the honker - South Okanagan Naturalists` Club

THE HONKER
Newsletter of the South Okanagan Naturalists’ Club
June 2009
Northern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria coeruleus) –submitted by Doreen Olson
IN THIS ISSUE:
PRESIDENT'S REPORT
NORTHERN ALLIGATOR LIZARD
GENERAL MEETING MINUTES
CONSERVATION COMMITTEE REPORT
BOOK REVIEWS
THE PLANETS
VASEUX LAKE BIRD OBSERVATORY
TREKKING - WHITE LAKE TO MAHONEY LK
NATURE CALLS – BERRY WIJDEVEN
OKANAGAN BIG DAY CHALLENGE
MT REVELSTOKE WILDFLOWER TRIP
POEM – SANDHILL CRANES – M. HESSING
SITES OF INTEREST
SONC SPEAKER LIST
SONC FIELD TRIP SCHEDULE
OFFICERS OF THE SOUTH OKANAGAN
NATURALISTS’ CLUB
South Okanagan Naturalists’ Club
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 20017, Penticton, B.C., V2A 8K3
Website: http://www.members.tripod.com/~sonc/
Mission Statement:
“To provide a dynamic local focus for experiencing the natural world of B.C. and for promoting its conservation”
Membership:
$30 Individual
$40 Family
(yearly – September to August)
th
• Indoor meetings are held on the 4 Thursday of the month, September to May (except for December) at
7:30 pm in the basement of the Penticton United Church, 696 Main Street (blue church on the corner of
Main & Eckhardt). Please bring your own coffee mug = New members always welcome,
rd
• Executive meetings are held on the 3 Wednesday of the month. Please contact any Executive member
if you wish to add an item to the agenda.
• Our birding, wildflower, geology, social group meets every Thursday in the north parking lot of Cherry
Lane Mall (north of Warren Ave. and east of Atkinson St.) at 9:00 AM. Be prepared to car pool and offer a
donation to the driver ($3 for local trips and more for longer trips). Trips range from ‘car birding’ to easy
strolls to moderate hikes. Bring a lunch and dress for the weather. Everyone welcome! For more info,
please contact Joyce Hoglund 250-492-0512 or [email protected]
• Field Trips are generally made in the spring and fall. A list of forthcoming trips will be placed in the
Honker. Notify the trip leader of your intention to participate and inquire about trip duration, degree of
difficulty and other requirements. Dress for the prevailing weather conditions, wear appropriate footwear,
bring lunch and drinking water". Pets are NOT appropriate.
• BC Nature (formerly Federation of BC Naturalists) is our parent society. SONC is affiliated with Nature
Canada & Okanagan Similkameen Conservation Alliance (OSCA)
Executive Officers:
President: Bob Handfield   250.497.8702
[email protected]
Vice-President: Vacant
Past President: Vacant
Treasurer: Frank Focken 250.496.4210
[email protected]
Secretary: Marlene Hikichi  250.494.8731
[email protected]
Directors:
Jim Bryan 250.492.0312 [email protected]
Donna Finnestad 250.497.8121 [email protected]
Lou Poncelet 250.494.9454 [email protected]
Dennis St. John 250.498.6651 [email protected]
JimTurnbull 250.496.4195 [email protected]
Newsletter Submission Dates:
The 15th of: January
March
June
September and November
We welcome any nature-related articles (about 1/2
page in length), artwork/photos (both cover art &
smaller pieces), poems or cartoons.
Thanks for your submissions!
Please recycle - pass the newsletter on to a friend
Coordinators / Representatives:
Archivist: Jim Ginns  250.492.9610 [email protected]
Conservation Committee:
Jim Bryan  (for contact see Directors)
Gordon Howat  250.493.1232 [email protected]
Dennis St. John (for contact see Directors)
JimTurnbull (for contact see Directors)
BC Nature: Dennis St. John (contact see Directors)
Field Trips: Mits Hikichi 250.494.8731
[email protected]
Charmaine Foster 250.493.1772
[email protected]
Joyce Hoglund 250.492.0512
[email protected]
Honker Editor: Glenda Ross  250.493.7500
[email protected]
Indoor Speakers: Anthea Bryan 250.492.0312
[email protected]
Membership Secretary:
Donna Finnestad [email protected]
Evalyn Wood (mailout) 250.487.7577
[email protected]
Publicity: Joyce Hoglund 250.492.0512
[email protected]
Refreshments: Christel Brisch 250.493.9263
South Okanagan Habitat Garden Joyce Hoglund 
Thursday Birding: Joyce Hoglund 250.492.0512
[email protected]
Front Cover: Northern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria coeruleus) – Doreen Olson
This photo was taken by Doreen Olson at Three Gates Farm, Kaleden. It has been frequenting her front porch
for a couple of days around June 10th. See following page for more info.
the Honker, June 2009
Page 2 of 2
PRESIDENT'S REPORT
It doesn’t quite seem possible but here we are at
the summer break already. It seems like only weeks
ago that we were complaining about the cold and
wintery weather.
