Publications

Survey of Lepidoptera of the Wainwright Dunes Ecological Reserve [2004]

Description

Wainwright Dunes Ecological Reserve (see map) is located to the southeast of Wainwright in parts of townships 41 and 42, and range 5. It is about 28 km2 in size. This area has intrigued me since I... More ≫

Description

Wainwright Dunes Ecological Reserve (see map) is located to the southeast of Wainwright in parts of townships 41 and 42, and range 5. It is about 28 km2 in size. This area has intrigued me since I was last there with Gary Anweiler on July 13 and 14, 2002. The habitat here consists of stabilized dunes that contain a mixture of aspen groves, prairie and open sand with sedges. I was able to return to this area in 2004 on June 8th, and July 2nd and 3rd. Sherri Dunne and I accessed the ecological reserve from the south side; the same as in 2002, and camped near the reserve entrance. All specimens were taken at and around 52.5960N, -110.6088W (the red dot on the map). The following list of 132 species updates the 88 of the previous list from June of 2002. Specimens were collected under Research and Collection Permit No. RC04EC003.

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Bat survey of Writing on Stone Provincial Park : a compilation of work since 1985

Description

Writing on Stone Provincial Park is located along an area of the Milk River where rocky outcroppings are abundant. This terrain provides excellent roosting habitat for several species of bats.... More ≫

Description

Writing on Stone Provincial Park is located along an area of the Milk River where rocky outcroppings are abundant. This terrain provides excellent roosting habitat for several species of bats. There are also clumps of cottonwood trees along the river, which provide foraging habitat for all prairie bats. While bats have been captured in the park for many years, there has been no compilation of records, and there has been confusion over what areas of the park have and have not been surveyed for bats. This report describes the capture records of the author for bat work done in both the public areas of park and the restricted area of the park south of the Milk River. The report also compiles netting records for bat work done in the park since 1985.

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Macrofungi of La Butte Creek, Fidler-Greywillow and Colin-Cornwall Wildland Provincial Parks

Description

During 2001 and 2002 a project to collect and identify the macrofungi of La Butte Creek, Fidler-Greywillow and Colin-Cornwall Lakes Wildland Provincial Parks, in northeastern Alberta was... More ≫

Description

During 2001 and 2002 a project to collect and identify the macrofungi of La Butte Creek, Fidler-Greywillow and Colin-Cornwall Lakes Wildland Provincial Parks, in northeastern Alberta was undertaken. This project was part of a greater biophysical investigation carried out by Parks and Protected Areas’ staff, and volunteers from a variety of scientific backgrounds. The fungi found belong to three major groups; the Ascomycota (cup fungi), Basidiomycota (mushrooms, rusts, smuts, etc.) and Myxomycota (slime molds). One hundred of the 156 species documented through this study have been previously recorded as occurring in Alberta. Valid Alberta records have yet to be found for the remaining 56 species. Also two species discovered (Gloeophyllum abietinum and Myriosclerotinia caricicampullaceae) are reportedly rare in North America.

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Spider records from four wildland parks in northeastern Alberta

Description

Several wildland parks and two ecological reserves have recently been established in the northeast corner of Alberta (Figure 1). Colin-Cornwall Lakes Fidler-Greywillow, La Butte Creek and Maybelle... More ≫

Description

Several wildland parks and two ecological reserves have recently been established in the northeast corner of Alberta (Figure 1). Colin-Cornwall Lakes Fidler-Greywillow, La Butte Creek and Maybelle River Wildland Parks are located in the Canadian Shield Natural Region. Egg Island and Athabasca Dunes Ecological Reserves are also located in that Natural Region. Birch Mountains, Marguerite River and Richardson River Dunes Wildland Parks are within the Boreal Forest Natural Region (Alberta Environmental Protection 1998). These wildland parks contain numerous and important examples of Alberta's biodiversity. Much of it is poorly understood or unknown, particularly the invertebrate fauna. The spider fauna is no exception. As Aitchison and Sutherland (2000) state, "…information on the composition and functioning of the boreal forest arachnid community [in Canada] remains sketchy". The spider specimens that were collected during this survey are the first for these wildland parks of...

