Walk along a beach on Georgian Bay early in the early morning and you are always guaranteed to see something interesting.
When you walk with an experienced guide like Richard Jordan, you not only see interesting things, you get the fascinating story behind what you are seeing. Each of these presentations feature hundreds of beautiful photos taken by the presenter.
A Walk on the Beach … with Mergansers
Mergansers are a type of duck that is common on Georgian Bay in the Summer. You only see the males early in the year and then it’s only the females taking care of their brood of up to 17 chicks. The life of a Merganser chick is a perilous one, starting with a 20 foot drop from the nest in a tree to the forest floor and then it’s swimming with Mom and trying to avoid predators on land (like Foxes), in the water (like the Northern Pike) and in the air (like Gulls and even Loons and Herons).
The photo shows a mother Merganser and her brood of 10 chicks. Some of them are even hitching a ride on her back! Mergansers make excellent mothers and we’ll focus on the life of a chick as it grows into a juvenile and adult.
For a printable version of the Advance Publicity for this presentation, click here.
A Walk on the Beach … with Sandpipers
Sandpipers can often be spotted running along the beach, darting in and out of the waves. It’s hard to believe that such a tiny bird migrates across continents, but many of the sandpipers seen in Southern Ontario spend their summers on Hudson’s Bay and their winters on the Gulf of Mexico. Scientists recently discovered that some Sandpipers are polyandrous – a single female can breed with as many as 5 males in a single season. She moves on while each male takes care of the nest and raises the young! Come take an early morning walk along Bluewater Beach with naturalist and photographer Richard Jordan and learn about this fascinating family of birds.
The photo shows a very young Spotted Sandpiper – so young that she doesn’t have her spots yet! In the warm weather, a variety of different Sandpipers can be found running along the water’s edge on Georgian Bay.
For a printable version of the Advance Publicity for this presentation, click here.
A Walk on the Beach … with Seagulls
A Seagull is a Seagull is a Seagull. They’re all the same – or are they? The beaches of Georgian Bay are home to a variety of different types of gulls, ranging from the tiny, elegant Bonaparte’s Gull to the massive Great Black-Backed Gull which has a 6’ wingspan. As scavengers they have not only survived in our urbanizing world, they have positively thrived. Come take an early morning walk along Bluewater Beach with naturalist and photographer Richard Jordan and learn about this fascinating family of birds.
The photo shows a common Ring-billed Gull flanked by two smaller black headed Bonaparte’s Gulls. The smaller gulls are only temporary visitors on the shores of Georgian Bay in midsummer. They are on their way south after breeding in pine forests south of Hudson’s Bay.
For a printable version of the Advance Publicity for this presentation, click here.
Richard Jordan is a former President of the Etobicoke Historical Society and a former Toronto Star local history columnist. His feature articles on historical subjects have also appeared in the Saturday Star and Sunday Star.
He spends time throughout the year at his cottage on Georgian Bay and takes long walks every morning along the beach studying and photographing birds.