A chance meeting with an iconic Canadian mammal
Moose and her calf (Photo courtesy of Wild for Wildlife and Nature)
Moose are an iconic part of Canada's wildlife. Growing up to six and a half feet tall at their shoulders and weighing up to 1,400 pounds, they are the largest species of deer in the world and one of the largest land mammals in Canada.Crossing...
Something's Fishy: Cat's got my tongue
Before all you cat ladies and cat fanatics start reading this blog, I need to disclose something: I’m a dog person. It’s not that I don’t like cats. Who couldn’t love their long whiskers and unpredictable behaviour? I just...
Why I believe that zoos help conservation
As a conservationist and wildlife supporter, I get a lot of head turns when I say that I support zoos. I’m the first to acknowledge that some have a history of being grim tourist destinations; however, I know first-hand the positive impact...
Five Canadian songs that connect us to nature
(Photo from Pixabay)
For me, listening to music can have similar effects to a walk in the woods. Hearing a good song can make me feel freer, more connected and sometimes can even make me breathe a little bit easier after a stressful day. Like roots under a tree, music...
Tracking wood thrush through Ontario forests
Adult wood thrush at her nest (Photo by Sue Hayes)
Each year, the wood thrush travels thousands of kilometres from its over-wintering habitat in the tropical regions of Central America to its breeding habitat in forests throughout southern Ontario. This medium-sized songbird, like many other...
Keep your garden Canadian, eh?
Blue flag iris (Photo by Mike Dembeck)
Many of the plants we have in our yards are not native to Canada. In some cases, these non-native plants are invasive and can intrude into nearby natural areas or affect the growth and spread of native species. In most cases, native plants provide...
Overlooked plants and new discoveries: Moss and liverwort surveys in Manitoba
New liverworts to Manitoba on decaying log (Photo by Richard Caners)
As part of updating the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Natural Area Conservation Plan for the Whitemouth River Watershed in southeastern Manitoba, I spent a day assisting Royal Alberta Museum botany curator and good friend Dr....
Searching for worms in Ontario’s restored tall grass prairie
Ontario’s largest exotic earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris. (Photo by Heather Cray)
Looking across a beautiful stretch of native tall grass prairie in its full glory, the first thing that might strike you is, well, the grass; big bluestem, switchgrass, Indian grass, all of them might reach up to or above eye level. Then there are...
Lakeside daisy: The yellow jewel of spring
Lakeside daisy (Photo by Charles Peirce)
There is nothing quite like witnessing the beauty of flowering lakeside daisies across an alvar in early June. This brilliant yellow member of the aster family is found almost exclusively on the alvars of the Saugeen Bruce Peninsula and southern...
Growing the idea to connect Canadians to nature
Plants from Great Marram Grass Plug Plant CV event on PEI (Photo by Mike Dembeck)
Every so often, a big idea emerges from a smaller one and, in the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) case, it can turn into something larger than imagined. This is exactly what happened for NCC’s Conservation Volunteers...
