How collaboration kept an invasive beetle at bay
Asian longhorned beetle with wing exposed under elytron (wing casing) (Photo by Pudding4brains, Wikimedia Commons)
What is black with white spots and shiny all over? It’s the invasive Asian longhorned beetle (ALB)! This beetle is well known for its striking appearance, piercing eyes and antennae that extend beyond the rear of its body. It has no natural...
Nova Scotia through the seasons
Victoria Park, Truro (Photo by Brittany Foster)
Living on the southern coast of mainland Nova Scotia, I have the opportunity to experience each season in all of its natural glory. Winter, spring, summer and fall have their own unique sights, smells and sounds. They are marked distinctions in...
How species survive winter: Hibernation
A big brown bat "hanging out." Often when found outside, big brown bats sit in this position on the side of a building, tree or (ideally not) on the ground. (Photo by Sarah Ludlow/NCC)
Previously, I discussed how small songbirds, and black-capped chickadees in particular, survive winter on the Canadian Prairies. Now I will discuss another strategy that animals use to survive the long, cold winter months: hibernation. Hibernation...
2020 may just have been Canada’s most important year for nature conservation
Hiking on Darkwoods, BC (Photo by Gordon MacPherson)
A year ago, there was much anticipation in the conservation community that 2020 would perhaps be the most important year ever for nature. Canada’s Nature Fund promised to accelerate the conservation of our wild spaces and species. There was...
10 spectacular species to celebrate during the holiday season
Snowy owl (Photo by rosstaylor from Canva)
During the holiday season, we often show gratitude and express appreciation for our friends and loved ones. It can also a time to celebrate the resilience of Canadian species and to learn about the biodiversity that is all around us. Join us as we...
Internships to remember
Picture of me as an intern in Alberta, rolling barbed wire at a Conservation Volunteers event (Photo by NCC)
I’ve always had a passion for nature. It was this passion that ultimately led me to pursue a degree in environmental studies, which I recently obtained from Wilfrid Laurier University. During my studies, it wasn’t always clear to me...
Salmon run season: Witnessing the remarkable resilience of chum
Bear with salmon (Photo by Bobushphoto via Getty Images Signature/Canva)
As the wind strips the trees of their leaves, and mushrooms surface through the rain-soaked ground, autumn takes hold along the Pacific Northwest of Canada. The changing season brings one of the most spectacular cycles of nature in the world....
How birds survive the winter
Black-capped chickadee in winter (Photo by NCC)
Winter on the Prairies is long and cold, often lasting from November until March, and with temperatures falling to -20 C or -30 C, it’s a wonder that anything can survive here at all. However, a walk around any residential neighbourhood or...
The resiliency and significance of cedar
Eastern red cedar (Photo by Onel Guce, CC BY-NC 4.0)
It seems like everywhere I go, I see cedar trees. This isn’t surprising, since Canada’s four species of cedar can be common where they occur. Growing up to 15 metres tall and representing some of the oldest trees in Canada, cedar...
Thank you, volunteers!
Volunteers transplant short-ligule ammophilia plants on the sandbar of the Barachois of Malbaie in Gaspésie (Photo by NCC)
Since 1962, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) has conserved habitat across Canada equivalent to an area totalling almost four times the size of Vancouver Island. It’s no surprise that a lot of work goes on behind the scenes once an...
