Insects & Other Invertebrates Resources – RESOURCES
Exploring the Tiny Creatures That Support Healthy Lakes, Forests & Gardens
From pollinators and dragonflies to ticks, beetles, spiders and worms, these resources provide information about identification,
ecology, invasive species, human health, gardening, composting and how invertebrates contribute to healthy ecosystems.
Pollinators, Bees & Beneficial Insects
Resources about native pollinators, beneficial insects and creating insect-friendly landscapes
- Good, bad and ugly bugs in your garden
https://www.muskokaregion.com/life/good-bad-and-ugly-bugs-in-your-garden/article_ccd3f976-1468-5136-97bb-d8eee1da6b66.html - Welcoming Beneficial Insects to the Garden
https://simcoecountymg.ca/welcoming-beneficial-insects-to-the-garden/#:~:text=Predaceous as both adults and,, ground beetles, and leatherwings - Beneficial Insects
https://watersheds.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Beneficial-Insects-by-Canadian-Wildlife-Federation.pdf - How To Tell Bees From Wasps And Flies
https://davidsuzuki.org/living-green/bees-from-wasps-and-flies/ - What's The Difference Between Bees, Wasps, Yellow Jackets, and Hornets?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qv1Er9c0bKY - Wasps - Their Biology, Diversity and Role as Beneficial Insects and Pollinators of Native Plants
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbLK_iUBYRs - Bees and Other Pollinators
https://cwf-fcf.org/en/resources/encyclopedias/fauna/insects/bees-and-other-pollinators.html - Pest Hunters: Beneficial Predatory and Parasitic Insects
https://blog.planter.garden/posts/beneficial-predatory-insects/ - 11 Ontario Insects That Are Beneficial To Your Garden
https://cottagelife.com/outdoors/11-ontario-insects-that-are-beneficial-to-your-garden - Beneficial Insects
https://cwf-fcf.org/en/resources/encyclopedias/fauna/insects/beneficial-insects.html
Dragonflies, Damselflies & True Flies
Identification guides, ecology, life cycles and citizen science resources related to Odonata and flies
- iNaturalist Ontario Odonata Project
https://inaturalist.ca/projects/ontario-odonata?tab=observers - Odonata Central
https://www.odonatacentral.org/#/ - Magical Dragonflies
https://doppleronline.ca/huntsville/magical-dragonflies/ - Muskoka Field Naturalists Dragonflies and Damselflies page
https://muskokafieldnaturalists.com/Dragonflies.html - Odonata
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odonata - Odonata Larva
https://www.macroinvertebrates.org/taxa-info/odonata-larva - Odonata: Encyclopedia Brittanica
https://www.britannica.com/animal/Odonata - Classification and Ecosystem Services of Dragonflies
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6468591/ - Dragonfly and Damselfly Guide
https://onnaturemagazine.com/odonata-guide.html - Diptera Cheat Sheet
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15zceQraM-V5i664uG2nC0OjlesXAUZQE/view?usp=share_link - Don’t Hate Me ‘Cause I’m Bountiful
https://drive.google.com/file/d/18xjthWktCnt56w6XwErBwY-GX_wGgWfo/view?usp=share_link - Life After Water: Life Of The Miscellaneous True Fly
https://www.ecospark.ca/blog/3lmsfk3ziwbdrr0uynwyvmdg6jj51r - Fabulous Flies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UX5QEsQ57uA - Flies (Order Diptera)
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/47822-Diptera
Beetles, Ladybugs & Fireflies
Native beetles, beneficial species, invasive beetles and fascinating glowing insects
- Beetle
https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/beetle - Coleoptera of Canada
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30713451/ - How To Help Ladybugs
https://cwf-fcf.org/en/resources/DIY/How-to-Help-Ladybugs.html - Ladybugs
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/ladybugs.html - Endangered: Northern Barrens Tiger Beetle
https://www.ontario.ca/page/northern-barrens-tiger-beetle - Tiger Beetles
https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/publications/wild-species-2005/chapter-6.html - Insects: Ground beetles
- Beneficial Beetles
https://www.inaturalist.ca/projects/vi-pests-pollinators-and-beneficials/journal/56302-beneficial-beetles - Beneficial Beetles: 5 Types To Attract
https://blog.southernexposure.com/2025/10/beneficial-beetles-5-types-to-attract - Turn Off Your Lights and Welcome Fireflies
https://www.thelandbetween.ca/2021/06/turn-off-your-lights-and-welcome-fireflies/ - Fireflies of Ontario – What We Know and What is Yet to be Discovered
https://ontarionature.org/fireflies-of-ontario-blog/ - Tips to Attracting Fireflies to Your Household’s Backyard and Garden
https://seewhatgrows.org/how-to-attract-fireflies-to-your-garden/ - Firefly
https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/firefly - Enchanting Fireflies
https://thamesriver.on.ca/enchanting-fireflies/ - Fireflies Of Ontario And How To Help Them Shine
https://www.nativegarden.ca/native-home/natures-workforce/beneficial-insects/introducing-beneficial-insects/fireflies-of-ontario-and-how-to-help-them-shine/
Ants, Earwigs, Cicadas & Other Insects
Interesting facts, identification resources and garden ecology information
- Ants
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/ants.html - Carpenter Ants
