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By LORI UIIICN Of The Examiner CILDWAIIIR Does the thought of worms make you squeamish and is the idea of touching them if only with boot on city street after heavy downpour even worse Valerie Orr 13yearold from toldwater never rally minded the wrigeg little creatures and certainly never felt squeamish at the thought of making little money This enterprising young woman has been picking packaging sellA ing and recently breeding worms for the past three years She and her sister Meredith ltt not only have great time with the little crawlers but have saved enough money to buy ten speed bicycles ski equipment build tennis court in their backyard and do their hristmas shopping In the summer of 1976 Valerie whos been fishing For 13 earold Valerie Orr Worms are big business since age two according to her mother decided she was pay ing far too much for her own worms and started picking dew woi ins from her backyard and selling them to fishermen for To cents dozen cheaper than the going rate By the cizd of the season Valerie and Meredith had sold ttiT dorcn or 4771 worms The following year the girls caught and sold 33 loen worms and in 1978 the figure soared to ittt doeu EASY IItKth At first the picking was easy and the demand simple to hit But last year Valerie couldnt pick enough worms to keep her customers satisfied and was forced to buy extra stock from 21 Midland dealer At that point she began to think about raising her own About 5o healthy breeders were put in wooden bins in her basement filled with mixture of garden soil manure and straw Before the worms went in the soil was left for week allowing the ingredients to mix so the worms would not be burned by the high concen trationofnutrients She fed them miture of cor nmeal and quaker oats mixed dry in blender and moistened like pablum Because few worms are surface feeders the food is spread on the top of the soil At the start she also fed them coffee grains sour cream and chicken mash which she said they just loved tntortiuuitely Valerics breeding business has been less than successful She gets the worms to breed the eggs form and the baby worms emerge but do not survive long enough to mature Valerie explains that worms are hermaphrixlites meaning they each have male and female sex organs Worms do the size of two breeder worms in the basement of evaliia Valerie right and her mother Lorraine compare their Coldwater home By liltlli Ktlft crcasuigly leiling the piesrtites ot en IIuiminerorrespondent ctoai tune ciyiiiation losl wildlife pro llltiltVlOV Our fascinating tnnadian bleiiis ti in tioiii human tliouglitlessiiess wildlife particularly the larger birds and and ignorance aniniab game flittls and predators are in lered by inf mother who happened to Counted among the countys wild residents few of which benefit from their proximity to man are timber wolves and smaller brush wolves Timber wolves shown above are on display at Springwater Park in Midhurst The provincial government ment programs designed to aid coiuc Slilllllflilfltiil and crop in has number of programs farmers surance designivl to help farmers for tile drainage program agriculturaleducation pro prove theagricultural industry which has resulted in the grams which Were up ft per says George laylor Mll for drainage of about million cent uienrohnent last year Simcoefientrc acres throughout the province research programs Last enabling Ontario to double its year about MIT million was The relationship between agricultural production since spent in such areas as feed ini the ministry tof agriculture WoildWarll proveineut pesticide l4 and foodi and the agricultural capital grants to farmers tion new crop varieties energy sector is one of partnership in which the Ontario government jl assists farmers to improve the viability of their farming operations Taylor said in news release laylor listed some govern Worth about slit million in iti7ttiti enable fariiierr to un prove their operations by building new silos barns and other agricultural facilities other grant programs such as farm tax reduction farm in conservation and better stock management the toodland Ontario pro gram III which the ministry tries to raise consumer coir sciousness of the piodiicts pro diiced in Ontario need each other for fertilization of the eggs which are contained in the clitcllum or saddle located around the middle of the worm The saddle slides off the worm and there is gesta tion period of between 14 and 22 days before the eggs hatch worm takes approximatey five months to mature Neither Valerie nor her mother can figure out why the baby worms rise to the surface and dehydrate when they are only about two inches long She admits the creatures are bit neglected during the winter but they are well fed and the soil is kept moist She refuses to stop trying and although there are only about to well developed worms in her bin at the moment she will start serious breeding again in the spring ller worms will remain in the basement to avoid the snakes skunks and racoons who thrive on hem Picking is Valerics special ty At about it pm on the first warm night this year when the ground is loaded with dew shell be out with flashlight covered with red cellophane and two coffee cans one strap ped to each leg EIIOIIIANII The cellophane is used to avoid frightening the worms with too much light Worms are sensitive creatures Valerie says who can feel tremble in the earth wihin twormile radius The coffee cans are us ed to hold the worms eliminating extra trips for Valerie and conserving move ment so the worms are not disturbed in good night Valerie can pick about 40 dozen worms They are kept overnight in the basement and the next morn ing are placed in plastic con taiiiers filled with sphagnum moss and kept cool in the refrigerator until sold Most of the evenings haul is sold the next day The fishermen like fresh worms and they like them big Valerie says Last year worms at