Laurie de Jong
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Alena McInroy
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Mairi Lippa
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Please pre register for each event by emailing efv@naturekidsbc.ca and indicate how many children are attending and theirages. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Guests must pre-register and are welcome to try one outing for free and then must take out a membership to participate. All members and guests must sign the club consent form at each event.
- Take a minute to view our Explorer Day Etiquette.
- Always remember to dress for the weather!
- Membership forms are available here to download or you can signup online.
2016 Explorer Days & Stewardship Projects
Painted Turtle Nest Site Stewardship Project
Planned for April
Pond Crawl
Planned for May
Vitamin N(ature): Child Focused Exploration and Inquiry
Planned for June
Snowshoeing and Winter Ecology at Manning Park
Christmas Bird Count 4 Kids!
Discovery Annex Room at the Great Blue Heron Reserve
It is time for one of our favourite traditions – the Christmas Bird Count 4 Kids! This annual event is organized by the Audubon Society and has been held for more than a century. It is one of the longest running citizen science projects in the world and is a very special tradition for our group. Janne Perrin has generously volunteered to be our birding mentor again this year.
After the count, it’s back to our cozy room where we will make bird feeders and enjoy cookies and hot cocoa while Janne tallies our data. Special thanks to volunteer co-leader Alenna McInroy for envisioning a wonderful bird feeder project.
Great Reasons to Join Us:
-Learning about birds
-Developing keen observation skills
-Getting fresh air with friends
-Starting the holiday season with a focus on nature
-Making a beautiful tea cup/mug suet feeder for the birds
-Hot cocoa and cookies
-Citizen science – we are contributing much need data on bird numbers in our area
Night Sky at MacDonald Park [Cancelled due to bad weather]
November 26 [Rescheduled from Nov 19]
7:00-8:30pm
MacDonald Park, Abbotsford
November is here and we couldn’t be more excited to invite you to take in the night sky with us on November 19 from 7:00-8:30 p.m at the dark sky preserve, McDonald Park, in Abbotsford. Paul Greenhalgh, the president of the Fraser Valley Astronomers Club, along with members of the club, will share a view from their telescopes and introduce us to the wonders of the night sky. We have an additional treat for you – Paige McInroy will be begin our Explorer Day with a mini-presentation on one of her great passions, astronomy. Paige earned her NatureKids’ Bronze Level Award this summer and we’re proud she is furthering her leadership skills.
Geology & Natural History Walk
November 5
Bird Banding At Iona Beach
October is such a beautiful month, and there is so much going on as life prepares for winter, that we couldn’t resist offering a second Explorer Day this month. Join us as we say good-bye to our summer birds who are now on their way to warmer climates. Ornithologist (bird scientist) Christine Rock has invited us to participate in Wild Research’s fall migratory bird banding project. We will observe birds being removed from mist nets, assess migratory readiness by looking at breast fat tissue, weighing and measuring birds, and each member may hand release a bird (if there are enough birds to go around). We think that Bird Banding at Iona Beach with ornithologist (bird scientist) Christine Rock just may be your favourite Explorer Day this year.
Fungi in the Forest
October 2
Research shows that simply spending time in nature can relieve stress and improve your memory performance and attention span, and we think that there are few better ways to spend a wet October weekend than poking about in a forest looking for mushrooms and hidden signs of fungi with a professional mycologist (fungi expert).
Please join us on October 2nd from 10-noon meeting at the Watt Creek parking lot near Maple Bay at Cultus Lake for an interpretive forest walk with mycologist Sharmin Gamiet.
Even though Sharmin has just returned from an intense mushroom collecting trip in the Northwest Territories, she has created time in her busy schedule to take our wonderful NatureKids on a fungi forest walk – and we feel very lucky!
Tuesday July 19, 2016
Greater Vancouver Zoo at 5048 264 St, Aldergrove
Biologist and amphibian husbandry expert, Andrea Gilieans, will show us how her team is working to restore the population of these two endangered species through an innovative head start program to rear and release juveniles who then have an increased chance of survival when introduced back into the wild. 130 juvenile turtles are slated for release in 2016, but we get to see them first!
Sat. June 18th
Hike & Field Sketches
Cultus Lake
Please RSVP
Join us for a hike/nature ramble at beautiful Watt Creek on the south end of Cultus Lake.
may wish to climb on fallen trees and others may need shirin yoku.
Sunday, May 15
Saturday, May 14
Thursday, April 7, 2016
March 13, 2016
March 19th, 2016
1:00pm – 3:00pm
Erecting Swallow Nest Boxes
Before the swallows arrive, we will put up the nest boxes created from a prior event. See February 21st, 2016
March 5th, 2016
9:50am – Noon
O.W.L. Raptor Rehabilitation Centre 3800 72nd St., Delta
We will meet 9:50 on March 5 for a guided tour of this amazing facility that specializes in the rehabilitation and release of injured or orphaned raptors (birds of prey such as eagles, hawks, owls, and falcons). It will be an unforgettable privilege to be so close to these wild, and gorgeous birds and learn from those that dedicate their life to caring for them. Sue will be our guide and she will answer any questions that you may have, so bring them with you!
