Build or buy a birdhouse to attract and keep birds in your yard.You can find out how to buildmany different types of bird-houses through the Internet.Here are two sites that willtake you step-by-step throughthe building process.• http://birding.about.com/od/

buildhouses/ • http://www.bygpub.com/

bluebird/ Make sure an adult helps you if you are cutting or nailingwood. In the winter, onceyou're certain your featheredinhabitants have migrated towarmer climates, clean out thebirdhouse so it is ready fortheir arrival in spring.

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hether you live in the country orthe city you can observe, sketchand photograph wildlife. Grab a

magnifying glass, some jars with holespunched in the lids, paper and pencils,and maybe even a camera, then makethe trek to your backyard in search ofwild things.

Do you have a fancy for frogs? A highregard for hummingbirds? An interest ininsects? Read on to learn how to attractflying, crawling, slithering, jumping andburrowing wildlife to your back door.

Planting native species (instead ofgrass) is one of the best ways toattract and keep wildlife. Animals need habitat where they canlive, eat and reproduce. Planting trees,shrubs and flowers will provide this necessary habitat, while grass does not.In a large backyard, eastern white cedar,white spruce, oak, mountain ash andmaple trees can provide shade and protection for birds, mammals andinsects. In smaller yards, plant shrubs such as dogwoods, high- bush cranberry, serviceberry or staghorn sumac to provide cover and habitat for wildlife.

Want to attract wildlife at night?Hang a white bed sheet between twotrees, over a low branch or over a fence. Wait for nightfall and shine a flashlight onto the sheet. Moths and other night-time insects will be attracted to the light and will be easy to observe against the white background.

V i s i t u s o n t h e W e b a t w w w. o n t a r i o n a t u r e . o r g

355 Lesmill Rd, Toronto, ON M3B 2W8 Tel: (416) 444-8419, 1 800 440-2366 Fax: (416) 444-9866 E-mail: info@ontarionature.org, Website: www.ontarionature.org Copy Editor: Victoria Foote Reviewer: Jimmy BlackwoodPrinting: DTP Inc.

FAMILY NATURE NOTES AUTUMN 2006

Written by Kerry G. Everitt Design & illustrations by Judie L. Shore

Wilderness Walkingin your own

Naturalizing your backyardAs you are naturalizing your backyard, you might alsoattract chipmunks, squirrels and rabbits with cobs ofcorn or sunflower seeds. Chipmunks are very tame andcan be trained to take peanuts out of your hand.Remember, though, that these creatures are still wild so always be careful when handling them, or any otherwildlife. They may be in your backyard but they arealso in their natural habitat. Be sure to thoroughlywash your hands when you go inside, especially aftertouching any animals.Although some creatures may sting or bite, most willnot bother you unless they feel threatened, so alwayshandle them gently, or better yet, observe them from a distance.

Worms While most worms live between 45 and 60 days, certain species can live up to 50 years!

After rainfall, you’ve probably seen lots ofworms on the ground. Worms need oxygen and must surface during storms or they will drown as the soil becomes waterlogged. Sometimes worms will crawl onto thesidewalk or driveway and are stranded there. Worms need to live in a moist environment and will quickly dry up and die if they remain in the sun.If you find a stranded worm, gently pick it up and place it back in the grass. Worms help keep your flowers and plants alive by providing important nutrients to their roots.

Vermicomposting – puttingworms to work Composting is the natural breakdown of organic matter, likepotato peels and apple cores, into nutrient-rich soil. You canreduce the amount of garbage that ends up in landfills andproduce fertilizer for your garden by using a backyard com-poster. If you have limited space in your backyard, worms cando the work more quickly. Redworms or 'red wigglers' aresuper garbage eaters, consuming their body weight each day— that's as if you were to eat 250 hamburgers a day! Thesewiggling wonders can convert kitchen waste into rich, fertilized soil in about two months.

For more information about vermicomposting, visit theRecycling Council of Ontario's website athttp://www.rco.on.ca/factsheet/fs_e05.html

To learn more about backyard critters check

out these wesites:Natural Resources Canada:

http://www.glfc.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/landscape/froge.html

Nature Watch:http://www.naturewatch.ca/english/frogwatch/on/

The Toronto Zoo – Adopt-A-Pond Program:http://www.torontozoo.com/adoptapond/index.asp

Answers:These creatures in this Nature Note are insects: moths, mosquitoes,dragonflies, ants, harvestmen/daddy-long-legs and butterflies. These creatures are not insects: frogs, hummingbirds, robins, worms,Baltimore orioles, hawks, bats, toads, salamanders, newts, turtles,squirrels, rabbits and chipmunks.

Think you have to go to the zoo to see wild creatures? Think again and go

W

What is the difference between abutterfly and a moth?Butterflies are usually found in the day-time while moths are usually out atnight. Moths have thicker, furrier bod-ies than butterflies andfeathered antennae.Butterflies usually have

slender bodies andthin antennae with

small knobs at the end. At rest,most moths will fold their wingsover their backs while but-terflies will either holdthem upright over theirbacks or open them to baskin the sunlight.

Everyone loves a dipin the pool to cool offin the summer andbirds are no differentYou can easily make a birdbath using a large clay plant saucer or metal pieplate. If you have cats in the neighbour-hood, you should suspend the birdbathusing two, one-metre long pieces ofstrong binder twine or rope. Place thetwo pieces of rope in a large X on thefloor. Tie the two ropes into a knot in themiddle of the X. Place the plate on top ofthe ropes so that the knot is in the mid-dle. Gather the ends of the ropes and tiea double knot. Hang the saucer from alarge tree branch and fill the birdbathwith water. Your birdbath is safe enoughfor small birds to frolic in but take itdown during storms so that it doesn't falland break.

