Notes from the Wild

May/June is the time that turtles emerge from a long winter’s dormancy to bask in the sun. Unfortunately fewer and fewer of them appear every spring.

Usually wood frogs choose ponds that hold water only temporarily – a roll of the dice that can lead to the death or salvation of their progeny.

Something strange is going on, and the phenomenon is not confined to the Headwaters.

The winter of 2013-14 has seen a “the largest movement of snowy owls in four or five decades” into southern Canada and the United States.

Look for snow buntings every winter, across the windswept fields of Dufferin, Wellington and other open country settings in southern Ontario.

Hungry snowy owls looking for food in the hills.

Have groundhogs learned the ability to look both ways before crossing?

Our understanding of the natural world is often rather muddled. Calling a yellow-jacket a bee is like calling a fox a woodchuck.

Red-backed salamanders are abundant, outnumbering all of the reptiles, rodents and birds that share their forest habitat.

Don’t worry about deadheading your perennials after they flower – allow them to go to seed and provide succor to goldfinches and other birds.

When I walk into my yard I am greeted by a gloriously diverse menagerie of tiny winged creatures.

Most of us are old enough to remember when monarchs were a frequent sight in meadows and gardens.