In The News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Georgian Bay’s Great Pollinators

Midland, Ontario Tay Township…………………………Wye Marsh joins in supporting National Wildlife Week (NWW) April 6 to April 12 by paying homage to the life sustaining process of pollination, the insects, birds and other wildlife species that help sustain the life of the flora and fauna of the Georgian Bay region. Now it’s time to expose one of the great secrets in the private lives of plants ... pollination. Programs will include the following: Trumpeter Swan Update, Bees Please, Tracking Furry Critters, Trees That Please, Make Recycled Bird Feeder, and Habitat Management.

Laurie Schutt, Executive Director at Wye Marsh says, “With the concern about the decline in last year’s bee population, the pollination theme takes on even more significance in 2008.”

According to the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s web site,

Pollination is one of the most important ecological processes on the planet.
The basic transfer of pollen from the male parts of a plant to the female parts is vital for reproduction of about 90 percent of the seed-producing plant species in the world. *Pollination creates fertile seeds, and fertile seeds contain the promise of renewed life, year after year, generation after generation.
Pollination is a fundamental function in ecosystems and pollinators, which are often referred to as “keystone species” because many other species in their ecosystem depend on them, play a critical role.
Without pollination, many plants could not reproduce. Food webs and, therefore, ecosystems would collapse. We would quickly run out of food, medicine and wood products.

National Wildlife Week is a program of the Canadian Wildlife Federation, sponsored in partnership with provincial and territorial governments, the Canadian Museum of Nature, Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Parks Canada and Scouts Canada.

NWW is celebrated each year during the week surrounding April 10, the birthday of Jack Miner, one of the founders of Canada’s conservation movement. Proclaimed an act of Parliament in 1947, NWW is a time to celebrate Canada’s natural heritage and play an active role in conservation.

For additional information on the National Wildlife Week at the Wye Marsh http://www.wyemarsh.com/calendar.html visit
or call (705) 526-7809

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Editors’ Notes:
Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre www.wyemarsh.com is located 35 minutes northwest of Barrie Ontario in the heart of Southern Georgian Bay’s Historic Resort Destination in the Wye Valley, in Midland Ontario. The Centre continues to provide outdoor experiences and environmental education for school groups, Scouts and Guides, and international visitors. The centre is open year round, seven days a week, allowing seasonal outdoor experiences in the winter, spring, summer and fall.

Media wishing to write travel stories on Ontario’s great outdoors at the Wye Marsh should contact Denise Brophey (705) 526-7809 to arrange for dates and times.