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Gardening with native plants this spring

Wild bergamot (Photo by Sarah Ludlow/NCC staff)

Wild bergamot (Photo by Sarah Ludlow/NCC staff)

I love to garden. I excitedly begin planning for the next year as soon as the autumn chill settles over the Prairies. I’m always impatient for spring to arrive, and it doesn't help when the seed catalogues start arriving in November. I find...

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Invasive, shrimp-sucking parasite continues northward Pacific expansion

The cough drop-sized parasite Griffen's isopod, native to Asia and Russia, has decimated mud shrimp populations along the West Coast. The parasite on the right is a female with the much smaller male attached. (Florida Museum photo by Amanda Bemis and Gustav Paulay)

The cough drop-sized parasite Griffen's isopod, native to Asia and Russia, has decimated mud shrimp populations along the West Coast. The parasite on the right is a female with the much smaller male attached. (Florida Museum photo by Amanda Bemis and Gustav Paulay)

By Josh Silberg and Natalie van Hoose Researchers have identified an invasive, blood-sucking parasite on mud shrimp in the waters of British Columbia’s Calvert Island. The discovery represents the northernmost record of the parasite on the...

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Backpack Essentials: Don’t let the ticks bite!

Backpack Essentials (Image by NCC)

Backpack Essentials (Image by NCC)

This blog post is part of the Backpack Essentials series, a series that explores the items that Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) staff carry with them when heading outside. It is inspired by the quarterly Nature Conservancy of Canada Magazine...

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The clock is counting down: It’s time to have a tick talk

Adult deer tick (Photo by Scott Bauer/Wikimedia Commons)

Adult deer tick (Photo by Scott Bauer/Wikimedia Commons)

Whenever I hike with my non-naturalist friends, I give them the usual safety spiel: wear long sleeves and long pants, stay hydrated, watch for poison ivy and nettles, and bring along some bug spray. But, as of late, I find myself adding a fifth...

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Don’t trust lady’s-slippers (if you’re a bee)

This honeybee was tricked into pollinating this yellow lady’s-slipper. (Photo by Steven Anderson/NCC staff)

This honeybee was tricked into pollinating this yellow lady’s-slipper. (Photo by Steven Anderson/NCC staff)

Before I began working at the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), I spent six years studying the pollination of two species of lady’s-slipper orchids in Manitoba and the northern U.S. While I no longer spend all of my time thinking about...

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Camping in the tall grass prairie

Tall grass prairie, Manitoba (Photo by NCC)

Tall grass prairie, Manitoba (Photo by NCC)

This past summer, the tall grass prairie of Stuartburn, Manitoba, was filled with the sounds of footsteps and laughter. Stephanie Murray, a former communications and engagement intern with the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s)...

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The birds and the beans

October 1 marks International Coffee Day (Photo from Creative Commons)

October 1 marks International Coffee Day (Photo from Creative Commons)

October 1 marks International Coffee Day, a day that celebrates and recognizes the millions of people across the globe who work hard to create and serve the warm, blissful beverage that we all know and love — especially in the morning. From...

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Grandfather nature

My grandfather and I on a sailboat at the 2013 Hunter Family Reunion at Inver Huron Beach, ON (Photo courtesy of Adam Hunter/NCC staff)

My grandfather and I on a sailboat at the 2013 Hunter Family Reunion at Inver Huron Beach, ON (Photo courtesy of Adam Hunter/NCC staff)

I partly owe my love of nature to my grandfather. He likely developed his own fascination with nature from growing up on a farm in the historic Meadowvale Village in Mississauga, Ontario. When I was three years old, my grandfather moved into a...

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Meadows for Monarchs

Meadows for Monarchs event participants (Photo by NCC)

Meadows for Monarchs event participants (Photo by NCC)

If you thought you saw more monarchs flitting about last summer and fall, you were right. Monarch Watch reported that 2018 was a good year for the iconic orange and black butterfly, thanks to a combination of aggressive conservation efforts in...

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Saving the bees: Plants to help our buzzing buddies

American bumble bee (Photo by K.S. Gardener/iNaturalist)

American bumble bee (Photo by K.S. Gardener/iNaturalist)

Humans have a very delicate relationship with bees. Despite their importance, many of us fail to understand just how much bees impact our daily lives — and how much we’re putting them at risk. Canada has over 850 native bee species,...

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