President's Message
As I begin to write this brief message on March 25 I'm looking out on potentially 25 cm. of snow falling.  I hope our migrating birds get the weather channel.  I am very excited that Franco Mariotti will be joining us with his presentation on "Hope in a Changing Landscape; How Environmental Stories Can Create Hope".  What do Easter Island, Sudbury Mining History, and you all have in common?  Historical and current environmental stories will be used to demonstrate how they can play a significant role in the quality of the environment and in our lives.  I saw Franco's presentation at an Ontario Nature meeting and I know that you will enjoy it and learn a lot.  Please join us for our meeting.

We have had an amazing response regarding the Red Trail questionnaire.   Here are the current results  - 

- For a 5' wide steel bridge as presented at the meeting - No (26), Not sure (1), Yes (2)
- Bridge similar to those on the causeway/berm - Yes (26), Not sure (1), No - (2 - they liked the existing bridge)
- Wheelchair access - No (27), Yes (2)
- Nature trail to protect the flora and fauna - Yes (29)
- Bring in materials from Milliken Mine Road - Yes (26), If possible (1), Wherever the damage will be less (1)

I would also like to welcome our new members:  Audrey and John Briggs, Bonnie Ladell, and Ken Avison.  

Upcoming Outings:  
March/April  - Compass & Map reading for novices  ( Date to be set)  Leader: Ian Clark 461-3568 .  This outing is quite strenuous with bush walking on uneven terrain.  Duration 4 - 5 hours.

March/April -  Tour of Maple Sugar Bush & Processing of sap  (Date to be set) Leader: Hans Kamps  461-7737.  The sugar bush is located on South Bay Road, north of Elliot Lake.  Duration 2 - 3 hours.

Tuesday,  April 22nd,  Earth Day Sanctuary Clean up  ( Weather permitting) Leader: Naomi Maggs  848-5656.  Meet at the main entrance of the Sanctuary at 1:00 p.m.  Duration 2 - 3 hours.

As the weather has been very unpredictable it is difficult to schedule outings until closer to the time.  Please ensure that you have signed up for the outings so that you can be called when the date is known.  May/June and Summer outings  include:  Spring Birding on the North Shore; Old Hydro Road Spring Wild Flowers; Chutes Provincial Park Trillium Tour,  Medicinal Flowers, Plants, and Trees, and our Pot Luck Picnic in August.

Please note:  The Penokean Hills Field Naturalists Club, its officers or agents will not be held responsible for any accident or liability whatsoever incurred as a result of participation in any meeting, activity, or field trip organized by them.  Come to outings dressed appropriately for the day (check the weather forecast). Trip leaders have the right to refuse people who are not properly equipped. Participants must make leaders aware of any serious medical condition that may arise during an outing. Bring water, a snack, or lunch depending on duration of outing. Also, your binos, camera, and field guides.  For general outing information, call Hans Kamps at 461-7737. For scheduled outing information, please call the leader of the outing. Sign up sheets will be available at the PHFN general meeting, and any member interested in participating in any activities should obtain more specific information by calling the trip leader(s).

NEST BOX SUMMARY FOR 2007
Thank you to our members who assisted in checking the nest boxes in Sherriff Creek Wildlife Sanctuary, Cattail Marsh Area, this winter - Dave Young, Terry Carr, Naomi Maggs, Marretta Warianko, Dorothy Kutt, Jocelyne Breive, Richard Meisner, Hans Kamps, and Irene McCone.  They did a lot of work checking the boxes, replacing some, and moving others.

Tree Swallow Boxes
The 2 nest boxes by the front gate have not been used in several years and were relocated to the Marsh area.  An additional box that hadn’t been used in awhile was moved.  One other box fell into the water and has been lost.  Two additional new boxes were put up in this same area.

 Of the remaining 9 nest boxes 2 were not used this year.  The following is the information gathered on the remaining 7 boxes.

Box #	Contents of box	Comments
2	Tree Swallows Nest Successful – egg + 1 dead chick	Lots of feathers including Ruffed Grouse & chicken + bread crust(?)
6	Tree Swallow Nest	Feathers
7	Tree Swallow Nest - 1 unhatched egg	Feathers: chicken, guinea hen & Ruffed Grouse
9	Tree Swallow Nest 4 dead young….fully feathered	Mortality probably due to starvation just before fledging
11	Tree Swallow Nest ? - Only a couple of feathers, mostly grass	1 egg found and it turned out to be a Tree Swallow egg
17	Tree Swallow Nest - Grass and Feathers
19	Tree Swallow Nest - Grass and Chicken feathers

 Wood Duck Boxes
Of the 7 Wood Duck Boxes we have one was not used in 2007 and the other one has disappeared.  The following is the information from the remaining boxes.

Box #	Contents of box	Comments
4A	16 unhatched Wood Duck eggs, some evidence of “pipping”	Fully developed embryos in eggs and some had started to hatch
5A	17 unhatched Wood Duck eggs	All frozen solid and strong odour when broken…even in frozen state
9A	Successful nest, well feathered and egg shells present
10A	Successful Nest – Feathers and shells	1st time

 Marretta Warianko and Tony Wooding look after and monitor the Bluebird/Swallow nest boxes for the Friends of Algoma East on the Panel Mine Peninsula, Quirk Road, and the Equestrian Stable area.  They had a total of 22 swallow fledglings and 6 bluebird fledglings.  Two boxes were destroyed by a bear or there would have been more bluebird fledglings who survived.

SHERRIFF CREEK SANCTUARY SPEAKS.................

April is a busy month for all living things in the Sanctuary.  It may start as winter, as it seems to be doing this year, but by its end the cattail marsh should be mostly water instead of ice, providing excited noisy flocks of Canada geese a stopping-over spot on their way further  north, while male red-winged blackbirds will already be returning there to stake out territory.

Along the trails willow, birch and alder catkins will be blooming; on warm days you’ll see mourning cloak butterflies and bumblebees flying about, both intent on those catkins, the butterflies for the nectar, the bees for the pollen.   

And April is a month which could start with springtails (or snow-fleas, those energetic,  jumping, tiny black dots on the snow) and end with a chorus of spring peepers, the tiny male tree frogs who call insistently for a mate.

There  just isn’t room to tell you about everything that happens in the Sanctuary this month.  Why don’t you come over and see and hear Spring for yourself?

  

Executive	Directors at Large	Advisors	Wolf Howl Pub/Dist
Gerard MacGillivray            President	Ray Cormier          Membership	Heather Fulford	Joan MacGillivray
Gerrit Hamer                      Vice-President	Hans Kamps         Outings	Peter Kennedy
Shelley McLennan              Secretary	Liz Powell	Jim Lindamood
Bob Montgomery                Treasurer		Elizabeth Matheson