Don Scallen

Too often belittled as “idle” land awaiting development – or “rescued” by reforestation – meadows deserve the same protection and respect as our woodlands and wetlands.

To an entomologist, “true bugs” are insects that suck. No insult intended – they really do suck.

Next time you stumble across a spider try not to scream or reach for a shoe.

On a Bruce Trail hike I came across a small mound of freshly deposited fox scat.

French artist Hubert Duprat capitalized on this in the 1980s by supplying caddisflies with flecks of gold and tiny precious stones.

Five ways butterflies survive the winter.

Muskrats are largely herbivorous – chomping cattail roots and shoots is a favourite pastime.

Skip the supermarket, find the ingredients for gourmet dining in forest, field and stream.

Please harvest wild leeks sustainably, taking only 5 to 15 per cent of a given population a year.

Pineapple Weed is a member of the aster family, it is easily overlooked because it lacks petals.

The bird feeder was now far enough from trees to thwart my backyard community of furry filchers.

Not only do these woodpeckers have remarkable adaptations for excavating wood, they also have acute hearing that allows them to pick up the telltale sounds of ants scurrying within trees.

A red-tailed hawk’s vision can be 10 times more acute than ours.

How good is your eye? Take our camouflage challenge and test your knowledge.

Turkeys – especially rival tom turkeys can be highly entertaining to watch at this time of year.

Asters and goldenrods are tremendously important wildlife plants.

We need to learn more about honeybees and other pollinators so we can contribute intelligently to the conversation about their health and well-being.

Ash is doomed. Beech and butternut hover on the brink.