ERS 346 - Outing #3
Date: Saturday, October 26, 2019
Time: 15:10-16:30h
Duration: 1h 20min
Location: Rouge National Urban Park in Scarborough, ON
Weather: 9 degrees Celsius; slight overcast
Habitat/Vegetation Type: mixed deciduous forest; upland meadow
Rouge National Urban Park is a protected piece of land in the middle of the Greater Toronto Area. It has numerous hills making elevation heterogenous, and contains two shallow rivers that run parallel to each other, called Twin Rivers. A road splits the park in half, and there are a number of trails used by nearby residents. In the upland meadow, there are major power lines that cut through the area. 20 years ago there would have been signs of cautioning against deer and turtle crossings, but those signs have since been removed possibly indicating they are no longer in the area. People often fish in the rivers, though catch rates are unknown.
The riparian zone of the rivers is fairly developed, except along the major trails leading away from the parking lot. A single fish carcass was observed rotting atop a rock. Judging from the decay it had been dead for some time. Species and cause of death were unknown. Some crickets and other insects could be heard in the nearby grasses, providing a potential food source for various wildlife.
The forest was mixed deciduous, with some trembling aspen, birch, and cedar. Some cleared areas along the trails had turned into small grasslands. In one of these areas a lone tree no taller than 5m held a small bird's nest, no bigger than a fist. It may be from a small songbird. Buckthorn was present but not overwhelming. Many still held a majority of their berries. Along the road there was a raccoon carcass that had been run over. It was likely an urban raccoon venturing into the nearby suburban neighbourhood for food.
In some areas, the understory was thick and would be difficult to travel through, but others were clear with nothing but leaf litter. These may have been areas where deer would have travelled. One area had a concentration of red oak, though most of the acorns may have been preyed upon with sparse individuals on the forest floor. Blue jays are known to be in the area, but none were spotted at this time. There were also some surrounding white pine. A chipmunk was spotted nearby scrounging through the leaf litter, possibly burying food. Not many birds could be heard, though noise pollution could have been creating interference.
At 16:06h I entered into an upland meadow. More birds seemed to be present as they could be heard in the nearby forested area, but none were visible. In the meadows, there were some old bird boxes though usage was undetermined. Overhead a seagull was spotted flying over the area.
The difficulty in observing wildlife may have been due to a decreasing abundance of food as winter draws closer. Another possibility is they are better camouflaged as the forest and wildlife begin to lose their colour. This is especially true of birds who at this time of year are becoming less vibrant in order to blend into the background. Being surrounded by urban development may have extirpated many species that could be previously found.
Comentarios
Añade un comentario