A Guide to Spring Birding
Some birds are starting to arrive. The next few months bring the excitement of waves of migrants heading to their breeding grounds and others establishing their territories locally. If you started a year list, or just want to learn where and what you might see in the OFNC study area, here's a reminder of an excellent reference prepared by Greg Zbitnew. Check it out at Finding 250 Species - Part 2
Editor’s Synopsis of CFN 139(1): Four-toed Salamanders
Image Caption: One of the Four-toed Salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum) recently found in a novel, marginal, patchy, anthropogenically-disturbed habitat in New Brunswick. This 2023 discovery (see feature article) expands the known range of the species in the province, the single previously known site being relatively undisturbed and surrounded by extensive forest in Fundy National Park. Photo: Joshua J.A. Christiansen. Free Online Access to Feature Article in 139(1) is at https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v139i1.3403 The Canadian Field-Naturalist (CFN) is the official journal and publication of [...]
Thank you, spider and chickadee!
OFNC member takes the Ontario Master Naturalist Program by Bev McBride I had my assignment. Find an insect or other invertebrate and describe it in a field journal. It was early March. No problem. There were plenty in the basement. But no, I wanted to find one outside. I hoped it would be alive. I knew they were out there, but how cleverly would they be hiding? It wouldn’t be like May, when you just stand there and numerous insects [...]
Birding Information at its Best
Two fabulous reference documents have been updated by Greg Zbitnew and are now available on the OFNC website. Check them out. The first is the provides information on the 381 (tentative) species of birds seen within the OFNC 50 K Study Area. It can be found Ottawa Annotated Checklist -December 2025 The second is the annotated list of rare birds found within that circle updated to December 31, 2025. It can be found at Annotated List of Rare Birds 2025 [...]
OFNC Book Club: Revisiting Legacies
A New Take on North America’s Most Famous Birder In Kenn Kaufman’s introduction to his 2024 book, The Birds That Audubon Missed, he describes the expedition to Labrador (or what was called Labrador at the time, but is now the easternmost part of Quebec) that John James Audubon took in 1833 and his subsequent discovery of Lincoln’s Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii). Kaufman writes: On the surface, the story seems straightforward. An expedition goes to a relatively little-known region. In these new [...]
The Ottawa-Gatineau Christmas Bird Count Results are in!!
The 107th Ottawa-Gatineau CBC was held December 14, 2025. Temperatures ranged from -16 to -9 degrees Celsius; skies were most cloudy in the morning and mostly clear in the afternoon; winds ranged from light to moderate; snow cover ranged from 12 to 26 centimetres; waterways were mostly frozen. 150 field observers plus 21 feeder watchers found 77 species and a 45,927 individual birds. American Crow for many years running has been by far our most abundant bird.; this year year’s [...]
OFNC Point Pelee Excursion – May 6-10, 2026
OFNC Point Pelee Excursion – May 6-10, 2026 Update: We are now keeping a waiting list. We have received as many registrants as we have rooms. If you are on the waiting list, don't despair just yet - it is not uncommon for there to be some changes during the registration process and as deposits are collected. The Events Committee is pleased to offer the Point Pelee Excursion to registered OFNC members in 2026! This page will be kept updated [...]
Editor’s Synopsis of CFN 138(4): Dinosaurs!
Cover Image: Julius Csotonyi’s depiction of an adult Spinops sternbergorum defending her offspring from an attack by an albertosaurine tyrannosaur during the Cretaceous Period of the Mesozoic Era. See the article by Mallon et al. (pp. 294–299) of a newly discovered fossil, most likely Spinops sternbergorum, a ceratopsid species previously known only from Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, from near Unity, Saskatchewan. See also https://www.csotonyi.com for more paleoart. Free Online Access to Feature Article in 138(4) is at https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v138i4.3451 The Canadian [...]
Richmond Christmas Bird Count (ONRI) Results
The 2025 Richmond Christmas Bird Count took place on December 20. It was the 10th count year. The total species count this year was 56, same as last year and a bit below the record of 60 found in 2020. An additional 5 species were found in the 3 days prior or after count day, so 61 species in count week overall, a little below average over the previous 5 years (65). Though generally a quiet day for birds, three [...]