Richmond Hill Naturalists Blog

Archive for the 'Events' Category

Andy McKinnon – Rouge Park Talk

Andy will share his story of the Rouge valley through photography.

Andy McKinnon is a naturalist and wildlife photographer. He has been fascinated by all kinds of living things since he was a child growing up beside the Don Valley in Toronto. A naturalist for over 30 years, his interest in photography is much more recent.

While most of the kids in his neighbourhood were out playing street hockey, he was exploring the valley and learning about its wild inhabitants. He has an excellent eye for detail and has learned to identify literally thousands of different plants, insects, birds, mammals, and other creatures. He has an interest in different habitats, from wetlands to meadows to forests.

Through spending so much time outdoors observing, most recently in the Rouge Park area of Toronto, he has made unique discoveries. He photographed the most northern occurrence of a map turtle in the Rouge River system, as verified by Bob Johnson of the Toronto Zoo. He also has the first known photographic documentation of Boreal Owls in Rouge Park, and continues to find and identify various species that were previously unknown in the Park.

Please join us to hear more on September 16th at 7:30 p.m. Wallace Hall, RH Presbyterian Church

Posted Tuesday, August 24th, 2010 in Events, Frontpage, Speakers
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2010 Mill Pond Splash

Now in its 12th year, Mill Pond Splash is organized jointly by the Don Watershed Regeneration Council, Toronto and Region Conservation, the Town of Richmond Hill and the Richmond Hill Naturalists.

It’s a fun, active family festival featuring displays, presentations, native wildlife shows, nature walks and children’s activities dealing with all aspects of conservation and our natural environment.

* Learn about the environmental pressures on urban streams and rivers
* Find out how to get involved in local environmental stewardship projects
* Meet some native mammals, reptiles and birds of prey from southern Ontario
* Find out what fish live in the Mill Pond
* Take a look at the park through a naturalist’s eyes
* Plant some trees to help in park conservation
* Get up-to-date on recycling and energy conservation initiatives
* Find out about garden plants that can save you time, effort and water
* View an exhibition of local landscape art
* Build a bird box
* Take part in a nature scavenger hunt
* Try your luck on a rubber duck race

After all this, you can browse the organic food market and listen to live music by local performers.

When:

Sunday June 6, 2010, 12:00 – 4:30 pm
Where:

Mill Pond Park, Richmond Hill

Parking is available opposite York Central Hospital on Trench Street.

For more information, please contact Jinho Lee
at 416-661-6600 ext. 5280, jlee@trca.on.ca

Posted Thursday, June 3rd, 2010 in Events, Frontpage
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75th Anniversary of the David Dunlap Observatory

Join us to celebrate the history and discoveries of
the David Dunlap Observatory in Richmond Hill.
Sunday, May 30th, 2010
2 – 4 pm
16th Avenue Public School
400 – 16th Avenue, Richmond Hill
(between Yonge Street and Bayview Avenue)

Come celebrate the history, listen to the present, and focus
on the future of Canada’s largest telescope and most famous Observatory.
Official ceremony, refreshments, solar telescope viewing

Posted Monday, May 24th, 2010 in Events, Frontpage, Save David Dunlap Observatory
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Saturday, March 27th: Earth Hour Celebration & Astronomy Night

Earth Hour in Richmond Hill

Saturday March 27^th from 8pm onwards

Turn out your lights and come join us for

Astronomy Night – Navigating the Night Sky

You will find us located on the hill just outside the Richmond Hill Central Library – North side of Hopkins, West of Yonge, South of Major Mackenzie Drive.

Spread the word: please download and forward our 2010 Earth Hour Flyer

Posted Sunday, March 21st, 2010 in Astronats, Events, Frontpage, Save David Dunlap Observatory
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March 18th: Amphibians, Snakes and Turtles with John Urquhart

Join us on Thursday March 18th at 7:30 pm for speaker John Urquhart of Ontario Nature. He began his love of the environment like many young boys: mucking around in wetlands and streams looking for “creepy crawly” reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. John will share with us the work being done across Ontario to gather data on Amphibians, Snakes and Turtles. Researchers, citizen scientists and local naturalists organizations can help with the Ontario Herpetofaunal Atlas Program.

