Month: October 2021

This article was originally published in The Walleye.

Like so many traumatic events in our shared history, everyone remembers exactly what they were doing in the days and hours before the world shut down last year. I was in a meeting when everyone’s phones lit up with the news that the Government of Ontario was going to shut down the schools after March break. Within that instant, the seriousness of the novel coronavirus hit home. This was going to be bad.

I spent those first weeks glued to the livestreaming world map that tallied the rapidly growing numbers of infections and deaths. The combination of people’s limited social interactions, tensions within families in lockdown together, financial pressures, and fear of losing loved ones led to a despair that was overwhelming for many, and utterly devastating for some.

As the new normal of COVID-19 anxiety set in – when no one was talking about anything else – a shift started to occur. The deafening roar of human activities had suddenly become muted, and we started to hear things many of us hadn’t really paid attention to in a long time. Spring – the birds, frogs, flowers, rain – beckoned to us. After weeks of indoor isolation, we heeded the call to get outside. People flocked to greenspaces in our community and around the region. Provincial park and other conservation area use increased – so much that physical distancing on trails became challenging sometimes. Mushroom picking exploded. Nearly everyone, and their dogs, were out on Lake Superior over the winter – skating, biking, and walking. While theatres, gyms, and nightclubs may have been closed, forests, beaches and lakes were hopping.

Research supports what we already know from experience. We feel better when our senses connect us to nature, whether feeling a rock smoothed by the rolling waves of Lake Superior, the smell of a balsam tree at Centennial Park, or the sound of spring peepers at Mills Block. Astonishingly, even looking at a tree can boost your mood.

Globally, time spent internet streaming, on social media, and gaming has been steadily increasing for well over a decade, including an estimated 16 million new subscriptions to Netflix in the first month of lockdown. Unlike the stimulation from digital screens, the stimulation we receive from nature has a calming effect. The reasons why time spent in nature helps to support better mental health are complex and our understanding is still evolving, but COVID-19 has much to teach us about our relationship with the natural world.

For those who believe that the Earth is a living, breathing mother, COVID-19 is her way of telling us to stop walking around like we own the place. For those who believe that the Earth is a set of biotic and abiotic factors that interact in complex but ultimately explainable ways, COVID-19 is understood by the convergence of the interactions that preceded it. Regardless of our understanding of how we got here, there is no denying that we’ve arrived at a crossroads.

As we start to emerge from this year of change and adaptation, where do we want to go? Most of our attention over the past year has been on the health crisis out of necessity. We must not lose sight of looming and related dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. Will we take the hard-earned lessons from this past year – listen to experts, protect the vulnerable, work together, and value what we’ve got – and head toward a just and sustainable future? Or will we ease back into (something like) our old lives and wait for our phones to light up announcing the next crisis?

The post What COVID-19 Has Taught Us About the Value of Nature appeared first on Ontario Nature.

“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.”

– Aristotle

Every living being has a story to tell. As an artist and nature enthusiast, Lisa Vanin tells the stories of the natural world through her art. Her unique art style transports her audience to a world where folk art and fine art collide. Lisa’s paintings of Ontario’s at-risk species remind us of their beauty and vulnerability, and that we all have a role in helping them fight for their survival.

Blanding’s Turtle: Threatened Provincially, Endangered Nationally

Did you know that all native Ontario turtles are now at risk? While it is easy to identify a Blanding’s turtle by its distinctive bright yellow chin and throat, threats such as wetland habitat loss, vehicle collisions and nest predation are driving their decline, making them harder to spot in the wild.

Turtle road mortality is generally the highest in May, June and July, as they travel to find a mate once the weather warms up. Some female turtles are found crossing roads to reach nesting sites, while others lay eggs in the gravelly substrates on road shoulders. It is therefore important to always be aware of your surroundings while driving. Wildlife warning signs can often be found in turtle hotspots. If you see turtles crossing the road, help move them in the direction they are travelling, if it is safe to do so.

Bobolink: Threatened Provincially and Nationally

Bobolinks are among the very few bird species that undergo two complete molts per year. Every summer, breeding males distinguish themselves from females by molting into their sleek black plumage, accessorized with a yellow head patch and bold white patterns down their back. Afterwards, they molt back into a striped, brown plumage, disguising themselves among the females.

