Getting to know some summertime critters

By Katharine Fletcher

ONE OF MY FAVOURITE pastimes is canoeing, especially paddling old ox-bows, swamps and other quiet backwaters. They encourage contemplative exploration and have easy-tosee creatures.

For instance, at Kenauk Nature, a parkland north of Montebello, Que. Eric and I discov ered a loon’s nest complete with dusky eggs, and nearby the sapphire blue carcasses of an insect you’ve likely seen called “familiar bluet” damselflies. We concluded these jewel-like creatures had been devoured by innocentlooking but lethal, carnivorous sundew plants growing on partially submerged logs? Even in death, the jewel-like damselflies vividly con trasted against the sundews’ scarlet and emerald-green backdrop.

The Ottawa Valley and the Outaouais are home territories of many intriguing animals. Some are confusingly similar species that coex ist, like damselflies and dragonflies, toads and frogs. Some are nature’s wonders at our door step – tadpoles which overwinter before metamorphosing into frogs, and fireflies, those fairy-like flashes of light winking about on a summer’s eve.

For curious observers in the National Capital Region, nature is matched by a wealth of ac cessible knowledge. From field naturalist organizations (Arnprior’s Macnamara club and the Ottawa Field Naturalists spring to mind) through to botanists and biologists who offer talks at Gatineau Park, the Canadian Museum of Nature and other venues, our region is home to specialists eager to share their lore.

I met one of them, ecological consultant David Seburn, at a Friends of Gatineau Park talk about the spring frog chorus. He special izes in amphibians and reptiles at risk, so he was the expert to ask about frogs and toads, particularly how to tell them apart.

“Toads generally are more terrestrial, but many frogs wander away from wetlands, espe cially after rains,” he said. “We only have one species of

toad in our area, the American toad, and it has a very warty body compared with frogs. Toads also don’t hop as well as frogs.”

Great, we’ve got toads figured out. Distinguishing among frog species though is challenging: northern leopards and pickerel frogs resemble one another, as do bull and green frogs. And, just as Seburn sug gests, we can find some frogs a fair distance from open water. Best tip for ID purposes? Browse websites such as naturewatch.ca with its helpful photos, or the Canadian Herpeto logical Society at carcnet.ca.

Speaking of differences between frogs – and between frogs and toads – it’s not only the splotches on their skin or the size of their tym panum (eardrum) that distinguishes them. It’s voices too: the western chorus frog sounds like running a thumbnail along a comb; the leopard frog makes a lower, growly sound reminiscent to me of its namesake. Want to hear the calls? Check out trentu.ca and search “frog calls.”

Other differences are in the eggs. Seburn said, “All our local frogs and toads lay eggs in the water. Toads’ eggs are laid in long strands; frogs’ eggs are often in clumps, with larger frogs laying more eggs, hence larger clumps.”

These amphibians emerge from egg as tad poles, then metamorphose into adults – and if frogs are challenging, those tadpoles are im possible for me.

Damselflies and dragonflies are a bit easier. Seburn made it simple: “Dragonflies are larger and more robust looking that damsels. In addi tion, dragons usually sit with their wings open, while damsel perch with wings closed.” As al ways, there are exceptions, but that’s a start.

The familiar bluet damselfly we started with is one of our most common, with a brilliant, metallic sky-blue body and wings that tidily fold up above its body when at rest. Another beauty is the ebony jewelwing – turquoise body, jet-black wings (a white dot at the upper tip on females). Others break the “rules” and spread their wings at rest. They’re called “sweetflag” and “slender spreadwings,” and their photos are at onnaturemagazine.com.

Whereas damselflies are more delicatelooking than the “helicopter-like” dragonflies, there are other differences you can see. Dam sel eyes are on either side of the head, clearly separated, while dragonfly eyes almost touch atop their heads. Damsels have slender folded wings whereas the dragons’ wings are held open either horizontally or downwards, at rest (insects.about.com).

Both species serve us well, devouring in sects including mosquitoes and blackflies. Check them out at the Ottawa Field Naturalist Club’s website: ofnc.ca/tandl/Dragonflies-dam selflies.php)

Much smaller than those two families of insects, fireflies still captivate just about every body. Tiny “fairy” lights dancing above a meadow or low wetland is a magical, unforgettable sight, and their source is a family of nocturnal beetles called Lampyridae. Their Latin scien tific name gives us a hint: they light up the night like tiny lamps when they flash. Light is produced in an organ called a lantern, located in a segment of their abdomen, and is created when oxygen combines with luciferin, a chemi cal within the lantern.

This capability of some animals and plants to create light is called bioluminescence. Fire flies, like other animals, may use light to tell predators they don’t taste good. Males blink to attract females. Other living things such as some fungi use bioluminescence, and honey mushroom roots called mycelia emit light called “foxfire.”

Children can gather fireflies in a jar to see the creatures flash and create a “lantern.” Punch breathing holes in the lid, place a damp cloth in the bottom, and when the kids tire of the game, release the fireflies where you caught them after a few hours. Look for fire flies in low, damp areas like the meadows at the base of Gatineau Park’s Eardley Escarp ment, or along country backroads. In Ottawa, try the Bruce Pit, South March Conservation Forest (Klondike and Second Line), Carp Ridge (along Thomas Dolan Parkway), Britannia filtra tion plant, and Sir John A. Macdonald parkway/bike path. Or drive out to Oxford-on-Rideau, Kanata, Gloucester, and Rideau Township.

Wherever you are – in canoe, on horseback, hiking or exploring your camp or cottage site – keep your eyes peeled. There’s much to dis cover in our natural world – and it’s fun to do the “big reveal” with kids. ~ Katharine Fletcher is author of Capital Rambles: Exploring the National Capital Region, an introduction to our local human and natural history.) Φ