\;Floodplain Hotspots for Southern Hardwood Herbs by Nick Hill. who is a plant ecologist. \;
Nick Hill trained in botany at Acadia with Sam VanderKloet (BSc/MSc) and received his Ph.D in microbial ecology at Dalhousie University. His post-doctoral work was done with \;Paul Keddy in 1988 looking for the reasons for rarity in plant species in 47 lakes in southwest Nova Scotia. That began his interest in rare plants and conservation biology.
Taught at Mount St. Vincent 1989-2003. I continued research into the rare elements of the coastal plain flora in NS. This period also included three and a half years in Kentucky where he did sabbaticals and fell in love with their deciduous forest flora and found a new bible\: Lucy Braun's Deciduous Forest of Eastern North America.
He now works as a wetland consultant and part-time lecturer at Dalhousie's College of Sustainability and at St. Francis Xavier (field course) and he is developing a native plant nurery at his farm in South Berwick.
He will be comparing two very different wetland systems\: the acid\, infertile coastal plain lake shores\, and the fertile floodplains of eastern Nova Scotia.
Sherman Williams (542-5104\, sherm@glinx.com) will lead a trip to see the tidal bore at the Mantua Bridge and again at Scotch Village. This field trip will be about 2.5 hr long. The tides are at high\, so the tidal bore should be very good. \;Those who wish to carpool should leave the parking lot at the Wolfville waterfront at 10\:30 a.m. sharp to meet the trip leader at the tourist bureau \; \;(on the water side of the 101) \;at Exit 6. at 11\:00 a.m. (Remember that the tide waits for no man!). That will let us see if from Tidal View farm\, at 11\:40 a.m.\, the Mantua Bridge at 12\:20 p.m.\, and a third time\, at the Scotch Village bridge \\at 12\:40 p.m. \;
Join the Chebucto Hiking Club for a moderate/difficult 13 km hike at Blomidon Provincial Park. This hike is suitable for adults only and is rated 4C-a good deal of significant hill climbing and a significant part of the walk takes place on somewhat difficult terrain (rocky\, rooted paths). We will meet at the Blomidon Provincial Park lower parking lot. Please bring lunch and lots of water. Contact Dawn or Tom at (902) 434-9447\, email
\;
chebuctohiking@hotmail.com
\;
or visit
\;
www.chc.chebucto.org
.
Changing climate\, and global warming in particular\, are all over the media today\, and record setting heat waves\, floods and droughts are reported routinely. \; Various groups promote activism to limit emission of greenhouse gases\, while other have questioned the validity of the human contribution. \; This lecture will examine the science behind changes in climate\, what the record actually shows\, and how the media have reacted to the issue.
[NOTE\: This meeting will be held in Room BAC241 in the Beveridge Arts Centre]
Dr. Raeside is the head of the Department of Earth and Environmental Science and Acadia University. \;
He received his B.Sc.\, University of Aberdeen (1976)\; M.Sc.\, Queens University (1978)\, and Ph.D.\, University of Calgary (1982). \;One of the courses he teaches at Acadia is Atmosphere\, Weather\, and Climate which investigates the composition\, structure\, and dynamics of the atmosphere\; weather\, climate\, and biogeographic patterns\; microclimatology\; paleoclimates\, paleogeography\, and extinctions\; human effect on air quality\; and climate change. \;
Astronomy Observing Session – Join Roy Bishop (542–3992)\, Patrick Kelly (472-2322) and members of the Minas Astronomy Group to observe the night sky. Constellations will identified by the use of a laser pointer. Jupiter will be well-placed\, the Moon is at first quarter\, and there is a minor meteor shower (the North Taurids). Meet at 7\:00 PM at the old parking lot at Grand Pré National Park. Bring binoculars (or telescopes) and be sure to dress warmly.
Project UFO\: Not all aliens come from outer space! by Martha Jones. Project UFO Special Agent Jones will describe some of the close encounters her team has had with invasive aliens. Martha is an associate professor at Cape Breton University where she and Dr. Timothy Rawlings have been leading outreach activities and scientific surveys on invasive alien species in our region. Join us to learn more about the notorious and exotic creatures that team Project UFO is following including European green crab\, Japanese skeleton shrimp\, invasive sea squirts\, rock snot\, and oyster thief. (www.ProjectUFO.ca).
[NOTE\: This meeting will be held in Room BAC 241 in the Beveridge Arts Centre\, Acadia Univ.\, Wolfville.]
