Galwegians February 2021
With the ‘stay-at-home’ order for Ontario now in place, the Galway Hall continues to remain closed to the public. There will be no events and no activities at the Hall during the month of February. It has been said that we continue to isolate now so that when we gather again… no one is missing. Let’s hold on to this thought and do our part to make wise choices during this global pandemic. Visit www.galwayhall.ca for monthly updates about the Galway Hall and for past articles of The Galwegians.
In the month of February, the Kinmount and Area Food Bank is open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday the 11th and Thursday the 25th. Donations of food or money are always welcome on these dates.
Although for the most part, 2020 wasn’t a very positive or popular year, there were some upsides. The Galway and Area Wildlife Inventory had several new additions to its list- pine grosbeak, Saw Whet owl, northern oriole, northern cardinal, Imperial moth, and Polyphemus moth. Special thanks go out to everyone that continues to report their sightings.
There have been several sightings of barred owls recently. These owls have been seen along Allen’s Alley, the Galway Road, and Clear Bay Road. It has been photographed by a few observers. The Barred owl is not a shy bird and is the only owl that has brown eyes. (All other owls have yellow eyes). The Cornell Lab’s ‘All About Birds’ site places the Barred Owl’s size between a crow and a goose. Its call is a very recognizable “Who cooks for you?” (hoohoo-hoohoo). Talking of owls, I am reminded of an elementary school poem: There once was a bird who sat in a tree.
The more it saw, the less it spoke.
The less it spoke, the more it heard.
Why can’t we be like that wise, old bird?
To date, 2021 has not been kind to our feathered friends that come to our birdfeeder. Two rose-breasted nuthatches, one blue jay and one chickadee have met their demise by flying into our windows. Another observer reported a dead partridge near their deck, this time a victim of hitting their patio door.
There are more chickadees around our feeder this year than ever before- almost twice as many. Has anyone else noted this as well?
It would be interesting to know how the pioneers determined the start of the 100 days of winter. I understand that it starts when the snow stays on the ground but consider this season. On December 2nd, 2020, the snow was on the ground. With some mild weather, some of the snow disappeared but snow remained in the woods and in the shaded areas and has been with us ever since. I’m wondering if all the ground has to be covered in snow. Using December 2nd as our start date, the 100th day would then be March 12th. We shall see.
The word for February that was added to the dictionary in 2020 is “Puggle”. Puggle is a noun and is a dog breed created combining a pug and a beagle.