By: Carolinian Canada Coalition Native plants, commonly defined in North America as species that existed on the land prior to European colonization, are the foundation of healthy biodiversity and resilient ecosystems. Having evolved with local environmental conditions, such as soils, climate, and other native wildlife, and having had strong relationships with Indigenous peoples since time immemorial, these plants provide the best suited resources to support local ecosystems and communities. Ontario is home to thousands of native plant species that form the basis of a diverse web of life. East ..read more

By: US Forest Service The Huron-Manistee National Forests of northern Michigan, USA, is hosting the annual Kirtland’s Warbler Young Artists’ Calendar Contest once again this year.  Each year, wildlife staff and educators visit schools and reach out to communities in Michigan, Wisconsin, Canada, and The Bahamas to invite students to learn about the rare Kirtland’s warbler and their unique habitat. Students are then invited to create artwork depicting the Kirtland’s warbler or other wildlife and plants of the bird’s habitat.  The Kirtland’s warbler nests and raises young in the young j ..read more

By: Ben Woodward, International Geography Olympiad Alumnus Canada’s qualifiers for the International Geography Olympiad (iGeo) are just around the corner, and Canadian Geographic Education is looking for Grade 11 and 12 students to represent Canada at 2024’s iGeo in Dublin. iGeo is an annual, international competition that brings together over 150 of the best 16 to 19 year old geography students from over 40 countries. The competition consists of written tests, map and graphic interpretation (the multimedia test), and a fieldwork exam. Each of these tests assess students’ knowledge of many ar ..read more

Reprinted with permission from PLT Canada Project Learning Tree Canada (PLT Canada), an initiative of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), works to advance environmental education, forest literacy and career pathways, using trees and forests as windows on the world. SFI and PLT Canada are getting ready for the Back-to-School period with the unveiling of the newest environmental education resource in Canada, the Explore Your Environment: K-8 Activity Guide. Research shows that every child benefits – academically, mentally, socially, and health-wise –when they learn outdoors. You ..read more

Reprinted with permission from Watersheds Canada One of the best things about creating a pollinator garden is the diversity of beauty that can be included! However, not all pollinator gardens welcome the same diversity of species. Bees are the most important and common pollinator type, with over 800 species in Canada! Luckily everyone’s favourite gentle friend the bumblebee is not only cute, but a native species as well. Be sure to respectfully admire the females who can sting multiple times unlike the non-native honeybee Bees typically prefer open flowers with easily accessible pollen. A good ..read more

By Megan Seed, Outreach Technician, Adopt-A-Pond, Toronto Zoo Snakes have a stigma associated with them that they can't seem to ssshake! On World Snake Day, let's break the stigma and help the world see snakes as the fascinating animals that they are! Ontario snakes range in size, with some reaching up to 183 centimeters, like the gray ratsnake, and others as small as 20 centimeters, like the northern red-bellied snake. If you believe that snakes are slimy, dangerous, and mean animals, getting to know Ontario's snakes may change your mind! All of Ontario’s snake species in order of least ..read more

By Name, Job Title, Toronto Zoo Why did the turtle cross the road? To build her nest, of course! Ontario’s turtles are seasonal species, with their active season typically lasting from April to October. During this time, they have been found to be most active during the months of May and June, where they search far and wide for suitable habitats to build their nests. This nesting quest can take these turtles through wetlands, streams, along shorelines, and most dangerously – across roadways. Unfortunately for our native turtle species, this has become one of the most common causes of turtle m ..read more

By Dana Buchbinder, Citizen Science Coordinator, Ecospark  Help put Toronto and the GTA on the map to win the title of the wildest city in Canada by taking part in the City Nature Challenge 2023 from April 28 - May 1! The City Nature Challenge is an annual four-day global event where cities across the world compete to see which city can gather the greatest number of wildlife observations, find the most species and engage the most people at the event. EcoSpark is once again proud to be the regional organizer for the city of Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area. Last year, Toronto an ..read more

By Philip Harker, Citizen Science Intern, EcoSpark We tend to focus quite a lot on the earth’s flashier organisms: ferocious tigers, adorable axolotls, and towering trees. These organisms capture our imagination and help us to motivate others to protect our biosphere. But these charismatic plants and animals don’t always tell the full story of the ecosystems that they come from. All across the world, ecosystems are highly dependent on the simpler organisms that we tend to take for granted. Today, we explore a diverse, weird, and fascinating (yet often overlooked) group of organisms: algae! F ..read more

Reprinted with permission from Invasive Species Centre. By: Nicole Szabo, Communication & Event Management Intern, Invasive Species Centre You’ve probably heard this from us before: if you see an invasive species, report it to the web-based mapping system EDDMapS. Reports allow for early detection and response, which can lead to the successful management of an invasive species. But can one person submitting a photo from their phone actually make a difference in preventing the spread of invasives? In 2020, a local recreational paddler was kayaking through the Welland River, a mostly deep an ..read more