This time of year the Creston Valley offers an amazing pallet of colours everywhere you look. The Larches now bring yellow, orange and gold scattered from the valley bottom to the mountain tops. I love the sights and the smells!

 

A big ‘THANK YOU’ to the Columbia Mountains Institute of Applied Ecology (CMI) for hosting the Annual Researchers’ Forum: From Valley Bottom to Mountains Tops, on October 8/9^th in Creston, and to all that attended. The gathering had a great turnout, with knowledgeable speakers presenting an array of significant and diverse topics. You can watch the CMI website for a review of the proceedings to come. https://cmiae.org/event/annual-researchers-forum-3/

 

Thank you to the public for your co-operation and for giving the Northen Leopard Frogs a break! The two gates south of Duck Lake Dike have re-opened as of October 15th (at 11:59 pm).  The bi-annual closure to motorized vehicle access is necessary to help recover the last population of endangered northern leopard frog in British Columbia, which lives and breeds within the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area. The frogs particularly like to forage on the warm road surface in the evening and at night during the fall migration between the Duck Lake Nesting Area (wetland unit south of Duck Lake) and the Old Goat River Channel (that flows into Duck Lake), and are very vulnerable to mortality caused by vehicles. We have had some interesting research and studies continuing on in the CVWMA regarding the Northern Leopard frogs and the breeding areas this year. We will bring some of the findings and details to our readers in the upcoming Wetlander this winter, stay tuned!

 

Kindly,

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

This August, the CVWMA staff were delighted to help the Canadian Wildlife Service of Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) set up waterfowl banding stations at several locations throughout the management area. Waterfowl banding hasn’t been performed in this area since the 1990’s, so we were very excited to take part in the re-establishment of a banding station. Banding data helps ECCC understand waterfowl population dynamics and movements, which in turn instructs management decisions that result in the maintenance of healthy waterfowl populations.

 

Under the guidance of ECCC staff, Marc-Andre, Jacob, Alyson, and Julia all had the opportunity to band ducks. This process involves first determining species, sex, and age of each bird, followed by the application of a lightweight aluminum leg band with a unique identifier. After the band was checked to ensure a good fit, samples were collected from banded birds to send away for testing for Avian Influenza, which will provide valuable insights on this pathogen’s prevalence in waterfowl populations in BC. Finally, band number, age, sex, and species were confirmed prior to release of the bird. It was an incredible experience to work with wildlife in-hand, and we are very grateful to ECCC for their thoughtful instructions and knowledgeable explanations. We learned so much and had a lot of fun doing so!

 

In total, 285 birds were banded this season. Mallards and Wood Ducks made up the majority, with two Blue-Winged Teals, one American Green-winged Teal, and one Common Goldeneye to round out the mix. We are hopeful that waterfowl banding at the CVWMA will continue in 2025 and future years. In the meantime, keep your eyes peeled for a more in-depth article about waterfowl banding in the Winter 2024/2025 edition of our Wetlander publication!

 

William O'Shea (with ECCC) banding a Mallard