Wanting wetlands: Marking 50 years of wetland conservation and loss
Black River Bog, NS (Photo by Mike Dembeck)
Fifty years ago, nations gathered to create the world’s first global agreement to conserve a habitat. Maybe it will surprise you that this agreement wasn’t for tropical rainforests or coral reefs or oceans. It was a for a habitat that...
This Groundhog Day, it's all relatives
Groundhog (Photo by Cephas/Wikimedia Commons)
Tomorrow marks Groundhog Day, a North American tradition dating back to 1888. The groundhog, also called the woodchuck, is the largest member of the squirrel family and one of four marmot species that live in Canada. Rather than just focusing on...
14 facts for World Wetlands Day
Musquash River, New Brunswick (Photo by Ron Garnett Airscapes)
The second of February each year marks World Wetlands Day, where everyone is encouraged to raise awareness and learn about the importance and value of wetlands! Be a wetland whiz this year with these 14 fun facts! A wetland, like its name...
Calling in the corps — the Canadian Conservation Corps
CCC participants cutting invasive phragmites stems (Photo by NCC)
They say that many hands make light work. Well, I don’t know if the hard-working young people who hauled brush, cut phragmites stems or collected buckets of acorns would tell you that the work was “light” but I can certainly say...
The big picture
A fallen tree can be home to mushrooms (Photo by NCC)
I have learned so much more about natural ecosystems during my recent participation in the Canadian Conservation Corps (CCC) program. Natural ecosystems are created by an intricate relationship between the land, the plants, the animals and all the...
A McKenzie Towne Almanac
Inverness Pond, McKenzie Towne (Christine Beevis Trickett/NCC staff)
The slowing down over the past 10–11 months with the COVID-19 pandemic and its related restrictions has meant more time to be in one place and appreciate the nature around me. While where I live — McKenzie Towne, in southern Calgary...
How tracking animals leaves a different imprint on winter
Tracks of a coyote walking - note the straight track pattern. (Photo by NCC)
It isn’t a secret that most city dwellers have complicated relationships with winter (myself included). When the weather takes a turn for the worse, it seems to have a domino effect on urban centres, increasing traffic and slowing everything...
Nature therapy (part five): Motivated by Nature
Winter smile (Photo by Amanda Cashin Photography)
It’s no secret that this year has been, and still is, challenging. During the winter, it is important to think about what we can do to help combat the winter blues. Whether we are working from home and indoors more, and/or suffer from...
What is a legacy?
Threshing machine, a modern version of one that was used on the family farm back in the day (Photo by Ben Franske)
It wasn’t until I became a grandparent that I started pondering the question, “What is my legacy?” Separating the wheat from the chaff took a great deal of time and thought. It was while reviewing my past experiences that led me...
What does a conservation biologist do in the “other season?”
Is this what you think of when you hear conservation biology? ( Photo by Mike Dembeck)
There is a seasonal nuance to being a conservation biologist. If you look at my job description optimistically, my job involves afternoons looking for spring ephemeral flowers, summers canoeing on lakes and early autumn mornings catching the last...
