Fescue friendship
(L-R) Whitney McNinch, Alex Fisher and Ellen Potts harvest plains rough fescue by hand on NCC`s Maymont 5 property (Photo by Kerry Hecker, Environment Canada)
“If you can’t eat ‘em, pick ‘em!” That’s a saying, right? Well, it is now. While conducting my first property inspection of the year, I discovered, to my dismay, the fence at Maymont 5 was not going to hold any...
Willows on the Waldron
Willows on the Waldron CV event, AB (Photo by NCC)
"Willows on the Waldron," the website read. A volunteer opportunity. Nature Conservancy of Canada. A worthy cause. I think to myself, "Self! here's your chance. Walk the talk! Let's volunteer!” But Willows…? On the...
Ecosystem restoration: A practice of patience
Wetlands on Columbia Lake - Lot 48 (Photo by NCC)
I am an immediate gratification kind of person. If there is something I can do now to see results now, I will go the extra mile just to feel that satisfaction. Sometimes this means sleep deprivation or failed attempts to learn something new; like...
Love is in the air
Swift fox (Photo by Clio Smeeton)
Now is the time of year when, as the old song goes, "A young man's fancy lightly turns to love." When it comes to swift foxes, their hearts definitely do. The female swift fox, or vixen, holds court in her den while her suitors, dog foxes, come...
Bring Back the Bluebirds: Putting translocation to work to restore a rare ecosystem’s flagship species
In 2014, this breeding pair of western bluebirds returned to NCC’s Cowichan Garry Oak Preserve to nest for a second year in a row. (Photo by Jemma Green, GOERT)
As recently as 60 years ago, the gentle, vibrantly coloured western bluebird was a common occurrence in the species-rich Garry oak meadows and savannahs of the Salish Sea region of British Columbia and Washington. But as their habitat became...
I saw tree chips: A carol for the Rice Lake Plains
NCC national staff tackling Scots pine on a nature reserve, ON (Photo by NCC)
A holiday-themed song for you, inspired by Nature Conservancy of Canada staff Val Deziel and Thom Unrau and their ongoing work removing non-native Scots pine trees from the Hazel Bird Nature Reserve in the Rice Lake Plains of Northumberland...
From wasteland to wonderland: Why we need wetlands, before it’s too late
Sunset at Minesing Wetlands, ON (Photo by Ethan Meleg)
I sometimes think I need to find a support group for people that are haunted by ecological guilt. To be honest, I mostly feel pretty good about my past as an environmental consultant before joining the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC). People...
Making peace with the Scotch pine (I mean, Scots pine)
Young volunteers tackling Scotch pine on an NCC reserve, ON (Photo by NCC)
When it comes to Christmas trees, I am a balsam fir man through-and-through. I like the form, the smell and the smooth, soft needles. I also admit that I am not crazy about Scotch pine, a main alternative here in Ontario. You could say we have...
