Arlington Forest Protection Society

06/02/2026

World Environment Day - June 5th. The theme for World Environment Day 2026 is "Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future." Something to be aware of.

On another note, I took these photos this past week and felt moved to share.

The Trilliums are up along the Arlington Forest. There were a number of them in flower on the forest floor.

The yellow finch stopped for a moment and I was able to get a fairly good photo of this guy showing off his colours. There must have been a bit of a territorial dispute earlier, there were three chasing each other and making a great deal of noise.

Lastly, this mother ground hog brought her young out and I was able to get a few photos of them as well. This was near my home, but as they do not bother my plants I don't mind them as neighbours. :)

05/26/2026

Snow squalls of catkin fluff! The large toothed aspen are shedding their tiny seeds in the mounds of fluff falling from their lofty heights over the past week! I’ve wondered why there is so much fluff this year (I’ve never seen a year like it) and here is one explanation!

If you’ve noticed more of that white fluff in the air in recent days, you’re not alone. It’s the fluff that female aspen trees produce in order to disperse their seeds and …

05/10/2026

Happiest Mother’s Day to everyone who has been a mama to someone or something! Today’s bird of the day in the Forest is the brown creeper. Old snags are important nesting habitats as they burrow under flaking bark to build their nests.
Thanks to Cornell University for the Merlin App and this image below.

05/02/2026

Good to be back on the forest trails now that winters two feet of snow has gone. Even with a long, slow, cool spring the land is already getting too dry.

04/26/2026

Today is a busy day in the forest for these wonderful birds! Large snags (dead standing trees) are an important nesting resource for the largest of the woodpecker species in the Forest.

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04/22/2026

Annual General Meeting Saturday April 25th at 204 Arlington Road. Potluck to follow! Members please reply via your email invitation to RSVP!

04/21/2026

April 2026, in the Arlington Forest.

The forest and nearby wetland are coming alive with the spring weather. No ticks on this walk, fortunately. Here is a view of the pine grove on the slope above the wetlands. It was very peaceful in amongst these large trees. The forest floor was covered with signs of wildlife, particularly s**t from passing animals. Alas, I did not see any of them, but they have clearly been frequenting this area. There was an abundance of Eastern Teaberry covering much of the forest floor near the wetland. It is still mostly red from the winter, but still gives that wonderful minty smell when a leaf is crushed between your fingers. The wetland is full at the moment. The beaver have been working on the dam and there is a sizable pond where a Canada Goose was quietly paddling about and not paying much attention to me. Enjoy :)

12/24/2025

Wishing a peaceful holiday for rest and rejuvenation and a time of reflection. As we go into the longer days of winter we are thankful for the connections we have to the forest, our community and friends.
The needle frost was abundant today. The phenomenon occurs when the ground is wet and the air temperature is below freezing. Today it was -8C! Snow in the forecast tomorrow.

11/16/2025

The Shoulder to Shoulder Rally today on the Commons in Halifax was an uplifting experience with song and stories of so many groups trying to make the province a healthier and safer place to live. Protecting forests is one of the most important steps we can take to help slow global warming and the related climate change.

10/24/2025

Fall 2025 update. It has been a busy summer. We have been talking with folks at the Atlantic Canada Climate Network to expand our community links and work on new challenges. On August 24th the AFPS participated in the Medway Community Forest Market. Interest was good and the seedling give away was well received. In the meantime we accepted an invitation to join meetings organized by the Climate Reality Project Canada. On September 18th we joined the first quarterly Community Advocacy Meeting and were introduced to a project called the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. Our keynote speaker on this occasion was a local (Halifax) resident speaking to us from Scotland. The non-proliferation treaty project is still in its formative stages and does not mean a full on stop with fossil fuels, but rather a measured and fair response and transition. We are educating ourselves at the present time. On October 23rd we joined a larger meeting and listened to the presentation from a host in Washington DC. Atlantic Canada Climate Network provides connection with other regional Community Climate Hubs and is a means by which events are shared and promoted. Meanwhile, we are looking into re-establishing a website so that we can archive materials and keep folks updated on AFPS activities. That's it for this evening, stay well.