He will help us identify species that we can find locally, endangered species and how to report any finding of frogs, salamanders, turtles and snakes as we travel around Ontario this year.

Frogs, Turtles & Snakes Flyer

Location: Richmond Hill Presbyterian Church, Wallace Hall,
10066 Yonge St., Richmond Hill
(west side, just north of Major Mackenzie Dr.)

Free admission & parking, all are welcome, donations accepted, and refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Marianne Yake, 905-883-3047 or president@rhnaturalists.ca.

Posted Monday, March 8th, 2010 in Events, Frontpage, Speakers
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Dec 19: Calling all Bird Feeders for 110th CBC

With the 110th Annual Christmas Bird Count taking place this year on December 19, the Richmond Hill Naturalists are looking for people with bird feeders to open up their back yards for the Bird Counters. Bird Counters would visit volunteering households ONCE between 8am and 4:30pm on December 19. They will check the yard to count all the birds and bird species that may be seen there for just a few minutes – maybe longer if your yard is particularly exciting at that particular moment! You may also choose to count the birds and bird species in your yard yourself on December 19th and report your results.

The Richmond Hill Naturalists are just one group among thousands participating in the Christmas Bird Count throughout the western hemisphere. The count began in 1900 as an alternative to the then-traditional practice of the Christmas Side Hunt, in which sportsmen and women signed on to teams which then went out and vied to see which team could kill the most birds and other animals in the allotted time. An officer of the fledgling Audubon Society, ornithologist Frank Chapman started the new and less lethal tradition of the Bird Census. 27 birdwatchers in 25 cities (including Toronto) participated in that first count; last year more than 50,000 counters in 19 countries from Antarctica to Alaska took part.

In Richmond Hill, each year groups of birdwatchers of all levels of expertise disperse to their assigned sections; each group taking note of every bird and every species that they see in their area. The groups meet at the end of the day for the annual Chili Dinner, where their findings are totalled up. The club’s results in turn are submitted to Bird Studies Canada, which works with the Audubon Society in the US and elsewhere to analyze the data. If you wish to be a counter or to volunteer your back yard please leave a message with Gene Denzel at 905-889-7888 or email lezned@yorku.ca

Richmond Hill Christmas Bird Count Map Circle

Please feel free to download and distribute the RHN Christmas Bird Count Poster.

(Red-headed Woodpecker photo by Gene Denzel)

Posted Saturday, December 5th, 2009 in Birds, Events
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Richmond Hill Naturalists celebrate 110 years of feeding birds

From the Richmond Hill Liberal:

With the 110th annual Christmas Bird Count taking place this year on Dec. 19, the Richmond Hill Naturalists are looking for people with bird feeders to open up their back yards for the Bird Counters. Bird Counters will visit volunteering households, only once, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

They will check the yard to count all the birds and bird species that may be seen there for just a few minutes – maybe longer if your yard is full with birds at that particular moment. You may also choose to count the birds and bird species in your yard yourself on December 19 and report your results. [Full Story]

Please feel free to download and distribute the RHN Christmas Bird Count Poster.

Posted Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 in Events, Frontpage
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Town-sponsored meeting on DDO postponed until January

The Town of Richmond Hill has postponed a December 1st public meeting to discuss draft planning options and conservation management principles for the DDO lands until January, 2010. A statement sent out by Donna L. McLarty, Town Clerk reads:

In order to provide residents additional time to review the draft options and provide feedback to staff, the concepts will be released on the Town’s web site on Friday December 4th. Hard copy printouts will also be available from Access Richmond Hill (ground floor 225 East Beaver Creek Road). Written or e-mailed comments on the concepts may be provided to Town staff up to and including December 20th (e-mail your comments to jleung@richmondhill.ca).

Based on input received, the concepts will be refined and presented to a Committee of the Whole meeting early in the new year (more details to follow). Residents will have an opportunity at this meeting to offer their comments directly to Committee members.

