Wild Pig Pilot Project & Research UpdateWhat is a wild pig, and are they really in Ontario? Erica will give a brief background on wild pigs in North America, and outline research findings from the ministry’s recent work with this invasive species. She’ll discuss why wild pigs are such a challenge for wildlife managers and…
Activities
THE MARCH NATURE BOOK OF THE MONTH IS NATURES BEST HOPE BY DOUGLAS THALLAMY
Sharon Hancock, a long time member of the Orillia Naturalists’ Club, noted for her dinners, and for her gardening , both at home and at the Hermitage, (a property near her home), has recommended this book to us. Worried about the planet? Change can start in your own back yard according to Douglas W. Tallamy.…
THE FEBRUARY NATURE BOOK OF THE MONTH IS SPILLOVER, ANIMAL INFECTIONS AND THE NEXT HUMAN PANDEMIC, BY DAVID QUAMMEN
He has been called “our best science writer”, which is probably true. Reviewed by Nancy Ironside.This may be the toughest, the most unpleasant and the most significant book I have ever read – all 710 pages of it.It is primarily about viruses that have an animal reservoir – zoonotic viruses. Veterinary science and human medicine…
Trivia Night
Thanks everyone for taking part in Trivia Night! About 40 people took part, and answered ID questions on plants, amphibians, reptiles, mammals and birds. There were even bonus marks for scientific names. A big thank you to Toby Rowland for putting the trivia together and sharing his great photos and videos! There was…
Results of the 2020 Christmas Bird Count
Bald Eagle by Mary Collins Thanks to everyone who took part in the Christmas Bird Count this year!We had nine teams, 53 participants plus many feeders reports. All together, teams counted 8,721 birds and 56 species.In the past five years, here are the count numbers:2019: 3999, 54 species2018: 5250, 58 species2017: 5116, 57 species2016: 7460,…
THE DECEMBER NATURE BOOK OF THE MONTH IS THE NEW WILD BY FRED PEARCE
THE NEW WILD; WHY INVASIVE SPECIES WILL BE NATURE’S SALVATION.Nancy Ironside’s take:Ecologists are divided into 2 groups- those who fight the Invasives with all the time and money available, and those who accept the inevitable and think nature and mankind will cope. The second group consider the fight hopeless (Sisyphean), and I belong to the…
November Nature Books of the Month gives a selection of Children's Books -good for Xmas gifts
Kyra Howes, a mother of 3 and known to many of us as a former Couchiching Conservancy employee, now with the Nottawasaga Conservation Authority seemed like a great person to choose books that we might want to give to our young friends as Xmas presents. She has made great choices, as you can see.For the…
OCTOBER NATURE BOOK OF THE MONTH IS HOW TO CATCH A MOLE BY MARC HAMER
“I am a gardener. I have been catching moles in gardens and farms for years, and I have decided that I am not going to do it any more. Molecatching is a traditional skill that has given me a good life, but I am old now and tired of hunting, trapping and killing and it…
September Nature Book of the month is Backwoods of Canada by Catharine Parr Trail
BACKWOODS OF CANADA – by Catharine Parr Traill.(A book review) Dear Aunt Catharine, I read with delight your letters home describing your first two-and-a-half years in “the bush” of Upper Canada. I found the account of the trip in 1832, including your bout of cholera at Montreal, and especially the painful “road” trip to your…
Bluebird Box Update
Leanore Wianko provided an update on the 29 Bluebird boxes that she maintains and monitors along the 12th Concession in Oro Medonte and Bass Lake Sideroad. Number of Fledglings this year: 41 Eastern Bluebirds 12 American Robins 18 Tree Swallows 26 Wrens Leanore noted challenging conditions in the later part of the year, with deep…
August Nature Book of the Month is Thoreau's Walden
Nancy Ironside chose Thoreau’s Walden.Henry Davis Thoreau’s Walden is an American Classic, usually part of a college English course – revered but unread. At this time during the pandemic, many of us rely on nature to help us cope. I thought we could relate to Thoreau’s writings when he withdrew from the world. For this…
July Nature Book of the Month - Never Home Alone by Rob Dunn
This book is chosen by Mark Bisset, executive director of the Couchiching ConservancyIn Never Home Alone, author Rob Dunn takes you on a domestic adventure that is as diverse in its ideas as the subject he tackles.The sub-heading of the book is a tidy summary of the trip inside your home: “From microbes to millipedes,…