Proposed cormorant hunt: what to know and what to do

by Jakob Mueller, OFNC Vice President The Ontario government is considering a proposal to establish a hunting season on the Double-crested Cormorant. The details and potential effects of this proposal are a serious cause for concern. If enacted, the law will set responsible conservation back in Ontario and cause ecological harm that will take decades [...]

2019-03-07T13:38:20-05:00December 28th, 2018|Conservation|

Keep our environment commissioner

The OFNC has signed an Ontario Nature letter to Premier Ford protesting elimination of the role of environment commissioner. by Sandy Garland Ontario Nature (ON) is rallying its members (including the OFNC) to express concern over the move to eliminate the office of the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario (ECO). OFNC President Diane Lepage has signed [...]

2018-12-10T14:30:58-05:00December 10th, 2018|Conservation|

Britannia woods – a forest professional’s view

Ken Farr and Nancy Young, of the Canadian Institute of Forestry, share their knowledge about trees and forests with OFNC and CIF members by Bev McBride, photos by Dave Moore What a great chance to meet some new people and hear some different perspectives. Thirty-two OFNC and Canadian Institute of Forestry (CIF) members joined Ken [...]

2018-12-10T14:11:14-05:00October 21st, 2018|OFNC event|

Part 1 of CFN Special Issue is Now Online

By William Halliday, Online Journal Manager of CFN The latest issue of The Canadian Field-Naturalist has now been published online, and this one is special! We decided to make a two-part special issue on amphibians and reptiles in Canada, dedicated to Dr. Francis Cook. Dr. Cook was a long-time editor and associate editor of CFN, [...]

2023-07-06T15:03:45-04:00October 17th, 2018|Canadian Field-Naturalist, Publications|

NCC’s anti-buckthorn squad

Mission: eliminate buckthorn at the alvar in Aylmer, Quebec From the Nature Conservancy of Canada La version française suit Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) Protects High Biodiversity Natural Habitats. The alvar is a type of rare habitat worldwide characterized by outcrops of limestone and colonized by a very specific plant community. The largest portion of [...]

2018-10-07T01:00:48-04:00October 7th, 2018|News|

Soil mites might SoilYourUndies

Dr. Marla Schwarzfeld and Victoria Nowell (AAFC) displayed mites extracted from soil at FWG and elsewhere, just visible under 10X scopes. by Lynn Ovenden For the mite workshop on July 12, participants arriving at Fletcher Wildlife Garden found the entry bedecked with a line of stained shredded undies. This was the result of a SoilYourUndies [...]

2021-01-27T10:50:09-05:00July 31st, 2018|Fletcher Wildlife Garden|

There’s a turtle team?!

After a washed out turtle nest was reported, the eggs were salvaged, examined, and reburied safely by OFNC member Dave Seburn and his "turtle team" - Hannah, Hannah, and Mackenzie. by Sandy Garland A rescue mission ended successfully today (July 27), but a happy ending depends on 28 baby turtles, now safely buried at the [...]

2018-08-24T18:29:47-04:00July 30th, 2018|Fletcher Wildlife Garden|

Gatineau Park birding outing

OFNC members compare bird songs, learn nesting etiquette, and enjoy spectacular birding along Gatineau trails.  by Sophie Roy with photos by Norbert Haché On the 9th of June, members of the OFNC enjoyed the birds of Gatineau park with leaders Justin Peter and Sophie Roy.  26 people attended the outing this year. As usual, we [...]

2018-08-24T18:30:27-04:00July 11th, 2018|OFNC event|

National historic plaque for John Macoun

The Honorable Catherine McKenna unveiled a plaque at the Museum of Nature in honour of John Macoun who collected and catalogued Canada's flora and fauna. Photos and text by Diane Lepage On Saturday June 23th 2018, The Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minster of the Environment and Climate Change and the Minister responsible for Parks Canada, held [...]

2018-08-24T18:30:56-04:00July 10th, 2018|News|

Beware of dive-bombing Redwings

by Ted Farnworth When I first took on the job of trying to clean up the pond of Flowering Rush (Butomus umbellatus L.), I was warned about the Snapping Turtles (Chelydra serpentine). Apparently we have some pretty big ones living and nesting around d the pond. The boot sucking muck on the bottom was also [...]

2018-08-24T18:32:54-04:00July 2nd, 2018|Fletcher Wildlife Garden|