Many RHN members have participated in the Town’s planning process as it relates to the Dunlap lands. All members of the public are encouraged to take the time to comment on the draft options that are to be released on December 4th. For more information, please see the Town of Richmond Hill’s DDO information.

In other DDO news, on November 23rd, Richmond Hill Town Council voted to “pursue fines and penalties to the fullest extent possible in response to Metrus’ actions during its archaeological assessment of the observatory’s southwest field”. Mayor David Barrow told a packed council chamber the town is preparing legal documents for a January 15th, 2010 court date and that a fine against the developer would be decided in court. Some controversy remains over the actual number of trees that were illegally removed, since Town bylaw officers have not yet been able to access the site to untangle and measure a large pile of cut trees. For more details, please see the Richmond Hill Liberal.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48-Q-mqjANU[/video]

Trees being removed on the Dunlap property.

Posted Tuesday, November 24th, 2009 in Events, In the News, Save David Dunlap Observatory
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Oct 15 Meeting: Organic Lawns that won’t cost the Earth

Please join us for “Organic Lawns that won’t cost the Earth” with special Guest Speaker Gloria Marsh of the York Region Environmental Alliance.

Thursday, October 15, 2009
7:30 p.m.

Richmond Hill Presbyterian Church, Wallace Hall, 10066 Yonge St.
(west side, just north of Major Mackenzie Dr.)

The public is cordially invited to this event which is sponsored by the Richmond Hill Naturalists. There is no admission charge, donations accepted, parking is free and refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Marianne Yake, 905-883-3047.

Posted Monday, October 12th, 2009 in Events
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Rouge Valley outing

Join the RHN and Andy McKinnon at the Rouge Valley on Saturday 13 June at 8am, to explore the evolving wetlands — birds, frogs, and all. Andy is a well-known naturalist and conservationist who has explored all the nooks and crannies of the Rouge. We’ll meet at the Pearse house across from the Toronto Zoo (directions below) at 8 to hike down into the valley. Participants should wear good footwear and long pants.

The Rouge Valley Conservation Centre (Pearse House) is at 1749 Meadowvale Road in Scarborough. Drive north on Meadowvale from Sheppard, stay in the right-most lane, follow the blue RVCC signs, drive up the ramp and turn right at the top.
( The following TTC bus routes serve the RVCC: 85B from Don Mills subways station, 86A from Kennedy subway station, and 85A from Rouge Hill GO station.)

Posted Thursday, June 4th, 2009 in Birds, Conservation, Events, Wildlife
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Beginners birding outing 23 May at Mill Pond

We’ll be doing our annual Beginning Birders outing on Saturday 23 May. We’ll meet at 8am at the playground at the South end of Mill Pond. All (including children) are welcome. We’ll stroll around to the back end, exploring the woods and small ponds for migrating and resident birds. Bring binoculars if you have them, and good walking shoes.
We will be there unless the weather is absolutely awful (such as thunderstorms with lighting).
We’ll plan to be out for about 3 hours, but people are welcome to join us for any portion of the walk.

Posted Sunday, May 10th, 2009 in Events
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RHN International Astronomy Day Celebration, Tonight at 8:30pm

iya_logo1 The Richmond Hill Naturalists invite you to celebrate International Astronomy Day with us on Saturday, May 2nd at 8:30pm. We’ll be meeting at David Dunlap Observatory Park (350 16th Avenue Between Yonge and Bayview on the north side behind the Elvis Stojko Arena and up the stairway). Please join us and enjoy an evening of cosmic exploration right in the middle of town.

Participants should dress warmly: layers, outdoor shoes, gloves, hats.

Participants should dress warmly: layers, outdoor shoes, gloves, hats.
Telescopes will be provided. If you wish you can bring your own binoculars and telescopes.
Red filters will be available for your flashlight.

Some telescopes will be provided

When and Where:

Saturday May 2nd at 8:30 p.m.
The David Dunlap Observatory Park
350 16th Avenue
(Between Yonge and Bayview on the north side behind the Elvis Stojko Arena and up the stairway)

For more information please call: 905-597-5134

Posted Saturday, May 2nd, 2009 in Astronomy, Events
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