The Narwhal https://thenarwhal.ca Deep Dives, Cold Facts, & Pointed Commentary en-US Copyright 2026 The Narwhal hourly 1 Ontario’s Endangered Species Act is officially dead. Here’s what that means https://thenarwhal.ca/ontario-species-conservation-act-enforced/ Mon, 06 Apr 2026 19:31:22 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=158020 The new Species Conservation Act will leave many plants and animals — including barn owls and red-headed woodpeckers — largely unprotected, experts say Leah Borts-Kuperman News Bill 5 biodiversity Endangered Species Ontario Photo: Judit Dombovari / iStock A closeup image of a barn owl, with a blurry green background. Internal documents reveal Ontario will not share endangered species plans with public https://thenarwhal.ca/ontario-endangered-species-recovery-strategies/ Wed, 18 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=156996 The Doug Ford government will not publish guidance for bringing at-risk species back from the brink — plans that were underway when Bill 5 passed, removing requirements for recovery planning Elaine Anselmi Investigation Bill 5 Endangered Species Ontario Photo: Paul Gains An eastern wolf casts a glance backwards as it walks along a road. In Manitoba, a growing bison herd offers lessons in cultural restoration and community https://thenarwhal.ca/skownan-first-nation-wood-bison/ Fri, 06 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=156162 As a group of once-endangered wood bison join a larger herd in Skownan First Nation, hope for the future of the culturally vital species grows Crystal Greene News biodiversity Endangered Species Indigenous protected areas Spirits of Place wildlife Photo: Supplied by Skownan First Nation A herd of bison in a grassy field with trees in the backdrop. ‘No reason on earth’ to log endangered Canadian rainforest: scientist https://thenarwhal.ca/rare-canadian-rainforest-at-risk-logging/ Tue, 03 Mar 2026 17:33:09 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=155372 Forestry companies hold licences to log in Canada’s inland temperate rainforest, home to endangered caribou and rare lichens. That makes a proposal for a new provincial park more urgent than ever Sarah Cox In-Depth On the ground B.C. biodiversity caribou Endangered Species inland temperate rainforest Scientist Toby Spribille looks for lichens in the inland temperate rainforest A Nanaimo trail project reveals how B.C. fails to protect rare ecosystems https://thenarwhal.ca/nanaimo-slimleaf-onion-disturbed/ Tue, 03 Mar 2026 15:21:43 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=155878 Trail construction in Nanaimo, B.C., dug up a rare slimleaf onion patch, exposing the lack of protection for endangered Garry oak ecosystems Amber Bracken In-Depth B.C. biodiversity Endangered Species urban development Photo: Supplied by Thomas Bevan A muddy path in the foreground with a digger in the background Across a colonial border, First Nations share salmon eggs to bypass dams https://thenarwhal.ca/syilx-salmon-egg-sharing/ Fri, 20 Feb 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=155023 This year marks a decade of the partnership between the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, in Washington, and a syilx hatchery up-river Aaron Hemens News B.C. biodiversity Endangered Species transboundary Photo: Aaron Hemens / Indiginews Hundreds of bright pink salmon eggs float in a hatchery tub. Ottawa sued over delayed protection of imperilled caribou habitat https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-caribou-habitat-lawsuit/ Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:09:56 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=154444 Conservation groups warn ‘extinction is not accidental; it is a political choice’ as they ask the Federal Court to rule on delayed critical habitat mapping Ainslie Cruickshank News B.C. biodiversity caribou Endangered Species federal politics Photo: Ryan Dickie / The Narwhal a mother and baby caribou are seen in a forested area Ontario will sever Wasaga Beach park despite 98% disapproval in public comments https://thenarwhal.ca/wasaga-beach-transfer-registry-comments/ Tue, 27 Jan 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=153673 Ontario received more than 14,000 comments on the plan to drop provincial protections on a portion of the park, transferring management of endangered plover habitat to the municipality Fatima Syed News Endangered Species Great Lakes Ontario Parks protected areas Photo: Carlos Osorio / The Narwhal An aerial view of Wasaga Beach. On the left, Lake Huron and the sandy shoreline. On the right, a parking lot. Southern Ontario prairies need fire to flourish, and a place to grow https://thenarwhal.ca/alderville-black-oak-savanna-conservation/ Mon, 12 Jan 2026 13:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=152506 Alderville First Nation’s Black Oak Savanna is a pocket of a rare ecosystem that was nearly lost to colonialism. Dedicated stewards are bringing it back Gabrielle McMann On the ground biodiversity Endangered Species Ontario protected areas Spirits of Place A lone green tree seen through the silhouettes of tallgrass at the Alderville Black Oak Savanna during Prairie Day on October 3, 2025. Who’s afraid of the big, bad coywolf? https://thenarwhal.ca/coywolf-ontario-wolf-problem/ Mon, 10 Nov 2025 12:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=148160 Reports of a larger, more aggressive coyote wandering Toronto streets understandably draw attention, but behind the myth of the coywolf is the truth about Ontario’s wolf problem Evert Lindquist In-Depth Bill 5 Endangered Species Ontario wildlife Photo: John Benson An eastern coyote looks at the camera as it climbs over a log with snow on it in autumn. Fish fight: Is the decline of Atlantic salmon actually the fault of striped bass? https://thenarwhal.ca/atlantic-salmon-striped-bass-threat/ Tue, 04 Nov 2025 12:00:00 +0000 https://thenarwhal.ca/?p=147962 A once-threatened fish has surged back while another one struggles — leaving fishermen, scientists and regulators divided over how to protect species, habitat and livelihoods Jeremy Hull On the ground Atlantic Canada Endangered Species fisheries New Brunswick Nova Scotia A man with his back to the camera casts a fishing line into a wide river.