The bobolink’s population in Ontario has decreased by 75 percent in the past 50 years. The population is expected to decline further due to the continued habitat loss and degradation, incidental mortality (e.g. hay mowing during breeding season) and hostile wintering grounds.

Eastern Loggerhead Shrike: Endangered Provincially and Nationally

A disproportionately large head has given this fearsome predatory songbird its common name. Despite their draconian feeding behaviour, eastern loggerhead shrikes are losing their habitats not only to development, but also to vegetation succession, when thickets and shrubs creep in to take over the unmanaged grasslands. Road mortality and toxic prey ingestion pose threats to their survival as well.

Boreal Caribou: Threatened Provincially and Nationally

Boreal caribou are among the most elusive and majestic of North America’s big mammals. They rely heavily on mature conifer forests to avoid predators and to forage. With rapid human developments and activities such as industrial logging, caribous are losing their habitats. The situation is worsened with the provincial government prioritizing profit over wildlife protection.

Ontario Nature will continue to protect boreal caribou’s critical habitat through conducting research and holding stakeholders accountable in forest management. We have recently partnered with Birds Canada to evaluate the conservation value of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) candidate protected areas and to make the case for their need for permanent protection. Those areas include significant boreal caribou habitat.

Redside Dace: Endangered Provincially and Nationally

In Canada, Redside dace is found only in southern Ontario. Males are more intensely coloured than females, with red and yellow stripes along the body. Their vibrant colours intensify during spawning seasons. Riparian vegetation loss, altered stream flow and changes in water temperature caused by nearby developments threaten their habitats.

Rusty-Patched Bumblebees: Endangered Provincially and Nationally

With a particularly short tongue, the rusty-patched bumble bees feed by puncturing flowers to suck up the nectar. Although once abundant, the species population has declined by 90 percent throughout its range. Some of the factors that contribute to the decline of Canadian native bees are pesticide use, disease spillover, habitat loss and climate change.

Monarch Butterfly: Special Concern Provincially and Nationally

The iconic monarch butterfly serves as a reminder of the importance of public engagement in wildlife conservation. From caterpillar rearing to planting milkweed in the backyard, nature lovers have put tremendous effort into saving these legendary migrants, which are threatened by habitat loss, pesticide use and climate change. Learn more about how to re-wild your property to help Ontario’s wildlife and native pollinators in our summer 2021 issue of ON Nature magazine.

The post Seven Ontario Species at Risk Through the Eyes of an Artist appeared first on Ontario Nature.

Nature is spectacular in its simplest form, and magnificent in its complexity. Animal and plant kingdoms alike are stunningly beautiful yet incredibly vulnerable. Some thrive, some survive, and some are lost forever. How can we help protect the ecosystems that sustain us?

As Simple As 1 – 2 – 3

1. Be aware. Life on Earth is interconnected. When nature falters, we falter. Therefore, we must be aware of how our actions impact the stability of nature around us.

2. Understand. The pendulum can swing far and hard in the wrong direction when the balance of nature is disrupted. We must keep our wants versus our needs in check.

3. Act. Choose to take a stance for Ontario’s species at risk. They depend on all of us.

Declining Biodiversity

Human activities are harming the world’s terrestrial and marine environments, and the rate of species extinctions is accelerating.

Extensive deforestation is an important driver of biodiversity loss. Many once pristine wetlands are being destroyed by massive residential and industrial developments. Habitat loss, pollution and climate change also pose serious threats.

When do we determine that this so-called ‘progress’ has pushed the stability of wildlife and ecosystems past the breaking point? It is a concerning question as we look toward the future and what might lie ahead.

Our Own Backyard

While many are concerned about the plight of wildlife worldwide, we sometimes lose sight of the beautiful creatures that live right in our own backyards.

Ontario has varied ecosystems. From the incredible boreal forests, tundra and wetlands of the far north to the Carolinian forest of the southern region and the beautiful Niagara Escarpment, our province should be full of biodiversity. Yet more than 230 animals and plants are at risk in Ontario.

To destroy that which shares this planet with us – particularly for the purposes of overindulgence and overconsumption – is a sad legacy. Losing ecosystems like wetlands, forests, prairies and lakes, creates a chain effect that can ultimately affect the wellbeing of our communities.

Our Choice

Nature depends on us. In the opinion of this proud life-long Ontarian and wildlife artist, today is not too soon to protect our wild species and wild spaces.

