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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2002-01-23, Page 1Making a break for freedom One of 14 wild turkeys released in Morris Twp. on Friday almost seems to explode from his box as he takes to the air and freedom. The bird's flight is watched by Ministry of Natural Resources biologist Mike Malhiot and several of the area school children that were on hand for the event. (David Blaney photo) NORTH HURON PUBLISHING COMPANY INC j Inside this week Pg. 7 Win gham hosts provincial curling event Do Brussels Lions Pg, '8' 7 donate big Area teams win 0 tournaments Beef producers Pg. 11 elect executive Pg. 19 Country Gentleman comes to Blyth e Citizen Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Volume 18 No. 3 Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2002 75 Cents (70c + 5c GST) Last turkey release Nature Centre hosts day of snow fun The Maitland Val ley Conservation Authority (MVCA) is hosting its Snowshoe Adventure on Sunday, Jan. 27 at the Wawanosh Nature Centre from 1 - 4 p.m. This is a great opportunity for winter enthusiasts to try a new winter sport without investing money in equipment. "Snowshoeing has really grown in popularity over the past few years," said Esther Buck, community education technician with the MVCA. "It's a simple, fun and fairly inexpensive activity for families including children as young as five years of age. Our conventional wooden snowshoes provide a fun mode of travel through the snow." Visitors will be fitted with snowshoes and given instruction on putting them on and walking.. Skiers are also welcome. This is the only opportunity of the winter to rent showshoes, although the trails are always open to the public. The Nature Centre features a variety of habitats to explore on snowshoes. You are likely to see deer tracks in the hemlock and cedar forests, tunnels left by meadow voles and deer mice and many species of birds crowding around the feeders. With patience, holding sunflower seeds in your hand may entice a chickadee to take one. Admission is free although donations are welcome. Snowshoe rental is $2 per person for the afternoon. The suggested minimum age is five. Coffee and hot chocolate will be available in the Nature Centre; bring a mug. For further information, contact the MVCA at 519-335-3557. By David Blaney Citizen staff Turkeys are usually considered a subject of conversation only at Christmas and Thanksgiving. Last Friday however, Morris Twp. was the site of an historic event involving these birds. On that day 14 wild turkeys were released resulting in the restoration of the species to its full historic county-wide distribution. The release was part of a program begun in 1984 to return the bird to its Ontario habitat. The wild turkey is native to Ontario. It disappeared at the turn of the century due to habitat destruction and unregulated hunting, according to Mike Malhiot a biologist with the Ministry of N@ Ural Resources. Attempts to repopulate suitable habitat with game farm-produced birds in the 1950s were totally unsuccessful. From 1984-87, 247 birds were obtained from the United States and released in six locations in Ontario. Malhiot said that the initial release of wild birds proved they could thrive. For the past 16 years Ontario has been able to trap its own birds for redistribution to their historic habitat. Over 3,000 birds have been trapped and redistributed to over 190 sites. Friday's release involved birds which had been captured the previous day in Tennessee and near Barrie. The capture was made using bait and rocket-propelled nets. Southern Ontario's wild turkey population is now over 35,000. They occupy approximately 15,000 square mks. Controlled hunting is now allowed in several areas where they have been introduced. Each year approximately 3,500 birds are taken and the activities surrounding this hunt generate $7 million annually. Friday's release, and the program in Morris in general, are the result of a co- operative partnership among several groups according to Malhiot. The Ministry of Natural Resources, the National Wild Turkey Federation Canada, and its american counter-part, and the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters have all been involved. The Huron Stewardship Council donated busing cost to enable several classes from Brussels Public School, Grey Central School and Seaforth Public School to assist with the release. The students were joined by members of the stewardship council, Huron Perth Wild Turkey Association, and representatives of several of the programs American partners for the event. The ministry has asked the public to report any sightings of the birds as they may move up to 15 miles in a year. These sighting reports are valuable in monitoring the survival of these birds and their dispersal to new areas. Who will be the sole survivor? The Citizen is looking for its very own survivor and you, the readers, are going to be the tribal council. Eight local citizens have agreed to brave . our imaginary desert island and Citizen readers will decide who gets voted off the island. It's all in good fun of course and no one. will have to eat a rat. But at the end the lucky survivor will have $500 to donate to their favorite charity, courtesy of the newspaper's advertisers. Starting next week eight of your friends and neighbours will be meeting the 'challenges' posed by questions from this newspaper. Each week readers will be able to fill out a ballot from the newspaper to determine who gets sent back to civilization. To ensure that the biggest photocopier doesn't win, each ballot must be an original from the newspaper. However, you may enter as many times as you have ballots. All the ballots will be saved and after the 'survivor' has been chosen a name will be drawn from the ballots for a survivors-party-pack. Next week we will introduce the castaways and provide the first answers and the name of their favourite charity. After that it will be eight weeks of challenges until the final survivor is chosen. Grey bus issue resolved The Avon Maitland District School Board and the Huron East council seem to have found something they can agree upon. Council would like to see Elizabeth Smith's young daughter picked up by the school bus at the end of her laneway. The school board has decided that she will be. The board had previously informed Smith that the service would only be available during periods of dry weather. This was due to the no-winter-maintenance designation of one of the roads on the board's preferred route. Smith's cause was taken up by Grey ward councillor Graeme MacDonald. A meeting was held on Jan. 11 with MacDonald, Councillor Sharon McClure and Dennis Harris who is responsible for managing the board's busing. Although it was not immediately apparent this meeting seems to have succeeded in breaking the impasse. Early last week the board issued a letter informing Smith that her daughter would now be reLularly picked up at the end of her !alt.!. MacDonald said that although he still has issues with the board he was happy to offer them his thanks.