NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND LTD. P.O. BOX 2346, CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. CIA 801

MEETINGS are held of the first Tuesday of the month (except June, July, August, and September) at 7:30 p.m. at the Farm Centre, 420 University Avenue, Charlottetown. Members and non-members are welcome. Please bring your coffee cup so that we will contribute as little as possible to the waste stream.

Membership is open to anyone interested in the natural history of Prince Edward Island. Membership is available at any meeting or by contacting the Treasurer at P.O. Box 2346, Charlottetown ClA 8C1 (phone 566-1289). Annual membership rates are $16 and renewals are due in January. Membership expiry dates are shown in the top right hand corner of the mailing label.

The Society is directed by a volunteer Executive elected from its members. 1996 Executive: President.......Ray Cooke, Charlottetown 894-9695 Vice-President......Mary Beth Harris, Battery Point 569-2665

Past President............Barb Currie, Argyle Shore 675-3192 Secretary...............Jean Watts, North Wiltshire 621-0202 Treasurer.....................Jim Jenkins, Sherwood 566—1289

Directors — Program........Meike Keunecke, Red Head 961-2737

— Publicity ..David Cairns, Charlottetown 368—6080

NEWSLETTERS are normally published tri-monthly on recycled paper. Articles, notes, reports, drawings, bird sightings, plant records, etc. are welcomed from members and non—members. If you have seen anything unusual, please share it with us. It is important to have your observations recorded so that others may learn from them. All contributions should be send to:

Dan McAskill, Newsletter Editor . Natural History Society of Prince Edward Island Ltd. Charlottetown RR # 5, Donagh, P.E.I. CIA 7J8

The next newsletter deadline is November 15, 1996.

Illustrations: The Society extends a special thanks to QLF ACE, Dover Colouring Books, Ben Hoteling, and Donald Wilkinson for their illustrations.

The Natural History Society gratefully acknowledges support from the Department of Education and Human Resources which enables distribution of newsletters to schools and libraries desiring it. The Natural History Society is an affiliate of the Canadian Nature Federation and has representation on the board of the Island Nature Trust. The Society is a registered, non-profit organization (Part 2, Companies Act). Tax receipts are issued for donations to the Society and these funds are used to further the work of the Society.

Reprinting: Editors of other newsletters and teachers wishing to copy classroom materials are welcome to reprint articles from the Island Naturalist (except when copyrighted). Due acknowledgement must be provided to the Island Naturalist, the author and illustrator.

Cover Illustration:

This month’s cover illustration, assuming our identification is correct, is an Island rarity. The absence of flowers made early identification attempts quite difficult as none of those utilizing the keys were familiar with this plant when it was in berry. The story on page 4 will lead you farther into the exploration of this plant’s identify. If you know it before you start let us know. If you wish to try out the plant keys before you start, it should be fun!