For the first time, WPC’s team successfully kept yellow-banded bumble bees through the winter at our Bumble Bee Conservation Lab in Ontario. This allowed us to establish our first lab generation, doubling our mating successes and significantly increasing the number of bees we can produce. Of the 29 yellow-banded queens in our care, 76 per cent successfully produced workers, up from 65 per cent in 2023.
2024 IMPACT REPORT
WPC is Canada’s last defence for endangered species. is Canada’s last defence for endangered species.
Since 1985, Wildlife Preservation Canada has been saving the most imperiled and endangered species in Canada.
Our Vision
A land where Canada’s wildlife is bountiful, diverse, and thriving, free from the threat of extinction.
Our Mission
Wildlife Preservation Canada saves animals at risk from extinction in Canada by performing hands-on field work with species requiring direct action to recover, providing opportunities for Canadian conservation biologists to increase their expertise, and advancing conservation science by developing new methods for endangered species recovery.
Our Approach
Wildlife Preservation Canada is a conservation leader managing recovery programs for some of Canada’s most threatened species. We develop innovative techniques that can be used in Canada and around the world to save species at risk. We build this country’s conservation capacity by providing opportunities for young scientists to work with endangered species, both in Canada and abroad.
To maximize our impact, we choose species based on the urgency of their conservation needs, our unique expertise, and the potential to collaborate with other organizations and strategic partners. We work closely with local communities recognizing that they are critical to
long-term conservation success.
MESSAGE FROM OUR PRESIDENT
Dear Supporters and Friends of Wildlife Preservation Canada,
In 2025 Wildlife Preservation Canada celebrates our 40th anniversary — four decades of turning a bold idea into real, measurable gains for Canada’s most vulnerable species. Our founders drew inspiration from the late naturalist Gerald Durrell, whose conviction that “every species is priceless” still guides our hands-on, science-driven recovery work.
In 2024, that led to many significant milestones for endangered species conservation:
- Notable achievements included record-breaking populations of yellow-banded bumble bee queens, a critical rebound in the number of loggerhead shrike fledglings and an unprecedented number of western painted turtle releases and nests in the wild.
- Pioneering strategies resulted in the first-ever successful overwintering of conservation-bred yellow-banded bumble bees and the continued success of artificial hibernacula for eastern massasauga rattlesnakes and Butler’s gartersnakes.
- Collaborative efforts were significantly enhanced, evidenced by the establishment of the Burrowing Owl Alliance, a nationwide partnership dedicated to the protection of grassland birds and other species.
These results reflect the tireless fieldwork, rigorous science and unwavering collaboration of WPC.
Our four-decade journey has been powered by an extraordinary community — donors, volunteers, staff, board members, Indigenous partners and like-minded organizations — who have made Wildlife Preservation Canada a leader across Canada in endangered species recovery. Wildlife may know no borders, yet protecting the species that define our landscape is an act of stewardship that resonates from coast to coast to coast.
With your continued support, we’ll set the course for even bolder achievements in the coming years for Canada’s wildlife and the wild spaces they call home.
With heartfelt gratitude,
Shripal Doshi
President, Wildlife Preservation Canada
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As wetlands in B.C. have vanished, so have the Oregon spotted frogs that depend on these freshwater ecosystems. Now, this shy species with its distinctive red-orange underbelly can only be found in small, fragmented populations in the lower Fraser Valley.
Since 2010, WPC has been turning the tide for Canada’s most endangered amphibian. For a long time, our progress was limited. But thanks to careful observation, collaboration and ingenuity, we finally uncovered the key factors required to breed these frogs in big numbers.
Since 2021, WPC’s pioneering “love tubs” located at the Greater Vancouver Zoo, have dramatically increased egg production, allowing us to reintroduce tens of thousands of Oregon spotted tadpoles and froglets into B.C.’s wetlands.
Photo: J. Athwal
Rebuilding our breeding colony
Much of our work this year focused on rebuilding our breeding program, following the losses we suffered in 2022 caused by chytrid fungus: a deadly disease that has wiped out frog populations around the world. To prevent future outbreaks, we conducted monthly testing in each of our rearing tanks. Encouragingly, all swabs came back negative, ensuring all frogs entered their winter hibernation disease-free.
To continue growing our colony to pre-outbreak levels, we kept 53 of our tadpoles for breeding purposes. We also added 11 adults from Toronto Zoo, which has kept an “assurance colony” of Oregon spotted frogs since the early 2000s in case the species disappears in the wild. Relocating the Toronto frogs to our outdoor tubs will expose them to natural temperature, light cycles and communal breeding — factors that we’ve proven boost breeding success.
Once again, these revolutionary communal “love tubs” delivered big results. Thanks to high levels of egg fertility in 2024, we produced 6,000 healthy, strong tadpoles and 526 froglets for release into the wetlands of B.C.’s Fraser Valley.
In August we shared our groundbreaking approach with the wider conservation community at the World Congress of Herpetology in Malaysia, which brought together more than 4,000 delegates from 70 countries.
Program Location
Fraser River Valley, British Columbia
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Conservation Breeding & Head-starting
Outreach & Education
Reintroduction
Research
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy
B.C. Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship
Campbell Valley Nature House
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Fraser Valley Conservancy
Greater Vancouver Zoo
J.S. Darville
Kwantlen First Nation
Laurentian University
Leq’a:mel First Nation
Metro Vancouver Regional Parks
Oregon Spotted Frog Recovery Team
Sq’éwqel (Seabird Island Band)
Simon Fraser University
Stó:lō First Nation
The Annual Foundation
Toronto Zoo
Vancouver Aquarium
“It is amazing to see the program recover from a hit to our success like a chytrid outbreak. The resilience of the animals helps to build and maintain our morale as we continue to fight alongside them!”