I’m glad to be able to finally report that the
bench in memory of Les & Violet Gibbard has been
installed on the Trans-Canada Trail above
Naramata. A plaque will soon be fixed on the bench
remembering them as founding members of SONC.
It’s fitting that SONC has contributed financially to
the bench and plaque.
The Okanagan Birding Trail guide has finally
gone to press and will be available by July 10. I
want to thank Ret Tinning of Berry & Smith Trucking
for helping us with receiving the shipment.
Drew Mitchell has drawn up an affinity coupon
(included with this issue) which will result in a
financial contribution being made to the Club every
time someone purchases Vortex binoculars or a
scope from him (providing that person presents a
coupon). So it’s in our interest to distribute these
coupons to as many south Okanagan residents as
possible. Coupons can be picked up from most
members of the executive. Already the Club is better
off with more than $100.00. Thanks Drew!
Another fund raising effort that we will participate
in this year to replace the now defunct Giant Garage
Sale is the Ironman Canada clean-up. Our Club will
work on Eastside Road the day after Ironman
(Monday Aug. 31) collecting and bagging roadside
garbage. Our Club will earn $500. Each participant
will receive an Ironman Volunteer T-shirt and an
invitation to their Volunteer Banquet on Tuesday,
Sept. 1. The more people we have the easier and
faster this will be so please join us. Let me know if
you plan to come so I can notify you of the start time
and place and so we can have the right number of Tshirts.
The field trip / outing coordinators have done a
superb job of our summer program. Already we
have had successful trips to the Merritt area and
Douglas Lake Ranch for birding, a bike trip on the
KVR from Osprey Lake to Faulder and a very
enjoyable camping trip to Herald Provincial Park on
Shuswap Lake. A lot of effort goes into organizing
these trips so I hope you will join one or two over the
summer months.
In my March report I thanked the new field trip
coordinators and inadvertently omitted Charmaine
Foster’s name so I want to thank her as well for
helping organize the trips.
Finally I want to remind everyone who goes on
field trips of any sort and shares a ride, that it is a
custom that everyone make a monetary contribution
to the driver to help offset expenses.
the Honker, June 2009
Enjoy your summer and we’ll see you all in
September or hopefully even sooner on a field
outing.
Bob Handfield – President NORTHERN ALLIGATOR LIZARD (NAL)
FRONT COVER - (ELGARIA COERULEUS)
The Northern Alligator Lizard occurs in Canada
from Vancouver Island to southwestern Alberta and
about as far north as Kamloops. They live in a
variety of habitat types, including montane forests,
dry woodlands, grasslands, and riparian zones.
However, they do not seem to be very common and
this is the first one I have seen.
This is Canada’s largest lizard growing to 25
cms (10 inches) long. The darker tip of the tail
indicates it is a regrown tip. Probably the original tip
had broken off to deter an attacker. The Common
Garter Snake, as well as most other snake species,
shrikes, Red-tailed Hawks, and house cats will kill
and eat NALs.
Adult Lizards feed on large insects (beetles,
caterpillars, and grasshoppers), spiders, snails,
scorpions, and millipedes. More pictures and info at
http://www.bcreptiles.ca/lizards/alligator.htm
Jim Ginns MINUTES GENERAL MEETING, APRIL 23, 2009
DENNIS ST.JOHN - CHAIR
1. Sightings were significant for spring birds/plants.
2. Doreen introduced our speaker, Steven
Cheeseman, President of Chinook Power of B.C.
His topic “Wind Power in B.C.” He explained the
Independent Power Product of B.C. explaining the
“run of rivers” projects, fossil fuels, geothermal.
Conservation being the end game. Involved
discussion followed.
3. Terry & Greg Tellier gifted 2 seed bells for a draw
4. Conservation Report: Jim Bryan stressed the
need for members to be aware and involved with the
Navigable Water protection Act by contacting
senators in Ottawa or M.P. Stockwell Day. The
Budget Implementation Act will amend the Navigable
Water Protection Act and leave our rivers and
steams vulnerable.
5. Species at Risk --- Dennis feels B.C. should
have its own stand alone policy on Species at Risk.
Perhaps through West Coast Wilderness Committee.
6. Trip Report from Mits. April 30th trip to Quilchena
and May 24 bike trip from Osprey to Faulder.
MINUTES OF GENERAL MEETING, MAY 28, 2009
PRESIDENT BOB HANDFIELD - CHAIR
1. Guests and visitors welcomed. New members
are Monica & Lawrie Belliveau.
2. Report of Thursday bird sightings.
3. President Bob asked for members assist with
Ironman cleanup. SONC had applied for this duty
Page 3 of 3
which members supported at an a earlier meeting the club would be paid $500.
