Between 1999 and 2015, human activity in Alberta visibly converted over 23,000 square kilometres of native ecosystems into residential, recreational, or industrial landscapes, an area 3.5 times the size of Banff National Park. Feb 9 Update: This report received extensive coverage in the media. While some media outlets provided well-informed, balanced coverage, others resorted to [...]
The ABMI’s Caribou Monitoring Unit is on a roll! Fresh from the recent release of new research on the relationship between moose hunting, predatory wolves, and threatened woodland caribou, the CMU is at it again. This time, they’ve found a promising new way to prioritize the restoration of abandoned cutlines. Read on for the full [...]
Populations of the endangered woodland caribou are in decline, and the ABMI’s Caribou Monitoring Unit (CMU) at the University of Alberta is part of collaborative efforts to understand the problem and find sustainable solutions. New research—led by CMU manager Dr. Rob Serrouya, supported by Dr. Stan Boutin of the U of A / ABMI, and [...]
We all know that biodiversity, like exercise and broccoli, is good for us. For the most part, governments and land managers recognize this too. For example, the Alberta Government maintains a network of parks and protected areas (PPAs) throughout the province as part of its vision of sustainable resource development. Many Albertans use these spaces [...]
What do you get when you combine plywood, a plastic bucket, and a tunnel in the prairies? An artificial burrow for one of Alberta’s most fascinating underground dwellers: the Burrowing Owl! It might be surprising, but artificial burrows may be one way to help Alberta’s declining Burrowing Owl population respond to the potential negative impacts [...]
Oil sands extraction is booming in the province of Alberta. Much of the province’s oil sands resource, however, lies in the province’s northeast–territory that the boreal woodland caribou depends on for survival. Environment Canada recently released a recovery strategy for boreal woodland caribou, which are designated as “threatened” under the Canadian Species at Risk Act. [...]
Today, Thursday December 5, 2013, the ABMI released the report: The Status of Biodiversity in the Athabasca Oil Sands Area. This report contains the first ever comprehensive analysis on the status of Alberta’s species in the Athabasca Oil Sands Area (AOSA). With a range of intensive activities occurring on the AOSA land base – from [...]
Northeastern Alberta is one of the most rugged and remote regions of our province. It is home to many wildlife and plant species, and contains a diversity of different habitats including peatlands and forests, as well as unexpected habitats like sand dunes. It is also an area of significant economic importance to Alberta due to [...]