The songbirds are returning and bringing spring with them!
Catch a bird-banding demonstration, take in a nature photography workshop, or sign on for a bird-themed hike with our park naturalists.
If you love songbirds, you won’t want to miss the Ontario Parks spring birding festivals:
Close your eyes and imagine:
Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
Here are our top ten reasons to try spring camping this season:
Continue reading 10 reasons you should try spring camping
Today’s post comes from Assistant Zone Ecologist Pilar Manorome.
Spring is probably my favourite season as it brings new life to our parks in the form of migrating birds and emerging spring ephemerals, giving our forests their long-awaited pops of vibrant colours and contrast.
Most people know of the White Trillium — also referred to as Wake Robin or Large-leaved Trillium — as Ontario’s provincial flower. This is the flower featured on many of our provincial documents, from health cards to driver’s licenses.
Here are the top five fun facts about this iconic Ontario species:
It’s International Day of Forests!
Ontario Parks protects a collection of breathtakingly beautiful forests from across the province. Each will be brimming with signs of life as the snow melts and temperatures warm.
Let’s take a look at five unique forests you can visit this spring.
Today’s post comes from Cortney LeGros, the Healthy Parks Healthy People coordinator at Ontario Parks.
The holiday season is steeped in tradition.
No matter how you celebrate, there’s one scientific tradition that’s been around for over 120 years to help mark the holidays.
For me, the holidays would not be complete without participating in at least one Christmas Bird Count.
Continue reading Christmas Bird Count — keep the community science tradition going!
In today’s post, Rondeau Provincial Park‘s Chief Park Naturalist Jess Matthews takes us back in time…
There may be a time when you used your paddle to get through white caps. At other times, it leisurely pulled you over still wetlands.
They are a lifeline. Solid, reliable; something that won’t break down on whatever journey you may be on.
But what if we told you that a paddle can also take you through time to the very beginning of the provincial park system? A time when the only two superintendents in Ontario Parks were 600 km away from each other, and correspondence was mainly though letters.
Just two paddles are the tangible pieces of history that connects Algonquin Provincial Park and Rondeau Provincial Park through a story of beginnings, friendships, and marriage.
Today’s post is by Jess Matthews, the chief park naturalist at Rondeau Provincial Park.
One hundred years ago, there was a lot we didn’t know about managing parks.
The idea of maintaining ecological integrity is relatively new. Ontario’s first parks were primarily established for recreation and tourism.
During the first half of the 20th century, wildlife was often seen as a tourist attraction or a nuisance. There was little understanding of how animal diseases spread, or how local populations were adapted to the places they lived.
Because park managers didn’t know about any of this, some animals found themselves packed up and shipped off far from their homes.
This is the story of squirrels from Rondeau Provincial Park that, due to their fashionable coats, traveled as far as the White House lawn.
Continue reading Squirrels for sale: the incredible history of squirrels at Rondeau
Looking to extend your camping season?
Many of our parks are open for overnight stays in October and November. Whether you snuggle up in your tent or get cozy in your RV, make sure you pack extra socks!
Bundle up and book a trip to one of these late fall camping spots:
Continue reading Perfect parks for your late fall camping trip
When it comes to fall, Ontario’s southwest can be overlooked.
While crowds of people flock to Algonquin Provincial Park or the Niagara Escarpment, there are many places elsewhere in the province that showcase the beauty of Ontario’s changing colours.
What better way to see the colours than by tackling a trail? Here are just a few of our best-kept secrets in southwestern Ontario:
Today’s post was written by seasonal student Heather Van Den Diepstraten from Rondeau Provincial Park.
It’s not just students and birds on the move this fall.
As the cold weather approaches, reptiles are trekking across Rondeau Provincial Park in search of hibernacula (places in which wildlife overwinter). Researchers for Wildlife Preservation Canada are busy tracking the movements of snakes, turtles, and skinks within the park as they find suitable habitat for their hibernation.
Continue reading Slithering into fall: hibernation for Ontario’s reptiles
