BLACK BEARS

Is the smallest North American Bear

RANGE

• found across Canada
• found in western United States
• lives in wooded areas and mountains

APPEARANCE

• smallest bear in North America
• male can be 2 meters in length ; 1 meter to the shoulders
• not all are black, some are dark brown or rusty brown
• brown patch on the nose, stubby tail, sharp claws

ADAPTATION

• able to climb trees, wraps front legs around the trunk
• eats campers' food, goes into trash cans
• sleeps during the winter, might come out on warm days

WINTER

• looks for a den under a fallen tree, in a hollow log, in a cave.
• may also dig a small hole in a hillside
• females line the den with grass and leaves
• eats alot in the fall to fatten up
• not a true hibernator
• very hungry when it comes out of the den in spring

ENEMIES AND PROTECTION

• was once hunted for sport
• now protected in some areas of Canada and the US
• illegally killed for their bladders, paws, other body parts
• has few enemies, animals are afraid to attack the bear
• strong, has powerful paws and sharp teeth
• can move fast for a short distance and can swim

THE YOUNG

• two or three cubs
• born every two years born in January or February
• newborns are naked and blind, 15 to 20 cm. long
• spend the winter in the den drinking mother's milk
• by May their coats have grown
• spend second winter with mother in the den
• cubs whine (sounds like a baby crying)

FOOD

• spend most of their time looking for food
• eat plants - twigs, buds, leaves, nuts, roots, fruit, berries, plant shoots
• also eat ants, honey, fish
• use sharp claws to tear bark from trees and to rip open rotten logs to look for insects and grubs
• climb trees for birds' eggs and to get to beehives
• sometimes eat small mammals
• catch fish with paws or
• teeth stand up on hind legs to smell

CANADA GOOSE

CANADIAN GEESE

CANADA GOOSE

The Canada Goose is the most common of all wild geese. It is one of the largest waterfowl in North America. Only swans are larger. The Canada Goose is also called a honker because of the loud, honking sound that the bird makes. The male is called a gander, the female is a goose and the young are goslings.

DESCRIPTION

• black head and bill, long black neck and white patches on the cheeks (white chinstrap)
• black legs and feet (webbed)
• black tail feathers, white underneath
• beige to light brown breast feathers and belly
• grayish-brown to very dark brown on back and upper wings
• size depends on type of Canada Goose (there are 11 species or groups)
• weight - from 1.4 kg to 7 kg (3 lbs to 15 lbs)
• wingspan - from 90 cm up to 2 m (3 ft to 6 1/2 ft)

HABITAT and RANGE (where Canada Geese are found)

RANGE

• found throughout North America
• nesting range is from northern Canada (Arctic) to central US
• winter range (where the geese are for the winter) is from southern Canada to USA and Mexico (places where water does not freeze in winter and food is available)

HABITAT

• prefers nesting in marshy areas (swamps, bogs, ponds, potholes, lakes, rivers)
• winter homes : marshlands and lakes near farmers' fields

BEHAVIOR and ADAPTATIONS

ADAPTATIONS

• webbed feet for swimming
• legs are set forward, so geese are able to walk better on land than ducks and swans
• fluffy down feathers help to protect geese from the cold
• oil glands (near the tail) are used for waterproofing the feathers
• form flocks to fly south for the winter
• might not migrate if there are open waters and a food supply for winter
• found in cities (where there is water and food nearby)

BEHAVIOR

• eat by grazing on grasslands or fields; or dipping and dabbling in water

graze : to walk about eating grass and plants dip and dabble : put head underwater and come out again, splash around

• fly in a v formation
• have different sounds to communicate (about 13 different calls) honk (when flying), cluck or cackle (when feeding), hiss (when angry)
• also communicate by body movements
• mate for life; pair stays together as long as both are alive and well

FLIGHT and MIGRATION

FLIGHT

moulting

• in summer adults moult (lose old flight feathers and grow
• new feathers) new flight feathers grow in time for fall migration
• cannot fly for 3 or 4 weeks during moulting

how Canada Geese fly

• parents teach the young to fly after new flight feathers have grown
• usually run along the surface of the water or ground for takeoff
• movement of wings : downstroke, pull forward, lift upwards, spread again
• fly with strong and steady wingbeats
• speed 50 to 90 km/hr (30 to 55 m/hr)
• can travel more than 1000 km in a day (over 650 miles)

MIGRATION

When snow falls and the lakes and rivers of the north freeze over, the geese are unable to swim or find food. The geese migrate to places where it is warmer and where food is available.

