Murphys Point
April 3rd, 2006
Murphys Point Provincial Park
April 1, 2006
On April 1st, while en route to Murphy’s Point P.P., we saw a DOR Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus), on Roger Stevens Drive near the intersection of Fletcher Road (approx. 15 km. east of Smiths Falls).
A DOR Beaver (Castor canadensis) was seen on Roger Stevens Drive near the intersection with Douglas Road (approx. 10 km. east of Smiths Falls).
Continuing west of Smiths Falls on Hwy 43, we checked for Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) nesting activity in the vicinity of Port Elmsley. No Osprey were seen on the nest platform on Hwy 43 just east of the village by the bay. No activity was seen on the two platforms along Cty Rd. 18 (one platform at Beveridge Locks, and the other just north alongside the road). However, Don caught a glimpse of an Osprey flying above the parking lot of the Port Elmsley drive-in theatre, so we stopped to take a look. The bird went to a nest atop the tallest post with floodlamps, which stands directly above the projection booth building [UTM 18T 0410464, 4971182 (WGS84); 13:14 hrs).
Note: We were back by the drive-in the next day and there were two Osprey around the nest - one standing on the nest, and the other perched on top of one of the floodlights.
We parked at the front gates at Murphy’s Point P.P. as the park isn’t open yet. Walking in along the roadways back to the trailhead of the Point Trail, we heard at least two Pileated Woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus) calling as they moved about through the woods to either side of the roadway and also back on the Point Trail.
Reaching the Point Trail, we stopped to sign the trail register book and found 2 spiders inside the wooden box with the book [(UTM 18T 0403803, 4959344 (WGS84); 14:18 hrs]. The smaller of the spiders looks to be a Pityohyphantes costatus (a species of Linyphiidae). I’m not sure of the ID of the larger spider as yet.
At the small plank footbridge that crosses a seasonal stream, we noticed a mass of Springtails (Collembola) floating atop the water [UTM 18T 0404104, 4959687 (WGS84); 14:48 hrs]. A partially submerged forked stick seemed to have obstructed the stream so that the Springtails had become concentrated in one area about 40 x 40 cm. Some of the Springtails were moving about on the stick.
I took a leaf and dipped it into the midst of the Springtails hoping that some of them might adhere to its surface. This worked very well. The Springtails were active and moving about on the leaf, with the odd one wandering off of the leaf and onto my hand or onto the camera. Based on a rough count from one of the photos, I would estimate that there were about 100 Springtails per square inch on the leaf, and that’s probably about equal to the concentration on the water.
I’ve done some checking around online today, and believe these Springtails are Poduridae (Water Springtails). They might be Podura aquatica which is said to be widely occurring and commonly found in aggregations on the surface of small ponds, puddles and streams.
On the return home from Murphy’s Point, we saw 3 Turkey Vultures (Cathartes aura) along Cty Road 18 near the junction with Rideau Ferry Road, then another 5 just east of Port Elmsley along Hwy 43.
Tags: Pileated Woodpecker, Dryocopus pileatus, Osprey, Pandion haliaetus, Turkey Vultures, Cathartes aura, Pityohyphantes costatus, Poduridae, Podura aquatica, Collembola, Beaver, Castor canadensis
