Author: Shannon MacDonald

Beecoming interested in the Yukon

Posted on by Shannon MacDonald

Hey guys!

With this year’s beautiful summer coming to a close it has once again come time to dust the backpack off and get back into school mode. I had an amazing experience working with the BIObus team these past few months and I’m glad I’ve had the opportunity to share some of that experience with all of you. Since this is the my last blog of the season, I’ve decided to make this blog about one of the coolest parks I’ve come across so far (which is also conveniently the one I’m sorting through at the moment). Continue reading “Beecoming interested in the Yukon” →

Wild water bugs and warm weather

Posted on by Shannon MacDonald

As part of this summer’s ongoing BIObus adventures Adrian, Connor, Nate and I got the chance to go hunting for arthropods in the beautiful Bruce Peninsula last week. With the weather being more than welcoming, we eagerly strapped on our waders and set out to explore the diverse aquatic habitats of the Grey-Bruce region. One thing I couldn’t help but notice during our daily sampling sessions was the abundance of belostomatids in almost every area we were. Continue reading “Wild water bugs and warm weather” →

Delving into Darkwoods

Posted on by Shannon MacDonald

For the past few weeks I’ve been fortunate enough to start exploring the insect biodiversity of Canada’s largest privately owned nature conservancy: Darkwoods. Owned by the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), Darkwoods is a 136,000-acre tract of land located near Salmo, British Columbia in the heart of the Selkirk mountain range. Continue reading “Delving into Darkwoods” →

Happily Herping

Posted on by Shannon MacDonald

This past Saturday – as many of you might know – was the Ontario BioBlitz weekend. For those of you that are unfamiliar with the event, the traditional BioBlitz or “blitz” is a 24-hour period in which both trained biologists and citizens scientists try to observe and record as many species as possible in a specific area. After the event these collected observations help to quantify the diversity and abundance of plant and animal species in the selected area to create more focused research and conservation efforts. Continue reading “Happily Herping” →

Of Bugs and Men

Posted on by Shannon MacDonald

This past week wasn’t a mundane week by any means. Setting out at 9am on a Monday morning, Danielle, Dan, Josh, Nate and I set out for Cambridge, Ontario to get samples of the insects inhabiting the Waterloo region. Our destination: the rare Charitable Research Reserve. Continue reading “Of Bugs and Men” →