Migrating birds usually follow the same path every year. These paths are called routes or flyways. The flyways used by the Canada Goose are : the Atlantic flyway (along the east coast of North America), the Mississippi flyway (named after the river), the Central flyway (along the Rocky Mountains) and the Pacific flyway (west of the Rockies).

FALL MIGRATION

• families gather together to form flocks
• as days get shorter, the geese eat more to form a layer of body fat
• migration begins in late August or early September (depending on how far north they are)
• flock travels by day or night
• fly in V-shape, often an irregular V-formation, sometimes in lines
• flying in a V-shape requires less energy, birds can fly longer distances
• it is easier for others to follow (birds can see what is ahead)
• one of the larger, stronger birds is the leader
• change leaders during flight to give lead bird a rest
• flock lands to feed and rest at familiar places (marshes, farmers' fields)
• when cloudy they may fly closer to the ground
• Canada Geese spend the winter in southern Canada, the United States and Mexico.

SPRING MIGRATION

• leave at different times, depending how far north they are going
• early migrators leave in late January, early February
• fly northward following the melting snowline
• stop often to feed and build up strength
• nesting and egg-laying occurs as soon as geese arrive at nesting grounds

DANGERS DURING MIGRATION

• exhaustion - too tired from long flight and not enough rest
• starvation - not enough food available
• shot by hunters - hunters wait near fields and ponds where flocks of geese land to eat and rest
• bad weather - strong winds, thick fog, snowstorms
• flying into things - tv and phone towers, power lines, tall buildings

NEST-EGGS-GOSLINGS

NEST and EGGS

• arrive on nesting grounds in early spring
• may use same nest every year
• like to nest where there is a good view
• nests are on the ground near water; found on small islands, river banks, wet grassy areas
• nests are built of grasses, twigs, bark, leaves, reeds and mosses; lined with down
• photo of a nest
• five to seven white eggs which hatch in about 28 days
• if nesting in the Arctic, eggs hatch later (June)
• gander (male goose) guards the nest
• female leaves only to eat and take a short swim

GOSLINGS

• goslings are yellow-gray or yellow-brown in color with dark bills
• feathers become gray in about a week
• can walk and swim right after hatching
• family leaves nest soon after young have hatched and heads for the water where it is safer
• the female leads, goslings next, gander follows from behind
• about half of the goslings survive
• yearlings leave their parents in spring
• young geese find mates and nest when about 3 years old

CANADA GEESE EAT

CANADA GOOSE FOOD

FINDING FOOD

• bills are sensitive, used to "feel around" underwater for food
• tooth-like spikes around the edges of the bills serve as strainers
• graze (walk about on a grassy area or a field) or swim and dip under water for water plants (leaving tail and back end up and out of the water)
• spend more than 12 hours a day eating
• usually feed early in the morning or late in the afternoon

WHAT DO CANADA GEESE EAT?

• on land - grasses, marsh grass, berries, seeds
• in water - pond plants, tubers, roots, algae
• also feed on crops like clover, alfalfa, wheat, rye, corn, barley, oats and grain left in farmers' fields after the harvest

ENEMIES and PROTECTION

CANADA GOOSE ENEMIES and PROTECTION

ENEMIES

• eggs are eaten by raccoons, foxes, skunks, weasels, crows, gulls
• goslings are prey for larger birds (eagles, owls)
• wolves, foxes, coyotes and bald eagles can kill adult geese
• hunters shoot geese

PROTECTION

• have guard geese to warn the flock of dangers when grazing in fields
• attack by hissing and flapping wings, may bite
• try to chase enemy away
• pretend to have a broken wing to lure enemies away from goslings
• nests built on small islands provide better protection from some enemies