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Survey of Odonata in the Canadian Shield natural region of northeastern Alberta. II, 2001 survey of La Butte Creek and Fidler-Greywillow Wildland Parks

Description

In Alberta, the Canadian Shield Ecoregion is restricted to the extreme northeast part of the province (Strong and Leggat 1992). It is subdivided into the Kazan Upland Subregion and the Athabasca... More ≫

Description

In Alberta, the Canadian Shield Ecoregion is restricted to the extreme northeast part of the province (Strong and Leggat 1992). It is subdivided into the Kazan Upland Subregion and the Athabasca Plain Subregion, located to the north and south of Lake Athabasca, respectively. There are several wildland parks that have recently been established in these two subregions. An odonate survey was conducted in the summer of 2000 (Hornung) within three of the wildland parks that are located in the Athabasca Plain Subregion, namely Maybelle River, Marguerite River and Richardson River Dunes. This survey was the first for these three parks. Two parks located in the Kazan Upland Subregion were the focus for an odonate survey in the summer of 2001, namely La Butte Creek and Fildler-Greywillow Wildland Parks. The subregion within which these two wildland parks are located contains extensive riparian and shield outcrop habitats. The purpose of the survey in La Butte Creek and Fildler-Greywillow was...

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Survey of Lepidoptera in the Canadian Shield ecoregion of northeastern Alberta. II, 2001 survey of La Butte Creek and Fidler/Greywillow Wildland Parks

Description

The purpose of this report is to provide a summary of the Lepidoptera species collected in the 2001 survey, and to compare this information to previously known distribution patterns. This... More ≫

Description

The purpose of this report is to provide a summary of the Lepidoptera species collected in the 2001 survey, and to compare this information to previously known distribution patterns. This information will assist in land use planning and will contribute information on the conservation status of particular Lepidoptera species.

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Sundance Provincial Park vegetation survey

Description

The purpose of this vegetation survey was to identify and describe all associated plant community types found within the Sundance Provincial Park and associated special management zone. As part of... More ≫

Description

The purpose of this vegetation survey was to identify and describe all associated plant community types found within the Sundance Provincial Park and associated special management zone. As part of this process other features of unique, sensitive or disturbed nature were noted. These included, but were not limited to, new disturbance features (cutlines, well site roads, quad trails, and hiking/horse trails) significant wildlife habitat areas or migration corridors (including mineral licks and hibernacula), or areas of high biodiversity (old growth forests and highly diverse plant communities). The information collected as part of this vegetation survey not only provides a detailed assessment of the vegetation communities that occur in the region, but also identifies areas of high use, sensitive areas that may be in need of additional protection, or other significant features that may be of ecological, biological or cultural interest. This is a well-used provincial park with a number...

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Preliminary mammalian survey in the area of Marguerite Crag and Tail, Maybelle River and Richardson River Dunes Wildland Provincial Parks, Alberta

Description

Field surveys of the mammal fauna of Marguerite River Crag and Tail, Maybelle River and Richardson River Dunes Wildland Provincial Parks and surrounding area were conducted from June 12 - 24 and... More ≫

Description

Field surveys of the mammal fauna of Marguerite River Crag and Tail, Maybelle River and Richardson River Dunes Wildland Provincial Parks and surrounding area were conducted from June 12 - 24 and from August 22 - 25, 2000. A literature search suggested that 44 mammalian species could be expected to inhabit the three wildland provincial parks. Small mammal trapping, direct observations, tracks, animal calls or other sounds, structures and scats of mammal species yielded 29 species. Fur trapping records show five additional species in the study area. The additional ten expected species were not detected during the field survey. The observation of one grizzly bear in the Marguerite Crag and Tail Wildland Provincial Park was definitely the highlight of mammalian observations during the field survey in this area. This record and a couple of records further south suggest a possible eastern reoccupation of former range in the province. Based on trapping results of small mammals and...

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Preliminary bird inventory for three wildland provincial parks (and their environs) in northeast Alberta

Description

From June 12-23 (inclusive) 2000, preliminary bird inventories were conducted for three, newly established Wildland Provincial Parks (WPPs) located in the Central Mixedwood (Boreal Forest) and... More ≫

Description

From June 12-23 (inclusive) 2000, preliminary bird inventories were conducted for three, newly established Wildland Provincial Parks (WPPs) located in the Central Mixedwood (Boreal Forest) and Athabasca Plain (Canadian Shield) Sub-Regions of northeast Alberta. These parks, and the total number of bird species documented within them (to date) are: Marguerite Crag and Tail WPP (61); Maybelle River WPP (85), and Richardson River Dunes WPP (64). A composite bird checklist was compiled for the study area as a whole. It comprises species (representing 31 families) of which 16 (13.8%) are considered residents and the remainder, summer residents. Of the latter 100 species, 26 are short-distance migrants and 74 are Neotropical Migrants (NTMs; split equally between Obligate and Facultative NTMs). From a conservation perspective, it is noteworthy that almost two-thirds (63.8%) of the study area bird list is comprised of NTMs.

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