Summer is in Full Swing!
EALT staff and volunteers have been busy bees out in the field. As our lands abound with life, this has provided us with ample opportunities to aid in restoration, trail maintenance and manage invasive plants. In addition, our Citizen Scientists and Conservation Land Stewards have been hard at work conserving the land, collecting valuable data and sharing in the loving labour of protecting local ecological integrity.
Read on for some highlights and learn how you can help out and nurture your own relationship to nature and conservation.
Invasive Plant Management
Starting off with the largest component of our summer fieldwork, we have been ardently tackling invasive plants on our lands. Controlling the spread and ousting these plants is key in restoring ecosystem health. We do this through many methods, including hand pulling, trimming, digging, brush-cutting, mowing and more. Looking after the ecological integrity of the land is our main priority, and under the Alberta Weed Control Act and Weed Control Regulations we have also have a legal obligation to manage noxious and prohibited weeds. To learn more about invasive species, the Alberta Invasive Species Council provides copious information, including a useful guide to invasive plants. Thanks to the Alberta Conservation Association for granting us funding to assist with this work!
This can be time-consuming and onerous work, which is why we are incredibly grateful to our amazing volunteers who make success possible. A cornerstone in managing our lands are our Conservation Land Stewards who are diligently on the look out and tackling invasive plants. You can join us at one of our events here and get hands on conserving ecological integrity near you! Also, check out our Conservation Land Stewards and Citizen Science programs and consider signing up next year. We are also always in the need for Conservation Outreach Volunteers as well.
Avian Monitoring
Since 2022, EALT and the Parklands Field Ornithology Group (PFOG) have been operating an Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) station which collects data about local breeding birds. This collated data can reveal information in the breeding territory at Bunchberry Meadows Conservation Area, which is located in the Devon Dunes Environmentally Significant area just west of Edmonton. These stations are designed to operate for at least 20 years to ensure reliable, long-term data. Five banding days were planned throughout the Summer between June 15 and August 6. The summer started off well with frequent new captures and many returnees that were banded in previous years! The last couple banding days however have been uncharacteristically slow for captures, which is a bit of a mystery.
Returning this year EALT and PFOG continued mapping avian territories at Bunchberry Meadows. The aim of this program is to deepen our understanding of the connection between bird species and their preferred habitats. New this year, however, is random point counts at a completely different property: Golden Ranches. This is a one-time only initiative for us to get an accurate indication of bird abundance and diversity at this land.
If you feel like participating in this initiative next year, you can check it out here, or for more information you can email station manager Norm Legault at pfog@ealt.ca.
Conservation by the North Saskatchewan River
This land has been bustling with activity lately! First off we have had multiple volunteer stewardship events here including a BioBlitz and weeding event. Representatives from the Alberta Lepidopterist Guild and other nature obsessed professionals joined volunteers and staff identifying every plant, insect, birds and other wildlife they could find. Even though we had a huge dump of rain that started as soon as the BioBlitz began, it was still incredibly fun and we all had a blast! Additionally we picked weeds around the stabilized slope that we had planted trees and shrubs on last year. Removing these invasive plants helps these plants thrive and grow to a full, healthy size.
EALT staff has also been begun the process of creating an Indigenous Medicine Garden at this land, with many site visits planned over the next couple months. The past couple weeks we have been clearing alfalfa, mowing and rototilling to prep the ground for the garden infrastructure. Once we have established the foundation we will be putting a call out for volunteers to come helps us plant, in addition to other tasks to make the garden as healthy and beautiful as possible, so keep an eye out for those event postings!
We would like to thank all our volunteers as well as the Agroforestry and Woodlot Extension Society, the Edmonton Community Foundation, and Environment and Climate Change Canada for helping us at this land. In particular, the Medicine Garden would not be possible without contributions from TD Friends of the Environment.
What Else?
EALT had a booth at the Telus World of Science: Indigenous Peoples Day next to the Medicine Garden. We spent time caring for the garden, talking about native plants, medicine and interacting with the public!
We were part of the Canada Day event at the Larkspur Summer Village in Westlock County to share about EALT lands close by. EALT was supported by the Westlock Community Foundation to attend this event.
We attended the bat walk hosted by the Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition (ERVCC) on July 4th in support of a Bat Acoustics Project.
EALT was at the Moth Ball on July 17 held at Eagle Point Provincial Park. We held Night Creature Tours with the Alberta Amphibian and Reptile Conservancy (AARC)
To celebrate Parks Day on July 19, we were at Miquelon Lake Provincial Park with an info booth and spent some time with lovely volunteers removing invasive plants.
Paws for Effect
Lastly, we wanted to invite everyone with canine family members to take the Paws for Effect Pledge! It is a commitment to mindfully recreating with your dog while out in nature and acting as a responsible pet owner. Learn why your actions matter to conservation and take the pledge here.
