The Canadian Field-Naturalist

News and Comment

2022-11-07T22:02:55-08:00

Comments on: Tyler Wheeldon and Brent Patterson. 2022. Dispelling myths about the origins of wolf–coyote hybrids and related Canis species in Ontario. Canadian Field-Naturalist 136: 139–144.

2022-11-07T22:06:10-08:00

Without an over-arching biodiversity protection act, what protections exist for biodiversity in British Columbia? A case study of Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen (Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis)

2022-11-07T22:09:42-08:00

Editors’ Report for Volume 135 (2021)

2022-11-07T21:57:33-08:00

Confirmation of Shining Firmoss (Huperzia lucidula; Lycopodiaceae) in Manitoba

2021-02-19T06:25:03-08:00

The occurrence of Shining Firmoss (Huperzia lucidula; Lycopodiaceae) in Manitoba has been suspected since 1943 but unconfirmed. The discovery at the herbarium of the University of Manitoba of a non-accessioned specimen, collected in Riding Mountain National Park (RMNP), Manitoba, confirmed that the species occurred in the province. At about the same time, a thriving colony of Shining Firmoss was discovered at Gunisao Lake, ~380 km to the northeast of the RMNP site. Shining Firmoss is now established as a rare, widely dispersed element in Manitoba’s flora.

The intertidal fish collections of Ed Ricketts at Tofino, British Columbia, Canada, 1945 and 1946

2021-03-23T12:40:33-07:00

Few studies exist on the intertidal fish fauna of the west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The earliest known regional insights into intertidal fish diversity for the Tofino area were made by iconic marine ecologist Edward Flanders Ricketts. We reviewed his 1945 and 1946 collection cards, now available online. He made 111 collections of 20 species and 294 specimens. Most of these species were cottids (nine species) or pricklebacks (three species), with flatfish, greenlings, poachers, snailfish, gunnels, sand lance, and clingfishes each represented by one or two species. We briefly compare the data with contemporary studies and suggest opportunities for using his museum-curated physical specimens for further analyses.

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) drake observed consuming an adult Western Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma mavortium)

2022-03-12T02:19:11-08:00

We observed a Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) drake consuming an adult Western Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma mavortium) in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. To our knowledge, this is the first published report of this predator–prey interaction. We outline the events of the short observation, briefly discuss natural history of the predator and prey relevant to the observed interaction, and provide chronological photographs of the event.

A disjunct population of American Hazelnut (Corylus americana): a new plant species for the Ottawa district

2021-07-18T13:06:29-07:00

A previously unknown population of American Hazelnut (Corylus americana), a native shrub species, has been discovered in the Ottawa district. This location is disjunct from the species’ nearest known populations. Although American Hazelnut is not a particularly conspicuous species, it was found in a relatively well documented area. The location includes remnant vegetation from the Constance Bay Sandhills, a former savannah habitat, including other species whose occurrence in the region is disjunct. American Hazelnut is strongly affiliated with savannahs and related habitats across Ontario and the upper midwest of the United States.

New Titles

2022-11-07T22:00:11-08:00

"Sentient: How Animals Illuminate the Wonder of our Human Senses" by Jackie Higgins, 2021. [book review]

2022-11-07T21:33:20-08:00

"The Silken Thread: Five Insects and their Impacts on Human History" by Robert N. Wiedenmann and J. Ray Fisher, 2021. [book review]

2022-11-07T21:36:05-08:00

"Tiger Beetles of Manitoba: Life History, Ecology and Microsculpture" by Robert E. Wrigley, Larry de March, and Erwin Huebner, 2022. [book review]

2022-11-07T21:40:52-08:00

"Biology and Conservation of the Wood Turtle" edited by Michael T. Jones and Lisabeth L. Willey, 2021. [book review]

2022-06-14T08:57:29-07:00

"The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi: Exploring the Microscopic World in our Forests, Homes, and Bodies" by Keith Seifert, 2022. [book review]

2022-11-07T21:46:04-08:00

"The Object’s the Thing: the Writings of Yorke Edwards, a Pioneer of Heritage Interpretation in Canada" by Richard Kool and Robert A. Cannings, 2021. [book review]

2022-11-07T21:50:58-08:00

A synopsis of lycophytes in Manitoba, Canada: their status, distribution, abundance, and habitats

2020-12-14T05:59:25-08:00

A steady increase in the number of lycophyte taxa discovered in Manitoba over the last 20 years prompted a determination of which species should be included in an updated provincial list. Collections made throughout the province since 2008 and a critical examination of over 1000 herbarium specimens enabled a substantive review and update of Manitoba’s lycophyte flora. It now comprises 22 taxa: 14 species and two hybrid clubmosses (Lycopodiaceae), three spikemosses (Selaginellaceae), and two species and one hybrid quillwort (Isoetaceae). Thirteen of the 21 species are designated to be of conservation concern, with NatureServe ranks of Critically Imperilled (S1; three), Imperilled (S2; two), or Vulnerable (S3; nine). Based on verified specimens, we describe the abundance and habitats, and summarize recent changes in nomenclature and systematics for all Manitoba lycophyte taxa.

