Birding for beginners
Child with binoculars (Public Domain)
I wouldn’t consider myself a birder, but I am one of the many people who started getting more tuned into the nature around me when the pandemic started. Working from home and making a habit of taking walks around my neighbourhood has made me...
Close encounter with a barred owl
Barred owl at night (Photo by Quincin Chan/NCC staff)
This blog was written by Damien Cheung (with the help of his mom, Quincin Chan). I went to Arrowhead Provincial Park in Ontario for the Fire and Ice Night event with my family on a weekend in January and stayed in a cabin in the park. We had...
And owl…will always…love you!
A barred owl perched on scaffolding on a roof that’s being re-done. (Photo by Rebecca Clarke)
As an avid nature lover, I am constantly in awe of the beauty and diversity of the natural world, but there's one species that holds a special place in my heart: barred owl. Have you ever heard the distinctive call of a barred owl at night and...
Hop into the new year with these Canadian lagomorphs
Eastern cottontail (Photo by Alain Mochon, CC BY-NC 4.0)
Rabbits are one of the most easily observed species in my suburban neighbourhood. Even during winter here in southern Ontario, you can find hints of their presence. My two young kids gleefully alerted me to a set of eastern cottontail tracks...
A memorable dance at dawn
Sharp-tailed grouse on The Yarrow (Photo by Brian Keating)
The sharp-tailed grouse dance at The Yarrow is one of many spellbinding natural displays observable at this special place. I’ve been lucky enough to visit The Yarrow, or the Fischer Ranch as it was previously known, more than a dozen times...
What they do in the shadows
Big brown bat (Photo by Brock Fenton)
I love an underdog. I think it’s easy to fall in love with the quarterback or the frontperson in a rock ‘n’ roll band, but my heart has always belonged to the benchwarmer or the drummer. Growing up, while kids my age toted around...
The making of a bison song
Bison and a sunset at OMB, SK (Photo by Jason Bantle)
Matthew Braun is program director for the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Working Landscapes Program in Saskatchewan, and Simon Neufeld is director of research and development for Earth Alive Clean Technologies in Quebec, a...
Nature in the...parking lot?
Monarch butterfly on Joe-pyeweed (Photo by NCC)
I work as a development officer at the Nature Conservancy of Canada and have lots of friends who are outdoorsy and also work in this field. This means that I am often swapping stories of cool wildlife sightings. The rare bird my co-worker spotted,...
Dangers of artificial light at night to birds
The view of downtown Toronto approaching nighttime (Photo by Roberto Nickson from Pexels)
Since the discovery of fire, humankind has tried to push back the darkness of night, extending the total usable hours in a day. Light has been a beacon, warning ships of treacherous coastlines and guiding them to safe harbours. Symbolizing life...
Nature's Olympians
Grey wolf (Photo by Gary Kramer, courtesy of USFWS)
With our dedicated Canadian athletes competing in the Olympic Winter Games, we at the Nature Conservancy of Canada started thinking about species that could step in for our Olympians, should they need a stand-in. These species would truly embody a...
