient hunter and is one of the only critters around that can effectively hunt a porcupine. This led to a game of porcupine versus fisher - another tag game designed to dispel the myth that porcupines throw their quills. Rather, they tend to swing their tails when threatened, and if you're too close - then ouch!

The program ended with a delicious snack organized by our Skipper Cindy. Big thanks to her, Tim and our volunteers Jane, Judy and Steph for another great day! Next week it's all about birds at the Lally Homestead or the SKIP kids. (For avid birders, check out the info about our annual bird count at the Friends website.)

Spring SKIP Week 2 - Campfires and Outdoor Cooking

You can't argue that Mother Nature doesn't have our best interests in mind. In the winter, Super Kids In Parks had snow when we needed it for cross-country skiing, an icy crust for snowshoeing with crampons and bright sun for our hike and outdoor games on the last day.

We opened our spring session with a blazing sun and hot temperatures for our wetlands program last week and then Mother Nature gave us a nice cold day (with a few flurries - but no rain!) so we could warm up by cosy campfires and do some scrumptious outdoor cooking on Mothers' Day.

The program was led by Friends volunteer Pat, who started off with safety rules about lighting a campfire - everything from having an adult to supervise to what we should wear and how we should behave around a fire to keeping a shovel and water handy. (Some participant volunteers retrieved buckets of water from the beach.) We talked about safely establishing a fire site and how to set up the wood, tinder and kindling. Then divided into two groups and the adult volunteers and participants got busy lighting fires in pits located on campsites within the park.

After the campfires were established, it was time to let them burn down into good, toasty coals so we could do some cooking. One group set to work making banana boats: tasty treats made by peeling open one side of a banana, scooping out some of the fruit, filling the hole with marshmallows and chocolate chips, covering it up with the skin and wrapping it in tin foil. The second group made orange rind muffins, which are created by slicing oranges in half and scooping out the fruit, preparing packaged muffin mix (we chose oatmeal), half-filling the orange cups and placing them in a baking pan with a foil tent on top.

Adult volunteers placed the treats on the grills and while we waited for our snacks to cook Friends volunteer Heather led the gang to the beach area where we lined up and made rain. It's not that we wanted it to rain, but the rainmaker game is a nifty exercise where the kids at the start of the line rubbed their hands together, then snapped their fingers, then clapped and so on and as the sound moves along the line of participants it's as if a rainstorm is taking place.

After rainmaking, Heather introduced us to the Migration Game (which was observed by two Canada geese and a loon out on Hogg Bay). The kids become "birds," and they had to migrate from Murphys Point to faroff lands (a tree at the other end of the beach). Along the way, some of them ran into obstacles: their destination had been turned into condominiums, there was an oil spill, there were hunters, etc. and it was interesting to see how many make it back to Murphys Point "next season."

After a hearty round of migration we returned to the campsites and shared our banana boats and orange rind muffins with the whole group along with juice and hot chocolate. After those tasty treats, it was time to safely extinguish the fires and head for home.

A big thank you to program leader Pat, along with our Skipper Judy and volunteers Heather and Cindy. Next week we'll be back at the Lally Homestead with Tim, who is going to tell us all about some misunderstood creatures at Murphys Point.

Spring SKIP Session - Wetlands!

The spring session of SKIP got off to a splashy start with a program on wetlands presented by interpreter Tim Wood - who really gets into his work!

We started with introductions and learned that the new bunch of SKIP kids had lots of great ideas about what they wanted to see as part of the program (snakes, frogs, turtles) and what they didn't want to see (bugs - specifically blackflies!). We did our best to deliver!

Tim started with a demonstration using a water bottle that helped to explain just exactly how much fresh, clean water we have on Earth when one considers factors such as ice, groundwater, clouds and pollution. It's not as much as you would think! He then showed us how wetlands play an important role in keeping our water fresh and clean while helping to protect against flooding and drought and providing food, shelter and breeding grounds for a huge range of species. What better way to demonstrate this then by using a frying pan, whisk, sponge, cushion, soap, baby picture and coffee filter, of course!

Then we set off for the marsh located behind the Lally Homestead at Black Creek, where we were lucky enough to see a whole bunch of critters and signs of critters: red-winged blackbirds, leopard frogs, a beaver lodge and muskrat push-ups, a garter snake, ducks, a great blue heron and a crow. We heard geese in the distance along with the banjo sound of a green frog and a variety of other birds. Oh, and, well, there were bugs - a whole fleet of beetles and some blackflies that weren't too interested in biting.


Tim had a bag of tricks with him, too, and was able to show us map turtle and snapping turtle shells and demonstrate different frog calls with his props. He scooped some water from the marsh in a jar and showed us the teeny tiny treasures inside. As we got ready to head back up to the clubhouse, Tim showed us just how wet marshes can be - he toppled in! Well, he mentioned that sometimes happens - wink wink!

Back at the clubhouse we sat on the grass and enjoyed a snack while learning a bit more about the creatures that call Murphys Point home, such as the porcupine that was such a fixture during SKIP over the winter. Then we played the wetlands version of the game "Duck Duck Goose" - "Frog Frog Turtle" before heading for home.

Thanks to our great volunteers this week: Judy (Skipper), Jane, Pat, Cindy and Beth. We had a fun time with Tim, too, who will be back for some of the other sessions. Next week we plan to explore building fires and cooking outdoors - stay tuned!