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Building homes for bats in the prairies

Conservation Volunteers from across Saskatchewan joined together to build bat boxes. (Photo by NCC)

Conservation Volunteers from across Saskatchewan joined together to build bat boxes. (Photo by NCC)

Every year, the Nature Conservancy of Canada's (NCC's) Saskatchewan Region holds a Conservation Volunteers event at its Old Man on His Back Prairie and Heritage Conservation Area (OMB). This year, one of the activities involved building bat boxes...

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Species at risk need our help

Harbour seal (Photo by Ryan Murphy)

Harbour seal (Photo by Ryan Murphy)

As an animal lover, I pride myself on my knowledge of all creatures furry, feathery and scaly. But when the federal government announced that it was adding nine more animals for protection under the Species at Risk Act (SARA), I was surprised to...

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Something's Fishy: Life in the slow lane

Western silvery minnow (Photo by Karen Scott, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada)

Western silvery minnow (Photo by Karen Scott, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada)

In my day-to-day life working in Canada’s largest city, I often find myself rushing from one thing to the next. People are always advising me to stop to smell the roses. I don’t like the smell of roses, so this unwavering, kind-hearted...

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Something's Fishy: Cat's got my tongue

<i>Channel catfish</i>, Fat Fish series (Illustration by Al Lau)

Channel catfish, Fat Fish series (Illustration by Al Lau)

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...

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Tracking wood thrush through Ontario forests

Adult wood thrush at her nest (Photo by Sue Hayes)

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...

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Lakeside daisy: The yellow jewel of spring

Lakeside daisy (Photo by Charles Peirce)

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...

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Something's Fishy: Shock me like an American eel

American eel (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

American eel (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

The electrofishing boat gently rocked against the current of the water below. It was a scorching summer day in late August on a tributary in Lake Ontario, and no amount of SPF could have saved my freckled shoulders from the sun’s...

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The wonderful world of sparrows

House sparrow (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

House sparrow (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

When asked to picture a sparrow, I think a lot of us, especially city dwellers, think of the common house sparrow. Though ubiquitous across southern Canada, this little sparrow is not actually native to North America. This introduced species hails...

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How we can save our songbirds

Cerulean warbler (Photo by Bill Hubick)

Cerulean warbler (Photo by Bill Hubick)

By now, I'm hoping that many of you have heard about declining songbird populations and the numerous threats that these birds face, which are, typically, physical threats to their survival. However, I’d like to discuss a different type of...

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Why Canada matters on World Wetlands Day

Wetlands in the Marion Creek Benchlands, British Columbia (Photo by Tim Ennis/NCC)

Wetlands in the Marion Creek Benchlands, British Columbia (Photo by Tim Ennis/NCC)

While other nations have picked wetland wildlife, such as Finland’s whooper swan or Pakistan’s Indus crocodile, to represent their country, Canada is the only country in the world that has selected a wetland engineer as its national...

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