Publications

Survey of the odonate fauna in Kakwa Wildland Park, June - July, 2006

Description

Kakwa Wildland Park is located at the northern edge of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains, about 114 km southwest of Grande Prairie. The purpose of this survey was to provide an annotated summary of the... More ≫

Description

Kakwa Wildland Park is located at the northern edge of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains, about 114 km southwest of Grande Prairie. The purpose of this survey was to provide an annotated summary of the odonate species that occur in the park, including notes on such parameters as relative abundance, distribution patterns, range extensions and any other relevant biological or behavioural information. This information will contribute towards an increased understanding of the odonate fauna of the park and, in a broader context, of Alberta.

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Survey of the Lepidoptera fauna from the Holmes Crossing Sandhills Ecological Reserve, the Fort Assiniboine Sandhills Wildland Park, and nearby areas

Description

The Holmes Crossing Sandhills Ecological Reserve (ER) is 8 km southwest and the Fort Assiniboine Sandhills Wildland Provincial Park (WPP) is 9 km east of Fort Assiniboine; both are located within... More ≫

Description

The Holmes Crossing Sandhills Ecological Reserve (ER) is 8 km southwest and the Fort Assiniboine Sandhills Wildland Provincial Park (WPP) is 9 km east of Fort Assiniboine; both are located within the Central Mixedwood Subregion. Holmes Crossing Sandhills ER occupies 1982 hectares and Fort Assiniboine WPP occupies 7903 ha. The latter area was the focus of a Lepidoptera survey in 2005. Both areas contain a number of vegetated transverse sand dunes dominated by stands of jack pine. Other habitats include aspen forest, dry meadows, fens, marshes, bogs and a series of riparian balsam poplar and alder forests. The purpose of this survey was to provide an annotated summary of the Lepidoptera species that occur in these areas, including notes on such parameters as relative abundance, distribution patterns, range extensions and any other relevant biological or behavioral information. This information contributes towards an increased understanding of the Lepidoptera fauna found in this region...

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Willmore Wilderness Park fire management plan

Description

The intent of this Fire Management Plan is to recommend fire management strategies to mitigate wildfire threat to landscape and species values, as well as communities; minimize threats to forest... More ≫

Description

The intent of this Fire Management Plan is to recommend fire management strategies to mitigate wildfire threat to landscape and species values, as well as communities; minimize threats to forest health (e.g. mountain pine beetle infestation); and allow natural fire regimes to re-establish across the landscape, while prioritizing ecological integrity. In order to meet the intent, a variety of fire management strategies will be employed. The strategies include zoning the Willmore for wildfire management between a natural fire zone where natural fires may be permitted to burn and a managed fire zone where fires will generally continue to be suppressed. Currently the entire Willmore Willmore Wilderness Park Fire Management Plan – November 2006 Wilderness Park is a managed fire zone with full suppression. Enabling a natural fire zone as soon as possible reduces the potential to impact natural fire cycles.

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2005-2006 bat survey of the Middle Red Deer and Battle Rivers

Description

The goal of this survey was to determine bat species diversity in a region of the Parkland in Central Alberta. Bat diversity in the Parkland Zone is poorly undestood. I conducted a survey of 3... More ≫

Description

The goal of this survey was to determine bat species diversity in a region of the Parkland in Central Alberta. Bat diversity in the Parkland Zone is poorly undestood. I conducted a survey of 3 sites along the middle Red Deer River and 2 sites on the Battle River, including Dry Island Buffalo Jump and Big Knife Provincial Parks. A total of 126 bats, 7 species (Eptesicus fuscus, Myotis lucifugus, M. evotis, M. ciliolabrum, M. septentrionalis, Lasiurus cinereus, Lasionycteris noctivagans) were captured using mistnets. Acoustic surveys were carried out, adding one more species (Lasiurus borealis) to the survey results.

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Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre tracking and watch lists : vascular plants, mosses, liverworts and hornworts

Description

This list contains the tracking and watch lists for vascular plants, mosses, liverworts and hornworts as developed by the Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, Alberta Community Development.