– Andrea Gielens, Lead Biologist B.C. Projects
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Across the Pacific Northwest, Taylor’s checkerspots once fluttered through wildflower-rich grasslands each spring. But as their habitats were lost to agriculture and other human development, these insects became increasingly rare.
In fact, scientists believed the checkerspot had disappeared from Canada until a lone population of 15 butterflies was rediscovered on B.C.’s Denman Island in 2005. In 2013, WPC joined a program on Denman Island established by conservation visionary Peter Karsten to boost those wild numbers. Two years later, we began releasing caterpillars into restored habitats on the island.
As the program grew, we moved operations to bigger facilities at the Greater Vancouver Zoo. Today — thanks to innovative husbandry and breeding techniques — we’re producing and releasing thousands of caterpillars a year.
Photo: J. Athwal
Establishing new spots for checkerspots
In 2023, we released 1,476 Taylor’s checkerspot caterpillars at Hornby Island’s Helliwell Provincial Park. Our assessment of survival the following spring revealed more than 230 caterpillars successfully emerging from dormancy. This marked the first documented completion of their entire life cycle on Hornby Island since 1996, proving that reintroduction efforts and restoration of coastal bluff habitats will re-establish this beautiful butterfly in the park.
To keep this momentum going, we expanded our releases into additional areas. We introduced 100 caterpillars near St. John’s Point on Hornby Island and another 340 on nearby Flora Islet, which offers abundant food plants and nectar sources like spring gold, sea blush and small-flowered blue-eyed Mary.
These releases — done in collaboration with community associations and First Nations — are critical steps in establishing additional checkerspot populations within protected areas. WPC’s monitoring efforts in other parts of Vancouver Island produced additional encouraging findings. For example, during our spring surveys near Comox, our field staff observed 49 adult checkerspots, confirming that the butterflies continue to survive at that site as well.
Finally, to replenish our breeding population and refresh its diversity, we collected 130 wild caterpillars from nine genetically distinct matrilines, setting the stage for even more success in the coming years. Our goal is to release at least 5,000 caterpillars a year for five years to sites in and around Helliwell Provincial Park.
Program Location
Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands, British Columbia
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Breeding & Reintroduction
Land Steward Engagement
Population Monitoring & Assessments Research
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
The Annual Foundation
B.C. Ministry of Land, Water, and Resource Stewardship
B.C. Parks – Denman Island Provincial Park & Helliwell Provincial Park
Denman Conservancy Association
Denman Island landowners & community members
Denman Island Park Butterfly Reserve
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team
Greater Vancouver Zoo
Hornby Island landowners & community members
Hornby Island Natural History Centre
K’ómoks First Nation
Oregon Zoo
Taylor’s Checkerspot Butterfly Recovery Implementation Group
Taylor’s Checkerspot Community Working Group
University of British Columbia
“Through kilometres of surveying and inclement weather, our team worked tirelessly to survey for, collect and release Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies. Every wild sighting, every larval cluster and every waypoint recorded brings us closer to preserving this rare species.”
– Jag Athwal, B.C. Projects Assistant Biologist
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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If western painted turtles survive infancy, when they’re most vulnerable to predators, they can live to well over 50 years old. But today, urban development in B.C. has added to the natural pressures these turtles face, pushing them to the edge of extinction.
Since 2012, WPC has been collecting eggs from vulnerable nests and artificially incubating them at the Greater Vancouver Zoo. A few weeks after the eggs hatch, we release some of the new turtles back into the wetlands of Fraser Valley to augment populations through our “hatch and release” program. Others we “head-start” for at least a year, caring for them until they’re too large to be eaten by hungry bullfrogs and other predators.
Photo: J. Athwal
Another year of record-high releases
WPC’s recovery efforts are paying off, with more and more of the turtles we’ve released now nesting in the wild. In 2024, we found 49 nests laid by western painted turtles that we’ve released over the past decade, a 36 per cent increase over the previous year.
In the spring, we collected 484 eggs for artificial incubation, rescuing them from wild nests in high-risk locations like roadsides and gravel boat ramps. An impressive 383 hatched, well above our average success rate.
To keep those hatchlings healthy, we kept a watchful eye out for “soft-shell” disease. WPC has developed a highly effective medication for this deadly parasite, common in captive turtle and tortoise populations around the world. Treatment has not only reduced mortality rates but actually increased growth rates. This means we can release turtles sooner, creating more space to accommodate new hatchlings.
We released 286 of this year’s hatchlings into targeted areas where populations need a little boost. The rest joined our head-starting program, where they’ll spend a year or so bulking up at our facility before rejoining their wild peers. Meanwhile, 226 turtles graduated from that head-starting program in 2024 — another record high. Before their release, we assessed the health of each one, microchipping and photographing the unique pattern on their undersides to track their success in the wild.
Program Location
Fraser River Valley, British Columbia
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Head-starting & Reintroduction
Land Steward Engagement
Nest Protection
Outreach & Education
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
Aitchelitz First Nation
The Annual Foundation
Athene Ecological
B.C. Conservation Foundation
B.C. Institute of Technology
B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy
B.C. Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship
Biodiversity Conservation Department of City of Surrey
City of Chilliwack
Coastal Painted Turtle Project
Coastal Partners in Conservation
Dewdney Animal Hospital
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Fraser Valley Conservancy
Greater Vancouver Zoo
Hagen Family Foundation
Kwantlen First Nation
Lafarge Aggregates
Langley Field Naturalists
Leq’a:mel First Nation
Metro Vancouver Regional Parks
Private landowners of Nicomen Slough and Murchie Lake
Sq’éwqel (Seabird Island Band)
Skowkale First Nation
The Hagen Family Foundation
University of the Fraser Valley
Vancouver Island University
Western Painted Turtle Recovery Team
Yakweakwioose First Nation
“As we continue to expand WPC’s role in the monitoring of our head-start and augmented populations, we are seeing the results of our work begin to show on the landscape.”
