by John Davidson Michelle and other volunteers planted 1100 native plants on the south side of our pond today. One of the highlights of Fletcher Wildlife Garden—the Amphibian Pond—has undergone a major, and necessary reconstruction since last fall. Over the years, the pond had become a victim of invasive plant species which had [...]
by Lucy Patterson A raven’s view of the Ottawa Regional Science Fair at Carleton University It is that time of year again - when young scientists come together to present their science projects at the Ottawa Regional Science Fair. On March 31st and April 1st, 2017, students from grades 7 to 12 from [...]
by David Seburn "Snapping Turtles take about 20 years to reach maturity in Ontario" - that's a long time to survive before being able to reproduce! (photo by David Seburn) Earlier this year, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) released proposed changes to the hunting regulations for the province. Among them [...]
photos by Bill Bowman According to Fred Schueler, Kemptville Creek, just below the dam at Oxford Mills, is the only place in Ontario where our giant aquatic Salamanders can be easily viewed during their winter activity. Searching for salamanders at this site is a regular weekly event for Fred, and he has [...]
by Michelle St-Germaine As I had a milestone birthday last year (I turned 50), I treated myself to a week in Paris alone and spent many hours in beautiful parks, contemplating life. In addition to this trip, I took a retirement course (yes, they exist!) and was pleased that I am on the right track [...]
by John Davidson Tricoloured Bumblebee at work in the FWG's Butterfly Meadow Punch “bees” into your search engine and, within seconds, you'll get a screenful of headlines, something like this: Why are bees dying? Plant flowers to help declining bee populations Could pesticides be limiting the ability of bees to reproduce? We are [...]
Alex MacDonald, of Nature Canada, demonstrated how to find bats using a small hand-held detector. by John Davidson “I can hear one, I can hear one!” The excited cry cut through the night at the same time as the device in the young boy’s hands burst into a cacophony of staccato crackles. This [...]
By Barry Cottam Once again OFNC members got together to share their passion for nature and nature photography. And once again, we discovered the amazing range of interests and experiences Club members explore. We could have used even more time than the three hours scheduled for this event. Each presentation by the ten participants was [...]
by Priya Nagpal Experiencing nature up close. Photo by Daynan Lepore I am high school student from Ottawa. At my school I run the environment club with a group of friends and have been involved with environmental leadership. When I saw an application for a grant to attend the Ontario Nature Youth Summit for [...]
by David Seburn An increase of only 0.1% in the annual mortality rate of 15+ year old Snapping Turtles would halve the number of adults in the local population in less than 20 years. Source: Management Plan for the Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina) in Canada Snapping Turtles face many threats including the loss [...]