4. Revelstoke trip for August 6 – 7 – 8, also needs
members to indicate interest as accommodation
needs to be arranged. Bob has also contacted a
park biologist for a tour.
5. Club picnic is at Handfield’s home June 27.
6. Doreen Olson introduced our speaker Dr. Ole
Westby. He presented an incredible array of his
pictures of nature through the years.
7. Drew Mitchell, through Vortex, is offering an
affinity coupon. For every sale made SONC
receives10% of the sale if SONC helps with coupon
distribution. To date SONC has realized $150.
8. Birding map should be ready for distribution by
the end of June.
9. Joyce will arrange a trip to Quilchena to see the
demo burrowing owl if interest is expressed.
10. Conservation Report is in this Honker.
11. City of Penticton, according to a paper article, is
changing the rules for riparian setback on new
development. Members encouraged to write letters
of protest
Secretary –Marlene Hikichi CONSERVATION COMMITTEE REPORT–JUNE/09
A letter was sent to the Senate Committee on
Environment and Natural Resources advising them
that we are concerned about elimination of
legislation requiring EA (Environmental Assessment)
before development projects can proceed in Canada.
As reported in the last Honker, these environmental
safeguards were eliminated by the federal
government in March 09. The Senate is preparing a
report which might help restore some of our former
environmental protections.
Under the new rules, many, if not most, EAs are
undertaken only at the discretion of a cabinet
minister. A case in point is a federal EA of the huge
private power development proposed for Bute Inlet
on BC’s coast.
Environment Minister Prentice
recently announced his decision to require an EA for
this project. We sent a letter commending him on
this decision.
Overall however, the federal government plans
to reduce the number of its EAs by 95% according to
West Coast Environmental Law (newsletter Spring
2009). For the past several decades the number of
new projects for which an EA was completed by
Environment Canada was about 7000 per year
whereas the new annual target set by Minister
Prentice is 200 to 300 per year. His justification is
that this will stimulate economic growth more quickly.
West Coast points out that we will not necessarily
have development which is sustainable nor any
assurance that environmental impacts have been
minimized for any project not subjected to EA.
the Honker, June 2009
Moreover , “by excluding EA, we risk environmental
damage that may well bear a significant cost later.”
RDOS RGS (Regional Growth Strategy): This
strategy document has been reviewed for a second
time by some of the municipal members of RDOS
who have recently submitted comments for
consideration by Board members. It is expected that
these comments will be on the Board’s agenda
during the summer with a public meeting to follow. It
is possible that this final public meeting will be
scheduled over the summer but more likely that it will
be set for the fall, according to RDOS Planer James
Moore. So please keep your eyes open for an
announcement in the local papers and phone or
email us on the Conservation Committee should you
happen to see notice about the public meeting to
review the RDOS Regional Growth Strategy.
Shanker’s Bend Dam: Public Utility District No
1 of Okanogan County has filed a 6 month progress
report to the US FERC recommending that further
investigations of the feasibility of a dam at Shanker’s
Bend be carried out. All three options (high, medium
and low dam) at Shanker’s Bend have been found to
be feasible from the technical engineering
standpoint, but no economic feasibility studies have
yet been carried out. The high dam option will flood
about 7200 ha of the Similkameen valley in Canada
(as far north as Cawston, BC). The B.C.
Government’s request to intervene has been turned
down, which may indicate that the US FERC does
not expect further action on this file for some time, at
least in a scenario that would impact Canada.
However the Government of Canada has yet to take
a position on this project, and the danger remains
that the Shanker’s Bend Dam will go ahead as a job
creating infrastructure project for one of the poorest
counties in Washington State, regardless of the
economic feasibility of the project.
Endangered species legislation:
BC and
Alberta are the only provinces in Canada without
legislation to protect endangered species. We have
been requesting such legislation on behalf of all
SONC members, but it is entirely appropriate for
each of us to write our own letters to our MLA and/or
BC’s Minister of Environment Barry Penner. As most
of you may know, Mr. Penner was reappointed to the
Environment portfolio following our recent election in
May of this year.
Nahanni National Park Reserve: Some good
news became public
June 9 when Canada’s
Environment Minister Jim Prentice announced that
negotiations had been completed with the Dehcho
First Nation to expand the boundary of protected
area for Nahanni National Park to some 30,000km2.
This affords considerable protection to an important
watershed and sizable piece of boreal forest,
Page 4 of 4
although two existing mines have been allowed to
continue operations within the watershed. More
information about the area is available from
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society at
http://www.cpaws.org/programs/nahanni/.
Your Conservation Committee is always open to
new members and new ideas. So let us know if you
learn of anything we should investigate or act upon.
Jim Bryan, Jim Turnbull, and Dennis St. John BOOK REVIEW
A MOUNTAIN YEAR by B.C. writer, Chris
Czaijkowski. available at both local public libraries.
