NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND P.O. BOX 2346, CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. ClA 8C1

Meetings are held of the first Tuesday of the month (except July, August, and September) at 7:30 pm. at the Farm Centre, 420‘University Avenue, Charlottetown. Each meeting commences with a brief business meeting followed by a nutrition break and a guest speaker. Members and non-members are welcome.

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 PO. Box 2346, Charlottetown ClA 8C1 (phone 569-1209).

Annual membership is $16 and renewals are due in January. Membership expiry dates are shown in the top right hand comer of the mailing label.

The Society is directed by a volunteer Executive elected from its members.

2005 Executive: President ...................................... ..Dwaine Oakley, Crossroads 569-1815 oakleym@eastlink.ca Vice-President .......... ..Dan Kennedy, Vernon River 651-2926 dankennedy@islandtelecom.com Past President ......................................... ..David Seeler, West Royalty 566-4505 seeler@upei.ca Secretary .................................................... ..Fiep deBie, Stratford 569-1413 dfiep@hotmail.com Treasurer ............................................. ..Rosemary Curley, Stratford 569-1209 rcurley@isn.net Director — Program ..... ..Bonnie McOrmond, Charlottetown 628-6994 bcmcormond@eastlink.ca Director - Publicity .............................. ..Sharon Clark, Charlottetown 626-3566 sclark@upei.ca

NEWSLETTERS are normally published quarterly 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 sent by mail to Dan McAskill, Newsletter Editor, NHSPEI, Charlottetown RR # 5, Donagh, P.E.I. ClA 7J8 or via E—mail to nhspei@isn.net

The next deadline for articles, sightings, or other newsletter information is November 22nd, 2005.

Illustrations/Pictures: The Society extends a special thanks to Connie Pound Gaudet, the late Geoff Hogan, and Dover Colouring Books for their illustrations in this issue.

The Natural History Society gratefully acknowledges support from the Department of Education which enables distribution of newsletters to schools and libraries desiring it. The Natural History Society is an affiliate of the Nature Canada 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 acknowledgment must be provided to the Island Naturalist, the author and illustrator.

Web page: The Society’s web page is located at www.isn.net/~nhspei

Cover Illustration:

On the Island, the undulating flight and the white rump patch characterize the Northern Flicker, our second largest, breeding woodpecker on the Island. This species excavates large cavities with an entrance diameter of six to eight centimetres. These woodpeckers usually pick trees, living and dead, that have centre rot which they can determine by drumming on the trunk. Because it digs its own cavities, it is known as a primary excavator. The cavities it produces are critical for many other species from American Kestrel to red squirrels.

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