The summer job that lasted seven years

Today’s blog was written by Adrian Petry, Public Historian and Visitor Services Coordinator for St. Catharines Museum & Welland Canals Centre. Adrian can occasionally be found volunteering at historical events at Bronte Creek Provincial Park, where he was a former senior Discovery staff member.

When I think back to my younger entering-the-workforce self, I recognize skills and abilities that would eventually get me to working in public history and interpretation in a traditional museum setting.

But how we got from 18-year-old Adrian to *clears throat* today’s Adrian is thanks in part to the careful polishing of those skills and abilities through seven seasons with Ontario Parks.

If you’re reading this and considering a summer (or seven summers) in our wonderful parks system, don’t just think to the next few months.

Think about where you’ll be in the next *clears throat again* years.

Continue reading The summer job that lasted seven years

August’s digital download

Can you believe summer’s half over?

If you haven’t had a chance to take a trip to the great outdoors, THIS IS YOUR SIGN!

We’ve got plenty of sites available for your camping trip! Want your pick of the sites? Take some time off work and book a midweek trip!

This month’s FREE digital download comes from the stunning Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park.

Continue reading August’s digital download

March’s digital download

March is a month of big changes, as winter gives way to spring.

Squeeze in one last snowy adventure in this March and get outside!

This month’s FREE digital download comes from the stunning Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park.

Throughout 2023, we’re sharing a free downloadable graphic for you to use as wallpaper for your favourite devices. We’ve specially sized these images for your computers, tablets, smartphones, and Facebook covers.

Continue reading March’s digital download

Campsite vacancy highlights: September 17-19

We’re into the last few official days of summer. Make the most of it and head outdoors!

Plenty of electrical and RV-friendly sites are still available (including a waterfront site)!

Scout out your ideal campsite on our reservation service (including pictures of most campsites!), or check out these featured campsites (available as of noon on September 16, 2021):

Continue reading Campsite vacancy highlights: September 17-19

Campsite vacancy highlights: May 17-20

It’s not too late to book a campsite for the Victoria Day long weekend!

While many parks are filling up, lots of campgrounds still have a good selection of sites available.

Scout out your ideal campsite on our Campsite Browsing/Reservation tool (including pictures of most campsites!), or check out these featured campsites (available as of noon, May 16):

Continue reading Campsite vacancy highlights: May 17-20

The White Moose Forest

Everyone knows that Moose are brown, even if they’ve never seen one in person.

Big and brown. Even Bullwinkle, the famous cartoon Moose is brown.

Moose calves can be very light-coloured when they are very young — even a bright cinnamon colour, but they always turn brown as they get older. Always.

There is a place, however, where the Moose aren’t following the rules… west of Timmins there’s a place not shown on any map.

You could call it “The White Moose Forest”.

Continue reading The White Moose Forest

Soundscapes from across Ontario

One of my favourite signs is from a lookout over the Grand Canyon.  It simply says,

ONE MINUTE.
DON’T READ.
DON’T TALK.
NO PHOTOS.
JUST LOOK…..AND SEE.

It is something that I hope you will do often when you visit our parks or other natural areas in Ontario.  But how about this variation?

TWO MINUTES.
PUT DOWN YOUR PHONE.
DON’T READ.
DON’T TALK.
SIT QUIETLY…AND LISTEN.

And you can do that right now.

Below are some one to two minute recordings of birds and amphibians. Several organizations contributed recordings from across the province.

On these recordings you will hear a multitude of bird, amphibian, and perhaps some insect species. You will even hear wolves in the recording from Ivanhoe Lake Provincial Park!

So put on some headphones, sit quietly, and simply listen to these natural soundscapes.

You may need to increase the volume on your computer or device to hear them properly. Just don’t start at full volume! Download them to your computer or other device if you wish.

How do I survey birds and amphibians?

I Listen.

A trained person can identify bird or amphibian species from their distinctive calls. When I was an intern, I first trained by accompanying a more experienced birder. Now I listen to recordings of bird songs and amphibians calls. It is a skill one needs to practice to maintain.

There are great training apps for computers, tablets and smart phones.  There are also websites, such as the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Macaulay Library.

Surveying for birds can be passive or active. In passive surveying, I listen for a five or 10 minute period and record all the species I hear.

However, some species rarely call. For these species I use a portable sound system to broadcast their calls, and wait for a response. Broadcasting calls is a form of harassment, so I do it only a few times at any one site.

We strongly discourage park visitors from broadcasting calls, unless it is a research activity that we have reviewed and approved.

White-crowned sparrow and gray catbird.

Why do I survey birds and amphibians?

Sometimes I just want to know what species occur in our various parks.

Sometimes I am looking for specific birds or amphibians, such as a species at risk.

Which ones are common? Which species are rare?  What kind of habitat do they need?

Over time I could discover population trends that alarm me, comfort me, or even excite me. And sometimes I survey birds for environmental assessments, so that I understand which species may be affected by a new development or restoration project.

Why do birds and amphibians “sing”?

A pair of birds may call to each other as part of courtship behaviour. Birds may call to communicate with other members of their family or flock. However, most of the time it is the males that sing. For them it is all about defending territory and trying to impress a mate.  They are basically saying “This is my land. Keep out!” and “Hey ladies….check out MY colours!”

In songbirds, the song is learned from parents at an early age. For the researcher, young males practicing their ‘voice’ can be misleading. Within some bird species the variation in songs can be interesting, or even frustrating. For example, the American Redstart has several song variations.

American Redstart.

What’s that green box strapped to the tree?

A few years ago I invested in a few automated recording devices. These can be programmed to record at certain times of day, for almost any length of time.  At a minimum it is a 10-minute recording half an hour after sunrise, and a 5-minute recording half an hour after sunset.

These devices increase my ability to survey birds and amphibians. Essentially, they allow me to be in more than one place at the same time.

They may also record things I otherwise would not hear.  Why? Some species know when I am present, and may remain silent or avoid me. But they behave normally if only the device is present, and are more likely to be recorded.

Ivanhoe Lake, setting up a recording device.

I take the device back to the office, download the recordings, listen to them, and record what I hear.  I can listen to the recording as many times as needed. I am much less likely to miss or misidentify a bird than an on-site survey. And if still unsure, I can extract the confusing call and send it to an expert.

Can’t the computer identify the species for you?

Yes, but…

Current computer software may be used to search for calls of specific species, but I would have to train the software to recognize them.

I am interested in recording the entire bird and calling amphibian community, so I have not explored this software capability. Manually interpreting the recordings also ensures that I maintain or improve my ability to identify all species when I am working in a park.

I do use software to help me interpret what I hear, however. The software can help me isolate particular sounds from background noise, or sometimes the sounds of other species. It also produces a graphical representation of the bird’s or amphibian’s song: a sonogram. Different species produce distinctive patterns.

Sit quietly…and listen!

Chestnut-sided Warbler.

After hours of intense listening, interpreting, and tabulating data, I realized I had been mentally dissecting the recording but not really listening.  I “rewound” the recording and just enjoyed it without concerning myself with what species were calling.

So take a few quiet moments, sit back, and listen to these recordings.  You may find yourself transported to another place and time.

Ed Morris
Ecologist, Northeast Zone

Additional recordings supplied by:

  • Evan McCaul, Ontario Parks, Northwest Zone
  • Janet Jackson, Natasha Formsma, Dean Phoenix of MNRF Science & Research Branch (Thunder Bay, South Porcupine)
  • Dr. Lauren Fitzsimmons
  • Dr. Doug Tozer, Bird Studies Canada