Pickering Naturalists

Jan Wenckstern photographed this beautiful Black-throated Gray Warbler on Nov 21 in Woodbine Park (Toronto). An uncommon visitor to Ontario, he must have got lost migrating to Mexico from their summer range (B.C. coast and the western U.S.). Great photo of this elusive little guy, Jan!

We have a really good talk for our first Zoom Meeting of 2021. Butterfly Counts, like Christmas Bird Counts, are an international long-term citizen science census. James Kamstra is the coordinator for the Counts for Eastern Canada and has been running two Counts here in Durham for 25 years. He has been looking at the changes in butterfly populations and what they tell us about our local environment.

An annual four-day event in February that engages birdwatchers of all ages from around the world counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are. Anyone can participate, from beginners to experts. You can count for as little as 15 minutes on a single day, or for as long as you like each day of the event. It’s free, fun, and easy.

The Ontario Field Ornithologists is bringing back their Winter Birding Challenge. Lots of prizes and anyone can participate!

A new PN outing! To Heber Down Conservation Area on Sat. Dec 5, 9 a.m. (observing COVID guidelines). Heber Down has nice long trails that pass through many different habitats. Steve LaForest will lead, watching for lingering migrating birds and winter residents, perhaps some of the Redpolls, Crossbills and Evening Grosbeaks that have been showing up lately. Meet at Pickering GO Station. More details on the PN Outings page on our website.

CPAWS opposes the provincial government's plans to strip our Conservation Authorities of their power to protect our wetlands from development and also to remove protections from endangered species in our forests. Here's a letter to sign on to.