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Spider records from Caribou Mountains Wildland Provincial Park

Description

There are numerous and important examples of the province’s biodiversity contained within Alberta’s protected areas (e.g., parks, wilderness areas, ecological reserves). Much of that biodiversity... More ≫

Description

There are numerous and important examples of the province’s biodiversity contained within Alberta’s protected areas (e.g., parks, wilderness areas, ecological reserves). Much of that biodiversity remains to be discovered, particularly that which relates to the invertebrate fauna. Spiders are in that category. In Canada there are approximately 1400 known spider species. The Biological Survey of Canada estimates that there are at most 1,500 spider species in the country. Holmberg and Buckle (2002) noted that there were 662 species in 23 families for Alberta and Saskatchewan combined. Within Alberta there are about 583 known spider species belonging to 24 families. That number will continue to grow as more information and data becomes available. The spider specimens that were collected in Caribou Mountains Wildland Provincial Park during this survey were the first for this rather remote area.

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Small patch communities of Caribou Mountains Wildland Provincial Park

Description

In July 2003 areas within Caribou Mountains Wildland Provincial Park (CMWPP) were surveyed to document small patch ecological communities. Small patch ecological communities add considerably to... More ≫

Description

In July 2003 areas within Caribou Mountains Wildland Provincial Park (CMWPP) were surveyed to document small patch ecological communities. Small patch ecological communities add considerably to the diversity of a site, harbouring flora and potentially fauna dependent on these specialized habitats. They are, however, often overlooked in vegetation studies because they are neither extensive nor common enough to be considered representative. The focus of this study was to look within the matrix of the representative ecological communities to find and document the small patch communities that may be significant in a provincial context.

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Turner Valley Gas Plant : surface water and groundwater monitoring programs

Description

The Turner Valley gas plant site, used for many decades for petroleum production and refining, was decommissioned after 1985 and was designated as a historic site in 1995. The objectives of the... More ≫

Description

The Turner Valley gas plant site, used for many decades for petroleum production and refining, was decommissioned after 1985 and was designated as a historic site in 1995. The objectives of the groundwater monitoring program were to: verify that known contaminants on site are not reaching the Sheep River; establish seasonal variation in flow and quality in the surface and groundwater regimes; and to provide information to be used in restoring and reclaiming the historic site in an environmentally effective way.

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Survey of rare vascular plants in La Butte Creek Wildland Provincial Park

Description

La Butte Creek Wildland Provincial park is one of 81 recently designated protected areas, established in March 1998. It is located in the northeast corner of Alberta, north of Lake Athabasca,... More ≫

Description

La Butte Creek Wildland Provincial park is one of 81 recently designated protected areas, established in March 1998. It is located in the northeast corner of Alberta, north of Lake Athabasca, about 300 km north of Ft. McMurray. The two main objectives of this reconnaissance survey were to: document the location, habitat and population size information for tracked vascular plant taxa occurring within the study area; and develop a preliminary list of vascular plant species for LBCWPP.

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Survey of the Lepidoptera fauna in Birch Mountains Wildland Provincial Park

Description

The Birch Mountains to the northwest of Ft. McMurray are located within the Upper and Lower Boreal Highlands Subregions . A sizeable protected area, the Birch Mountains Wildland Provincial Park... More ≫

Description

The Birch Mountains to the northwest of Ft. McMurray are located within the Upper and Lower Boreal Highlands Subregions . A sizeable protected area, the Birch Mountains Wildland Provincial Park (WPP), is located primarily within the bounds of the Upper Boreal Highlands Subregion. The WPP contains extensive bogs, patches of pine, aspen and birch forest as well as riparian meadow habitats. The park occupies an area of 144,505 ha and was the focus of a lepidoptera survey in 2004. The Upper Boreal Highlands Subregion is characterized by steeply sloping dissected plateaus and undulating and hummocky upper plateau surfaces. In addition to the Birch Mountains, the Upper Boreal Highlands Subregion includes the upper slopes and plateaus of the Buffalo Head, Naylor and Clear Hills. This Subregion is entirely surrounded by the Lower Boreal Highlands Subregion.

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