This # 12 book by a great person who really
appreciates nature would be a great read during our
winter. Great gift to others too.
It is full of colourfully painted sketches, telling
her story of living in an isolated costal place near
Bella Coola. Florals are eye-catching. Her life is
very busy, almost around the calendar with paying or
working guests who stay in the cabins she built.
Other guests arrive by pre-planned small air planes
just for a day of nature walks and visits with Chris.
They often trade their city made lunches for her
home-made bread. She enjoys the supermarket
fruits and vegetables saying pineapple slices are
rare in her rural area.
Hope you enjoy these books & remember reading
books is like eating potato chips , very addictive , so I
hope you will be looking for my next listed ones.
Have a good read
Donna Finnestad Beginning birder or sophisticated veteran, if you
bird the Okanagan Valley, you can't
afford to be without the Okanagan
Valley Birding Trail. With more than
60 birding hot-spots from the US
border to the north end of the
Valley, this Guide takes you where
the birds hang-out. Available July
10, only $3.50 for SONC members.
the Honker, June 2009
THE PLANETS
The best time to see planets this summer is in
the early morning. At this time of year that means
very early. Consider it a treat for the insomniac.
Throughout the summer both Venus and Mars
will be visible in the east as the sky starts to get
light. Mars will look like a bright star with a reddish
tinge, a steadier light than the stars around it, but
not particularly spectacular. In contrast, Venus will
be brilliant, far brighter than any star around, and
quite unmistakable. During the early part of the
summer Jupiter will also grace the early-morning sky,
in the south to begin with, more to the west by midsummer, and gone after that.
But the evening sky is the one most people are
likely to visit, and planets are pretty thin on the sky
at that time. Saturn is the only one. Early in the
summer Saturn will be visible as darkness falls,
appearing fairly low in the western sky, looking like a
bright yellow star and sitting just below the
constellation Leo, which will be charging head first
down to the western horizon. Saturn is always a
good object for a telescope, although its rings
appear almost edge-on this year so not nearly as
spectacular as usual.
Early in the summer also means not long after
solstice, the time of longest day, so waiting for
darkness to fall is a late-night sort of exercise.
With so little in the way of planets, you might like
to check out a star or two. In the early part of the
summer Arcturus will appear to the south of the
zenith, and Vega to the west of the zenith. Both are
bright stars, but present quite a contrast in colour,
Arcturus orange and Vega blue. Colour indicates
surface temperature on the star, Vega being
considerably hotter than Arcturus. As both of them
are true stars they should be
twinkling more energetically than the planet
Saturn. That’s the way it generally works, but how
big a difference you will actually see depends on the
state of the Earth’s atmosphere along the line of
sight - just how turbulent it is on a small scale.
Later in the summer Saturn will be lost behind
the mountains in the west, but Jupiter will be making
his way into the south-east sky. Jupiter will be in the
constellation Capricornus, fairly low in the south-east
and generally not visible until later in the evening.
For stars to check out later in the summer, Vega
will have made its way to the zenith, good for getting
a crick in the neck. The zenith is somewhere the
planets never go, at least not at our latitude. Vega is
part of the famous “summer triangle”, a nice big
right- angled triangle that stays with us right through
the fall. The other two members of the triangle are
Deneb, to the east of Vega, and Altair, south-east of
Vega.
Dr. Chris Purton Page 5 of 5
VASEUX LAKE BIRD OBSERVATORY
In
March
SONC
provided a cheque to OSCA
in the amount of $335.00 to
purchase a much needed
tent for the Vaseux banding
station.
Pictured here is Donna,
SONC Director, presenting
an announcement of a
cheque to Doug Brown at the Oliver-Osoyoos AGM. .
A cheque will be given to OSCA to purchase a tent
for the Vaseux Banding station where Doug is head
bander. Doug and all naturalists in attendance were
happy of our generous donation and look forward to
banding this year in a mosquito-free work place.
The Vaseux Lake Bird Observatory operates
every morning in August and September. The
station is located one kilometre north of Vaseux Lake
on the west side of Hwy. 97. Volunteers are always
needed to help on-site with data entry, net checks
and the daily census.
Contact Dick Cannings
([email protected])
or
Doug
Brown
([email protected]) for details.
TREKKING FROM WHITE LAKE TO MAHONEY
LAKE, 2009 APRIL 25
Fourteen SONC members hiked six kilometres
along trails and roads between White and Mahoney
lakes (Mits & Marlene Hikichi, Jim & Anne Ginns,
Jim & Deirdre Turnbull, Al & Mary Tinka, Evalyn
Wood, Doreen Olson, Adelle Sharp, Lou Poncelet,
Bob Handfield, and Jim Bryan). We had a mix of
spring weather with some sunny periods in an
otherwise cloudy sky and even a brief snow flurry.
