Help show the world what Saskatoon’s biodiversity looks like – and sounds like—grab your smartphone, the free @inaturalistorg app, & join this year’s #CityNatureChallenge from April 29–May 2! Great for all ages; find details at FriendsAreas.ca #CNCYXE
American Robin., Turdus migratoriusBaby American Robin (Turdus migratorius)Canada Goose Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands, Saskatoon, Sk, CA
Celebrate 50 years! Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and George Genereux Urban Regional park were planted to trees in 1972, 50 years ago. Come out and say Happy Birthday!
Nearing the end of day one of the City Nature Challenge. Quite a few waterfowl are back, and a lovely array of dark-eyed junco are seen. Some amazing pictures making the scene, two turkey vultures soaring overhead, and a cute playful North American River Otter peeking out of the water giving a smile! A mourning cloak butterfly loved the warm weather today. So these are just some tidbits of what has been seen during the Saskatoon City Nature Challenge! And the rabbits cannot make up their mind. A white rabbit was seen and a brown rabbit, so will we get more snow or not. Usually the color of the rabbits confirm spring once they are brown. The songs of the songbirds is quite amazing and what a treat for International Dawn Chorus Day which is the first Sunday of May! Our hint for the CNCYXE2022, remember to record the songs of the songbirds! Take photos of seeds and pine cones on the ground. Remember the trees are starting to flower. Bugs are just waiting to peek out if you move some of the leaves on the ground. The CNCYXE is very important this year. Citizen Scientists can document if the Avian flu is affecting our bird population. What will you see?
Help show the world what Saskatoon’s biodiversity looks like – and sounds like—grab your smartphone, the free @inaturalistorg app, & join this year’s #CityNatureChallenge from April 29–May 2! Great for all ages; find details at FriendsAreas.ca #CNCYXE
Meadowlark
Celebrate 50 years! Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and George Genereux Urban Regional park were planted to trees in 1972, 50 years ago. Come out and say Happy Birthday!
This challenge throws down a gauntlet for you to overcome! It is without a doubt a formidable task! March 14 is International Day to Take Action For Rivers. With a theme, the Rights of Rivers, can you imagine now what the challenge is set before you?
Finally, the folks over at International Rivers is having their our own Day of Action event called “Life of a River: From Restoration to Protection and Rights“. This is a virtual online celebration (co-hosted with American Rivers) we will be hearing from movement representatives just like you to share and discuss emerging tactics and themes in global river protection and Indigenous rights work! For more information and click here to register if you are interested.
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. 52° 06′ 106° 45′
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063
Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot
“I thought how lovely and how strange a river is. A river is a river, always there, and yet the water flowing through it is never the same water and is never still. It’s always changing and is always on the move. And over time the river itself changes too.
Aiden Chambers
Life is like the river, sometimes it sweeps you gently along and sometimes the rapids come out of nowhere.
For our challenge today, we would like you to email to us at friendsafforestation@gmail.com what you think would belong in a list for the Rights of Rivers! March 14 is International Day of Action for Rivers, think of how you, personally can take action for the International Day of Action for Rivers! The theme for 2021 is celebrating the Rights of Rivers. We have a spectacular challenge for our Winter Staycation for you!
March 14 is a marvellous Sunday! And it is a day to think about the South Saskatchewan watershed! What is the South Saskatchewan watershed you say?
South Saskatchewan River Basin Shannon_1 CC4.0
This above picture shows the river basin, the catchment area, or the drainage basin for the South Saskatchewan River. This is a contemporary image of the south Saskatchewan River Basin. The image which follows shows the formation of the West Swale from the Yorath Island Glacial Spillway. The hydrological surface drainage patterns shown in the topological map above are a stark difference to the glacial spillway below which shows that the waters in the Glacial North Saskatchewan combined with Glacial Rice Lake. When the waters from the retreating glacier reached a great volume, the shoreline of Glacial Rice Lake could not contain the water anymore. and there was a sudden surge of spillwaters through the Yorath Island Channel and the Moon Lake Channel cascading in an eruption across the Cory Plains until the waters were stopped in the Glacial South Saskatchewan Lake. Yorath Island was formed from the deposited till and rubble of this Pleistocene Glacial event. Today we create river drainage maps for the North and South Saskatchewan Rivers. The glacial spillway with its huge surge of water created a momentous and catastrophic joining between the two basin areas. Because of the land topography, there are remains of the Yorath Island Channel and the Moon Lake Channel seen today on Google Satellite maps, and they show evidence of the rich and lush riparian waterway which once existed, and which is still connected through underground springs and wetlands.
