Wildlife

Our 165 hectares harbour an incredible diversity of wildlife species.  In the spring, we often have large flocks of migratory songbirds such as warblers, thrushes, vireos, tanagers and sparrows.  In the summer, we have a wide variety of insects including many pollinators.  In the fall, you can catch a last glimpse of chipmunks, flycatchers, monarch butterflies and frogs before they disappear before the cold sets in.  In winter, a visit to The Arboretum isn’t complete without trying to hand feed a chickadee or follow some mammal tracks in the snow.

Species Lists: 

To see our lists of species, please go to our Arboretum Biodiversity page. This page has lists for Arboretum insects, birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish as well as lichens, trees, wildflowers and fungi.  These lists are updated as we get more sightings.

Backyard Wildlife:

To learn about wildlife that can be found in your backyard, click here to go to our Gosling Wildlife Gardens page.

Workshops:

We offer many courses on wildlife species.  Check them out on our Workshop page.

Photos: 

Go to our Flickr site to see recent sightings and photos.

Report a sighting: 

Many of our important sightings are made by visitors like you! Please contact us about your sightings by e-mail arbor@uoguelph.ca. If you took photos, please include them and let us know if we can add them to our Flickr site (credited to you, of course!).

Booklets and Biodiversity sheets: 

We sell small booklets on Mammals (including tracks), Feeder Birds, Summer Garden Birds and Dragonflies, as well as 11X17 laminated, full colour, double-sided biodiversity sheets on local plants, animals, fungi and lichens. Check them out on our booklet page.