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 Our
April 5 field trip in the meadow west of McCarthy Woods in the
Southern Corridor, under the guidance of Tony Beck, was a smashing
success. These lines from Archibald Lampman's "Solitude" set
us on our way:
"Sometimes a hawk screams or a woodpecker
Startles the stillness from its fixèd mood
With his loud careless tap. Sometimes I hear
The dreamy white-throat from some far-off tree
Pipe slowly on the listening solitude
His five pure notes succeeding pensively."
Then, in just two early morning hours we observed (seeing or
hearing) no fewer than twenty-one species of birds:
Song Sparrow, American Tree Sparrow, House Sparrow, American
Kestrel, Red-winged Blackbird, Ring-billed Gull, Wood Duck, Cedar
Waxwing, Dark-eyed Junco, Mallard, White-breasted Nuthatch, American
Goldfinch, Canada Goose, European Starling, Northern Cardinal,
American Robin, Mourning Dove, Common Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird
and Black-capped Chickadee. And, the prize sight of the outing:
an adult Cooper's Hawk! Tony assured us that, if we would come
back a month later, we'd be able to observe a whole set of different
birds. He believes that the habitat is good for summer nesting
species (Clay-coloured Sparrow and Field Sparrow) that might
be uncommon or rare in the Ottawa area. He noted various berry
bushes in the meadow that birds feed on and stressed that it
is the combination of woods and meadow that brings about the
diversity in wildlife. These berries provide food for a great
variety of migrating and over-wintering species, making this
an attractive staging area. He suggested placing some Wood Duck
housing in the forest near the edge as this could attract Eastern
Screech-Owls for nesting.
Anyone wishing to help realize the objectives of the Poets'
Pathway Committee, including designation of the Southern Corridor
as a Canadian Poets' Park, please contact me. Finally thank you
all for coming out and especially to our guide, Tony Beck. Pictures
courtesy of Jim Robertson.
Erwin Dreessen
Co-chair, Poets' Pathway Committee
Greenspace Alliance of Canada's Capital
739-0727 (no calls between 1 and 3 p.m. please)
erwin_dreessen@ncf.ca
Poets' Pathway web site:
http://www.flora.org/greenspace/poetspath-1/index.shtml
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To the editor,
While The NEWS’ Feb. 5 editorial acknowledges the NCC proposal
for Mud Lake as an important undertaking, your comments regarding
McCarthy Woods are inaccurate.
The editorial and the accompanying cartoon assert that the NCC is contesting
the City’s designation of McCarthy Woods as a protected area in its new
official plan, and that the NCC is seeking to sell McCarthy Woods for development.
These assertions are untrue. The NCC’s appeal of the Official Plan does
not involve McCarthy Woods in any way.
McCarthy Woods was first designated as a protected area in the former Region
of Ottawa-Carleton Official Plan in 1997. The NCC fully supported its protective
designation then, as it has in the most recent 2003 City Official Plan.
The NCC is appealing the Official Plan’s redesignations of some other
portions for the southern Corridor which, for many years, were designated for
general urban use in the City’s and the former region’s plans.
The NCC continues to increase its open space holdings, having added more than
1,400 hectares to the Greenest and Gatineau Park since 1988.
Added to this are the many parks and green spaces in the urban core. The result
is a legacy created by the NCC and its predecessors that makes the Capital
a model of protected natural areas and open spaces.
Richard Scott, Principal Regional Planner
National Capital Commission
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