There was quite an array of spring flowers as listed
below. The balsamroot was particularly nice and
there were a few Saskatoon bushes in flower
although many bushes had only their leaves
showing.
Heading south and east from the Nature Trust
Biodiversity Ranch kiosk on a trail through the
sagebrush and aspen groves, we had beautiful views
of the sagebrush covered White Lake Basin and
beyond to the snow-covered peaks around Apex
Mountain. We passed several alkaline ponds where
tiger salamanders breed and where we saw
goldeneye, buffleheads, and mallards (see list
below). A Canada goose was sitting on a platform
and nest inside a washtub with a hole in the bottom
through which feathers were streaming out. Through
a forest of ponderosa pine and bunchgrass the trail
gradually ascended a ridge and then dropped off
fairly steeply into the valley for Kearns Creek. We
ate lunch near the dam for a reservoir and found a
the Honker, June 2009
lovely patch of water cress growing in a spring
feeding into the creek. Crossing the dam on the
reservoir we passed several more alkaline ponds
before reaching the basin draining into Mahoney
Lake.
Five of our group headed for vehicles at
Mahoney Lake and the rest of us circled back to our
starting point along more northerly trails and roads
that followed forks of Kearns Creek. Some parts of
Kearns Creek Valley walls were very steep rock, so
the trail followed a more gentle ridge parallel to
Hawthorne Mountain. Eventually the old roads and
trails took us back into the White Lake Basin just
south of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory.
Jim B, Jim G, Anne, & Al
Birds seen/heard
Canada goose
Raven
Barrow’s goldeneye Mountain chickadee
Bufflehead
Pygmy nuthatch
Mallard
Red-breasted nuthatch
Dusky grouse
White-breasted nuthatch
Ruffed grouse
Ruby-crowned kinglet
Gray partridge
Robin
Red-tailed hawk
Townsend’s solitaire
Kestrel
Mountain bluebird
Accipiter sp.
Western bluebird
Sandhill cranes
Yellow-rumped warbler
Killdeer
Towhee
White-throated swift White crowned sparrow
Calliope hummingbird Chipping sparrow
Hairy woodpecker
Song sparrow
Downy woodpecker
Vesper sparrow
Red-shafted flicker
Lincoln’s sparrow
Red-naped sapsucker Dark eyed junco
Say’s phoebe
Western meadowlark
Dusky (?) flycatcher
Cassin’s finch
Plants in flower
Balsamroot
Shooting star
Fringe cup
Yellow bells
Sagebrush buttercup
Waxy Currant Western spring beauty
Saskatoon
Narrow-leaved desert parsely
Long-flowered mertensia Coltsfoot
Pink twink
White twink
Lemon weed
Blue-eyed Mary
Woollypod milk-vetch
THANK YOU to Berry Wijdeven
Page 6 of 6
Okanagan Big Day Challenge results, May 18, /09
POSTED ON EBIRD BY: "DICK CANNINGS"
The 24th annual Okanagan Big Day Challenge
was a big success, with one of the finest days for
weather we've ever had--relatively calm, no rain,
pleasant temperatures. All nice features when you're
biking!
Ten teams (28 people) were registered for the
event. There were 4 all-day bicycle teams, all
centred in the south Okanagan as well as a bicycle
Little Big Day (LBD; 8 hours only) around Vernon.
Three teams were set to do walking big days, but
one had to cancel at the last minute because of the
flu. Two teams did the LBD by car option, being
restricted to 100 km and staying within a Christmas
Bird Count circle.
The "Tireless Loonies" (Eva Durance, Glenda
Ross and Bob McKay) took home top honours for
the second year in a row with 135 species, despite
enduring 6 flat tires over the course of the day. The
Vintage Vagrants (Dick Cannings and Nancy Baron)
came in second with 131 species (and no flats). The
Flat Tireds (Russell Cannings and 3 other birders
from Kelowna--sorry, I forgot to write down the
names!) had 118 species (and one flat tire), despite
having to finish their day in mid-afternoon because of
a family emergency for one of the team members.
The final full-day biking team, consisting of Tanya
Luszcz, Ruth Joy, Heidi Krajewski, Stephen Anstee,
Frances Iredale and Kirk Safford, tallied 113 species.
Peter Blokker and Margaret Hubble saw 89 species
in their bicycle LBD around Vernon.
Laurie Rockwell (the "Solitary Sandpiper), did
one of the car LBDs and got 78 species in the
Penticton area, while "The Wilson's Warblers"
(Gwynneth Wilson, Elke Fischer, Pam Laing, and
Judy Latta) counted 103 species around Kelowna.
