Notes From Junior Naturalists Event On July 13th

Thanks to everyone who was able to make it out to our Beewatch Event on the Meadoway July 13th. We enjoyed a wonderful sunny, and windy morning, and saw a variety of insects including butterflies, beetles and grasshoppers, as well as bees.

A special thanks to the TRCA for hosting us and to the Meadoway Interpreters Sumaira and Evelyn who taught us about the Meadoway. The area where we worked was planted as a pilot four years ago and is full of beautiful wildflowers–milkweed, sunflowers, coreopsis, thistles, clover etc. It was explained that the meadow must be cut every few years or it will grow into a forest. When a piece of the Meadoway is to be re-planted, it is sown in Oats first, which keeps down invasive species and prepares the ground for meadow plants.

Evelyn and Sumaira also taught us how to safely catch bees using a net, cool them down so we could have a good look at them and identify them. Among the bees we captured were the Two-spotted, Red-belted, Wool Carder bees, and Honey bees. Congratulations to all the kids who caught bees, and thanks to Koreena for picking mulberries, and cherries for us to enjoy!

The Toronto Field Naturalists wish to acknowledge this land through which we walk. For thousands of years it has been the traditional land of the Wendat, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississauga of the Credit River. Today it is still the home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to be on this land.