OTHER INTERESTING FACTS CANADA GOOSE

OTHER INTERESTING FACTS

• There are at least eleven different species of Canada geese.
• The species differ in size, length of neck, body shape and voice (type of honk).
• The smallest is the Cackling Canada Goose which weighs about 1.4 kg (3 pounds) and are just slightly larger than a Mallard duck. It lives in the Arctic region.
• The largest is the Giant Canada Goose which weighs about 7 kg ( 15 pounds).
• Canada Geese are protected by hunting regulations. Governments are involved in the saving the wetlands and providing areas for resting and feeding. The geese were re-introduced in some parts of the US.
• Aleutian Canada Geese are listed as threatened. Many were killed because of a large population of Arctic foxes and red foxes in their nesting areas in the north (Alaska).
• Canada Geese have become problems in towns and cities. They inhabit parks and golf courses, eat the grass and leave droppings everywhere. If people get too close to the goslings, the parents may attack.

Canadian Moose

The moose is the largest deer in the world, the males sometimes getting as big as 1500 lbs and 9' long. The females are smaller, rarely reaching 1000 lbs. The antlers of the moose can reach a span of 6', though they are usually smaller. Their coats are dark brown to black.

Swamps and open waters are a favorite place for the moose. Moose eat tender deciduous vegetation and aquatic plants as well as shoots of willows, maples, and birches. In the summer they are usually solitary but during winter months they often gather in herds. Their long legs allow them to travel through deep snow and swamps that other animals cannot navigate.

Moose are most active at dawn and dusk, but can be spotted throughout the day. They are not very afraid of humans, moose predators are coyotes and bears. Mothers are protective of their calves and will charge if they feel the calf is threatened.

THE WHITE-TAILED DEER

Where Deer live.

This deer can be found in southern regions of Canada in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.

It likes the wooded areas of the forest where it can hide in the trees and eat leaves.

Appearance of the Deer

The white-tailed deer is tan or brown in the summer and grayish brown in winter. It has white on its throat, around its eyes and nose, on its stomach and on the underside of its tail. The male has antlers. Males weigh between 150 and 300 pounds and females weigh between 90 and 200 pounds.

The white-tailed deer is about 2 meters in length and 1 meter high to its shoulders.

Males have large antlers that make them look taller. They shed the antlers in the winter and a new set grows in the summer.

In the summer the back and sides of the deer's coat are brown. In the winter the brown coat turns greyish. The stomach and insides of the legs are white. The underside of the tail is white.

Food the Deer eat.

Deer eat grasses and leaves. They will also eat mushrooms and berries. In the winter deer nibble on twigs and buds. Deer also eat the grain that is left in farmers' fields.

The white-tailed deer eats its food twice. It has four stomachs. The deer starts eating early in the morning. It gobbles down grass and leaves to fill the first stomach. Then while it takes a rest the food goes into the second stomach where it turns into little balls. Now the deer can bring the food back up to its mouth and chew it well. The chewed food goes to the third and fourth stomachs.

The young Deer

One or two fawns are born in May. They are able to stand and walk shortly after birth. Newborns are protected by a lack of scent. Their enemies cannot smell them. The mother keeps the young fawns hidden in the thick bushes. Fawns' coats have hundreds of white spots all over which disappear when they are 3 to 4 months old.

The mother does not stay with the fawns but checks up on them 5 or 6 times during the day to feed them. The young deer stay with their mothers for one or two years.

A buck fawn has bumps on his skull where the antlers will grow.

Enemies of the Deer

Man, the wolf, lynx, coyote, bobcat and cougar are the deer's enemies. Even though a deer is very fast a pack of wolves or coyotes is able to catch them. The deer cannot run fast if the ground is covered with deep snow. The deer's thin legs sink into the deep snow.

Protection and adaptations

When a white-tailed deer is alarmed, it may stomp its hooves and snort to warn other deer. It may also "flag" or raise its tail and show its white underside. When a mother deer is running, this white underside can help her fawns follow her. White-tailed deer are very good runners. They can run at speeds of up to 30 mile an hour. They are also good leapers and swimmers.

When the deer is alarmed it raises its tail like a flag and dashes away. The flash of white fur warns the other deer.

Deer have a keen sense of smell, good hearing and good eyesight.

With its antlers and sharp hooves the male deer can sometimes kill a wolf. It will butt the wolf with its horns and then stamp on it with its feet.

To prepare for the winter deer grow a thick coat and eat alot of food to store up body fat. If it is a very long and cold winter deer may gather in small groups for protection from the cold.