Biodiversity Festival at Macdonald Campus
Note: This event, originally scheduled on September 19th, has been postponed September 26th due to weather
Come celebrate at the Macdonald Campus, the launch of McGill’s first Biodiversity Plan on Tuesday, September 26 from 12h00 to 14h00 in the Centennial Centre lobby and Ceilidh. Learn about the new Biodiversity Plan and actions that will be implemented to protect and improve McGill’s biodiversity.
Visit our booths to learn about biodiversity research and initiatives occurring here at Mac Campus, then join a guided bird walk. Then, test your biodiversity knowledge for a chance to win some fantastic prizes!
BioBlitz: Contribute to Biodiversity Monitoring on Campus
🌿 Get ready to explore the incredible biodiversity around us! Participate in McGill’s BioBlitz, happening during the Biodiversity Festival, from Sept. 18 to 23 at the Downtown Campus, Macdonald Campus, and Gault Nature Reserve. Whether on one of our guided nature walks or on your own, join us in discovering the rich tapestry of life that calls our campuses home. Learn more.
Guided Walks
| Time | Topic | About | Expert | Details for participants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14h00-15h00 | Guided bird walk at Macdonald Campus | Join Dr. Kyle Elliott for a guided bird walk at Macdonald Campus. Fall migration is underway, and many migratory birds can be spotted moving through greenspaces on their way south! | Professor Kyle Elliott, Department of Natural Resource Sciences | Participants can meet on the front steps of the Centennial Centre at 14h00. Wear walking shoes and outdoor attire. Binoculars are optional. |
Booths
| Organization | About |
|---|---|
| Macdonald Campus Pollinator Meadow |
The Mac Meadow is home to a diverse array of native wildflowers that provide food and shelter for pollinators. With the support of the McGill SPF (Sustainability Projects Fund), the initiative that began as a class project in 2020 has bloomed into an ecosystem that continues to service all species in its vicinity. |
| McGill Herbarium | The McGill University Herbarium has been cataloguing natural history for over a century and a half, preserving vouchers essential to understanding both past and present patterns of plant biodiversity. There are currently about 140,000 sheets in the collection; specimens from Quebec, Ontario, and the circumpolar Arctic, including Greenland and Siberia, form the core of the collection. |
| Lyman Entomological Museum |
The Lyman Entomological Museum is a biodiversity “hotspot” on the Macdonald Campus of McGill University. This insect collection holds nearly 3 million specimens, making it one of the largest insect collections in Canada. |
| McGill Bird Observatory |
Founded in 2005, the McGill Bird Observatory (MBO) is a project operated by The Migration Research Foundation Inc., a charitable organization dedicated to migration monitoring and bird conservation and is located on the Stoneycroft Wildlife Area in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue. Our site encompasses a patchwork of different types of habitats making it an ideal location for the hundreds of bird species we’ve already observed on-site to rest and refuel during migration. |