– Andrea Gielens, Lead Biologist B.C. Projects
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Eastern loggerhead shrikes once thrived across Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. But the loss and fragmentation of the open grasslands and pastures they depend on have contributed to their drastic declines.
When Ontario’s population of eastern loggerhead shrikes dwindled to two dozen pairs in 2003, Environment Canada asked WPC to lead a multi-partner recovery effort. We pioneered the use of large breeding enclosures located in their natural habitat where fledglings could learn key survival skills before we released them. Just a few years later, one of those birds migrated south and then returned to breed with a wild shrike — a songbird conservation first.
To date, WPC has bred and released more than 1,300 shrikes, ensuring this feisty bird doesn’t disappear from Canada.
Photo: M. Felperin
Bouncing back after funding shortfalls
After the loss of provincial funding in 2023, limiting the number of field staff we could hire that year, our efforts to recover eastern loggerhead shrikes rebounded significantly in 2024.
Eleven of the shrike pairs in our conservation breeding program produced young. As a result, we released 43 fledglings, more than double the number in 2023. We equipped 11 of those birds with radio tags, allowing us to track their migration.
Staff from new partners Parc Omega and National Aviary assisted with releases at our Napanee field site, providing a much-needed boost to our on-the-ground capacity.
Those releases are crucial to maintaining the breeding population in Ontario. Our 2024 monitoring revealed that nearly one in four of the fledglings we found in the wild had at least one parent released from a conservation breeding program. This means that without WPC’s conservation program, we would no longer be able to see theses amazing birds here in Canada.
But continued collaboration is needed to ensure the future of this migratory songbird across its entire North American range. To facilitate that collaboration, WPC staff led a series of conservation planning workshops that brought together eastern loggerhead shrike experts from the field, zoos, NGOs, governments, universities and other organizations.
At the final workshop in January 2024, we hammered out the details of a continent-wide conservation strategy, including identifying threats in breeding and overwintering grounds and drafting action plans for the next decade.
Program Location
Southern Ontario
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Breeding & Reintroduction
Creating Partnerships
Habitat Restoration
Land Steward Engagement
Outreach & Education
Population Monitoring
Research
Threat Mitigation
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
African Lion Safari
BluEarth Renewables
Carden Forum
Couchiching Conservancy
David Charitable Trust
Dufferin Aggregates
Environment & Climate Change Canada – ECO Canada Science Horizons Internship
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Hodgson Family Foundation
Kingston Solar LP
K.M. Hunter Charitable Foundation
Napanee Plains Joint Initiative
Nashville Zoo at Grassmere
Natural Resources Canada – Clean Tech Internship Program
Ontario Parks – Carden Alvar Provincial Park
Parc Omega
Partners in Flight Eastern Grasslands Working Group
Queen’s University
Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute
Takla Foundation
The Land Between
The National Aviary
The Nature Conservancy of Canada
The North American Loggerhead Shrike Working Group
Toronto Zoo
University of Guelph’s Master of Wildlife Biology Program
Western University
“As my second year with the project, I began to personally see the fruits of our labour with a significant increase in shrikes from the previous year … I was thrilled to spot first-time breeding birds released through the program and new shrike families on sites they hadn’t been seen on in many years.”
– Helmi Hess, Lead Biologist, Eastern Loggerhead Shrike Recovery Program
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Ninety per cent of all flowering plants need pollinators to reproduce. That makes insect pollinators like bumble bees a cornerstone of natural ecosystems. But since the 1990s, their numbers have been collapsing.
Until the causes of these declines can be reversed, conservation breeding and reintroduction is the only way to safeguard at-risk bumble bees. That’s why WPC began working with them in 2013. Today, we’re the only organization in the world rebuilding wild bumble bee populations through conservation breeding.
WPC’s lab at Ontario’s African Lion Safari currently focuses on at-risk yellow-banded bumble bees and their common tri-coloured cousins. Working with both species will give us insights we can apply to other endangered bees, including the future reintroduction of rusty-patched bumble bees back to Canada.
Photo: J. Petrik (Pollinator Photo Contest)
Buzz-worthy successes
Recent breakthroughs mean we’re producing dramatically more bumble bees in our lab each year. In 2024, those successes continued.
Our yellow-banded bumble colonies produced 1,091 males and 172 gynes (new queens), up 30 per cent from the previous year. For the first time, we also successfully bred yellow-banded bumble bees through their entire life cycle, thanks to new overwintering methods. This allowed us to establish our first lab-bred generation, another global first for bumble bee conservation!
Our tri-coloured bumble colonies also thrived, producing 4,394 males and 223 gynes.
To keep our lab operations buzzing, we collected 29 yellow-banded and 20 tri-coloured bumble bee queens in the wild. Meanwhile, our ongoing surveys of wild populations — the largest bumble bee monitoring program in Canada — further enriched our long-term monitoring data.
On the research front, we advanced our ability to detect two significant parasites that pose a threat to bumble bees by adding genomic analysis of bee feces to our visual methods. To deepen our understanding of bumble bee health, we also tested three new pollen diets developed by bee researcher Dr. Mathilde Tissier on our new queens.
We strengthened our community science programs, recruiting and training more volunteers to participate in bee surveys at Ontario’s Rouge National Urban Park, Claremont Nature Centre and Pinery Provincial Park. Their efforts resulted in record-high uploads to Bumble Bee Watch, with 30% more observations than in 2023.
