The William Bog Nature Reserve

Five Properties Donated

The original 1.09 acre property was donated in May, 2002 to Thunder Bay Field Naturalists by the family of the late Max Diamond. The land lies in the William Bog, a provincially significant wetland lying west of the Thunder Bay Expressway, and within the city limits of Thunder Bay.Encouraged by this first donation, TBFN embarked on a landowner contact program. As a result, we have received four additional donations of properties in the William Bog. The total size of the 5 donated properties is approximately 5 acres.

We would like to thank Greta Dodick, G. Judy Gasparotto, and two other anonymous donors for generously donating their land to become part of the TBFN's William Bog Nature Reserve. We appreciate their support of conservation in our city.

Club members gave generously to support these new acquisitions. As a result of the letter appeal mailed to members in November 2002, over $4,000 was raised. Thank you to all the donors for your support.

The Thunder Bay Field Naturalists applied for and received a grant of $2,735 from the ONTAP program. The program, developed by the Federation of Ontario Naturalists, supports worthy projects of small land trusts in the province. The grant received was added to the amount raised by club members to cover the costs of the William Bog Nature Reserve.

Outright Gift of Land From the Lake Superior Land Trust Partnership publication "In Their Own Voices: Land Conservation in the Lake Superior Basin"

April 2006 Update

A sixth parcel of land, approximately 2 acres in size and adjacent to the other reserve lands in the William Bog, was donated to TBFN on March 30, 2006, bringing the total size of the William Bog Reserve to approximately 7 acres. The land was donated by the three owners of Westlake Investments Ltd.

This fen-swamp complex, located between the Northwood and Parkdale subdivisions, is used by Lakehead University students as a laboratory for natural history and ecology. It supports a wide variety of plants and animals including 14 orchid species, three kinds of sundew and a wide variety of butterflies, one of which is the locally rare Grizzled Skipper butterfly. 73 bird species have been observed on the reserve to date.

Hooded Ladies' Tresses ( (Sue Bryan photo L; Ryan LeBlanc Photo R)