It is for these reasons that I feel compelled to act in my own humble way. As a wildlife artist and with my love for all things nature, my art has now become my voice. Stepping away from my normal style of art, my latest depictions of our vulnerable species, although haunting, are designed to bring hope to this crisis and shine light on the darkness. This collection has been created for and committed to assisting organizations that are dedicated to the preservation of wild Ontario.

In a quest to help Ontario’s endangered species, one hundred percent of the net proceeds of my original painting ‘Winged Warrior’ will be donated to Ontario Nature for the charity’s ongoing effort in the preservation of wild areas for the sustainability of the monarch butterfly. For more information, please visit: artscapesbysherry.ca.

The post Ontario’s Species at Risk: A Wildlife Artist’s Perspective and Offering appeared first on Ontario Nature.

ORLANDO, FL – Author, coach, speaker, and philanthropist Tony Robbins went off on an anti-COVID-19 vaccination rant at a business speaking engagement in Orlando, Florida recently, belting out several jokes that drew laughter and cheers from the audience, but also making some factual errors in some of his observations and claims as well.

In a video obtained by TMZ, Tony Robbins is seen being filmed by an audience member at an event called Funnel Hacking Live while standing on a stage with his image projected onto a large screen; Robbins’ presence at the event was reportedly to assist salespeople to increase their output by listening to his motivational stories.

At one point during the seminar, Robbins turned his attention to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, where he first poked fun at current evening curfews in-place in Australia to prevent large gatherings in entertainment venues – joking that “we all know that the virus sneaks out at night” –  and then debated whether or not the current crop of vaccines are effective against the virus.

Tony Robbins can be added to the long list of blowhards spewing COVID-19 misinformation with misguided jokes and phony statistics. https://t.co/hfglzqAyVz

— TMZ (@TMZ) September 27, 2021

“We’re all supposed to be afraid because the unvaccinated people are destroying the vaccinated people. Well, that’s kind of confusing to me,” he said. “If the vaccine works, you’re protected, aren’t you? How could unvaccinated people be a threat to you? Besides that, 100 million Americans are unvaccinated, and they’re not all crazy people. You know the number one group that is vaccine-resistant? PhDs!”

However, according to studies, COVID-19 is more likely to spread amongst the unvaccinated; it is amongst this population that variants of the virus – such as the Delta variant – have a greater chance of being created. However, Robbins is correct in insinuating that the vaccinated can still contract COVID and spread it to others; however, vaccinated individuals who do contract the virus – known as a “breakthrough case” –  are less likely be hospitalized or have serious symptoms than those who have not taken the jab.

Robbins also equated the mortality rates of the COVID-19 pandemic to those of automobile accidents in the United States, although the statistics he quoted to back up his assertions were questionable.

“Being afraid of your neighbor is pretty stupid, because there’s risk in everything,” he said. “1,200 people die every day and you know what they die of, way more than COVID? Driving their car. That’s a fact.”

However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics for U.S. car deaths per day (from 2016) averages out to 102 per day, as opposed to Robbins’ claim of 1,200. In contrast, the current seven-day average of deaths due to COVID-19 is just over 2,000 per day, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University; Texas and Florida combined currently account for about one-third of the nationwide average.

TAMARAC, FL – Broward Sheriff’s Office detectives are searching for the burglar who claimed to be a law enforcement officer as he smashed his way into a Tamarac home. Detectives would also like to speak with a person of interest who was in the area at the time.

On Thursday, September 23, Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report of a burglary at a home in the 8000 block of Sanibel Drive. Video surveillance shows just before 8:30 p.m., a subject shattered a sliding glass door in the rear of the home. He stated, “Broward Sheriff’s Office. Is anyone home?” after he entered the home through the broken glass door. The burglar then searched the home and left with more than $1,000 worth of items. Around the same time, an individual carrying a clipboard and wearing a retractable lanyard knocked on the victim’s front door. The victim was not home at the time of the burglary.

While detectives believe this was an isolated incident, they encourage people to ask for the law enforcement officer’s identification, look for the agency’s name on the uniform or call the Broward Sheriff’s Office non-emergency number, 954-764-4357, to verify a deputy’s identity. 

Anyone who can identify the subject or has any information is asked to contact BSO Detective Wilmer Morales Tubens at 954-247-6014. If you wish to remain anonymous, contact Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477 or online at browardcrimestoppers.org