Bat species that are year-round residents of temperate areas like Nova Scotia have a number of interesting characteristics in common. \;Despite their small size they have a life expectancy of decades\, have low reproductive rates\, are highly social and are active for only 25-30% of the year. \;Over the last decade or so my students and I have been trying to better understand the resource selection\, movement dynamics\, and population structure of this group of animals. In this talk I will discuss bat population biology\, what we know about bats in the region and finally talk about a major impending threat to our bat populations\: white nose syndrome. White nose syndrome is the name given to the condition of bats that are affected by a fungus that grows on the nose of bats that was first documented in the winter of 2005/06 and has since wiped out millions of bats in the northeastern United States and Canada. Based on the rate of spread of the condition is seems unlikely that the Maritimes will be spared from its ravaging effects. If the fungus makes its way to our region and the local effects are consistent with those documented in the northeastern US\, we can expect to lose up to 95% of our bats in the first few years\, if not more. I hope these predictions are wrong but regardless we are in for a challenging time!
Dr. Hugh Broders of the Department of Biology at St. Mary's University will be our speaker. Originally from \;Tilting\, Newfoundland\, he earned his PhD from the University of New Brunswick and has been a faculty member at Saint Mary's University since 2003. He teaches courses in ecology\, evolution\, and conservation biology and is a population ecologist with specific interests in bats and the biology of small populations. Together with keen and enthusiastic students he does research on a variety of species and subjects\, most notably the social and population structure of bats\, and more recently on various aspects of the biology of moose. \;
NOTE\: This meeting will be held in Room BAC241 in the Beveridge Arts Centre.
Wolfville Christmas Bird Count – The Christmas bird count has been an annual tradition since 1900\, now with over 50\,000 participants from all across North America. A vast pool of bird data has been created on the status and distribution of early winter bird populations. The count area is a circle that is 15 miles in diameter where volunteers count all the birds they see on the count day. All levels of birders are invited to participate in the Wolfville count. You may be assigned your own area within the circle or join with others who may be more experienced. To participate\, contact Alison Bogan\, the compiler\, at 678-0446 or alison@bogan.ca or at a BNS meeting before the count. As always\, there is a $5 fee for all participants over 19 to help cover the cost of generating materials for compilers\, producing the annual CBC summary issue\, and maintaining the CBC website and database. \;
For those with bird feeders in the count area (12 km (7.5 miles) from Hennigar's Farm Market) who prefer to count from home\, you are invited to keep track of the birds at their feeders for all or any part of the count day and get that information to Jim Wolford at 542-9204 or
jimwolford@eastlink.ca
. \;
Following the count\, around 5\:00 p.m.\, all participants are invited to Richard and Liz Stern’s for a tally count and chowder/chili supper. The address is 317 Middle Dyke Road\, north from the lights at the intersection of Belcher Street and the dyke road from New Minas\, just before Chipmans Corner. Richard and Liz can be reached at rbstern@ns.sympatico.ca or 678–1975. There is lots of room for parking and everyone is welcome.
END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20120518T191719Z DTSTART;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20101221T063000Z DTEND;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20101221T063000Z UID:http://blomidonnaturalists.ca/node/170 URL;VALUE=URI:http://blomidonnaturalists.ca/node/170 SUMMARY:Total Lunar Eclipse DESCRIPTION:
Total Lunar Eclipse – There will be a total lunar eclipse on Tuesday morning. While there will be no official gathering to view it\, this event is worth getting up to see. The Moon begins to enter the umbra (the darkest part of the Earth’s shadow) around 2\:33 am and will be completely in the umbra at 3\:41 am\, which is when the total phase of the eclipse begins. The midpoint of the eclipse is at 4\:17 am with the total phase ending at 4\:53 am. A diagram showing the Moon's position and times is at http\://www.mreclipse.com/LEdata/TLE2010Dec21/image/TLE2010Dec21-AST.GIF.
[NOTE\: The eclipse will proceed regardless of the weather. \:-) ]
END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20120518T191719Z DTSTART;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20101221T213000Z DTEND;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20101221T213000Z UID:http://blomidonnaturalists.ca/node/158 URL;VALUE=URI:http://blomidonnaturalists.ca/node/158 SUMMARY:Winter Solstice Family Frolic DESCRIPTION:
Winter Solstice Family Frolic. \; We invite everyone to welcome the winter season and continue the 5000-year \; tradition of celebrating the return of the Sun after the longest night of the year. We will meet around a roaring bonfire at Noggin’s Corner Farm and set off for a hike through the centuries-old pine and hemlock forest. We will pass an 18th century Acadian cellar\, Poor House graveyard and a huge bald eagle nest. We will look for tracks and signs of wildlife\, call for owls in the deep woods\, and view the stars from the dykes (weather permitting). We will make our way back to the bonfire for hot apple cider and share a toast to a winter season full of light and good cheer to all. \; Charlane Bishop (542-2217) and Harold Forsyth (542-5983) will be the leaders. Meet at Noggin’s Corner Farm in Greenwich at 6\:30 p.m.
Wayne Neily (902) 765–2455\, (neilyornis@hotmail.com) will be compiling the count again this year. All are welcome to participate\, but please contact the compiler as soon as possible so that you can be included in the planning. There is a $5 fee for all participants over 19 to help cover the cost of generating materials for compilers\, producing the annual CBC summary issue\, and maintaining the CBC website and database.
END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR