In praise of perch power
Yellow perch swimming (Photo by USDA)
When I was 10 years old, I spent my first morning on Lake Erie reeling in yellow perch. By early afternoon, we caught our legal limit, and I found out first-hand why these little striped bandits are a great way to introduce kids to fishing and...
Something's Fishy: Risky business
Eastern sand darter, Grand River, ON (Photo by Alan Dextrase/Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry) © Queen's Printer for Ontario, 2016
Close your eyes and think back to the best gift you’ve ever received. Was it that shiny red bike you got for your 10th birthday, a sentimental gift from a loved one or a token you still cherish to this day? When I think back to the most...
Celebrating the International Day for Biological Diversity with micro conservation
Biodiversity (Graphic by NCC)
There’s nothing like the potential loss of Earth’s rich biodiversity and planetary life support systems to make one feel, well, a little overwhelmed. Our individual actions can seem like small roles on a very big stage. But it’s...
The sheepshead: A true Great Lakes underdog
Freshwater drum swimming (Photo by Florida's Online Educational Clearinghouse)
I grew up a mere hour’s drive from majestic Lake Erie, and that meant lots of great fishing. The biggest thrills came when my dad and grandfather hired a charter boat to take us out for a day of reeling in Erie’s best game fish,...
Be a beaver believer
Beaver (Photo by Makedocreative/Wikimedia Commons)
Aside from the long list of initiatives celebrated today, April 7 is also a day to celebrate beavers! For starters, here’s a little beaver-inspired anecdote from our Alberta office: “There was once a young man who walked to work...
Something's Fishy: The legendary lamprey
The Lamprey, 2. The Pride, 1866 (Illustration by Robert Hamilton)
Anyone who knows me could tell you I’m really into folklore. Fairy tales, spooky stories and legendary accounts of people, places and mystical things have intrigued me for as long as I can remember. I'm also really into fish. So if there is...
The legend of the blue pike: An endangered species tale
Blue pike (Photo by New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation)
Species have come and gone for millennia, but the stories of those species that met their demise due to human activity have an especially strong emotional impact in the field of wildlife conservation. Such is the case concerning the legendary blue...
Why did the turtle cross the road?
Minesing Wetlands (Photo by Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority)
I didn’t expect one of the neatest experiences of my summer to happen while surveying the Minesing Wetlands for road mortality last June. In fact, I’d spent the day preparing myself mentally to have to make difficult observations of...
Caring for Canada's wetlands
Birding at the Tabusintac Estuary, NB (Photo by NCC)
If you used water today to brush your teeth, cook or quench your thirst, you should probably thank a wetland! World Wetlands Day, celebrated every February 2, is an opportunity to learn about the value and importance of wetlands to Canadians. If...
Of crappies and conservation
Black crappie (Photo by Eric Engbretson, USFWS)
If you've ever tossed a line into freshwater in eastern North America, there's a good chance that you've hooked a feisty, speckled panfish that puts up quite the struggle and is a year-round favourite of anglers everywhere. They go by a number of...
