Looking back at extreme fall temperatures and ahead to what nature has in store As is now the pattern with a changing climate, fall weather this year was marked by extreme temperatures. For many days in November, minimum temperatures were Read more…
Northern Hawk-owl: On December 19, I was able to get this picture of a Northern Hawk-owl near Barrie. Donald Munro Glaucous Gulls: On December 16, I went up to Trent University to Read more…
Book outlines challenges and reasons for hope in addressing climate change In last week’s column, I provided a glimpse of our bleak climatic future as described in “The Uninhabitable Earth”, by American journalist David Wallace-Wells. The book lays out in Read more…
“The Uninhabitable Earth” explains how climate change is much worse than you think “We declare, with more than 11,000 scientist signatories from around the world, clearly and unequivocally, that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency.” These were the dire Read more…
Lingering blackbirds: A Red-winged Black-bird and a Brown-headed Cowbird were coming to our feeders in late November but seem to have disappeared. A Common Grackle has also been coming. Here is a picture taken December 1 during the snow storm. Read more…
Evergreen forest floor plants are an under-appreciated feature of late fall At first glance, a walk in the November woods seems uneventful, with little of interest to catch our attention. Yet, this is a wonderful time of year to focus Read more…
Seeing winter finches this year may mean a trip to Algonquin Park Some of my favourite backyard birds during fall and spring migration are white-throated and white-crowned sparrows. These migrants arrive each year right on schedule – almost to the Read more…
Leucistic American Robin: This “Hallowe’en ghost robin” was eating berries in our yard. Fred and Marg Forster, Keene (Note: Leucism refers to a lack of normal colour pigments in the feathers. D.M.) Northern Read more…
Still lots to look forward to in the parade of fall colours From May’s gentle pastels and summer’s kaleidoscope of greens to early fall’s dazzling reds and oranges, each time of year has its signature colours. Now, as we move Read more…
Grassland birds and aerial insectivores among the hardest hit When I was a teenager in the 1960s, the Peterborough Field Naturalists made an annual June visit to Harry William’s farm near Millbrook. This was not your average nature outing. You Read more…
The Liberals aren’t perfect, but a Conservative government would be infinitely worse Earlier this summer, I thought I’d made up my mind. I was going to vote Green to send a message that much more aggressive climate action is necessary. Read more…
Shifting dates, species declines, and surprising newcomers tell us climate change has arrived For years we used to drive up to Algonquin Park in early summer to take our daughters to camp. One of the highlights of these trips was Read more…
Council expected to revisit Peterborough’s suspended tree bylaw later this fall I have always loved trees. As a kid I delighted in climbing the sugar maples near our house and seeing how high I could go until terror set in. Read more…
Looking ahead to events in nature in the Kawarthas Although we enjoyed a comfortable summer in the Kawarthas – sunny, not too hot, and no extreme weather – the biggest story for the planet as a whole continues to be Read more…
White-throated Sparrows arrive on schedule: Right on schedule, five White-throated Sparrows arrived in our backyard this morning, the first of the fall. Some years, several dozen are here at the same time. They enjoy the finch mix (millet, nyger, sunflower Read more…
Nighthawk migration: On August 29, Tim Dyson & I counted migrating Common Nighthawks from Back Dam Park near Warsaw from 6-8pm. We tallied 133 birds, with one “flock”comprising at least 48. Quite a sight! Tim has already had several evenings Read more…
Your enthusiasm for nature will be noticed by children A love of nature begins in childhood; every boy and girl is a budding naturalist. This should come as no surprise. Up until the agricultural revolution and, later, the emigration into Read more…
20th Annual Petroglyphs Butterfly Count: The compiling of the July 21st butterfly count is finally finished and final results have been submitted to the North America Butterfly Association. A total of 55 species were recorded, slightly above the average for Read more…
The Kawarthas is home to a fascinating variety of odonates The buzz on our street this summer is not the usual gossip shared by neighbours. Rather, it’s the sound of mosquitoes. June’s warm, wet weather created perfect conditions for mosquito Read more…
July is a great time to get to know these beautiful insects. My special affection for butterflies began as a classroom teacher. Each September, I would collect monarch caterpillars for my students to raise. They would watch and document each Read more…
An activist friend told me recently about an email she received doubting the urgency of addressing climate change. The person argued that if climate change was truly a crisis, our elected leaders and governments at all levels would be saying Read more…
Now that summer has officially arrived, I want to look ahead to some of the events in nature that we can expect over the next three months. As for the long-term weather forecast, seasonal temperatures are expected this summer with Read more…
Spring in the Kawarthas is synonymous with a ubiquitous yellow dust that descends upon everything from cars and patio furniture to rivers and lakes. Even the edges of puddles become marked with what looks like yellow chalk. For cottagers, the Read more…
Eastern Screech-Owl (Megascops asio) (1) – Reported Jul 01, 2019 04:39 by Donald A. Sutherland – Chase Memorial Park, Gannons Narrows, Ontario – Map: – Checklist: Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) (2) – Read more…
Motorists need to slow down and watch out for these increasingly rare travelers. I have always had a special fondness for turtles. As a child, I loved nothing more than catching, feeding and then releasing these ancient reptiles. They were Read more…
Cuckoos eating Eastern Tent Caterpillars: Today, May 31, I came across a pair of Black-billed Cuckoos near Burnt River that were eating tent caterpillars. I was not aware that birds eat these caterpillars. Carl Welbourn, Kawartha Camera Club Read more…
A visit to Point Pelee and Rondeau parks is a celebration of the wonder of spring migration For anyone wanting to see Ontario’s most spectacular birds – Red-headed Woodpeckers, Indigo Buntings, Scarlet Tanagers, Baltimore Orioles, Red-breasted Grosbeaks, and more than Read more…
Knowing the songs of common birds opens the door to greater enjoyment of the natural world May’s explosion of leaves will soon draw a green veil upon our neighbourhoods and woodlands. As beautiful and welcome as the burst of foliage Read more…
The flowers of our common trees are an under-appreciated element of spring’s beauty A beautiful spectacle unfolds above our heads each spring. The lengthening days and increasing warmth are stirring flower buds that have lain dormant through the long winter Read more…
Despite Ford’s reckless and self-serving attacks on intelligent climate policy, signs of hope remain. Next Monday is Earth Day, an occasion that for me evokes bittersweet emotions. As a teacher, I was involved in organizing numerous Earth Day events to Read more…