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Wetland Sheen
Welcome back to Ask a Naturalist: your own personal “Google” for information on all things natural on PEI. This time of year, I get a...
katemacquarrie22
Apr 17, 20242 min read


Vernal Pools
PEI forests provide a critical but temporary habitat this time of year: vernal pools. Although you might think of them as just wet spots...
katemacquarrie22
Apr 10, 20242 min read


Riparian Zones
Some of PEI’s natural habitats punch well above their weight – their importance far exceeds the area they occupy in the landscape....
katemacquarrie22
Mar 6, 20243 min read


Beaver Extirpation and Reintroduction
Over the past few centuries, PEI has lost some native animals and seen introductions of new, non-native ones. One of the most interesting...
katemacquarrie22
Feb 21, 20243 min read


Beaver Tracks
Some PEI wildlife travel our fields and forests all winter, leaving conspicuous tracks in their wake. Others prepare a cozy, well-stocked...
katemacquarrie22
Feb 11, 20243 min read


Post-Fiona: Wetland to Sand Dune
Hurricane Fiona brought many changes to our Island landscape: some dramatic, others subtle, and a few that are – paradoxically – both. ...
katemacquarrie22
Nov 1, 20232 min read


Nodding Beggar's-tick
PEI’s wild plants have all sorts of innovative ways to disperse their seeds. Some use wind, others water, and a rare few go with...
katemacquarrie22
Oct 25, 20232 min read


Spotted Touch-me-not
There’s a pretty, useful, and downright fun plant flowering along PEI’s streams right now. Meet Spotted Touch-me-not (Impatiens...
katemacquarrie22
Sep 17, 20232 min read


Early Spring Greens: Fantastic Fiddleheads
Fiddleheads are the best known and most coveted of PEI’s spring greens. I collected my feast last week, but you should still be able to...
katemacquarrie22
May 21, 20232 min read


Early Spring Greens: Cucumber-y Cat-tails
Springtime on PEI provides an amazing selection of edible wild plants. If you’re out enjoying our freshwater wetlands (or maybe foraging...
katemacquarrie22
May 20, 20232 min read


Peat Bogs
Peat Bogs (Photo 1) are one of the oldest habitats on the Island; we can trace their beginnings back to the end of the last Ice Age more...
katemacquarrie22
Dec 28, 20222 min read


Black Marsh, North Cape
I have a post specifically on Peat Bogs, but there is one very special Island bog that merits its own post: Black Marsh at North Cape....
katemacquarrie22
Dec 28, 20222 min read


Natural Ponds
It’s time to highlight another of PEI’s important habitats! Today let’s look at our natural ponds. I say “natural” because the Island has...
katemacquarrie22
Dec 28, 20222 min read
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