February 21st, 2016
1:00pm – 3:30pm
Building Swallow Nest Boxes
@ Great Blue Heron Reserve
Dan Coulter has beautiful boards of cedar which he is cutting into pieces so our group can build swallow nest boxes. He thinks our group is pretty wonderful and he is downright enthusiastic to provide us with material for swallow nest boxes ready for assembly by NatureKids members.
January 17, 2016
9:00am – 2:00pm
Snowshoeing and Winter Ecology
Manning Provincial Park
How are plants and animals adapted to survive winter in the mountains? This amazing session on winter ecology will cover such things as: bird identification, animal track ways and signs, tree identification, climactic zones and other teachable moments while learning to snowshoe in the pristine environment within Manning Provincial Park. Our outing will be on easy terrain, covering around 1.3 km. Pack a lunch and we will eat along the trail. This Explorer Day is a whole day of outdoor learning, fun, exercise, and fellowship with other nature enthusiasts under the wonderful leadership of Nature Mentor Kelly Pearce from the Hope Mountain Outdoor Centre. There are many details for this program that require your careful attention within the Monthly Minder and Monthly Minder Attachment.
Please let us know if you require snowshoes one week before the event so that snowshoes can be organized.
December 5th (10:00 to 12:30)
Christmas Bird Count 4 Kids
Discovery Annex Classroom of the Great Blue Heron Reserve.
This is an annual event organized by the Audubon Society and has been held for more than a century. It is one of the longest running citizen science projects in the world and is a very special tradition for our group.
Absolutely no experience or knowledge is required! Just bring an enthusiasm for getting out in nature and a curiosity about birds. Kids are naturally keen observers and their quick eyes alert us all to the movement of the birds. The count goes by very quickly and its back to our cozy room where we will make pinecone bird feeders and enjoy gingerbread cookies.
Janne Perrin has generously volunteered to be our birding mentor again this year, and we are thrilled to announce that Jamie Gadsden will lend his precocious knowledge of birds to our activity. Jamie has already counted 218 species of birds in his 13 years, and he just may inspire you to begin your own bird species Life List.
Please bring binoculars if you have them, your bird ID card, and dress warmly as we will be outdoors for an hour.
November 28th
10 am to noon
Caring for Mason Bee Cocoons
248350 Camp River Road
Nature Mentor Hugh Laughlin
Hugh Laughlin has been passionate about mason bees for over twenty years. A true naturalist, Hugh’s curiosity and admiration for this wonderful bee, led him to become a local expert on this highly efficient spring pollinator that is so important to our agricultural crops. Last year, Hugh gave our NatureKids families the gift of a hand-made mason bee nest box, and many mason bee cocoons. Hugh will instruct us in caring for our hibernating mason bees. We will be opening the boxes, removing the bees, and cleaning the cocoons.
November 12th, 2015
6 to 8 pm
Sierra Club BC: Writing a Powerful Letter-Swallow Conservation
Thin Red Line Aerospace, Unit 208 – 6333 Unsworth Road (corner of Simpson)
EFV NatureKids continues our commitment to swallow conservation in the Fraser Valley in cooperation with biologist Greg Ferguson, founder of the British Columbia Swallow Conservation Project. To protect these highly vulnerable birds, we called on Sierra Club BC’s long history of successful environmental action. Lisa Dumoulin will coach us in writing a powerful and effective letter to our government officials highlighting our concerns about the importance of protecting these beautiful birds from the effects of habitat loss, climate change, and pesticide use.Afterward, members can try out the climbing wall and enjoy hot cocoa and pumpkin cookies.
Bring your favourite paper, art materials and writing instrument.
October 24th
September 27th (9:30am to Noon)
Please wear appropriate clothing for the weather and running shoes or rain boots. We may have to walk on river rocks! Gloves and garbage bags will be supplied. The BBQ after is FREE and is put on by the Chilliwack Vedder River Cleanup Society. I attend every year and have a lot of fun. My children have won fishing rods and other prizes during the raffle and everyone who attends is included. Salads, pop, coffee and hamburgers are served for lunch. I believe there is cake too:) Every year a band plays music in the hall. I encourage families to come and celebrate. You won’t be disappointed.
Monday, August 31, 2015
Wednesday, July 29th, 2015
Backyard Show and Tell
Youth Leaders: Nemo and Sigourney de Jong
Wednesday, July 15th, 2015
Search for Hidden Clues
Youth Leaders: Brooke Higginbottom and Natalia Porro
Brooke and Natalia are creating a challenging and oh so fun Scavenger hunt for our club around a familiar town park. This adventure will stimulate your thinking, tune you in to the wildlife that frequent this lovely spot and improve your fitness level.
Wednesday, July 8th, 2015
6-9 PM
Bike the Trails by the GBHNR
Youth Leaders: Connor and Megan Hall