We have had a full and rewarding summer with the key word being “turtles”. We were able to secure funding for a turtle technician position through Canada Summer Jobs. We extended this position with funding from LUSH Cosmetics and some late summer funds from Ottawa Riverkeeper. With the help of over 50 volunteers and our other summer staff, the Friends:
⁃ Collected 427 eggs and stored them in incubators at Riverhouse
⁃ Released 354 hatchlings back into the waters at Petrie Island
⁃ Hatchling by species: Painted- 45; Northern Map- 149; Snapping -233
⁃ Raised $720 through the adopt a baby turtle program for turtle conservation
⁃ Hosted 15 hatchlings releases with over 600 attendees
⁃ Still had over 600 people on the wait list for hatchling events
⁃ Held our annual Turtle Day with the Canadian Wildlife Federation
And just to top off our summer of the turtle, we have just installed 4 interpretive signs along Turtle Trail. These weather and flood resistant signs are the result of support from Dr. Sue Aitken, professor of Environmental Science at Carleton University; the creative skills of Léa Francoeur, summer staff; funding through our local Councillor, Matt Luloff and involvement from our colleagues at the City of Ottawa- Parks and Facilities Planning, French Languages, Park Operations, Parks and Community Development. Please do take a look next time you are out and let us know your feedback. If we move forward on additional interpretive signage, this feedback will be useful. What are other topics you would like to see?
Of course we also worked to maintain the trails which was a challenge with the rain this summer. As per feedback we received in last year’s surveys, we have added a few benches along the trails. Our Naturalist sessions were increasingly subscribed with excellent attendance for both English and French sessions. We will look to tailor them for different age groups next year. The picnic table and tent reservations continue to be popular. It is wonderful to see families and friends enjoying being together and being in nature.
A couple of other highlights for the summer include the unveiling of a lookout area dedicated to Al and Helen Tweddle for their many years of dedication to Petrie. They would both be delighted to see the high interest at Nature Day in August with its various topics and many happy attendees. Al would surely be glad that we are again working on the wildflower gardens with good progress on the small one by the picnic area and plans for the larger one for next year.
The Friends of Petrie Island have had a busy summer and none of this can happen without volunteers who give their knowledge, skills, labour and passion to make Petrie Island one of the go-to places for visitors and residents. We depend on our members to help sustain our tiny organization and encourage anyone with a love for nature to join in by purchasing a membership (2025 memberships can be purchased on petrieisland.org) or volunteering. You can join us on Facebook (we have a page and a group- Friends of Petrie Island: Our Small Wilderness) and Instagram.