The Monarch Butterfly
Here is a little guy that
definitely needs our
help! Did you know that
each fall, millions of
Monarch Butterflies from
Canada and the USA
begin to fly south-and
continue until they
reach Mexico!? That’s
more than 3,200 km
away! They return to the
exact same forests (and
sometimes tree!) that
their ancestors once
landed on.
Some estimates say up to a BILLION butterflies perch in
only 12 specific forest sites in Mexico each year. It’s a mystery how they know where to go, because they only live a
few months, and none makes the journey more than once!
At the end of the winter the pregnant female butterflies will
fly north, laying their eggs on milkweed plants along the
way. It is the butterflies that develop from those eggs that
make it back to Canada each year.
These guys are at serious risk
because of logging taking
place at their winter roosts in
Mexico! Also, they are at risk
because people put herbicide
on milkweed to kill it, and milkweed is the ONLY PLANT that
the Monarch larvae eats!
To help out the Monarch
larvae, we can let milkweed grow on our property.
We can also plant butterfly
gardens to feed the adults!
To learn more, type “Journey
North” into a search engine
and click on “Monarch”.
Sssaving our
Slithery Ssnakes...
These snakes are in trouble
for a couple of reasons…
1. Getting hit by cars. The
Hog-nose especially has
this problem, since he
likes to play dead when
he feels threatened.
HOG-NOSE SNAKE PLAYING DEAD!
2. People killing the
snakes out of fear! There
is no need to be afraid
of any of these snakes. If
you leave them alone
they’ll leave you alone!
TAIL OF A RATTLER!
3. Losing its habitat. It is
especially hard when
people build cottages,
roads, etc. around the hibernation site of the
snake.
To help our legless pals we can
report any sightings to the GBBR
website: gbbr.ca, “Our Environment”, “Report a Sighting”.
1 point!
You can also help by building a
rock pile with a crevice for
snakes to escape from weather
and predators, to find food, and
to give birth. 1 point!
Black, streaked, and high-domed, I look like a helmet!
I like to eat crayfish, small fish, and insects.
With my protruding eyes, and yellow chin and throat,
You may see me basking while you drive in a boat.
I’m ‘threatened” according to COSEWIC and OMNR,
Because of loss of wetland, and speedy blind cars!
Raccoons and skunks are two other fears,
But if I can avoid them I can last up to 70 years!
Help the
Western
Chorus Frog
by
Participating in
FrogWatch!
BLANDING’s TURTLE
FrogWatch is a program designed to help us learn more
about frogs and toads in Ontario. By signing up as a volunteer for FrogWatch, you can help experts gather information
about where frogs are living in our province. If you become a
volunteer, all you need to do is learn some frog and toad
calls, choose a spot to listen for them, and let FrogWatch
know which frog voices you heard!
Any information you send in will be added to an online map
showing the species present at your “observation location”
and the location of other FrogWatch volunteers in Ontario.
SPOTTED TURTLE
It looks like a night sky of stars on my face,
But that’s not all-they’re on my carapace!
I’m passed being threatened, in fact I’m endangered,
I need YOUR help-don’t be a stranger.
My eggs come in patches of 3-8,
My chin is tan or yellow-that’s up for debate.
My head, neck and limbs are all grey/black,
If you don’t help me soon, I won’t be coming back!
www.naturewatch
.ca/english/
frogwatch/on/
intro.html
Included in your “Kids
in the Biosphere” Kit is
a FrogWatch observation form, tips about
frog monitoring, a “local
species” guide, and a
“frog calls disc”. Listen
for frogs and send info
to FrogWatch, and get 1
point in the club!
The Western
Chorus Frog
The BLANDING’S TURTLE is an adventurous creature...the female can travel a
Did you know that when
Western Chorus Frogs are at
frogs are underwater they
risk because they’re losing
breathe and absorb water
their habitat-especially their
through their skin? Because
VERNAL POOLS. Vernal pools
of this, pollution in the water
are temporary pools of water
(like pesticides and herbithat frogs and other animals
cides!) can threaten their
rely on to survive.
lives.
Western Chorus Frogs are small
smooth-skinned tree frogs. They
are greyish green to brown, and
have a dark stripe through their
eye, and three dark stripes down
the back. They have a “milk stain”
along their upper lip. Their call
sounds like fingers running along
the length of a comb!
few kilometers just to lay her eggs. For that reason lots have to cross roads,
and lots get hit! We can help these turtles by being careful when driving to the
cottage, and by helping turtles to cross the road. If you’re helping a turtle
cross the road, MAKE SURE to place it on the side of the road in the direction
that it was travelling. That way, the turtle won’t try to cross the road again! If
you help a turtle cross the road, you get 1 point in the club!
The SPOTTED TURTLE is in trouble because of loss of habitat! Protection of even small wetlands will be important
for this turtle. Please report any sightings of this turtle, or
the Blanding’s, on the GBBR website: gbbr.ca, “our environment”, “report a sighting”. If you do, let Kaitlin (at
[email protected]) know, and gain 1 point in the club!
BIRDS AT RISK
IN THE GEORGIAN BAY BIOSPHERE RESERVE
<—This is the Barn Swallow
The barn swallow has a
cobalt blue back, tail, and
wings. Males have buffy
orange underparts while
females are buffy white. Both
have rusty coloured
foreheads and throats. You
might see these guys flying
close to the water to catch
flying insects.
This is the Chimney Swift->
An interesting little bird!
This bird has long narrow
wings and no noticeable tail.
Listen for it...it chatter constantly as it flies! Every May
it returns to Georgian Bay
from Peru, and rests in chimney’s during migration that
are within 1 km from the water.
There are over 40
species at risk in the Georgian Bay Biosphere Reserve! Some of these species live
