Category: Meetings

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.…

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…

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…

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 – 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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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,…