Doug Cooper and Jack Toohey did a very short
walking day in Penticton and tallied 48 species, but
Doug Brown of Osoyoos pulled out all the stops and
hiked 52 kilometres up and down Mount Kobau, then
up to Kilpoola Lake and down to Osoyoos, shattering
the old walking record with 120 species. Doug
started at midnight, counting 14 owls of 7 species
(Flammulated, Western Screech, Great Horned,
Barred, Long-eared, Northern Saw-whet and
Northern Pygmy) while hiking to the top of the
mountain.
Bird highlights were: Caspian Tern (Okanagan
Falls and Haynes Point, Dick Cannings and Doug
Brown) Double-crested Cormorant (2 flying over
Okanagan Falls, Dick and Russell Cannings) Greater
White-fronted Goose (Kelowna, Gwynneth WIlson)
Sage Thrasher (White Lake, Kirk Safford) Rednecked Phalarope (Deadman Lake, Dick Cannings)
The combined species total was 172 species,
the Honker, June 2009
not bad considering the early date and the late
spring. See you next year! Cheers, Dick Cannings
MEMBERSHIPS ARE DUE FOR RENEWAL IN
SEPTEMBER - MEMBERSHIP NEWS!
Membership year runs from Oct 1st to Sept.
30th. Memberships entitle you to all Club functions,
the Honker and the quarterly magazine, B.C.Nature
We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Phone Donna at 250-497-8l21 or write to SONC, Box
20017, Penticton V2A 8K3. Want to receive your
copy of the HONKER on line?
email
[email protected].
*** Let’s try double our membership – bring a friend
to the next meeting!
Donna Finnestad MT REVELSTOKE WILDFLOWER TRIP
We have arranged for a Ranger-led guided tour
of the wildflowers of Mt Revelstoke National Park on
Friday August 7 which is the current best guess as to
when the flowers will be at their peak (pardon the
pun!).
The intention is to go to Revelstoke on Thursday
August 6, spend two nights and return home on
Saturday August 8. While in Revelstoke we can visit
the train Museum and possibly take a tour to Mica
Dam.
I have made arrangements for a block of rooms
at the Days Inn Motel. Our price will be $100 for 2
people in a room with 2 queen beds. If people want
to share and have more than 2 people per room the
rate will be $10 per extra person over two. The price
includes a continental breakfast.
Each person or couple should make their own
reservations by calling the Days Inn Revelstoke at
(250) 837 2191 and say that you are with SONC.
They are holding 10 rooms for us until July 10. If you
are not certain as to whether you can make it, you
are better off to book now; you can cancel up to 24
hrs with no penalty. This rate is almost 20% under
their normal discounted rate.
Please contact me if you intend to go.
Bob Handfield
Page 7 of 7
Sandhill Cranes
1.
It’s the gossip that tells you
when you hear turkey gobble way up high,
a babel of lucy goosey sandhill cranes
threads the sky in a crazy blanket
stitch, under and over blue sky and white clouds,
mending their ways, unraveling the day,
weaving earth to sky.
They kettle the wind, like a teapot
on the stove, steam curling up and up.
You get downright dizzy, so you sit a while,
all afternoon, watching pinwheel cranes
twirl higher and higher, strung out like wash to dry,
‘til in a wing beat, their north cross-stitch
of flight is just a trace.
Then, when you think you’ve seen it all
and the breeze whispers sweet nothings,
another line bends back the night.
2.
Cranes gurgle overhead in a glottal chorus line,
scrimshaw the night, scratch out code –
a glyph that we can never know.
Scatter, coalesce in soft round curves of flight,
spin north, homing in on sun and stars.
Here today, gone tomorrow,
the certainty of ungrounded truths.
3.
Cranes peephole the sky like balloons
on the lam, escaping failed marriages, stale jobs,
or maybe they’re retired -- boomer cranes,
airstream travelers, snowbirds in the grip
of climate change. Every trip
a carbon trade: each field of grain
a credit; each wingbeat harnessed
to the grid of sky. Bipolar
cranes parse wind and air,
dis/order the universe.
4.
Galaxies of sandhill cranes
spiral in the dusk. A twilight gyre
spirits them away, each wingbeat cruciform.
This moment speaks in tongues –
holy ghosts giggle at
the trick of flight.
Melody Hessing
SITES OF INTEREST
http://www.betterworldcalendar.com/habitatday.htm
The United Nations has designated the first
Monday in October as annual World Habitat Day
The purpose: reaffirm that adequate shelter is a
the Honker, June 2009
basic human right and focus on the conditions of
cities & towns around the world. Remind the world of
its collective responsibility for the future of the human
habitat.
Today’s reality Urbanization continues rapidly
and for the 1st time in history, over 1/2 of humanity
lives in cities and towns. One-third of the current
urban population live in slums. Without access to
adequate shelter, clean water or sanitation, up to 10
million people die each year from preventable
diseases. Children suffer at school. Parents cannot
make ends meet.