Program Location
Southern and Central Ontario
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Capacity Building
Creating Partnerships
Breeding & Reintroduction
Outreach & Education
Population Monitoring & Assessments
Research
Threat Mitigation
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
African Lion Safari
BumbleBeeWatch.org
Centre de la science de la biodiversité du Québec
Centre national de la recherche scientifique – CNRS
Claremont Nature Centre
Colla Lab, York University
Environment & Climate Change Canada – ECO Canada Science Horizons Internship
Employment and Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Esgenoôpetitj Watershed Association
Field Research in Ecology and Evolution Diversified
Gordon and Patricia Gray Animal Welfare Foundation
Humble Bee
Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg of the Algonquin First Nation
K.M. Hunter Charitable Fund
MacIvor Lab, University of Toronto Scarborough
Maitland Valley Conservation Authority
McMaster University
Ontario Conservation Authorities
Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks
Ontario Parks
Ontario Power Generation – Darlington & Pickering
Parks Canada
Pinery Provincial Park
Pollination Guelph
rare Charitable Research Reserve
RBC Community Investment Tech for Nature Fund
Rouge National Urban Park
Schroeder Lab, University of Minnesota
Science North
Sunset Community Foundation
Takla Foundation
TD Friends of the Environment Foundation
The Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation
The Hagen Family Foundation
The Xerces Society
Toronto and Region Conservation Authority
Université du Québec à Montréal
Université Laval
University of Guelph & Arboretum
University of Guelph’s Master of Wildlife Biology Program
“2024 was a busy and rewarding year for the Bumble Bee Recovery Program. With extensive wild population surveys, major successes and expansion in our Conservation Breeding Lab, and impactful community outreach, we’ve made large strides toward saving imperiled species like the yellow-banded bumble bee.”
– Taylor Kerekes, Lead Biologist, Native Pollinator Initiative
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Until 2019, the Ojibway Prairie Complex near Windsor, Ontario was one of the few sites in the province where massasauga rattlesnakes could still be found. But for the past few years, no sightings have been reported. We’re reversing that trend.
In 2021, the Ontario government asked WPC to lead the recovery of this threatened species. Since then, we’ve successfully overwintered these snakes using artificial hibernacula: PVC tubes with internal chambers that we install underground, mimicking the crayfish burrows that massasaugas typically use.
In 2022, we used the same approach to successfully overwinter and release endangered Butler’s gartersnakes. These projects make WPC one of only two organizations in the world, and the only one in Canada, determining how to reintroduce endangered snakes in the northern hemisphere, where cold winters pose a serious challenge.
Achieving massasauga milestones
Our mission to save massasauga rattlesnakes reached a new milestone in 2024, with the very first release of 21 massasaugas at the Ojibway Prairie. The two-year-old snakes had already spent at least one winter on site in artificial hibernacula, in addition to head-starting at Toronto Zoo.
Each of them was equipped with a radio transmitter that allowed us to track them in the wild. Three months after their release, 15 had survived — which is greater than the normal rate for two-year-old wild massasaugas.
We also translocated eight Butler’s gartersnakes to augment a declining local population in the same area, following similar overwintering and head-starting protocols.
We’re not just reintroducing snakes to the Ojibway Prairie. We’re making the area as habitable as possible to boost their odds of thriving. This year, that meant removing more than 170 kilograms of trash and more than 110 kilograms of invasive plants. We also added dozens of microhabitat features, including woody debris cover, nesting sites and additional artificial hibernacula.
First Nations are crucial partners in this work, possessing deep ecological knowledge and shared conservation goals. And in many cases, massasauga habitat is located on or near Indigenous lands. In June, we hosted a gathering at Toronto Zoo to discuss collaborative recovery actions and followed it up with several visits to First Nation communities to strengthen these important relationships.
Program Location
Ontario
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Breeding & Reintroduction
Habitat Restoration & Stewardship
Invasive Species Control
Outreach & Education
Population Monitoring & Assessments
Research
Threat Mitigation
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
8Trees Inc.
Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Canada
Caldwell First Nation
Canadian Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Recovery Implementation Group
Canadian Herpetological Society
City of Windsor
Eastern Georgian Bay Initiative
Environment & Climate Change Canada – ECO Canada Science Horizons Internship
Environment & Climate Change Canada – Priority Places for Species at Risk
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Essex Region Conservation Authority
Friends of Ojibway Prairie
Georgian Bay Biosphere
Hydro One
Laurentian University
Little Ray’s Nature Centre
Magnetawan First Nation
Nature Conservancy of Canada
Ojibway Nature Centre
Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks – Species at Risk Stewardship
Ontario Nature
Ontario Parks
Queen’s University
Scales Nature Park
Shawanaga First Nation
The Westaway Charitable Foundation
Toronto Zoo
Town of LaSalle
University of Waterloo
University of Windsor
Wiikwemkoong First Nation
“Our work this year is monumental in that we finally succeeded in conducting our first experimental conservation translocation with eastern massasaugas at Ojibway Prairie!”
– Jonathan Choquette, Lead Biologist
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Duskywing butterflies have become a rare sight in Ontario in recent years. Agriculture and urban sprawl have eliminated much of the tallgrass prairies they depend on, while invasive species are degrading what little remains.
To bring them back, WPC joined the multi-partner Ontario Butterfly Species at Risk Recovery Team in 2012. Together, this dynamic group launched an effort to breed duskywings at the Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory and reintroduce them to Pinery Provincial Park on the shores of Lake Huron.
Since the initial reintroduction into the park in 2021, the team has released more than 1,400 mottled duskywing pupae, caterpillars and adults throughout Pinery. Now, those released butterflies are breeding sustainably in the wild, making this the first-ever successful butterfly reintroduction in Ontario.
Photo: S. Underwood
Building on a duskywing boom
To create a self-sustaining population, the duskywings we release need to complete their life cycle. Caterpillars must form chrysalises to survive the winter, emerge as adult butterflies the following year, breed and lay eggs that hatch into new caterpillars. Last spring’s field surveys confirmed that’s exactly what’s happening!
In total, our crew observed 230 mottled duskywings with sightings at all life stages, as well as egg laying at multiple locations.
The first generation of adult butterflies emerged in the beginning of May, producing the earliest flight records in Ontario! Some of the caterpillars produced by that first generation entered diapause, a period of suspended development. But others matured into adults in July and went on to produce a second flight generation, boosting the population even further.