in the Biosphere and almost nowhere else
Did you know?!
in the world!
THANKS FOR
THE HELP!
These species need our help…
and some need it badly. This booklet details some of
our species at risk, and what we can do to help them.
Each time you do one of the suggested ideas to help
these critters, email Kaitlin at [email protected]
and gain 1 point in the Kids in the Biosphere Club!
Earn some wicked prizes by collecting the most
points...the animals will thank you!
What are the species at risk?
Birds: 16
Mammals: 4
Reptiles: 11
Plants: 5
Fish: 3
Insects: 2
What is a “Species
at Risk”, anyway?
A “Species at Risk” is any plant or animal
that is close to being extinct...or at risk of
disappearing from our province. These are
the species that need our help!
You might have heard the words
“endangered” or “threatened” before.
These are two words that describe how
much danger a species is in; threatened is
bad, endangered is REALLY bad.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
Save the Biosphere Birds!
There are less than half as
many Barn Swallows in
Ontario now as there were
40 years ago! The reasons
for this are thought to be
pesticide use, and acid
rain. Also, climate change
means that insects (their
food!) are hatching too early-before Barn Swallows
have migrated back to
Georgian Bay for the summer. Report a sighting to
gbbr.ca and get 1 point!
The Chimney Swift nests in
things shaped like chimneys;
barn silos, old hollow trees,
etc.
With the removal of old
growth forests (for the past
150 years) they depend more
and more on chimneys.
To help this guy out, don’t
clean out your chimney between May and September.
1 point in the club!
How easy was that?
Test your Species at Risk IQ
How many species are at risk in the Georgian Bay area?
______________________________________________.
Where would you be most likely to find the Western Chorus
Frog? __________________________________________.
Name one type of plant that adult butterflies like, and one
that larvae NEED!________________________________.
How many bats have been killed from the White-nose Syndrome?________________________________________.
Where do Monarchs go for the winter?_______________.
Which snake might “play dead” when it’s scared?
______________________________________________.
How can we help turtles at risk?____________________.
By learning more
about these animals
and how we can help,
we’re already a step
closer to making sure
they last forever! It’s
people like YOU that
make a
difference!
can
Species at Risk in the
Biosphere!
Help the
Snakes at Risk on
Georgian Bay
Plant a Butterfly Garden!
1. Pick the perfect spot to
entertain your butterfly
guests. Choose a sunny
location that is sheltered
from the wind.
The Eastern Foxsnake has a
yellow or orange-brown
background colour with
dark blotches down its
back and sides. Its belly
looks like a yellow and
black checkerboard. It is
generally found within 30
meters from the Bay and
unlikely to be found beyond 1 km of the Bay.
2. Find a couple of flat
stones—dark coloured
ones that hold the heat
of the sun the best. Butterflies love to sun themselves after a meal.
The Massasauga Rattlesnake
can be distinguished from the
foxsnake by its very thick
body, skinny neck, wide jaw,
dark belly and of course, the
rattle on its tail! Although it is
venomous, it is a shy, small
snake with limited venomsnake bites are rare and
aren’t likely to happen if you
leave it alone!
The Eastern Hog-Nosed
Snake can be recognized
by its upturned nose, which
helps them dig for toads.
When harassed, the Hognosed snake will flatten
and raise its neck like a cobra! It might also turn on
it’s back and play dead.
Endangered Monarch:
3. Butterflies require water, so make a small
butterfly pond in the
mud. Or, improvise and
use a plastic lid from Tupperware or from a household item such as a butter
tub.
4. Choose blooming flowers to plant. Find a hearty
plant that loves the sun.
Adult butterflies like smelly
flowers that are rick in nectar and big enough to land
on. Butterflies like pink, purple, yellow, and orange
flowers. Their favourite flowers seem to be from the
asteraceae family of plants
(like sunflowers and daisies!)
5. Along with the flowering
plants for the butterflies,
you’ll want to provide
food for larvae. Monarch
larvae depend on milkweed; it is their ONLY food,
and also provides protection.
6. Include in your design a
place to sit in the garden,
such as a bench, chairs, or
sitting stones. You’re ready
for some spectacular butterfly watching!
Bats of Georgian Bay and
the Dreaded White-nose
Syndrome!
Bats of North America are in trouble! White-nose Syndrome
is caused by a fungus that grows in environments like bat
caves. The fungus gets onto the noses and other body
parts of bats (like the Little Brown Bat, Northern Myotis, and
Tri-coloured Bat that live around Georgian Bay). Then, the
fungus makes the bats so itchy that they wake up from hibernation to scratch it, and go out in search of food and
water in the middle of the winter! This has killed over a million bats in the USA and Canada since 2006, and it’s
spreading about 300 km further each year. A single Little
Brown Bat can eat 1,200 mosquito-sized bugs in an hourwho’ll do that for us if the bats are all gone!?
BATS NEED
OUR HELP!!
We can help bats by building and
installing bat houses at the cottage. Bats that survive Whitenose Syndrome may need smaller
spaces to raise their babies in the
summer. Scientists think that smaller bat houses will help bats that
might be resistant to the disease
survive and reproduce to keep
their species from going extinct.

The bat house can be made with
untreated, rough-sawn timbers
(20mm thick).

Crevices should be between 15
and 25 cm wide.

Place as high as possible
in a sheltered spot, exposed to the sun.

They can be fitted to walls,
flat surfaces, or trees.

A clear flight line to the entrance is important.
Use this design, or another,
to build a bat house at the
cottage and get
1 point in
the club!