April 11, 2004
BRUCE TRAIL - off of Dunby Road
Sign Tracking
Meeting Report & Photos by Alexis Burnett
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As we arrived at this section of the Bruce trail we were
greeted with a flock of approx. 10 wild turkeys on the trail. They
gently moved away from our gaze and proceeded to cross the open farm
field away from us and the road. It was an amazing spring day in the
Hockley Valley as the sun shone brightly and the sky seemed a little
'bluer' than the past few days/months! These are the spring days that
always succeed in raising your spirits and helping your hearts soar like
the beautiful voices of the many birds that seem to arrive on a daily
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As we walked down
the trail we passed by many redwing blackbirds and singing
sparrows along the fence line. We came upon a place where many
cottontails had fed on this apple tree over the previous winter. |
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A little further
down the trail we came across an old coyote scat from last
winter that contained a lot of hair from both cottontail and
small rodents. There was also some kind of unknown bone/bone
fragments in this scat as well. We couldn't tell where these had
come from?
I remember when this scat was fresh on this
trail in Jan/Feb. and it sure looked quite different now! |
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Across on of the
farm fields we could see the movements of the wild turkeys as
they seemed to 'sense' our gaze from a great distance. Off to
the side of the trail one member of our group found some unknown
seeds that seemed to be 'stashed-out' in a woodpecker hole? We
wondered how they got here and by whom? These questions remain a
mystery? |
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As we rounded the bend we could see the wild turkeys
soaring over the ridge and across the valley to the cover of some cedar
trees. For such large birds they sure are graceful in flight (perhaps
more so when they are soaring). It was cool to watch 10 of them glide to
to the safety of the cedars. As we walked the meadowlarks and sparrows
continued to sing as well as the flickers calling in the background.
There was a point on the trail where a deer had jumped the fence and we
studied the splayed feet and imagined where it had walked through the
dried grass. Over the hill a ways we also came upon an old cottontail
kill-site and examined the remains of the story. Since I had seen this
site before in the winter when it was fresh I was pretty sure that it
was a red fox who had taken out this particular rabbit. In this area
there was a lot of feeding sign from rabbits and deer. Both in the
summer and winter. The apple trees had been browsed quite heavily.
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In this area there
were a few green plants beginning to resume growth including a
beautiful mullein plant that had many snow fleas gathered in the
center of its "rosette". At this point
we talked a little about the excitement that we all felt about
the plants that would soon grow from the earth and the many uses
of these gifts. |
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Around this area there were also a lot of ant hills, some
old and some new. A couple of them seemed to be 'ripped' apart and we
speculated that it may be the work of skunks, flickers, grouse, etc...
There really are a lot of ant hills around when you begin to look for
them. As we descended into the cedar lowland we passed a lot of red
squirrel midden consisting of white spruce cone scales. There were many
piles at the openings to hole and on high mounds that sported a good
view of the surrounding area. This area sure had a lot of food for these
'noisy' little rodents. Up ahead there was a
grouse 'drumming' trying to round up the available females of this
species. As we moved slowly across the landscape we stopped many times
to look at the 'little' things and soaked up the sun and the beautiful
countryside as much as possible. On a ridge we found some large
porcupine chews in the bark of some red and white pine trees. There were
many snow fleas and insects stuck to the sap that was seeping out of
these wounds.
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In this area we
also found part of a jaw bone of an unknown mammal? Judging by
the suture markings and the sharp and unworn condition of the
teeth we judged it to be from a young animal. Just down the hill
there was what remained of a dead porcupine. It was hard to tell
if this bone was from this same animal? Just inside the cedar
forest someone found a skull and bone remains of this animal.
Can you tell what mammal it is? The skull measured 4-3/16"
There are some good indicators of what it is in
this picture. 40 teeth in all. We had some good questions and a
pretty good guess what it belonged to. |
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As we moved along
we passed by many areas where there were signs of the many
animals that lived in these forests. Chews, rubs, wallows,
tracks, scat, etc... Going through the middle of a sumac thicket
there was a really well-worn cottontail trail! Very straight and
narrow. As we continued on we found an old maple tree and
decided to climb and hang out in it's branches for a while.
There were a few raccoon scats in its limbs as well as a cherry
and elderberry tree growing out of the crotch of the tree
itself. How do you think these were 'planted' here? hint, hint.
At the base of this tree was a huge old rock pile
and a few of us experimented with some flint knapping for a
while. |
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As we moved on we
stopped to take a quick group photo.
What a merry bunch! |
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As we entered the
hardwoods there were signs of a few wildflowers beginning to
emerge from the forest floor. Including spring beauties and
trout lily flowers. The robins were digging under the leaves and
moving about in small groups on the forest floor. there was also
many chickadees, a pair of downy woodpeckers and flickers off in
the distance. It was a very peaceful place to be and we all
could feel the sense of re-birth that was taking place in this
environment as we moved about. Soon we were at the creek where
we found many signs of a lot of wildlife. There were tracks,
scat and sign from such animals as raccoons, fox, coyote, deer,
wild turkey, squirrel etc... |
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As well there were
many insects visible in the dead grass along the creek including
crickets, flies, ants and spiders (wolf?). A sole garter snake
was also in this area. No doubt dining on this buffet selection.
There was also a rotten log that looked like
it had been ripped apart by a skunk or woodpecker or perhaps
both. There were round holes and some small claw marks on the
log. |
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All in all there was a lot of information received from the
natural world on this day and we all felt blessed and thankful for the
chance to interact with this place in such a positive way. I would like
to thank everyone who came out and extend my invitation to all those to
join us in the future in our continuing study the earth.
Until then....Happy Tracking
Alexis |
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