The findings highlight the success of the release program in re-establishing wild populations at Pinery Provincial Park on Lake Huron. Indeed, the program was so successful that the team shifted efforts to new release sites in a different part of the province — this time in Norfolk County, along the shores of Lake Erie, where we released 400 conservation-bred adult duskywings.
Now we’re aiming to advance similar conservation programs for frosted elfin (an Ontario butterfly that’s now considered extirpated from Canada) and half-moon hairstreak (a small grassland butterfly, threatened in Alberta and B.C.).
Program Location
Southern Ontario
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Population Assessments
Reintroduction & Post-Release Monitoring
Research
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Natural Resources Solutions Inc.
Norris Lab, University of Guelph
NSERC of Canada Alliance Grant
Ontario Butterfly Species At Risk Recovery Team
Ontario Parks – Pinery Provincial Park
“It is truly inspiring to see such positive numbers for the mottled duskywing so soon after four years of effort, and we are extremely hopeful for its future and for this population at Pinery to become self-sustaining … This is evidence that conservation efforts work!”
– Shannon Underwood, 2024 Crew Lead, Mottled Duskywing Pinery Reintroduction Program
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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The burrowing owl is one of the smallest owl species, distinguished by its very long legs and short tail. It gets its name from its habit of nesting in burrows dug by animals such as ground squirrels, badgers and prairie dogs. Burrowing owls are also known as “Howdy Owls” because of their habit of bobbing up and down in a bowing motion, a behaviour that likely allows them to determine distance from multiple viewpoints. Young owls in the nest make a rattling sound similar to rattlesnakes to ward off predators. They are nocturnal, although unlike other owls, they are also active to a certain extent during the day. Burrowing owls feed on rodents, large insects (such as crickets, beetles and grasshoppers), and small reptiles and amphibians.
Photo: S. Shappas
Banding together for burrowing owls
Since 1995, WPC has been at the forefront of efforts to save burrowing owls — Canada’s most endangered grassland bird.
Our successes included pioneering a breakthrough “soft release” technique where owls were raised in field enclosures and released after they had produced their first clutch. As a result, egg production doubled — and so did survival rates.
Today, we continue to support recovery efforts as a member of the Burrowing Owl Alliance, which brings together organizations from B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Because the majority of burrowing owl habitat is found on private property, our work this year focused on education and outreach. We have begun creating a website to share stewardship information with the public, as well as a guide to help landowners preserve habitat for owls and other grassland species.
Although Environment and Climate Change Canada funding for the project wraps up in 2025, we aim to continue growing the Alliance into a long-term conservation network that extends across the burrowing owl’s entire North American range, making it easier to collaborate and share knowledge. Together, we can save this species from extinction!
Program Location
British Columbia, Alberta
Saskatchewan and Manitoba
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Creating Partnerships
Land Steward Engagement
Outreach & Education
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
Alberta Wildlife Federation
Burrowing Owl Conservation Society of B.C.
Environment & Climate Change Canada
Manitoba Burrowing Owl Recovery Program
Nature Saskatchewan
Operation Grassland Community
Wilder Institute / Calgary Zoo
“Every province within the Canadian burrowing owl range has its own special challenges, but by pooling our knowledge and our resources, we aim to improve the species’ status nationally.”
– Hazel Wheeler, Conservation Programs Director
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Ontario is home to all 8 native turtle species found in Canada, including: wood turtles, eastern musk turtles, Blanding’s turtles, snapping turtles, spiny softshell turtles, northern map turtles, spotted turtles, and painted turtles (both midland and western sub-species).
However, almost all the species (all but the western painted turtle sub-species) are or are recommended to be listed as Species-at-Risk within the province, due to threats such as habitat destruction and fragmentation, road mortality human-subsidized predation, poaching, environmental pollution, and climate change.
Photo: R. Fallas
Teaming up for turtles
In 2021, WPC co-founded the Working Group for the Conservation of Ontario Turtles (WGCOT). Its mission: to bring conservation partners together to save Ontario’s turtles. The collaborative approach streamlines recovery efforts, delivering bigger impacts than any one organization could achieve on its own.
There’s a lot at stake. The province is home to all eight native turtle species found in Canada — wood turtles, eastern musk turtles, Blanding’s turtles, snapping turtles, spiny softshell turtles, northern map turtles, spotted turtles and painted turtles. And all of them are at risk, due to habitat destruction, vehicles, poaching, pollution and other stresses.
One of our key activities has been developing the Standard Ontario Turtle Beneficial Management Practices, drawing from the collective experience of experts who have spent decades working in this field. This document serves as a guide for turtle conservation actions in Ontario and across Canada. Examples include protecting nests from predators, collecting and incubating eggs, head-starting the resulting hatchlings and releasing them back to the wild.
Initial project funding is now wrapped up. However, new grant applications are underway to expand WGCOT, finish, publish and translate the beneficial practices document, host a conservation planning workshop for Blanding’s turtle, and facilitate a Two-Eyed Seeing approach to turtle conservation that integrates Western and Indigenous knowledge systems.
Program Location
Ontario
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Capacity Building
Creating Partnerships
Facilitating Beneficial Practices
“With so many new and inspiring turtle conservation groups and Indigenous communities starting nest protection projects, finishing the Standard Ontario Turtle Beneficial Management Practices document is more important than ever.”
– Hannah McCurdy-Adams, Reptile and Amphibian Program Development Coordinator
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Long-term conservation of endangered species continues to face new and emerging challenges, such as novel diseases and the impacts of climate change. In today’s world, the view that all species can be effectively conserved with minimal management simply by creating large areas of protected habitat is unrealistic. There is an increasing need for active management and long-term human intervention, guided by strategic plans that are tailored to the conservation needs of species.
