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Canada / My Canada / Drawing 13

Provinces and Territories · Drawing 13 of 42

Spring by the Wolastoq

New Brunswick

Colouring illustration: Spring by the Wolastoq
An imagined, simplified scene: no real people or cultural symbols are drawn, and the basket is a plain one.© Atlasmio · All rights reserved

The Wolastoqiyik are the people of the Wolastoq, the “beautiful river.” Today, as every spring, a grandfather shows his granddaughter how to pick fiddleheads, curled up tight.

Look together

What has an older person taught you?

An idea to try

Roll a strip of paper up tightly like a fiddlehead, then slowly unroll it: the leaf opens! In spring, look at ferns outdoors without picking or tasting them.

For the adult reading along

A little more to discover

The Wolastoqiyik, “the people of the beautiful river,” have lived in the land of the Wolastoq, also called the Saint John River, since time immemorial; they are also known by an older name, the Maliseet. New Brunswick has six Wolastoqey communities, including Neqotkuk (Tobique), where the Tobique River meets the Wolastoq. The Wolastoqiyik have long gathered fiddleheads, the young curled leaves of the ostrich fern, which stay coiled for only about two weeks in May.

These teachings pass from Elders to children: in a 2025 CBC story, a grandfather in Neqotkuk teaches his grandson to pick and clean fiddleheads, then shares them with family and Elders. Always cook fiddleheads well: boiling them for 15 minutes is recommended. With your child, compare the spiral to the scroll of a violin, which gave the fiddlehead its name.

Sources and context (3)

These links lead to other websites. Explore them with an adult. Source titles appear in their original language; some linked pages are in French.

  • Tobique First Nation (Neqotkuk) — Home pageNeqotkuk is one of six Wolastoqiyik or Maliseet Nation reserves in New Brunswick, on the northern shore of the Tobique River where it meets the Wolastoq; Wolastoqiyik means people of the beautiful river, who have occupied this territory since time immemorial; a vibrant community advancing its culture and traditions.
  • The Canadian Encyclopedia — FiddleheadsThe Maliseet of the Saint John River Valley have traditionally harvested fiddleheads as a spring tonic and sold them at local markets; young curled leaves of the ostrich fern, coiled for only about two weeks (in May in eastern Canada); named for the scroll of a fiddle; fresh fiddleheads should be boiled for 15 minutes.
  • CBC News — ‘Peaceful’ fiddlehead gathering in Neqotkuk First Nation (June 1, 2025)Ann’s Eye series by Ann Paul, a Wolastoqey content creator: in Neqotkuk, a grandfather teaches his grandson to pick and clean fiddleheads along the Tobique River and shares them with family and Elders; some people sell what they pick; Indigenous peoples have gathered fiddleheads for centuries; teachings are passed to younger generations.

Source review: 2026-09-24. Illustrations simplify places and scenes; they are not historical documents.