Evidence of successful hatching by introduced Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) in British Columbia, Canada

2020-11-23T10:18:05-08:00

Globally, competition and disease from introduced Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) is a threat to co-existing native turtles. Red-eared Slider has been introduced throughout south coastal British Columbia (BC), mainly as pet turtle releases. Urban centres receive the most individuals, particularly in the Lower Mainland area outlying Vancouver, on southern Vancouver Island, and on the Sunshine Coast. The range of Red-eared Sliders in BC overlaps that of the Threatened Pacific Coast population of Western Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii). Herein we report on a survey for both species, noting presence, assessed population sizes, and nesting activity. Across 19 sites in the south coast occupied by both turtle species, we found the median abundance of Red-eared Sliders to be 2.5 times larger than that of Western Painted Turtles (Mann–Whitney U = 104, n1 = n2 = 19, Z-Score = −2.2188, P = 0.02642, two-tailed). There had been no evidence of Red-eared Sliders successfully hatching in the wild in BC until our study. We observed complete development, with 19 neonates from three different nesting sites between 2015 and 2017. Thus, Red-eared Slider is indeed established and able to breed in BC and thus competition and disease introduction from the species likely contributes to the decline of the Pacific Coast population of Western Painted Turtle, particularly at sites with low painted turtle numbers. The scale and mechanisms of impact requires further investigation.

Dispelling myths about the origins of wolf–coyote hybrids and related Canis species in Ontario

2021-08-04T06:33:07-07:00

Long-standing myths exist about the origins of wolf–coyote hybrids and related Canis species in Ontario. Specifically, there is a perceived controversy whether they are the product of natural hybridization that occurred between wolves and coyotes in the wild during the last century or the descendants of animals that escaped or were released from captive colonies or controlled breeding experiments. We review the relevant evidence and conclude that captive colonies and controlled breeding experiments were unlikely to have played any role in the origins of wolf–coyote hybrids and related Canis species in Ontario.

Do turtle roadkill hotspots shift from year to year?

2021-11-07T20:00:22-08:00

Freshwater turtles face many threats but roadkill is one of the most serious for many species. Roadkill of turtles is not uniformly distributed across roads but aggregated in certain areas, termed hotspots. A key question in identifying hotspots is whether they are fixed locations or if they shift from year to year because of changes in movement patterns. We compared how one, two, and three years of road survey data compared with the pooled data from four years of surveys. We found 254 turtles during 73 surveys during four years along a 15.5 km road section in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The four years of pooled data produced four hotspots (“pooled hotspots”) while each year or combination of years produced from three to five hotspots, four of which approximately corresponded to the pooled hotspots. The average percentage overlap of hotspots between one, two, or three years of survey data and the pooled hotspots ranged from 58.7% to 88.9%. Just one year of surveys sometimes missed one of the pooled hotspots, underestimated the spatial extent of the pooled hotspots, and also sometimes produced an additional “temporary” hotspot. Two years of surveys generally produced better approximations of the pooled hotspots and better identified the spatial extent of those hotspots.

A resurvey of a Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) population in northern New Hampshire, USA, after 13 years

2021-06-18T12:15:36-07:00

Populations of Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) have declined across the species’ range. We surveyed a protected Wood Turtle population in northern New Hampshire in 2007 and again in 2020 to determine whether the size of the population had changed and the average annual survival rate between the two periods. We used closed-population loglinear models to estimate the adult population size in 2007 and 2020 and, for the subset of turtles captured in both years, to estimate the rate of survival. Based on these models, we found an adult population of 56 (95% CI 33–126) in 2007 and 46 (95% CI 31–85) in 2020; we did not detect a statistically significant difference between the two population estimates. In addition, we estimated a 96% average annual adult survival rate and determined this rate could be no lower than 92%. This information provides useful baseline data and will help inform future monitoring and threat mitigation work for this population.

Notes on the nomenclature, characteristics, status, and biology of Field Thesium, Thésium des Champs (Thesium ramosum Hayne; Thesiaceae/Santalaceae), a potentially serious invasive plant in Alberta

2021-06-20T10:34:47-07:00

Field Thesium (Thesium ramosum Hayne; Thesiaceae/Santalaceae) is an alien species in Canada, previously misidentified as Thesium arvense Horvátovszky or Flaxleaf (Thesium linophyllon L.). It is a hemiparasitic herb characterized by its many 25–50 cm long aerial stems that grow indeterminately from a caudex. Its narrow leaves extend along each aerial stem from their base into the paniculate inflorescence. The flowers are white, 4–5 mm wide, with five corolla lobes; they are perfect and occur singly, subtended by a three-parted bract at the tip of a narrow pedicel, with 60–90 such flowers along each inflorescence. Its roots develop profuse haustoria that attach to host plant roots. Thesium ramosum is compared to the related native genera, Comandra and Geocaulon (placed in Comandraceae or Santalaceae), which share features but differ by having determinate growth and being unbranched. Thesium ramosum is widespread from western Europe to western China, but in North America it is known from only three western states and Alberta, where it has established in Fish Creek Provincial Park and elsewhere in Calgary. Worldwide, many species in the genus Thesium are notable invasives and T. ramosum has the potential to be a high risk invasive in North America. Observations in the park show that it can spread rapidly and parasitize many host species. It does not have federal or provincial control status in Canada, but because it is parasitic and has potential to become widespread, it is regulated in the USA by the United States Department of Agriculture.

Cover

2022-11-07T21:53:42-08:00

Full Issue PDF

2022-11-07T21:26:56-08:00