Photo: H. Wheeler
Charting the best path forward for at-risk species
In 2019, WPC and African Lion Safari co-founded the Canadian Species Initiative (CSI) to promote a coordinated and holistic approach to saving endangered species here in Canada. CSI champions the One Plan Approach, which combines in situ conservation efforts in the wild like restoring habitats with ex situ approaches such as head-starting and conservation breeding. Adopting the One Plan Approach in Canada will significantly improve conservation outcomes. Recovery plans are often developed by a few experts without full collaboration, whereas international experience shows early, integrated planning leads to much better results.
In 2024, we completed a Conservation Strategy for the Eastern Loggerhead Shrike — the culmination of three years of collaboration between more than 40 shrike researchers, land managers, zoos, governments and industry across North America. This document gives shrike conservation partners a range-wide roadmap for recovery that incorporates all the best available science, as well as a clear and detailed plan for how to get there.
Meanwhile, following the success of CSI’s workshop for eastern mountain avens in 2023, we hosted a similar conservation planning workshop for Furbish’s lousewort: a rare plant found only along the banks of the Wolastoq River in New Brunswick and Maine. The three-day event brought together representatives from provincial and federal governments, species experts, research scientists, land conservancies, landowners and Indigenous knowledge holders. Together, we evaluated and recommend conservation actions for the species.
Looking ahead, WPC will be applying the One Plan Approach to many other species, including gray ratsnakes, global freshwater fish, Canadian frogs and bumble bees.
Program Location
Canada-wide
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Capacity Building
Creating Partnerships
Enhanced Conservation Planning
Facilitating Best Practices
Leadership
Conservation Needs Assessment
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
African Lion Safari
Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums (CAZA)
Environment & Climate Change Canada – ECO Canada Science Horizons Internship
Environment & Climate Change Canada – Priority Places
International Union for the Conservation of Nature Conservation Planning Specialist Group
New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources and Energy Development
“We had a successful year finishing a complex multi-year project for loggerhead shrikes, engaging with new partners and facilitating new processes, and sharing our expertise with Canadian and international partners.”
– Stephanie Winton, Conservation Planning Coordinator, Wildlife Preservation Canada & Regional Resource Centre Canada Convenor for the IUCN’s Conservation Planning Specialist Group
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
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Since 1988, the Canada’s New Noah program has given young biologists the opportunity of a lifetime. Each year, we select one post-secondary graduate to attend the Durrell Conservation Academy and then spend six months on the tropical island of Mauritius, working with some of the most endangered species on the planet.
New Noahs have gone on to lead conservation organizations across the country. They’ve played key roles in the recovery of Canadian species like whooping cranes, swift foxes and northern leopard frogs and worked in almost every province and territory. Graduates of the program have also contributed to species conservation around the world and pioneered techniques that are saving species at risk, from California condors to sea turtles.
Photo: R. Heffernan
Training a new generation of Canadian conservation leaders
Since 1988, WPC’s Canada’s New Noah program has been equipping young biologists with the knowledge and tools to save endangered animals in Canada and around the world, creating a cohort of highly skilled conservation experts.
Each year, we select one applicant to complete a three-month course at the Durrell Conservation Academy on the U.K. island of Jersey, followed by a six-month internship on the islands of Mauritius and Madagascar, off the east coast of Africa.
In 2024, that applicant was Rosie Heffernan. As WPC’s 33rd Canada’s New Noah, Rosie studied endangered species management on Jersey with a dozen other young biologists from around the world.
From there, she headed east to work on conservation projects alongside seasoned experts. In Mauritius, Rosie monitored populations of threatened lizards and seabirds, planted native plants and helped control outbreaks of invasive species. In Madagascar, she spent time at the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust’s conservation breeding facility for critically endangered tortoise and turtle species.
In the process, she gained invaluable practical training and field experience on the management of wildlife recovery projects, on the frontline, for many of the world’s most critically endangered species. Today, Rosie is back in Canada with a new repertoire of knowledge and skills to contribute — and a new appreciation of what it takes to bring endangered species back from the brink. Above all, having now experienced firsthand how species can be saved from the brink of extinction in places where the obstacles appeared unassailable, Rosie returns to Canada with much hope that we can do the same here for our own wildlife species in need.
Program Location
Jersey, UK (Durrell Conservation Academy)
WPC Conservation Toolkit
Capacity Building
Leadership
2024 Program Partners & Supporters
Alan and Patricia Koval Foundation
Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust
Mauritian Wildlife Foundation
“I’m coming home from this life-changing journey with gifts spilling out of my arms: lifelong friendships, amazing mentors and new colleagues, and countless opportunities to learn new skills. I can’t wait to pay these gifts forward to the next project I work on here in Canada.”
– Rosie Heffernan, Canada’s 33rd New Noah
OREGON SPOTTED FROG | TAYLOR’S CHECKERSPOT | WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE | EASTERN LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE | NATIVE BUMBLE BEE | MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE & BUTLER’S GARTERSNAKE| MOTTLED DUSKYWING | BURROWING OWL | ONTARIO TURTLE WORKING GROUP | CONSERVATION PLANNING | CANADA’S NEW NOAH | 2024 HIGHLIGHTS | SUPPORTERS | FINANCIAL | ON THE HORIZON
Revenue
31% Corporate & Foundations
38% Government
24% Individuals
5% Contracted Projects
2% Other
Expenses
Programs
A NOTE FROM OUR TREASURER
2024 was another challenging financial year for WPC driven once again by continued dwindling support from government funding across the board for wildlife conservation. Fortunately, our steadfast foundation and corporate supporters continued to provide their generous loyal support for which we are most grateful. Individual donors also stepped in to bridge the gap and as a result we both expanded our conservation programs and ended the year in a healthy position close to budget. Ongoing support from all our partners and donors is critical to allow for expansion to new species in need while maintaining momentum in our existing multi-year programs. This seems particularly important as we head into our 40th year of conservation effort in 2025. It requires fiscal responsibility for a charity to reach such a 40-year milestone. With a mission that remains laser focused on what we do best we will ensure we will continue as leaders for saving species at risk here in Canada for forty more and beyond.
