Wildlife on the Grand River Southern Ontario

"We have had trips where wildlife seems to be everywhere... wild turkeys fly in front of us... deer splash across... foxes run the shoreline... hawks dive-bomb eagles... beaver swim beside us... things that people only expect when journeying north to Algonquin. 

And then there are days where all we see is a lonely Blue Heron and some Turkey Vultures... sightings can't be guaranteed... but the wildlife is there!"    Garth Pottruff

Wild Chickadee feeding from the hand. Photo by Tony Ibele

There is always a higher chance of seeing wildlife on weekdays and evening paddles.

Paddling traffic during the days on Saturdays and Sundays can make wildlife viewing not as prevalant.

Because the Grand River flows through the Carolinian Forest Type... there are more trees & plants, wildlife, birds, fish and insects then anywhere else in Canada.

Below are photos of creatures you might see while hiking or paddling through the Grand River Valley... so try your hand at recognizing them! Click on photos for more details...

 

 

Answers to Above Photos:

1) River Beaver (about 25kgs)   2) Wild Goose Nest    3) Blue Heron

4) Osprey (fishing hawk)    5) Young Brown Trout    6) Cicadia (the high whine noise on hot days)

7) Coyote Track     8) White Underwing Moth     9) Snowy White Egret

10)  Gold Finch   11) Bald Eagle    12) Red Fox

13) Pileated Wood Pecker (size of a chicken)    14) Muskrat      15) Canadian Geese

16) Raccoon    17) Rainbow Trout     18) Red Squirrel

19) Wild Turkeys    20) Whitetail Deer     21) Two Red Tail Hawks fighting

22) Question Mark Butterfly    23) Albino Grey Squirrel     24) Smallmouth Bass guarding nest

25) Baltimore Oriole    26) Snapping Turtle     27) A Beaver Chew on a Tree

28) Garter Snake     29) 9-Point Buck Whitetail Deer Skull   30) Red-Wing Black Bird in Flight

(The creatures names coloured in blue were non-existent 50 years ago in the valley).

On a hot day or early spring the Grand River can become "Turtle Alley". These are Painted Turtles.

We want to recognize Tony Ibele... (Osprey, Hawks fighting, Chickadee, Muskrat, Red Squirrel, Snake and the list goes on!), Phil Ogborne (Fox, Pileated Woodpecker, Moth and Butterfly) and Jeffrey MacDonald (Beaver and flock of Turkeys) for contributing additional wildlife photos to this collection... much appreciated!