A new invasive species threat is closing in on Ontario, and we’re calling on you (yes, you!) to help keep it at bay.
Spotted Lanternfly threatens many of our native tree species, including maples, poplars, pines, and cherries. Grape vines are also susceptible to this pest.
We need our community scientists around the province to report sightings of the Spotted Lanternfly’s partner-in-crime: Tree of Heaven.
In today’s post, Protected Areas Intern Katelyn Vardy highlights a few of the projects that staff have completed to improve and maintain the ecological integrity in southeastern parks.
When you’re standing in a favourite nature spot or within a park, it’s easy to embrace the beauty and calmness that surrounds you.
While campers and day trippers enjoy all that parks have to offer, behind the scenes are teams of staff working incredibly hard. Their work helps to protect these areas so that they can be enjoyed for years to come.
Here’s a look at some of the projects that we have completed to support the ecological integrity of southeastern parks.
Provincial parks are not islands.
Well, some of them are. What we mean is: there is no invisible wall around parks limiting their relationships with the outside world.
Even if you never visit a park, you benefit from the pollinator diversity they protect, the CO2 they sequester in wood, roots, and peat, and the clean water filtered by protected wetlands.
Plants, animals, fungi, microbes, water, and air move in and out of protected spaces, with intimate connections on both local and global levels.
In the same way, things that happen outside of park boundaries affect the ecosystems within them. What you do at home, work, or play can impact our parks.
Whether you live next door to a park or 100 km away, here are six ways your everyday actions can help keep parks and nature reserves healthy and biodiverse:
Today’s post comes from our friends at the Invasive Species Centre.
Outdoor adventurers: we need your help. Invasive species are infiltrating our parks and protected areas, but if we don’t know where they are, it’s tough to stop their spread.
Become an Invasive Species Fighter by reporting any suspected sightings of invasive species!
Continue reading EDDMapS: report your invasive species sightings