– Stephen Brobyn, WPC Treasurer (2024)
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Founder
Gerald M. Durrell OBE
President
Shripal Doshi
Past President
Bridget Stutchbury, Ph.D.
Secretary
Randal Heide
Treasurer
Stephen Brobyn
Directors
Christopher Boynton
Jocelyn Brodie
Jay Bryant
Ron Cuthbertson
Tanya Davis
Ian Glen
Douglas Hart
Julie Wood
Honorary Directors
Chris Von Boetticher
Michael Chisholm
Kathryn B.P. Dempster
Louise Gervais
Craig Gilpin
Graham F. Hallward
Peter Karsten
Anson R. McKim
Stephanie McLarty
H. Alec B. Monro
William Noble
Thomas C. Sears
Eleanor R. Clitheroe
W. Paterson Ferns, C.M.
Stephen T. Molson
Lee Durrell, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Lance Woolaver Jr., Ph.D.
Photo: P. Archibald
SUPPORTERS
Thank you to our 2024 corporate, foundation, and individual donors who believe in our work and are willing to invest in the future survival of Canada’s wildlife. Your generosity is saving species from extinction.
Corporate, Government and Foundation
Alan and Patricia Koval Foundation
Anonymous Foundation
Anonymous Foundation
Athene Ecological
B.C. Conservation Foundation
B.C. Ministry of Land, Water, and Resource Stewardship
BluEarth Renewables
Bremner Family Fund II at the Saskatoon Community Foundation
Blue Shoes Honey
Bodner Heritage Building Trust & Charitable Trust
Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec
Colla Lab, York University
David Charitable Trust
Don and Hazel Williams Foundation
Eastern Georgian Bay Initiative
Employment & Social Development Canada – Canada Summer Jobs
Environment & Climate Change Canada – ECO Canada Science Horizons Internship Program
Environment & Climate Change Canada – Priority Places for Species at Risk
Gordon and Patricia Gray Animal Welfare Foundation
Grant MacEwan Nature Protection Fund at Calgary Foundation
Hagen Family Foundation
Hall & Brown Wildlife Conservancy Foundation
Hallward Fund at Toronto Foundation
Hodgson Family Foundation
Holy Trinity School
Humble Bee
Jean and Fred Biehl Fund within Elgin-St. Thomas Community Foundation
KeeperKids
King Foundation – Ottawa Community Foundation
Kingston Solar LP
K.M. Hunter Charitable Foundation
Meadowlark Hill Ecological-Social Fund on behalf of Anthony and Nancy Netting
Metro Vancouver Parks
Monro Family Foundation
Natural Conservation Fund
Natural Resources Canada – Clean Tech Internship Program
New Brunswick Dept. of Natural Resources and Energy Development
NSERC of Canada Alliance Grant
Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks – Species at Risk Stewardship Program
Ontario Parks
Ontario Power Generation
Panacea Products Corporation
Pollination Guelph
RBC Community Investment Tech for Nature Fund
Saint Brigid Catholic Elementary School Bracelets for Wildlife
smpl Design Studio
Sunset Community Foundation
Takla Foundation
TD Friends of the Environment Foundation
The Annual Foundation
The Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company of Canada
The Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation
The Carol & Don Lyster Foundation
The Hagen Family Foundation
The Land Between
The Printing House
The Westaway Charitable Foundation
Toronto Zoo
Université Laval
Wilyn Pharmacy Inc.
We are grateful to Power to Give as a leading philanthropic visionary and appreciated community partner.
Legacy Gifts
Anonymous
Estate of Joan Turner
Estate of Robert Mundt
Wildlife Patron $10,000 and above
Anonymous Donor
Anonymous Donor
J.S. Darville
Brian J. Dawson
Roberta Olenick
Wildlife Preserver $1,000 - $9,999
Barbara Alderson
Constance Boldt
Stephen Brobyn
Sara Brown
Ruth Bucknell
Phyllis Burger
Janet Caravan
Bill Caulfeild-Browne
Elizabeth Churcher
Shripal Doshi
Tanya Dryden
Marsha Duncan
Gail Fraser
Areez Gangji
Rosanne Gasse
Dennis & Valerie Gielens
James Gillis
Dorothea Godt
John Grandy
Shirley Harrison
Douglas Hart
Lee Joyes
Linda Kaser
Claire Kennedy
Ivars Kops
Brian Lacey
Gail Luckhart
Brian Luckman
Rod MacFadyen
Eric Maki
Carole Marshall
Sarah McComb-Turbitt
Anson McKim
Catherine McLean
Alec & Joyce Monro
Anthony & Nancy Netting
Janis Nitchie
Catherine & Richard B. Richardson
Gregory Richardson
Anna & Andrés Saroli
Christian Schroeder
Dorothy Sherling
Bridget Stutchbury & Gene Morton
Rob Tiarks
Julie Weinstein
Judy Winton
Julie Wood
Friends of Wildlife $500 - $999
Julia Amies
Keith Armstrong
David & Mavis Atton
Richard Austin
Martha Jo Breithaupt
Deanne Buller
David Charlton
Cindy L. Clarke
David Clement
John Crookshank
Andy Crouse
Pearl Dacks
Kathryn & Gordon Nicholson
Simone Desilets
Bruce Dowling
Judy Focht
Anne Girbav
Ian & Suzanne Glen
Ben Gross
Maura Hamill
Randal Heide
Emily Hildebrand
David Hope
Ken Hough
Larry Hubble
Melanie Isbister
Martin Kuhn
Raynald Lemelin
Viola Loewen
Colin MacKenzie
Marion E. Magee
Michael Matthews
Stephanie & Clara McLarty
Toby Molins
Marili Moore
Robert Nichols
William J. Noble
Audrey O’Brien
Amani and Neil Oakley
Paul Orr
Christopher Richards-Bentley
Lisa Rosenberger
Karen Sifton
Brian Simmons
Pam Snider
Tom Stevens
Lucas Stolee
Corlene Taylor
Laurie White
Ken & Lynda Whiteford
Yara Willox
Peggy Wilson
Wildlife Guardians
Wildlife Guardians are a special group of dedicated individuals who support our work through recurring monthly donations. Wildlife Guardians make it possible for our conservation teams to help endangered animals throughout the year by providing steady funding.
