Earthworms at Clyde Woods 
GeofBurbidge 
Earthworm burrow marked by leaf petioles. 
On the evening of April 22, my friend Lome Bennett and I paid a visit to Clyde 
woods with a tape recorder to make our novice attempt at calling owls. We 
had followed the advice in our "Sankeys"* and recorded repetitions of small 
owls’ calls, finishing up with that of the great horned owl. The evening was 
clear, seasonably warm, and very still. We found a spot not too far from the 
southern edge of the woods and played our calls for about ten minutes. 
We received no replies, but during the breaks between calls we became aware 
of a persistent rustling in the thin leaf litter on the ground all around us. No 
doubt the still night was amplifying the sounds, but our first thought was of 
small mammals doing some nocturnal foraging. The sound resembled that of a 
light rain pattering on the leaves. No matter how quickly we shone our flash¬ 
lights toward a rustle, however, we saw nothing but dried brown maple leaves. 
No small mammals, no insects, just dead leaves. 
* "Enjoying the Birds of the Ottawa Valley" by JohnSankey. Runge Press, 
Ottawa, 1987, pp. 116. 
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