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5 reasons why RIGHT NOW is the perfect time for a hike!

Earth Rangers

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March 10, 2021

5 reasons why RIGHT NOW is the *perfect* time for a hike!

TAKE A HIKE, EARTH RANGERS! 😉

Canada is the country with the second most trees in the world – right behind Russia! Approximately half of the country is covered by forest. Besides our fantastic forests being known worldwide for their hiking trails, they also help us fight climate change by limiting the growth of city smog and keeping local temperatures down – thanks trees!!

What better way to show your appreciation than by heading out to the great outdoors for a hike? Here’s 5 reasons why March is the perfect time for a stroll!

It’s warmer, but not so warm that all of the snow has become muddy slush! You don’t need to bundle up quite as much to face the elements, but you still get to enjoy a winter wonderland. Find yourself a forest with lots of trees and you’ve likely got enough shade to keep the sun’s rays from melting all the snow.
You might get to see some early signs of spring! There might not be a lot of buds and blooms out yet but you may find some sneak peeks at what is to come.
NO BUGS! While spring, summer, and autumn all have their own reasons that draw us to the trail, not having to worry as much about bug spray to prevent bites from mosquitoes and other bothersome bugs really gives winter hiking some mega-cool points in our books.
It’s a great way to get moving! With lots of public indoor areas closed lately, a frolic in the forest gives your family lots of options to still feel like you’re on the go.
If your trail has a viewpoint, you might be able to see even further with less leaves blocking the landscape. Don’t forget those binoculars!

Ready to hit the trails? Look up hiking areas where you live with the help of an adult, using trail map apps like AllTrails, or look right on the Ontario Greenbelt website. If you live in Ontario, you probably live near one of world’s largest Greenbelt. The Ontario Greenbelt surrounds cities like Hamilton and Toronto, as well as Durham, York, Peel, and Niagara Region. It’s home to 2 million acres of protected forests, wetlands, urban river valleys, and farmlands and was designated in 2005 to help preserve important greenspaces around an area growing really quickly.

Anything else we should add to our list of reasons to hike this time of year? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Accept the Back to Nature Mission to help you come up with awesome activities to do when you’re out on the trail!

Eco-Activity: Lightbulb Switcheroo!

Eco-Activities

Earth Rangers

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March 9, 2021

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How many Earth Rangers does it take to change a light bulb? ONE!

Did you know that the type of light bulb you buy makes a difference to the amount of energy your home uses?

The cheapest incandescent bulbs aren’t the best when it comes to using energy! Saving a dollar at the store can actually end up costing your house more in electricity and can cause more damage to the environment!

Here are simple steps to do your part at home:

Step 1: Decide which energy efficient bulb is best for your space: CFL or LED? Discover their main differences on the Earth Rangers App!

Step 2: Figure out how bright they’ll need to be. Less lumens mean less light! For indoors, you’ll want something not too strong with about 450 lumens. Save the bright guys, (bulbs with around 1600 lumens) for outdoor use where you need loads of light!

Step 3: Replace your incandescent bulbs with your new energy-efficient ones!

Step 4: Snap a picture with all the inefficient bulbs you’ve switched out before you dispose of them safely, then share it with us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

It’s important because…

Using less energy means releasing less greenhouse gas emissions, which means you’re helping to fight climate change, right from home! You’re one step closer to being a climate-change-fighting scientist, like the ones who are attending COP26 this year! The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP) gives scientists, researchers, policy makers, and other organizations a chance to share ideas for dealing with climate change. They would be so proud and excited to hear that another Earth Ranger is making a small but mighty move to help our planet!

The Earth Rangers App is where kids go to save animals! It’s free to join and you’ll have access to real-world Missions like this one. Plus, you can adopt an animal to support conservation projects, and learn all about animals in the Wild Wire Blog.

Find activities like this, and so much more in the App!

Eco-Activity: A Natural Solution

Eco-Activities

Earth Rangers

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March 4, 2021

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Household cleaners often contain toxins that are harmful. These products get washed down the drain and when these toxins get into the environment, they cause damage by polluting ecosystems and making animals sick. So, we’re challenging you to discover the power of two non-toxic cleaning companions with today’s eco-activity – and have fun with a foamy chemical reaction while you’re at it!

