Professional interpretive guide and writer Kirsten Schmitten will present Giving up Ghosts: A Short History of Mount Edith Cavell’s Glaciers and People, a session where you can take a visual tour of the changes that have occurred since the Little Ice Age and learn about the strong attraction the area has held for both seekers and scientists alike. Join us at 7 p.m. tonight, May 16, at the Jasper Legion.
Driving for wildlife
At this time of year, woodland caribou (a Species at Risk) may be seen on and around Highway 93 in the Sunwapta Falls to Beauty Flats area, or sometimes north of the 70 km/h zone near the Sunwapta Warden Station. Bears, wolves and other wildlife are also frequently seen on or near the road.
Caribou in Jasper National Park are part of the Southern Mountain population of woodland caribou listed as threatened under Canada’s Species at Risk Act. Caribou found in the valley along Highway 93 are part of the Brazeau herd, one of four herds in the park. There are only 13 animals left in the Brazeau herd and a reduced speed zone has been implemented to help prevent the unnecessary loss of caribou through vehicle collisions.
Please drive with care, and respect the 70 km/h speed zone to help protect caribou and other wildlife.
Local youth have a hoot with a barred owl
Last week, Parks Canada’s Wildlife Biologist Mark Bradley and Dr. Gordon Court of Alberta Sustainable Resource Development introduced local youth to a live barred owl. Students from Morina Lawson’s Grade 5 class discussed owl biology, natural history and anatomy with the biologists, and learned about the nine owl species that spend some of their time here in Jasper National Park. The students also focused on conservation topics including habitat disturbances and the impact of toxic chemicals in the environment, two things that owls are sensitive to.
Owl in owl, everyone had a hoot!