the On household were selling for 70 cents dozen at the start of the season but dry weather forced the creatures deep into the ground in their search for moisture That increased de mand forced her to buy worms and raise her price to 85 cents dozen She still managed to sell as many as 39 dozen worms lay to people on their way to Severn Falls or thereabouts Almost everybody in business uses gimmick to sell pro duct and Valerie is no excep tion Her claim to fame is set ing Educated Dew Worms Customers will often stop and knock on the door just to find out exactly what the sign on her lawn means What does it mean There are 13 worms to our dozcn 12 students and teacher she explains and the teacher majored in marine biology so he knows where all the fish hang out Enormous market exists says worm distributor There is an enormous market for worms in tanada and the timed States and anyone will mg to raise them on coiiiiiier cial basis can make small tor tune according to large worm and growing lllttlktllilg firm in Mississauga Sam Shimiu part ow tier of National ireeii liotects Ltd says increased use of pesticides in the pst ll years has depleted the supply of titllll on golf comes and farmers lltltlS and demand now ceedstliesupply Iltlll billion tanadian dew worms are shipped ttltiss tin bordei annually for fish bait Shuntu says the nierieins loveoui woiin becauseol heu largeste for in iiitiial inestinent ot hitffl Hlilt lttl KOO litiiilijli worms and the res lor slip lflts Shuntii say coiiseion tioii grower can bleed million worms in si lliIIltll profit of about sJoooo he worms lics talkine about are not ordinary dew worim breed known as national mgblcrawlers which his firm supplies to potential growers lnlike the regular worms these do not have to be refrigerated lhcy haxe life cpenttitcy of about month at temperaturesbetweenftoaiiilttll degrees Fahrenheit This means these worms could be sold over the counter in any numbcrol liitts coiiitiiercial growei tiiiis be willing to put in close to too hours month for care of the worms and should have work ing space of about too squari feet which is well heated year round The Ulle profile with iilglitcraw lers because of tltt tive breeding they cannot lie Ill an eiitronineut otliei than theirown llieie ate not many full time worm breeders In the pro llltt Shuntu says there are to listed in an llltllitit buyers guide interest is definitely growint and in the three years Naionzd tireen lrojects has been in look out and spot them we watched no less than the wolves crossing over the road from our farm sometimes trotliiig sometimes at an easy going lope Three were closer our way and two were heading toward lIilllt larkcrs line fence when as if by some mental telegraphic message they all stopped and looked at each other as it to say Well now lets get our act together Then the two groups swung back into line and headed northward into the ear ly morningeold wind of ihiirsday laii ll of this year apologies to the sheep farmers but it was beautiful sight that seemed to bring the storied romance of the north into our backyard We ill cherish the memory of it Not so rewarding was the day early this winter when earload of hunters presumably from Toronto went through ours and an adjacent bush blasting everything that moved twe have heard that some of these hunters consider inter birds including cardinals delicacy to eat llp until that time all kinds of winter birds had been coming to the feeding station in cluding grosbeaks juncos chickadecs woodpeckers and jays For days after only two or three birds day struggled up to the feeding station Only since new birds have moved in from other areas have the number and variety of birds visiting the feeding sta tion increased It INH It is paradox that every tim somebody wants to get away from it all and builds home in wilderness area another wilderness area is lost ltich woods are con verted into barren lawns wildflowers are destroyed natural food supplies vanish and human activity and the noise of civilization drive wildlife ever deeper into the wilderness Noises of civilization particularly those of cars boats and snowmobiles are Very disturbing to leer rabbits and ground nesting and feeding birds such as gainebirds and waterfowl which rely on their keen sense of hearing to alert them to the approach of natural and human hunters Snowmobiles inadvertently have had one good effect They have opened up long fence free trails for wild animals to follow As long as snowinobilers avoid disturbing wild animals when they see them and dont copy the two men who chased poor brush wolf until it dropped dead from exhaustion on Lake Siincoe damage to the environ ment from snowmobiles can be kept to minimum In the old lays cedar rail fences and pine stump fences could easily be jumped or climbed through and these fences provided safe travel routes for smaller animals who used them in travelling from bush to bush Modern nine wire fences with barbed wire along the top greatly binder and restrict the movement and activities of wildlife So do busy highways and the strung out com munities built along them At one overpass bridge over Highway 400 we have noted larger wild animals including deer have made real track up over the enbankinents and onto the bridge they use to cross the highway which he says can be giown commercially but special istenee they liaye atractcd about toiiclieiits lhe draining of swamps and clearing of swamplands the creation of new beaches along our shorelines and the building of summer cottages on little islands has destroyed some choice wildlife habitats particularly for hicks and geese llie gulls which do so much good in the fall following the farmers plows gobbling up all sorts of motions bugs and grubs are finding it more difficult to find nesting sites as summer cot tagcs are taking up even the most insignifi cant island and beach inipioveiiiiiit pro grams destroy nesting sites HINIINIIICII FUR IIIIIIS Our local