Tomorrow’s outlook By 2030, estimates are
that 2/3s of the world’s population will be urban
dwellers. The quest for adequate shelter and basic
provisions for all is more urgent than ever.
Change the future On October 5, 2009, support
World Habitat Day
Submitted by Allan Garland
SONC SPEAKER LIST
Meet at: Penticton United Church, 696 Main St
Speaker at 7:30pm.
September 24: Jack Teng, PhD candidate in
Resources, Management and Environmental
Studies at UBC, will give us an update on his tick
project. A colleague may join him to speak about
work on West Nile virus in the Okanagan region.
October 22: Mike Mackintosh of the Burrowing Owl
Conservation
Society of
BC will give a
presentation about the Burrowing Owl Recovery
Program. Accompanying him will be a special
guest, Beaker, the Burrowing Owl. Recently Mike
and volunteers have been preparing a new site
near Oliver.
SUMMER/FALL FIELD TRIP SCHEDULE – 2009
Sunday, June 28 : Osprey Lake,
Meet Summer Fair, Summerland, 9AM.
Leader – Mits (phone # below)
Thursday, July 9: Mt Kobau.. Butterflies
Please note change of date from July 5 to 9
Meet at Warren and Atkinson at 9 AM
Leader - Dennis St. John (498.6651)
Sunday, July 12: Brent Mountain..day trip,
strenuous hike.
Meet at Warren and Atkinson at 9AM
Leader - Mits (phone # below)
August 6, 7, 8:: Revelstoke – visit Mt Revelstoke
National Park, the Railway Museum Revelstoke
Dam and more. 2 night trip, camp or motel
Depart: Warren and Atkinson at 8:30
Leader: Bob Handfield (497.8702)
Thursday, August 13: Apex Mtn, moderate hike
Plants, Butterflies, Birds
Meet at Warren and Atkinson at 9 AM
Leader – Mits, (phone # below)
Page 8 of 8
Sunday, August 23: Mission Greenway in Kelowna
Remember these instructions
Meet at Warren and Atkinson at 9 AM
Pre register with the trip leader several days before
Leader – Donna Finnestad (.497.8121)
the departure date
Sept 12, 13, 14: New Denver Garlic Festival
Be prepared for the trip, have adequate footwear,
Camp or Motel. Many interesting places to visit,
clothing, lunches, water, money for car pooling,
Sandon, Idaho Mtn, Silverton
etc.
Leader – Elsie Sanderud (493.7425)
No dogs allowed
Sept 13-18: Lillooet Naturalist Club , Organized
Notes: If there is insufficient interest the trip may
outings,rafting, geology, alpine hike. $400.
/will be cancelled
Details and program on their website
If you would like to lead a trip or have an idea for
http://www.lillooetnaturalistsociety.org/news.html
a trip, contact Charmaine (493.1772), Mitsi
Phone 1.250.256.4062 to register.
(494.8731) or Joyce (492.0512)
Sunday, Sept 20: Princeton, Vermillion and Area
Meet at Warren and Atkinson 8:30 AM
Leader - Joyce Hoglund (phone # below)
Sunday, Oct 4: Golden Mile hike, Oliver
Meet at Warren and Atkinson at 9 AM
Leader – pending
Sunday, Oct 18: Skaha Protected Area
Meet at Warren and Atkinson, 9 AM
Leader – pending
OFFICERS OF THE SOUTH OKANAGAN NATURALISTS’ CLUB
The Club was founded in 1962 and its success has rested, principally, on the shoulders of the directors. The
major workload falls to the officers (President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer) and over 80 members have
been elected officers. Many of these members served in more than one office as well as being a director and/or
served on one or more of the club’s committees.
The following table lists just the officers from 1962 to 2008. The names were dug out of the minutes and the
newsletters. In a few instances the name of the person in an office was not found; minutes of some meetings are
missing. And there are a few cases where there were no nominees and the new Council had to arrange for the Club
to continue functioning. For example, the minutes record that there were no nominations for President at the Annual
General Meeting (1975 Feb 28) and it was proposed that for each meeting the Council select one of their members
to be acting President. Again in 1982-1983 there was no nominee for President. After the elections the directors
decided that the four naturalists listed in the table would divide the duties. And occasionally it was not possible for a
member to complete their year in office, for example, three members served as Treasurer in 1978-1979.
