Species of the Month

 
The Cicada Killer Wasps (Sphecius speciosus) name tells the story of a gruesome hunt. Emerging in mid- July, females capture unsuspecting Cicada’s, inject them with paralyzing venom, and bring them to their lairs for their young to feed on. This nature horror story may elicit extreme fear in many

 
Tiger Beetles (family Cicindelidae) are a fiercely named group of beetles, as both the larvae and adults are extremely predatory. While many beetles are rather slow and lumbering, Tiger beetles are fast runners with large eyes and oversized menacing mandibles that they use to catch and kill prey. The

 
 
The uncommon but relatively widespread Blanding’s Turtle is a medium-sized turtle with a bright yellow throat and an obvious domed shell. The dark domed upper shell is speckled with numerous faint yellow markings and the black and yellow under-shell is hinged, allowing it to partially close. Blanding’s Turtle

Restoring Lands, One Seed At A Time – A Spotlight on New Jersey Tea, Wild Lupine, Butterfly Milkweed
By Emily Ratch, Stewardship and Outreach Technician
Over the past 6 months, some of the LPBLT nature reserves have undergone major restoration efforts, including logging of monoculture pine plantations, prescribed burns to

Species of the Month – Black Oak (Quercus velutina)
By Brianne Curry, Outreach and Fund Development Manager 
Although not uncommon across North America, the Black Oak (Quercus velutina) is relatively uncommon in Ontario. Here in Southwestern Ontario, we are actually in the northernmost range of the species. Most of the

The brumating Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)
By Emily Ratch, Stewardship & Outreach Technician
Winter is a very deceptive season. At a glance, it seems like not much is happening in the natural world; it’s almost like nature is put on pause. But behind the scenes, life is still thriving –

Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis)
By David Agro, Director
Read Sandhill Crane Part 1 (published in January 2022) here! 
With early winter comes one of Long Point’s better spectacles, the arrival of the cranes. Just yesterday I was stopped along Front Road watching some 2000 cranes as they flew across the

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)
By: Emily Ratch
Stewardship and Outreach Technician
 
The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail is a native butterfly to eastern North America, including southern Ontario. This common butterfly has a wingspan of around 3 to 5 inches. Males are typically yellow with black stripes, and females are

Species of the Month, October 2022: Paw Paw (Asimina triloba)
By: Brianne Curry
 
The pawpaw is a small tree or tall shrub (growing to about 10 m tall) which is native to Carolinian forests in southern Ontario, and produces edible fruit. The large fruit are about the size of

Species of the Month, September 2022: Monarch Butterfly 
by Adam Timpf
I think it’s safe to say that pretty much everybody is familiar with this black-and-orange migratory butterfly that winters in Mexico, and its association with native Milkweeds as the larval host plant here in Ontario.  Sometimes people mistake the