Posts
BY DORIS MAY & STEPH WEIZENBACH
Feel the Noise
BOOM! The first time I heard this loud, unnerving sound, it reverberated through the ravine where my prairie home lies nestled along a meandering creek. The sound was ominous, like a sound effect you might expect in a tense scene from a Jurassic Park movie.
BY GARRETT RAWLEIGH & LEE HECKER
When people think of bison, they often picture the vast herds of plains bison that once roamed the Great Plains of North America. These massive herds, and the story of their demise, are well known. But how many people are familiar with their larger northern cousin?
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BY DALE LECKIE
The distribution of plants and animals in Alberta is closely tied to the landscapes in which they live. Though there are some generalists, like coyotes, most species are adapted to specific landscape types. The development of these landscapes is in turn intimately related to Alberta’s geological history, together with ongoing geological processes. Here we will explore several important examples, including eroding mountain peaks, glaciated landscapes, deeply entrenched river valleys, and arid interior plains located in the rain shadow of the mountains.
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BY ASHLEY HILLMAN
It’s Day 4 on the trail. It’s humid, hot, and did I mention humid? Our packs are impossibly heavy with food, camping gear, and sampling equipment. I wish there was someone else to blame for deciding to mix backpacking with field sampling, but unfortunately it was my idea. I have already cut myself on a rock and slipped into the frigid waters of Lake Superior as we struggle down the coastal hiking trail of Pukaskwa National Park. But all this suffering has rewarded us with just what we were looking for: plants!
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Black-capped chickadees are certainly our most common winter feeder visitors, but downy woodpeckers are often a close second. Both downies and their larger cousins, hairy woodpeckers, are year-round residents in our winter forests.
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BY LAURA SOUTHWELL
The northern leopard frog is an iconic amphibian, likely the very image that comes to mind when you hear the word “frog.” This once ubiquitous resident of prairie wetlands has faced an ongoing struggle against a changing and increasingly human-centric environment.
Alberta is home to four chickadee species. Black-capped chickadees are the most common and widespread. They are found across the entire province and are not only the easiest bird species to attract to backyard bird feeders, but also hold the distinction of being Canada’s most common feeder species. Their small size, cheery countenance, and remarkable hardiness endear them to their human neighbours.
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BY WES OLSON
Wes Olson worked as a National Park Warden for Parks Canada for over three decades, and … had the rare opportunity to see bison fly — albeit by airplane and helicopter.
BY ARYA HORON
One hundred years ago, the prairie bandit was abundant across North America grasslands. By 1979, scientists believed it was extinct. This led to the question: where did the prairie bandit go?
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BY COLLEEN CASSADY ST. CLAIR
How can we protect grizzly bears from trains in the mountain parks?
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