Year
President
Vice President
Secretary
Treasurer
Past President
2008
Bob Handfield
Open
Copper Drew
Frank Focken
John E. Taylor
2007
B. Handfield
Open
Joyce Hoglund
Maggie Handfield
J. E. Taylor
2006
B. Handfield
Open
Charmaine Foster
Judy Pratt
J. E. Taylor
2005
Frank Sigurdson
Bob Handfield
C. Foster
Clarence Flett
J. E. Taylor
2004
F. Sigurdson
Open
Hettie de Jong
C. Flett
J. E. Taylor
2003
John E.Taylor
Arlene Reid
H. de Jong
Elsie Sanderud
Open
2002
J. E.Taylor
A. Reid
Marlene Hikichi
Lou Poncelet
Eva Durance
2001
Eva Durance
John E. Taylor
M. Hikichi
L. Poncelet
Leona Dodd
2000
Leona Dodd
Copper Drew
M. Hikichi
L. Poncelet
Laure Neish
1999
Laure Neish
Open
Hettie de Jong
Tom Lowery
Helen Poncelet
1998
L. Neish
Open
H. de Jong
T. Lowery
H. Poncelet
1997
Helen Poncelet
Laure Neish
Laure Neish acting
T. Lowery
Eva Durance
1996
Eva Durance
Open
Talitha Hostetter
Sangster Jessiman
Dennis St. John
1995
E. Durance
Open
T. Hostetter
S. Jessiman
D. St. John
1994
E. Durance
Open
Susan MacRae
S. Jessiman
D. St. John
1993
Dennis St. John
Eva Durance
Lynn Owens
Sid Cornish
D. St. John
Bill Shaw
L. Owens
S. Cornish
1992/93
the Honker, June 2009
Page 9 of 9
S. Schneider
Year
President
Vice President
Secretary
Treasurer
Past President
D. St. John
B. Shaw
Open
S. Cornish
Sherry.
Schneider
1991/92
Sharon Schneider
Eva Durance
Rae Fowler
Gail Milroy
1990/91
S. Schneider
E. Durance
R. Fowler
Sid Cornish
1989/90
Laurie Rockwell
Dennis St. John
Hazel McMahon
S. Cornish
1988/89
George Traicheff
Laurie Rockwell
Margaret Oliver
Mae Simpson
1987/88
G. Traicheff
Open
M. Oliver
M. Simpson
1986/87
Dave McIntosh
Linda Dymond
Open
Pearl Morgenstern
Olive Evans
1985/86
Dave McIntosh
Linda Dymond
Open
O. Evans
1984/85
D. McIntosh
Open
Bonnie Dafoe
Violet Carlaw
1983/84
Bob Gibbard
Dave McIntosh
B. Dafoe
V. Carlaw
1982/83
Steve Cannings,
Violet Gibbard,
June Cuming,
Joan Poulsom
Walter Charles
(R) Dorothy Cousins
(C) Katherine Walton
Sec. Beverley Grant
1981/82
Nancy Coppin
1980/81
N. Coppin
1979/80
1992
Pearl Hauser
(R) Enid Maynard
(C) Katherine Walton
P. Hauser
Open
(R) Enid Maynard
(C) C.K. Stiles
Bruce Morgenstern
June Cuming
Nancy Coppin
(R) Cleo Lally
(C) C.K. Stiles
B. Morgenstern
1978/79
J. Cuming
N. Coppin
(R) Cleo Lally
(C) C.K. Stiles
Pat Chase/ Doug Noel/
Bruce Morgenstern
1977/78
Enid Touzeau
June Cuming
(R) Phyllis Noel
(C) C. Kay Stiles
Doreen Tait
1976/77
E. Touzeau
J. Cuming
(R) Phyllis Noel
(C) C. Kay Stiles
D. Tait
Roberta
Carleton
1975/76
Open
Roberta Carleton
Eileen Angly
D. Tait
W.A. Johnson
1974/75
Johnny Johnson
Pat Manery
Mary Gougeon
Mabel Coggan
1973/74
Joan Poulsom
Harold Baumbrough
Bonnie Dafoe
Nancy Coppin
1972/73
J. Poulsom
Angie Waterman
B. Dafoe
N. Coppin
1971/72
Bob Gibbard
Open
B. Dafoe
Joan Poulsom
1970
B. Gibbard
Allan McKenzie
Enid Maynard
J. Poulsom
1969
Doug Noel
Bob Gibbard
E. Maynard
R. Ben May
1968
D. Noel
B. Gibbard
Mrs. E.Touzeau
Pat Johnson
1967
Les Hill
Doug Noel
May Summers
Bob Gibbard
1966
Violet Gibbard
Les Hill
Jean Cannings
Tom Hall
1965
V. Gibbard
J. Cannings
T. Hall
1964
Cyril Rayner
Mrs. L. Gibbard
Les Hill
T. Hall
1963
Steve Cannings
Carleton MacNaughton
Jack McDougald
Andy Bennie
J. McDougald
A. Bennie
1962
S. Cannings
C. MacNaughton
C = corresponding secretary, R = recording secretary
Enid Touzeau
Jim Ginns, archivist
So extraordinary is Nature with her choicest treasures, spending plant beauty as she spends
sunshine, pouring it forth into land and sea, garden and desert. And so the beauty of lilies falls
on angels and men, bears and squirrels, wolves and sheep, birds and bees.... John Muir
the Honker, June 2009
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