Review-Mirror

By Maggie Fleming For The Review-Mirror Some authors suggest that the White-breasted Nuthatch gets its name from the corruption of the word "nuthack," which refers to its habit of "hacking" away at a seed with its beak until the seed opens while oth- ers suggest that the name derives from their habit of jamming large nuts and acorns into tree bark, then whacking them with their sharp bill to "hatch" out the seed from the inside. The larger of the two— the male White- breasted Nuthatch has blue-gray upperparts, black crown and nape, and white face, under- parts. Their tails are dark with white corners and their legs and feet are black. The female's colouration is similar but she has a blue-gray crown and nape. The flight of nuthatches is a weak fluttering flight— they alternate rapid wing beats with periods of wings drawn to sides. This flight pattern is an interesting one called a rollercoaster flight pat- tern. Birders often distin- guish birds because of their flight pattern. Nuthatches eat spi- ders, insects, nuts and seeds. Through the win- ter we watch them at our feeders. As spring approaches the male begins to sing freely at all times of day, previously he sang only in the morn- ing hours. Through the winter the pair lived not far apart, feeding within hearing of each other, but the male paid little atten- tion to his mate; in fact, while eating males often exhibited dominance over females. With the warmer days of spring they become engaged over the females comfort. Courtship begins. He car- ries food to her and places it in her bill, he stores bits of nut in crevices of bark for her convenience, and he often addresses his singing directly to her. Standing back to her, he bows slowly downward as he sings, then in the interval before another song he straightens up, then bows as he sings again. The songs come with perfect regularity over and over again and can be recognized even in the distance as the courtship song. His song invites the female to look at him and when she does she sees in his bowing to her, the black of his crown and his rough raised mane, then the blue-gray of his back, then the variegated black and white pattern of his expanded tail, then, at the end of his bow, a flash of ruddy brown. Sometimes he approaches the female more aggressively, strut- ting before her with stretched-out neck and flattened crown, a pose of intimidation. The change to active courtship indicates the advent of the nesting activities. Females build the nest on their own, lining the nest cavity with fur, bark, and lumps of dirt. She then builds a nest cup of fine grass, shredded bark, feathers, and other soft material. White-breasted Nuthatches often reuse their nest holes in subse- quent years. They typi- cally build their nests in natural tree cavities or abandoned woodpecker holes. They sometimes enlarge these holes but rarely excavate them entirely on their own (as Red-breasted Nuthatches often do). Nuthatches are smaller than woodpeck- ers, and White-breasted Nuthatches don't seem bothered by nest holes considerably larger than they are. Despite their association with decidu- ous woods, they nest in both coniferous and deciduous trees. White- breasted Nuthatches sometimes use nest boxes. The clutch will have 5–9 creamy white to pinkish-white, speck- led with reddish brown, gray, or purple eggs that will be incubated 13–14 days of the 26 day nest- ing period. The emergent hatchlings are helpless and naked except for some down. • • • For information about joining the Rideau Lakes Birding Group please con- tact Group Leader Ethel Green at 613-273-4712. Please follow our outings in our weekly report at http://www.twprideaulake s.on.ca/rec-birders.html. The Review-Mirror December 7, 2017 – 13 Good birding... Nuthatches eat spiders, insects, nuts and seeds. Through the winter we watch them at our feeders. As spring approaches the male begins to sing freely at all times of day, previously he sang only in the morning hours. Gluten free brownies People with food sensi- tivities can be overlooked during the holidays. It's frustrating to see treats knowing that most of them are out of reach. Gluten free flour is available in most grocery stores mak- ing this even easier to pre- pare. Preheat oven to 350°F. INGREDIENTS 2/3 cup gluten free flour ½ cup corn starch 1 cup sugar 1 cup brown sugar ¾ cup cocoa powder 1 tsp baking soda ¼ cup vegetable oil 2 eggs, beaten ¾ cup butter, melted PREPARATION Stir together all the dry ingredients. In another bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs and butter. Combine the egg mix- ture with the dry, beating until the batter is smooth. Pour into a 8x8 greased baking pan. