The Peterborough Field Naturalists (PFN) is a registered charity and active club in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. We meet at 7:30pm the second Wednesday of the month Sept-Dec and Feb-June at the Camp Kawartha Environment Center at Trent University. We welcome all to join us at these events.
Read the Orchid
Each year our hard working volunteers distribute 8 issues of our monthly bulletin to members. The Orchid is full of excellent articles that can help keep you connected to nature in Peterborough.
Upcoming Events
Each Year in addition to our monthly meetings the Peterborough Field Naturalists offer dozens of events to members and the public to explore nature in our community. Find out what is coming up next!
Junior Naturalists
We offer events geared towards kids aged 5-12 on a regular basis. Run by environmental educators from Peterborough. Come out and try an event to see if you'd like to join!
Upcoming Events
World’s Greatest Concentration of Gulls: Sunday, December 1
World’s Greatest Concentration of Gulls: Sunday, December 1 – 7:00 a.m. This day trip will be a birding outing to the Niagara River, a designated Important Birding Area due to the variety and number of gulls which utilize the river in the late fall. More species can be observed in a day than anywhere else…
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Wave Riders of Rice Lake: Sunday, November 24th
Wave Riders of Rice Lake: Sunday, November 24 – 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. Join Martin Parker for this traditional Grey Cup afternoon exploration of sites along the northwestern shore of Rice Lake. We will be looking for the later migrating ducks and other birds. Highlights will be the rafts of ducks riding the waves of…
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Fall Shorebirds and Waterfowl at Presqu’ile Provincial Park: Sunday, November 3
Fall Shorebirds and Water Birds at Presqu’ile Provincial Park Sunday, November 3, 8 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Jerry Ball will lead a day-long trip to view migrant birds at Presqu’ile Provincial Park, with other stops of interest on the way. Expect to see many interesting waterfowl. Bring a packed lunch, binoculars and, if you have…
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Water Birds and other Late Migrants of the Pigeon Lake area: Sunday, October 27
Water Birds and other Late Migrants of the Pigeon Lake area, Sunday, October 27, 8:00-11:00 a.m. Jerry Ball will lead us to the east shore of Pigeon Lake looking for migrating waterfowl, Bonaparte’s Gulls and Northern Shrike. Meet at the Riverview Park and Zoo, Water Street North at 8:00 a.m.where carpooling will be arranged. Dress…
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Hawks Over Cranberry Marsh
Hawks Over Cranberry Marsh Saturday, October 19th, 9-4:00 p.m. Each fall as the hawks and other raptors are heading southwards, they are blocked by the water of Lake Ontario. They will migrate westerly along the north shore of the lake looking for a way around it. On this outing, we will travel to the Cranberry…
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Migrating Birds of the Pigeon Lake area
Migrating Birds of the Pigeon Lake area Sunday, October 13, 2019 8:00 a.m. Dave Milsom and Matthew Tobey continue the PFN Sunday Morning Birding tradition, this time to the Pigeon Lake area looking for migrants including waterfowl. Meet at the Riverview Park and Zoo, Water Street North at 8:00 a.m. where carpooling will be arranged.…
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Monthly Meeting: Geological Features of The Land Between in Peterborough County
The area north of the City of Peterborough contains a fascinating array of natural geological heritage features that span a billion years. Ken Lyon, hydrogeologist and PFN member, will introduce rocks of the core of ancient Canadian Shield mountains, plate tectonics and limestones and fossils of the shallow warm Ordovician seas, and Pleistocene drumlins and…
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It’s Mushroom Season!
It’s Mushroom Season! Sunday, October 6th 1:00 p.m. Meet at the main door Block C/D of the Life Sciences Bldg., Trent University. Please join amateur mycologists Susan Chow and Radek Odolczyk for an intro to fungal taxonomy and macroscopy in the lab followed by a field visit to Mark S. Burnham Woods to investigate fungi…
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Do You Like Rocks and Geology?
Do You Like Rocks and Geology? Saturday, October 5th 1:00 p.m. Ken Lyon, P.Geo., is leading a half-day, old-fashioned road trip north of the City of Peterborough. We will explore geology features going back a billion years in The Land Between, one of the most priceless natural heritage areas in Ontario. Stops will include Burleigh…
Read MorePFN Juniors: BioBlitz at Kawartha Heights Park (SW Ptbo)
Let’s identify all kinds of plants and animals – it’s active exploration and learning. We’ll wander through the park and learn how to use field guides and iNaturalist to identify and document the species we find. Plants will be our main focus since they stay still while you take pictures, but we’ll also dabble with insects…
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