It is important to clean birdbaths everyday to prevent the water from becomingstagnant, the perfect breeding ground formosquitoes and West Nile Virus.

Most birds can't resist the sound of run-ning water. Carefully punch a very smallhole in the bottom of a large plastic popbottle. Cover the hole with your fingerand fill the bottle. Replace the cap andhang the bottle by the neck from a treebranch directly over the birdbath.Unscrew the cap just enough so thatwater will slowly drip out of the holein the bottom of the bottle and landin the bath below. A dripping bird-bath also attracts dragonflies, whicheat mosquitoes and blackflies. Dragonfliesfly forwards, backwards and can evenhover like tiny helicopters.

Hummingbirds are the world's smallest bird

Like dragonflies, they can fly forwards, backwards and hover. A hummingbird's wings beat up to 200 times per second, a feat

that takes a lot of energy! To satisfy their incredible metabol-ism, hummingbirds need to consume up to eight times their

body weight in water and nectar daily. Planting red tubular flow-ers such as trumpet honeysuckle, bee-balm and cardinal flower will providea natural food source for these tiny birds. You can also buy a hummingbirdfeeder to help supplement their diet. To make hummingbird food for yourfeeder, ask an adult to help you boil 125 ml of sugar with 500 ml of wateruntil the sugar dissolves. Cool this mixture and store in a tightly sealed jarin the refrigerator. Hang the feeder in the shade and clean it every two tothree days to prevent mould and mildew from forming.

All insects have common fea-tures and characteristics. Theyhave six legs, three body seg-ments (head, thorax andabdomen), two antennae andone or two sets of wings. Usingthis information, circle thenames of the creatures men-tioned in this Nature Notewhich are insects and underlinethose that are not.

Some people think ants are pests and put out poison to kill ant colonies. But ants play a very important role asnature's garbage collectors.Ants are always searching fordead insects and bits of food totake back to their nests, reduc-ing the amount of detritus(dead material) that could causedisease. If there are too manyants in your house, try this trick:put a little sugar water in ashallow dish outside in the gar-den. The ants will prefer tofeast on that and will leave yourkitchen alone!

Did you know…ants are the mostnumerous species on earth; theircombined weight is more than theweight of all human beings on the planet.

Harvestmen, or daddy-long-legsas they are also known, are notspiders as is commonly thought,but insects. Spiders have twodistinct body parts while thesecreatures have only one. Lookunder rocks and in moist envi-ronments for these small crea-tures. Don't worry, they won'tbite you. Harvestmen onlychomp on other insects whenthey are hunting for food.

In a bowl, mix together amashed banana, a little fruitjuice and some sugar until it isthick and gooey. Use a paintbrush to spread this mixtureonto a tree or a fence post.Flying and crawling insectswon't be able to resist this tastytreat. You can examine thesetiny creatures while they feedon the fruit.

Flowers such as yarrow, dill, sunflowers and asters, Butterflybush and monarda (sometimescalled bee balm) will attractbutterflies to your yard.Milkweed is the only host plantthat the Monarch butterfly willuse to lay her eggs and that thecaterpillar will eat on its journeyto adulthood. Butterflies likewarmth, so plant these flowersin direct sunlight.

At night, moths, not butter-flies, are king of the skies.Although many people thinkmoths only eat fabric, theyactually pollinate manyplants. Moths, in turn, areprey for bats.

Did you know…a single bateats between 500 and 1,000mosquitoes in one hour!

Robins, the first sign of spring,are plump birds with a redbreast and brown feathers.You can find them hopping alongthe ground, searching for wormsduring the summer and berries andinsects during the fall and winter.You might see a robin with its headcocked to one side with its 'ear'towards the ground. It is not actual-ly listening for worms, but insteadlooking intently at the ground forany slight movements in the soil, anindication that there is a tasty bugor worm below the surface.

Did you know…robin chicks eat up to 100 meals a day!

Attract brightly colouredorange and blackBaltimore orioles withorange slices, pearsor appleswedged firmlyon a treebranch.

These birds may also pay a visit toyour hummingbird feeder as theyalso enjoy sugary sweet treats.

Keep our feathered friendssafe by planting shrubs nearthe bird feeder for cover. Birds can hide from cats andpredatory birds like hawksamong the branches. Nearlyone third of all bird deathsare caused by domestic cat

attacks. Please do ourfeathered friends

a favour and tryto keep your

cat indoors.

Don't get bugged by insectsSome people have a phobia of insects, but once you understandthese crawling creatures, they aren't so creepy after all

Frogs and toadsThe lightning-fasttongues of frogs andtoads means no insectis safe. The Americantoad is about nine cen-timetres long and usu-ally brown in colourbut can also be grey,red or even green. Ifyou live near a woodlotor running water, youmay encounter otheramphibians or reptilessuch as spring peepers,wood frogs, bullfrogs,grey tree frogs or evensalamanders, newts andturtles.

Toads and frogs havethin skin that is sensi-tive to heat. Protectyour web-footedfriends from the sunusing a medium sizedclay pot. Place oneedge of the pot on arock so that frogs caneasily hop in and out.Eventually, a toad orfrog may take up resi-dence there and returnday after day to escapethe hot sun.