Now that a definite taste of winter has arrived, and there is less to find outside, it is a chance to remember the warmer, more colourful and diverse times in the field.
I have spent a fair bit of time over the year or so exploring a sizeable natural area, in west central Lambton Co, known as Bickford Oak Woods Conservation Reserve. It is about 308 ha in size as a single block of mostly forest. This property was purchased several decades ago on speculation that it would be eventually developed for commercial/industrial purposes. However that didn't happen, and while I was in my previous role with OMNR, I was approached by the owners to see if any agency would be interested in it. I had had my eye on the significance of this property for quite awhile, so I said yes, and immediately started some wheels in motion to see if a cooperative effort between conservation agencies and individuals could collaborate on its acquisition and protection.
Much of the natural drainage has not been affected, so on this predominantly clay plain, that means there is lots of water sitting on it.
As might be expected, wet woods are home to many amphibians, which are most vocal in the early spring. Here is a Western Chorus Frog, one of the more common species here, but generally declining on the overall southern Ontario landscape. It is a tiny frog, being only a couple of inches in total length. Their voices would make them seem much bigger, however.
At some points along the wetter woods, good stands of Marsh Marigold can be found in the spring.
Where there is long standing water and an open forest canopy, there are beaver. Their lodges are hard to access due to the dense vegetation, mostly the aggressive and non-native Phragmites, but there is evidence of their being in the area.
As its name implies, there are a lot of oaks here, and most grow on the drier parts of the landscape. It is interesting to see how many multi-stemmed individuals there are.
Of course oaks don't naturally grow with multi-stems. This is the result of intensive harvesting of them several decades ago. The stumps sprouted suckers and I have seen as many as 7 stems that survived.
Still other oaks, especially some that are near the edges of the woodland, are single stemmed and show an open grown character, with large low limbs.
Along the edges are some huge ant mounds. I'm not sure if they are any particular species, but they sure are evident. Some of the mounds are a metre high, and 3-4 metres in diameter.
Large woodlands, especially oak woodlands, are favourite haunts of Wild Turkey. Oaks can be prolific producers of acorns, a favourite food. Turkeys are not often seen, especially during the hunting season, but you can see decoys up close!
Associated with this large woodland are two areas that at the time that the site was acquired, was in agricultural crop. They were planted into tallgrass prairie about a decade ago, and are coming along nicely.
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| Planted prairie habitat |
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| Gray-headed Coneflower |
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| Compass Plant |
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| Compass Plant |
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| Tall Coreopsis |
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| Tall Sunflower |
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| Dense Blazing-star |
Prairie habitat is fabulous for butterflies and other invertebrates.
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| Thistle with Crab Spider |
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| Peck's Skipper on Prairie Dock buds |
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| Great Spangled Fritillary |
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| Eastern Tiger Swallowtail |
Some small wetland areas have been created within the restored habitat, and wetland plants have appeared.
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| Monkey Flower |
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| Twelve-spotted Skimmer |
As the season progresses, schools of catfish appear. Given that this is not really directly connected to any other body of water, and even the small stream that the water of this pond runs out of, it makes one wonder how the mature fish got there in the first place to produce young.
There is lots more to be found at this wonderful site, and I plan on spending as much time as possible in this next field season.