Brenda Aherne
Debbie Allen
Jane Amro
Carollyn Andrews
Lori Antifave
Cindy Barr
Craig Barrett
Larry Baswick
Darby Bayly
Eva Bednar
Anne Benninghaus
Claude Bernier
Ingrid Betz
Nancy Biehl
Constance Boldt
Frank & Margaret Both
Alice Boudreau
Katherine Bowen
Rosemary Bower
Elke Breutigam
Sara Brown
Jaime Bustillo
John Capin
Eugenia Carson
Eva Cathcart
Shivani Chandrakumar
Angela Chang Alloy
Peter Chernoff
Anne Chisholm
Richard Chiu
Elizabeth Churcher
Cindy Clarke
Gloria Cleve
Maurilio Cocca
Colin Creasey
Donald Creelman
John Crookshank
Nancy Crossen
Anne Curtis
Patricia Dairon
Kathleen Dallman
Helen Daly
Theresa Daly
Kathryn Dempster Nicholson
Simone Desilets
Jean Desrochers
Steve & Rosemary Digby
Jean Anne Dilcock
Charles Dobson
M. Charles Dobson
Bruce Dowling
Tanya Dryden
Cris Dunbar
Joan Fenske
Scott Findlay
Leslie Fingler
Gail Fraser
Sebastien Garon
Dorothea Godt
Diane Gooderham
Fiona Griffiths
Lucy Guest
Margaret Hallward
Maura Hamill
Laurie Hammond
Carol Hargreaves
Shirley Harris
Douglas Hart
Tam Hatt
Randal Heide
Ryan Henderson
Guillermina Herbert
Emily Hildebrand
Flor De Maria Horta-Ash
Carolyn Hudson
Theresa Ichino
Jolanta Jason
Martha Johnson
Linda Kaser
Janet Kellam
Claire Kennedy
Mark Kennedy
Patricia Killingworth
Richard Klotz
Ivars Kops
Jelena Kurtovic
Mireille Lapensee
Don & Kathy Lea
Lynn Ledgerwood
Raynald Lemelin
Cynthia Leslie
Joyce Litster
Viola Loewen
Song Lu
Kathleen MacNamara
Marion Magee
Cindy Manderscheid
R. Gordon Marantz
Sarah Matheson
Michael Matthews
Penelope McCracken
Denise McCready
Anson McKim
Stephanie McLarty
N. Clare McMartin
June Misener
Michelle Monteith
Robert P Morgan
Gayle Morton
Joanne Neely
William Noble
Brenda-Lee Normey
Audrey O’Brien
Raphael O’loughnan
Donna Pearson
John Peterson
Chiquita Phillips
Hannelore Plonka
Maurice Prevost
Philip Price
Christine Quibell
Shirley Rahmann
Lea Ray
Ellen Reinhart
Tara Ricard
Catherine & Richard Richardson
Johanne Rioux
Douglas Roberts
Silvia Rodriguez
Martin Rose
Lisa Rosenberger
Mitchell Rowe
Sarah Saporsantos
Anna Saroli
Nancy Sawers
Kelly Schaus
Lorraine Scott
Christina Sharma
Breanna Slavinsky
Taylor Slavinsky
Donald Stark
John Stewart
Lucas Stolee
Brett Sura
Margaret Symons
William Tower
Enid Irene Varney
Wendy Verkerk
Gabrielle Verner
Chris Von Boetticher
Anne Ward
J. Michael Watts
Georgia West
Mary Ann West
Alisa Weyman
Louise White
Annette Wiegand
Dalene Wilkins
Peggy Wilson
Judy Winton
Julie Wood
Lance Woolaver
Tracy Yaroshuk
ON THE HORIZON
As we look to 2025 and the milestone of our 40th anniversary, Wildlife Preservation Canada is entering a year of celebration, reflection, and unwavering purpose. We’re proud to mark four decades of giving back directly to nature—and even prouder that our momentum is growing by leaps and bounds.
Thanks to your enduring support, 2024 was a year of major progress, when we continued to break new ground with global and Canadian firsts for endangered species conservation – a testament to decades of perseverance by dedicated people that truly believe in and love the work they do. From species reintroductions to transformative conservation breeding milestones, our efforts resulted in significant, tangible progress. But more than that, we laid even more groundwork for what’s to come.
We will expand our newest national initiative with the burrowing owl alliance, launching a new website and outreach materials to connect conservation groups and land managers across the country and enable nationwide sharing to support the burrowing owl recovery work, including reintroductions and grassland stewardship. In Windsor, we’re preparing for an exciting new chapter in Blanding’s turtle conservation, beginning with baseline species and habitat surveying to inform long-term recovery work. Across the country, WPC’s flagship programs – from bumble bees to shrikes to painted turtles – are all entering bold new phases, driven by innovation, collaboration and years of field-tested expertise.
Next year we will celebrate WPC’s rich history and legacy of leadership—in Canada and internationally—as the country’s leading and most experienced organization dedicated to breeding endangered species and reintroducing them to the wild to save them from extinction. Thank you for standing with us through the peaks and valleys that have been part of our conservation journey so far. Forty-years of experience has shown us that extinction never need be an option, and because of your shared belief in WPC’s mission, we are resolute and ready to save even more wildlife species in 2025 and in the years to come.
Dr. Lance Woolaver Jr.
Executive Director