Using these simple tricks will help preserve the health of humans, animals and the environment. And we’re not just talking about the animals in your neighbourhood. If toxins get into important waterways, like the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, they can travel all the way to the Arctic! That’s why it’s so important to be mindful about what goes down the drain. These DIY cleaners are a great alternative that will have you leaving store-bought products with harsh chemicals on the shelf!

Eco-Activity: Twiggy Tree Art

Earth Rangers

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March 3, 2021

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Looking for a reason to get outside this weekend? Why not make some twiggy tree art! It’s a great way to get some fresh air and make some TREErific art to decorate your room or give to someone close to you!

The best part of this activity is the prep work! Before you sit down to craft, you’ll have to go out and look for some twigs. It will be even better if you can make it a family trip to the forest! A walk in the woods is a great way to reconnect with nature and with each other.

Now it’s time to start crafting!

Once you’ve collected all your items, arrange your twigs to create a leafless but lifelike tree on your paper. Once you’re happy with the placement of your twigs, glue them down and let it dry. Next, grab your paint and start dotting the sky with snowflakes. Finish by painting the ground under the tree. Now your wonderful winter scene is complete. Great job!

Eco-Activity: Snowy Seed Smorgasbord

Eco-Activities

Earth Rangers

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March 2, 2021

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Snow is fun fluff but did you know it can hide food sources from feathered friends? A huge amount of snow can make it harder for birds to get enough food, which can be a problem since they get hungry faster than most animals. That’s because they actually turn food into energy at a faster rate than other creatures! Fun fact, but not so fun for hungry birds!

Want to help them keep their bellies full? SNOW PROBLEM! Build a big snow mound, off the ground enough so that the seed will be kept safe from more falling fluff. Then, make a hole large enough for a bird to be able to perch and sneak a snack from. Fill it with your favourite seasonal birdseed mixture. Consider putting out a few extra morsels to advertise what’s inside. Maybe even spell out some hints in the snow like we did!

The Earth Rangers App is where kids go to save animals! It’s free to join and you’ll have access to real-world Missions like this one. Plus, you can adopt an animal to support conservation projects, and learn all about animals in the Wild Wire Blog.

Find activities like this, and so much more in the App!

MeadoWAY to Go, Earth Rangers!

Earth Rangers

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February 26, 2021

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Last year Earth Rangers everywhere teamed up to help create a super cool animal habitat: the Meadoway! This 16 km stretch of land running right through Toronto connects greenspaces and provides the animals that live there, like the Red Fox, Eastern Milksnake, and Osprey, with a safe place to call home.

Over 1,500 of you worked together to help support this project, and our partners at the Toronto Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) have been hard at work! Here’s what they’ve been up to:

In the spring and summer of 2020, TRCA began studies to monitor the animals and plants that call the Meadoway home, making sure that they’re not disturbing important habitat or nearby wetlands as they restore the greenspace
TRCA has completed the planning phase for the trails and bridges that will be constructed to let nature lovers enjoy this awesome space!
Nature hikes, citizen science programs, and even a snowshoe event were held to showcase the Meadoway to the community

Invasive plants and weeds were removed from different sections of the site throughout the summer
Many areas of the Meadoway are mown turf grass that will be converted to meadow (which requires planting native wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs) – in 2020, TRCA finished seeding all of these spaces so hopefully this year we’ll see the new meadow take shape!

The crew gets planting…
…but first, say goodbye to invasive species!

All of this amazing work is making a huge difference for the animals that call the Meadoway home. Thanks to YOU, the Meadoway Project is helping increase the biodiversity of plant life, improving the ecosystem’s ability to deal with climate change, and providing important food sources for pollinators, just to name a few! Great work, Earth Rangers 🙂

The Meadoway Project was generously supported by:

Thank you Wolverine Warriors!

Earth Rangers

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February 26, 2021

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Wolverines are one of our fave wild and wily animals, but they need our help! Climate change and habitat loss are making it harder for them to find the massive territories they need to call home. That’s why we called on you, Earth Rangers, to help, and we’re happy to report you did just that – in a big way!

Last year, over 1,000 of you pledged to protect Wolverines, and you raised over $10,000 to help researcher Mirjam Barrueto as she worked to learn more about the Wolverines that make their homes in Canada’s Rocky Mountains. We thought that was pretty incredible, and so did Mirjam! Here’s what she had to say:

Thanks for answering the call, Earth Rangers! We couldn’t have done it without you 🙂

The Wolverine Project was generously supported by:

Wrapping up the Otter and Grizzly projects with a special message from the team!