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until a tooth- pick comes out clean. • • • Gail Marshall is a cook and baker with an interest in fast, healthy and low cost recipes. Gail Marshall gailmarshall58@gmail.com Here in VideoLand, the tree is up and the decora- tions are hung, both inside and out. This week, to help you shop for the movie lover on your list, here is part one of the annual VideoLand gift-giving guide. This week we focus on gifts from the small screen. For the crime drama lover... we start with a book on the subject of crime dramas on televi- sion. TV Noir traces the history and evolution of the crime drama on the small screen from the late 40s to the classics such as Dragnet, The Fugitive and modern neo-noir dramas. TV Noir is written by Allen Glover, television and film historian as well as curator at the Paley Center for Media. • • • While not new, there are plenty of boxed sets for the procedural fan. The Mentalist: The Complete Series is perfect for any fan of Patrick Jane (Simon Baker). The set allows fans to relive the entire Red John saga and the fol- low up final season as well. Also reaching back for fans of police procedurals, there are two boxed sets for Criminal Minds lovers. The first packages seasons one through four while the second packages series five through eight. Going retro? Check out Adam 12. • • • If you have a fan of the remake of SWAT that is currently airing on televi- sion, why not introduce them to SWAT: The Com- plete Series. The original series produced by Aaron Spelling, has wonderful grittiness while relying more on character drama than shock factor gore of say Criminal Minds. SWAT was a spinoff from The Rookies, another character driven police procedural. • • • For Gilmore Girl fans... the limited series produced by Netflix last year is now out on DVD. A Year in the Life gives fans the closure they so desperately wanted after the original series had an incredibly weak final season and a terrible series finale. As the title suggests, this four episode series follows the lives of the Gilmore Girls over the course of a year, with each episode tackling a season. • • • Sci-fi fans are also well represented... there's the cheeky Dr. Who cook book. Don't forget series 10 of Dr. Who is now out on Blu-ray. HBO's Westworld is also out on Blu-ray in time for Christmas. This first season is a darker, moodi- er take on the original film. If you have fans of clas- sic Star Trek on your list, here's something a little different. You can get the complete collection of Star Trek comic books that were produced in the UK in two hard bound vol- umes. • • • While not sci-fi, there are some great comic book adaptations for the small screen. The 1960s Batman staring Burt Ward and Adam West as the boy wonder and caped crusad- er makes for a light and fluffy introduction to Bat- man and is great fun to watch with kids. If you like the man of steel, Superman himself, check out Superman: The Animated Series which is available on DVD as a boxed set or you can pick up each of the three sea- sons individually. Fans of Marvel comics aren't left out. Marvel's Agents of Shield is a small screen adventure series focusing on those with no powers or limited powers doing battle against every- thing from secretive con- spiracies to aliens to super villains. Also, season one of Jes- sica Jones – the Netflix series based on the Marvel character, is now on DVD. And, who doesn't love a friendly neighbourhood Spider Man? The original animated series is also available on DVD. • • • For the PBS lover, the Ken Burns documentary Vietnam is a splashy but impressive gift. I recom- mend shelling out for the Blu-ray. Food lovers and PBS fans will really appreciate A Chef's Life – a docu- series and cooking show all mashed up into one. A Chef's Life follows chef Vivien Howard as she and her husband work to build on their restaurant in east- ern North Carolina. The latest series of the show is due out on DVD later this month, in time for gift giv- ing. The other three series and a DVD of A Chef's Life Christmas are also available. • • • Stocking Stuffers... Fans of classic comedy will love the single disc collection of Carol Burnett Christmas episodes. Titled The Carol Burnett Show: Carol's Lost Christmas Episodes, the DVD fea- tures almost three hours of the best Christmas skits from the show. If your TV lover prefers classic and forgotten tele- vision a little grittier, check out Man with a Camera: the Complete Series. Charles Bronson stars in this fabulous, short-lived series about a former World War Two combat photographer who now makes his bones as a freelancer on the streets of New York City. The show ran from 1958-1960 on ABC and this collection contains all 29 episodes of the two seasons. • • • Next week in Video Land – part two of the gift giving guide focusing on the big screen. Dale Mor- risey can be reached at wjpmedia@gmail.com. Gifts for the small screen lover Videoland Dale Morrisey The community in Sheldon's Bay near Portland) held a collection of food in support of the annual drive by the Portland Food Bank. They made a significant donation last year and this year's collection was even larger. It will be delivered to the Portland Food bank at their annual food drive when members will be dressed in Santa Claus suits to deliver the goods in a decorated trailer at 10 a.m. this Saturday. p13.Dec7.qxp_p6.apr10 2017-12-06 12:13 PM Page 1

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