NEWS RELEASE
NIAGARA PARKS
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Niagara Parks is proud to announce the launch of a new exhibit by Dr. Roberta Bondar at the Butterfly Conservatory, Patterns & Parallels: The Great Imperative to Survive on Saturday, August 31 and the return of the Majestic Monarchs species preservation event on September 7 and 8, 2024.
Patterns & Parallels: The Great Imperative to Survive
Running from August 31, 2024, through to December 8, 2024, at the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory, Patterns & Parallels: The Great Imperative to Survive, is a photography exhibit by Dr. Roberta Bondar. This exhibit offers a compelling look at the migratory patterns and challenges faced by at-risk bird species, including the Whooping Crane, Lesser Flamingo and Piping Plover. Created in collaboration with NASA, it features Bondar's breathtaking images taken from the air and land and NASA's images from space.
Bondar, the first female Canadian astronaut and an internationally recognized photographer, has travelled the world to capture the beauty of life on earth and uses her work to raise awareness for environmental conservation. With over three billion birds lost from Canada and the United States since 1970 due to the impacts of climate change across North America, the exhibit emphasizes the critical need to protect these species and the ecosystems they depend on.
The exhibit is also a key part of the Roberta Bondar Foundation’s Space For Birds Project, which uses photography to create a visual narrative that helps us understand the biodiversity of nature and the impact of human actions and climate change on bird migration and habitat loss.
Patterns & Parallels was first launched at the Art Gallery of Algoma in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Dr. Bondar’s hometown. It then travelled to Science North in Sudbury and the Lakeshore Grounds Interpretive Centre at Humber College in Toronto before arriving at the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory, where it will remain on display until December 8, 2024. The exhibit will continue to other venues in Ontario before moving across Canada over the next two years.
Majestic Monarchs program returns to Niagara Parks
On September 7 and 8, 2024, the Butterfly Conservatory will host the Majestic Monarchs program, offering visitors a unique opportunity to witness the full life cycle of Monarch butterflies, from caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly.
The program includes hourly demonstrations of Monarch tagging, followed by the release of these remarkable creatures into the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens as they embark on their epic migration south toward Mexico. Live tagging and release demonstrations will take place every half hour, starting at 11:30 a.m. and running until 2 p.m. (while supplies last).
Monarch butterfly migration is vital to the survival of many ecosystems across the continent due to their role as pollinators. The tagging portion of the event is important because it enables researchers to monitor the Monarch population in the Niagara region, gather data on their migration patterns, understand how they are adapting to our environment, and determine the actions needed to protect their habitats. Each butterfly tagged during the event can be tracked on Monarch Watch, a nonprofit program at the University of Kansas dedicated to monarch conservation, habitat, and migration research.
This free educational event will take place in front of the Butterfly Conservatory, within the grounds of the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens and School of Horticulture.
Niagara Parks has a long-standing commitment to environmental preservation, and the Majestic Monarch’s tag and release event invites public participation in local conservation. To support Monarchs and other pollinators, Niagara Parks offers a pollinator garden route featuring 12 gardens from Fort Erie to Niagara-on-the-Lake, complete with interpretive signs interpretive signs featuring the work of local Indigenous artists. For more information visit niagaraparks.com/pollinatorgardens.
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