conservation authorities iNot tawasaga Valley Angus and Ministry of Natural ltesources iMidhurst must be commended for their efforts in creating many muchneeded conservation areas and wildlife sanctuaries throughout the county and for their studies which allow meanr ingful conservation and wildlife preserva tion programs to be implemented What many people forget is that almost as important as conservation areas are inter connecting corridors of unrestricted travel either by overland trails river lakeshore or overhead flyways Many animals and birds including deer wolves bears blue herons the larger hawks and vultures ruffed grouse ducks and geese and even some of the smaller animals cannot survive for long in one restricted area because they will die out from either iiibreeding or by eating themselves out of house and home Many creatures live on specific diet and must move seasonally over an area as large as ioosquare miles Bears and wolves have been given bad break by superstition folklore and legend Although it is less noticeable today bears and wolves still figure as the main willains in childrens storeybimks and rhymes where animals are concerned onsider this your chance of being killed by bear is much less than by snake about one in 10 million and the chance of being killed by wolf is about one in half billion By contrast your chance of being killed by car is about one in 500 Bears eat mainly roots fruits and seeds fish and acquatic life while wolves eat mainly mice moles rabbits insects and sometimes deer and it is usually only due to food shortages often brought about by the activities of man that they turn to sheep and small farm livestock as an alternative In this case individual offenders must be destroyed The entire population of any animal species should no more be exter niiiiated for the wrong actions of one or two individuals than should everyone be stopped from driving cars because few people ause fatal accidents with them KILLING IRIIIMIORS Unfortunately many hunters especially in the United States lump all predators iii cluding foxes skunks racomis bears wolves hawks owls and even vultures as varmits and consider with an almost avenianlike naivety that by hunting down and killing every predator they have done their country real service Seine people even class all hawks as chicken hawks that should be shot on sight Less Valerie Orr takes the business of raising worms seriously Examiner Photo discriiniiiat mg hunters destroy the romance of the very wilderness they visit to escape the hassles and artificiality of city life All predators eveu ildcats and cougars have their place in keeping the balance of nature Were it not for them we would be overrun by plant fruit and seed eating creatures such as rodents which could bring on world widcstarvatioii Intensive farming practices including removal of tencelines draining of swamplands and crop spraying have been hard on all forms of wildlife by destroying nesting sites and shelter refuges and destroying food sources like weeds wild fruits seed and nut bearing trees and wet areas filled with aquatic life ltoadsidc brush and weed spraying programs have had disastrous results on all kinds of songbirds poisoned by eating poisoned inr sects or left homeless by the destruction of sheltering weeds brush and reeds Once common many birds particularly the beautiful indigo ihluei bunting with its tropicatly metallic hliie plumage are no longer seen along our roadsides Much could be done and is in some cases being done to ease the lot of wildlife in general think the most important step in the right direction is the enlightened ap proach towards wildlife and conservation being taken by our schools IIItIIIllUIIXISIINtli The construct ion of natural undeveloped ponds the leaving of some overgrown fenccliiics retaining natural mixed and deciduous woodlots or the plan ting of new one on marginal land building vsu know your county Wildlife vulnerable to pressure of civilization simple culverts under highways at strategic animal crossings keeping concentrated nesting sites of watertowl tree from human development and offlimits during the nesting season and secing that wildlife from outside have easy access to conserva tion areas can all help wildlife to coexist peacefully with civiliation tontrary to good forestry practices some old halfdead and hollow trees should be left in any bush where they proyide homes for everything from racoons to woodpeckers Not all activities of man are against wildlife Birds and squirrels greatly apr preciate feeding stations maintained throughout the winter by local residents Deer and other wildlife use hydro powerliiie rightrofways as travel corridors Trees planted in new subdivisions in Barrie quick ly attract surprising variety of native nesting birds Vultures and crows and other meateaters find easy meals in small animals killed by road traffic Once restricted to the west the brush wolfe or coyote has in recent decades discovered the open fields of Ontario to its liking Pulls have found new food source in following the farmers plow and may be seen in hun dreds standing in the water on the tops of Barrie factories Witli very little help from all of us and with the preservation of wilderness areas like Minesing Swamp our rich and varied wildlife can survive indefinitely to make Simcoe tounty more interesting place in which to live and to benefit us and enrich our lives and the lives of future generations It all depends on us Dorothy Fitzsimmins correctly identified last weeks entry in the Know Your County Contest as St Pauls Anglican Church near Painswick and wins two steaks courtesy of and Super Discount in Barrie Angus or Alliston if you know the answer to this weeks entry send your name and address and telephone number along with your entry to Know Your County Contest The Examiner Box 370 Barrie L4M 4T6 Examiner Photo Winners are selected by random draw of all correct answers and will be notified by mail