We are presenting a double feature.  John Kemp of the Giant Hogweed Mitigation Project and our very own Jenna Quinn of Ontario Nature will be presenting two projects of interest to our members.

The Giant Hogweed Mitigation Project strives to promote awareness and mitigate this threat to public safety and the ecosystem.  Giant Hogweed has been spreading rapidly along the Grand River.  Colonies of this plant have been encountered on both public and private properties from Waterloo to Brantford. Landowners have been dealing with the plants they know about.  Contact with the sap of the Giant Hogweed plant can produce phytophotodermatitis which causes an extreme skin reaction to sunlight, which can produce severe burns and blisters.  Let’s join John Kemp has he provides an overview of the ecology, safety, mitigation, and legislation.

Ontario Nature’s newly released Ontario Reptile and Amphibian Atlas (ORAA) publication is a decade-long community science project that tracked distributions and spatial trends of reptiles and amphibians across the province. ORAA data has increased the knowledge and protection for at-risk species in Ontario, and has contributed to reports and recovery plans, local land use planning, and habitat stewardship programs.  Let’s join Jenna Quinn as she presents the ORAA to our membership.