© Lora Denis
Summer evenings used to be filled with the acrobatic flitting of bats chasing their next insect meal. Unfortunately, bats have vacated the night sky over much of eastern North America due to an invasive fungal disease that is decimating populations.
Imagine you are relaxing in your beautiful garden, enjoying the natural beauty, the sounds, the colors, the scents. Now imagine you could do all of this and contribute to the protection of native biodiversity at the same time. You can make this happen by adding native plants to your garden.
Field work can be fun and rewarding, but it does have its challenges. My colleagues and I have endured many unfortunate events while traipsing about the wilder parts of Ontario. Bug bites, falling trees, unplanned pond and cave entries, thunderstorms, borderline hypothermia, skunk sprays and pulled groins are just some of the troubles we have ...
Juvenile Cooper's hawk © Dawn Huczek CC BY 2.0
Eastern Ontario is famous for wildlife viewing – especially birdwatching – in autumn. Not only do enthusiasts enjoy inspiring fall colours, there are plenty of places to see birds heading south. Shorebirds, songbirds and raptors are on the wing, and many species have already been spotted migrating. Even on casual tours, visitors can see dozens ...
There are 1,000s of wild pollinators in Ontario. Bees and flies are most significant, but butterflies, beetles, wasps, ants, moths and hummingbirds also pollinate plants. It is important to keep this in mind when reading about pollinator decline, which has been a hot news topic for many years.
Laurel Creek Conservation Area © Carl Hiebert / Grand River Conservation Authority