The bluebird is doing well in Carden, thanks to two things: first, a local man named Herb Furniss has spent the last few decades building and distributing white bluebird boxes throughout the region, quietly making a huge difference for these little birds; second, Wylie Road rolls through an area where more than 6,000 acres of grassland, forest and wetland has been conserved as natural habitat.
In the News: Carden Alvar Provincial Park
After nearly decade on the wait list, a rare grassland ecosystem in Ramara Township has been formally protected as a provincial park.
The Ministry of Natural Resources announced Wednesday five nature areas would be added to the Ontario Parks docket — including Carden Alvar, near Lake Dalrymple.
Lighting up the autumn – fall wildflowers
September is a perfect time to get outside and discover the bursts of colour and texture these plants provide to the landscape; not to mention their importance in the ecosystem.
It takes a village, but the village needs a leader
The Couchiching Conservancy files on the Church Woods are thick.
This charming little 25-acre woodlot in Shanty Bay stands waiting today for anyone who has the inclination to wander through it, thanks to the enormous effort of a small group of neighbours who made it their business to protect it almost a decade ago.
Making a new home for Barn Swallows
Ask any farmer, and they’ll tell you there are not nearly so many Barn Swallows as there used to be. The science backs them up – over the past 20 years, there has been a steep drop in swallow populations across eastern North America. In Ontario, Barn Swallows are now listed as a threatened species.
Bird Behaviour: Survival of the fittest
Bird behaviour, like human behaviour is sometimes very cruel, but nonetheless very fascinating!
Life on the inside: Forest interiors
Several hundred years ago, lush, green forests covered almost all of southern Ontario. The forests were made up of trees of various species, sizes, and ages with shrubs and woodland flowers underneath. Wildlife abounded in these wooded areas. There were few openings in the forest canopy except where weather systems had downed trees or where native grasslands thrived.
Volunteer Spotlight: Noella Storry
Noella Storry has been a volunteer with The Couchiching Conservancy for over 7 years. During this time, she has filled many different volunteer roles including Property Team Leader (Prospect Marsh Nature Reserve) and Event Ambassador.
Location, location, location: House Wren Nesting Habits
Some of the more popular television programs are those in which a Real Estate agent shows a couple a number of houses from which to select their future home. There are a few such programs, each with their own particular twist, but in every case, the couple selects one house. We have a pair of birds in our yard whose antics remind me of those programs! The birds are House Wrens.
Sequester a little carbon for kicks
As an environmentalist, sometimes I get sick of environmentalists.
It’s not that what they have to say isn’t important; it is. But the steady flow of bad news is a drag. It can leave you feeling depressed and powerless. Whether or not we’re conscious of it, in this age of ecological decline, we’re all suffering.