Earth Rangers

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February 26, 2021

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Wrapping up the Otter and Grizzly projects with a special message from the team!

This past year Earth Rangers partnered with Wildlife Conservation Society Canada on two amazing projects helping two amazing animals: Grizzly Bears and River Otters!

Thanks to the support of over a THOUSAND Earth Rangers, you raised almost $30,000! Researchers Don and Chrystal had this special message:

“Hello Earth Rangers!

We want to thank you all so much for your love of wild animals and your enthusiasm for nature. We know that you all care about these things because you are so dedicated to being Earth Rangers and you are so curious. Caring really matters. That’s how you find the energy and determination to help nature. When we, as scientists, are out in nature studying otters and grizzly bears, we think of all the help you have given us to keep our projects going, and we smile as we remember the fun times we had talking to all of you. Thanks again, and keep on caring!

Don (River Otter Project) and Chrystal (Grizzly Bear Project) “

High five Earth Rangers, keep up the good work 🙂

The Grizzly Bear Project was generously supported by:

A special thank you message from our Northern Project researchers!

Earth Rangers

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February 26, 2021

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A special thank you message from our Northern Project researchers!

Hi Earth Rangers! Last year we supported 3 amazing animals as part of the Northern Project: the Polar Bear, Arctic Fox, and Thick-Billed Murre. We asked for your help and boy did you answer!

Together over 2,000 Earth Rangers supported these projects, raising nearly $70,000 for important research that will help protect these cute creatures for years to come.

When we told our project researchers Tyler Ross and Emily Choy, they were over the moon excited and so thankful for all your help! Here’s what they had to say:

This year, we’ve got a TON of new and exciting Wildlife Adoptions projects on the go – check them out here!

Thanks Earth Rangers!

Still want to help protect some of the Arctic’s most amazing animals? Check out this year’s Northern Project! We’ve partnered up on two new projects to keep helping Polar Bears and Arctic Foxes, and new for 2021 is the Beluga Whale Project! Click here to learn more and keep up the awesome work 🙂

Our newest Adoptions project is a hoot!

Earth Rangers

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February 24, 2021

45

The great horned owl is pretty epic. Did you know it’s sometimes called “the tiger of the air” for its incredible hunting skills?! From their tall ear tufts to their distinctive deep hooo, this is one beautiful bird!

The great horned owl makes its home across North America, living in a variety of different habitats like forests, wetlands, and even deserts! No matter where they live, great horned owls try to scope out nesting sites on the edge of open spaces, where they can easily spot their prey (mostly rabbits and small rodents) as they hunt silently from above. Like other owls this hunting takes place mostly at night, and thanks to some super cool adaptations, finding food in the dark is no problem for the great horned owl. Their disc-shaped face feathers act as a sort of speaker for sounds, picking up even quiet noises and directing them to their ears. Their amazing sense of sight is thanks to their proportionally large cylindrical eyes, shaped like a camera lens to really help them zoom in on tiny prey. And their ability to see in nightvision doesn’t hurt either!

They need our help!

They might be known for their ability to make their homes in a wide range of different ecosystems, but sadly their habitat is disappearing. That’s why it’s so important we conserve and restore the natural spaces where they’re found, like southern Ontario’s Lathrop Nature Preserve – and that’s where you come in!

Lathrop Nature Preserve (Photo by Noel Boucher)

Earth Rangers is working with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) on a project that will help rebuild and replant this important habitat. The Lathrop Nature Preserve is over 100 years old and besides being home to awesome animals like the great horned owl, did you know it’s also home to a wetland that helps fight climate change?! Not only do wetlands help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, they also help us deal with the effects of climate change by preventing extreme weather events like floods and droughts. Pretty cool right? Do your part to help protect this important natural space by adopting a great horned owl today!

Earth Rangers

Earth Rangers

5 reasons why RIGHT NOW is the perfect time for a hike!

Eco-Activity: Lightbulb Switcheroo!

Eco-Activity: A Natural Solution

Eco-Activity: Twiggy Tree Art

Eco-Activity: Snowy Seed Smorgasbord

MeadoWAY to Go, Earth Rangers!

Thank you Wolverine Warriors!

Wrapping up the Otter and Grizzly projects with a special message from the team!

A special thank you message from our Northern Project researchers!

This year, we’ve got a TON of new and exciting Wildlife Adoptions projects on the go – check them out here!

Our newest Adoptions project is a hoot!

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