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/carpenter-ants.html - Don’t Expect To See Hordes Of Cicadas in Ontario
https://www.muskokaregion.com/news/dont-expect-to-see-hordes-of-cicadas-in-ontario-this-summer/article_ae216687-de32-5782-80e3-3b5bff66606a.html - Cicada
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/cicada - Species Neotibicen canicularis - Dog-Day Cicada
https://bugguide.net/node/view/514 - Earwigs
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/earwigs.html - Heroes Of The Garden
https://theconversation.com/earwigs-are-the-hero-single-mothers-of-the-insect-world-and-good-for-your-garden-too-196069# - You’re Wrong About Earwigs
https://youtube.com/shorts/JIxxUy1cMCQ?si=z9N5zzZPQuol4E5Z - Earwig
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earwig
Spiders
Learn about spiders - misunderstood but oh so important
- Meet the dock spider
https://cottagelife.com/outdoors/wild-profile-meet-the-dock-spider/#:~:text=Despite the name, these spiders,to keep the legs afloat. - Spider Guide
https://onnaturemagazine.com/spiderguide.html - The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Woman
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15Tl2E4pOcxb7jXWsUfOxtpsLF3fhCzvY/view?usp=share_link - Spiders
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/spiders.html
Composting, Soil Life & Worms
Resources about earthworms, vermicomposting, Bokashi composting and healthy soil ecosystems
- Red Wigglers (Eisenia fetida)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eisenia_fetida - Vermicomposting For Beginners
https://rodaleinstitute.org/science/articles/vermicomposting-for-beginners/ - Worm Composting Supplies list
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1na69GXexjOORx0q87FydEuIKEiftj3uh/view?usp=share_link - Bokashi Composting For Beginners
https://www.thespruce.com/basics-of-bokashi-composting-2539742
Invasive Species & Forest Pests
Information on invasive insects and pests affecting Ontario forests and ecosystems
- Emerald Ash Borer
https://www.invasivespeciescentre.ca/invasive-species/meet-the-species/invasive-insects/emerald-ash-borer-duplicate-471/ - Asian Long-Horned Beetle
https://www.ontario.ca/page/asian-long-horned-beetle - groforestry Diseases And Pests
https://agriculture.canada.ca/en/agricultural-production/crop-protection/diseases-and-pests-agroforestry - Proactive Stand Taken Against Ash-Killing Beetle
https://www.muskokaregion.com/news/proactive-stand-taken-against-ash-killing-beetle/article_47f77d1f-6bc0-5240-b8ae-92d64d73d726.html - Invasive Beetle Found In Muskoka And Kawartha Lakes
https://haliburtonecho.ca/invasive-beetle-found-in-neighbouring-areas/ - Lake of Bays Heritage Foundation: Invasive Species
https://lakeofbaysheritage.ca/invasive-species/ - A wriggling invasion
https://blog.ontarioparks.ca/earthworms-invasive-species/ - Non-native Earthworms in Canada
https://cwf-fcf.org/en/about-cwf/faq/faqs/earthworms.html - Earthworms, a threat to Canada’s boreal forest?
https://natural-resources.canada.ca/stories/simply-science/earthworms-threat-canada-s-boreal-forest - Jumping Worms
https://www.invasivespeciescentre.ca/invasive-species/meet-the-species/land-and-animal-invertebrates/jumping-worms/ - Hammerhead Worm
https://www.invasivespeciescentre.ca/hammerhead-worm/
Ticks, Mosquitoes & Bite Prevention
Health information, prevention tips, identification tools and tick-borne disease resources
- Ticks out early across Ontario. Learn symptoms of Lyme disease, how to remove a tick safely and high-risk areas
https://www.muskokaregion.com/news/ontario-tick-season-lyme-disease-guide-2026/article_c722961b-a880-5334-90eb-1bd029d263aa.html? - Tick Talk: Full Body Tick Check
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEayubyaY-U - eTick
https://www.etick.ca - Lyme Disease And Ticks
https://www.simcoemuskokahealth.org/topics/infectiousdiseases/diseaseinformation/factsheetsil/lymedisease.aspx - Blacklegged (deer) ticks
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/blacklegged-deer-ticks.html - Lyme disease: Symptoms and treatment
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/lyme-disease.html - About Powassan
https://www.cdc.gov/powassan/about/index.html? - Clinical Signs and Symptoms of Powassan Virus Disease
https://www.cdc.gov/powassan/hcp/clinical-signs/index.html? - Preventing Powassan
https://www.cdc.gov/powassan/prevention/index.html? - Mosquitoes & Black Flies (Biting Insects)
https://www.algonquinpark.on.ca/visit/park_management/mosquitoes-and-blackflies-(biting-insects).php - Latest personal insect repellent product safety guidelines
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/about-pesticides/insect-repellents.html - Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit
https://www.simcoemuskokahealth.org/healthunit/about/Newsroom/2025/09/08/First-human-case-of-West-Nile-virus-in-2025-identified-in-Simcoe-Muskoka - Insect Bite Prevention
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/insect-bite-prevention.html - Mosquitoes
https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/mosquitoes.html - Repelling Mosquitoes – Is DEET the Best? What About Natural Alternatives?
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/friday-favorites-repelling-mosquitoes-is-deet-the-best-what-about-natural-alternatives/