On a humid June morning, 17 members of the Orillia Naturalists’ Club gathered for a nature outing along the Lagoon City Trail in Brechin, ON. Despite the warm air, spirits were high as we set out along this easy, level gravel path — a perfect setting for observing the rich natural life of the area.…
Category: Meetings
Outing Recap: Keall's Falls
We had 16 take part in the hike of Keall’s Falls and the covered bridge in Bracebridge. Thanks to Don Currie for leading. Although this is an urban property, we lost sight of any homes quickly and had pleasant walk towards the falls. Birds: Blue Jays, robins, goldfinches, red wing blackbirds, chickadees… Northern Cardinal…
May Activity Updates
Thank you to everyone who attended our Annual General Meeting and outing to the North Bear Alvar Nature Reserve. At the AGM we voted in the Executive and Committee Chairs, shared updates from the year and shared some good food. We welcomed Mike from Bear with Us, who shared information on his organization and the…
Recap Sights & Sounds #3
Two people joined in for the last Sights & Sounds of Spring outings. It was a pleasant evening for a walk along the Severn River, which flows into Lake Couchiching (Gwajienjawjiing). There was lots of chatter and stopping along the way to point out birds and beavers. We worked together to identify 16 species, including:…
RECAP: April 16 Sights & Sounds Outing
RECAP – SIGHTS & SOUNDS OF SPRING, APRIL 16 Another chilly day found 5 intrepid women walking down the Ramara Trail to the Osprey nest where two osprey were residing. It was unclear if any eggs had been laid yet. We had quite a good bird list of:the OspreysTrumpeter SwansRed Winged BlackbirdsGracklesCanada GeeseBuffleheadCommon MergansersGull spRock…
Recap: April meeting
We were joined by over 20 people on Zoom for our postponed April meeting. We had a historic ice storm and much of our community was without power on the original date. Michael Measure from Fatal Light Awareness Program joined us as guess speaker. FLAP was originally formed due to the issue of light from…
Recap: Sights & Sounds #1
Our first Sights and Sounds of Spring was a chilly -5 degrees C with a good cold wind blowing. Three of us walked down the rail trail to the ponds from the 14th concession. A little sun peeked out and it was nice to be out and about. We saw two pairs of Mallard ducks…
March Meeting Recap
We had 36 people attend our March meeting, with guest speaker Dr. Rosemary Martin. The event provided a fascinating glimpse into how dragonflies and other aquatic insects survive the winter, as well as the potential impact of climate change on these important ecological communities. Dr. Rosemary “Rosie” Martin led attendees through a captivating discussion of…
Recap: February Outing & Meeting
Two events happened on February 5 – the first a snowshoe, the second our regular meeting. SNOWSHOE OF COPELAND FOREST Four hardy souls braved -12C degree temperatures to go for a 3 km snowshoe in the Copeland Forest on Feb. 5, 2025. There had been recent snow, which masked the tracks that were in the…
Recap: January Meeting, All About Owls
Our January meeting was attended by 35 people via Zoom, where we learned All About Owls by Marcie Jacklin. Marcie volunteers at the Owl Foundation and always picks up information through those efforts. People are usually quite curious about owls since they can be so mysterious and nocturnal. Owls are associated with death, wisdom and…
Recap 2024 Christmas Bird Count
A cold and windy day faced the teams for the 2024 Christmas Bird Count. This volunteer driven monitoring program has been running since 1900, adding to an understanding of how wild birds are doing across the country. People in more than 2000 locations throughout the Western Hemisphere participate in the CBC each year. Birds Canada…
November Meeting Recap - Turtles of Ontario
We were joined by Don Scallen for our November meeting with 30 people in person and 15 on Zoom. We were also joined by Jeff Hathaway from Scales Nature Park and one of their Blanding’s Turtles. Don shared information on the different species of turtles in Ontario, efforts by local groups to protect turtle nests,…