Mammals
Citizen Scientists Come to the Aid of the Tenacious Franklin’s Ground Squirrel
BY GILLIAN CHOW-FRASER AND RICHARD SCHNEIDER
In Alberta, the status of Franklin’s ground squirrel has still not been determined. The provincial government maintains that there is not enough information to say whether the population is stable or imperiled. In the spring of 2022, Nature Alberta initiated a citizen science project to help fill some of the data gaps. The results are presented here.
Read MoreWhat Bears Teach Us
Recorded Presentation
Speaker: SARAH ELMELIGI
Host: Weaselhead/Glenmore Park Preservation Society
Wild Boars on the March
Initially, wild boar numbers were low and they went largely unnoticed. However, their high reproductive rate is a recipe for exponential growth, which is exactly what has happened.
Read MoreDeath by “Data Deficient”: The Disappearance of Wolverines in Alberta’s Eastern Slopes
BY GILLIAN CHOW-FRASER
Olaus Murie once wrote, “I wonder if there is another inhabitant of northern wilderness that so excites the imagination.”1 The species he was referring to? None other than the wolverine.
More than 60 years later, the same thought ran through my mind as I tracked through the foothills of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains. Would this be the day? Would I be able to catch even a brief glimpse of a wolverine’s bushy tail in the distance?
Read MoreThe Ronald Lake Wood Bison Herd: Observations From Their Home
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?
Read MoreContributors To Conflict And Coexistence With Urban Coyotes
Recorded Presentation
Speaker: COLLEEN CASSADY ST. CLAIR
Host: Nature Alberta
Deadly Highway: Road and Rail Fatalities are Decimating Jasper Park’s Wildlife
BY DICK DEKKER
Protected from hunting year-round, Jasper’s elk have lost their fear of humans, and tend to concentrate along highways and in the townsite. There are two main reasons for this: they are attracted by grassy clearings, and there are fewer wolves here than in the backcountry. However, the elk’s anti-predator strategy of staying near human habituation increases the risk of colliding with vehicles and trains.
Read MoreThe Case of the Missing Prairie Bandit
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?
Read MoreBear Tracks
BY COLLEEN CASSADY ST. CLAIR
How can we protect grizzly bears from trains in the mountain parks?
Read MoreThe Swift Fox: A Canadian Conservation Success Story
BY LU CARBYN, NIKKI PASKAR, KRISTY BLY, AND RICHARD SCHNEIDER
The swift fox reintroduction program successfully brought the fastest member of the wild dog family’s population from Extirpated to Endangered, and finally to Threatened. Although it began with an illegal publicity stunt by a game farm, structured efforts soon followed. Habitat conservation continues to be a key issue for swift fox populations.
Read More