Yorath Island Channel, Moon Lake Channel, Sutherland Channel and Cory Plain Channel Pleistocene Era South Sk River Valley 2588000 to 117000 years ago Adapted from Larry Edwin Hodges
This was a contributing factor to the formation of the South Saskatchewan River as we know it today. As you walk in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation area imagine the Pleistocene ice age mammals startled by the glacial spillway. Imagine this same ice age mammals creating new trails along the two new rivers in the Moon Lake Channel and the Yorath Island Spillway. Wonder as they wandered to the water’s edge for a drink of water. Where would the Palaeo-Indian fit into this scenario? Would they similarly follow the animal trails? Would they hunt the ancient ice age mammoths. Would the Palaeo-Indian find the two new rivers in the Moon Lake Channel and the Yorath Island Spillway handy to help them forage, and find food to eat? There were major encampments found where these channels met the Glacial South Saskatchewan Lake. As you walk in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, imagine living during the time of ice age mammoths.
Then, appreciate the semi-wilderness habitat we have in Saskatoon today. Along with the waterfowl, do we have other animals using the West Swale Wetlands named after B.T. Chappell as Chappell Marsh? Have you spotted a muskrat or any ducks, geese, herons, or terns? The West Swale is a geological treasure in the City of Saskatoon.
During this day, International Day of Action for Rivers, think of how you, personally can take action for the International Day of Action for Rivers! The theme for 2021 is celebrating the Rights of Rivers.
Today think of geology, and geography, and the history of ancient rivers which formed today’s rivers which we appreciated so much.
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. 52° 06′ 106° 45′
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063
Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot
“I thought how lovely and how strange a river is. A river is a river, always there, and yet the water flowing through it is never the same water and is never still. It’s always changing and is always on the move. And over time the river itself changes too.
Aiden Chambers
Life is like the river, sometimes it sweeps you gently along and sometimes the rapids come out of nowhere.
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. 52° 06′ 106° 45′
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063 Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map Where is the George Genereux Urban Regional Park (Afforestation Area)? with map
Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail)
Support the afforestation areas with your donation or membership ($20.00/year). Please donate by paypal using the e-mail friendsafforestation AT gmail.com, or by using e-transfers Please and thank you! Your donation and membership is greatly appreciated. Members e-mail your contact information to be kept up to date!
“St. Barbe’s unique capacity to pass on his enthusiasm to others. . . Many foresters all over the world found their vocations as a result of hearing ‘The Man of the Trees’ speak. I certainly did, but his impact has been much wider than that. Through his global lecture tours, St. Barbe has made millions of people aware of the importance of trees and forests to our planet.” Allan Grainger
“The science of forestry arose from the recognition of a universal need. It embodies the spirit of service to mankind in attempting to provide a means of supplying forever a necessity of life and, in addition, ministering to man’s aesthetic tastes and recreational interests. Besides, the spiritual side of human nature needs the refreshing inspiration which comes from trees and woodlands. If a nation saves its trees, the trees will save the nation. And nations as well as tribes may be brought together in this great movement, based on the ideal of beautifying the world by the cultivation of one of God’s loveliest creatures – the tree.” ~ Richard St. Barbe Baker.
“I believed that God has lent us the Earth. It belongs as much to those who come after us as to us, and it ill behooves us by anything we do or neglect, to deprive them of benefits which are in our power to bequeath.” Richard St. Barbe Baker
The Christmas Bird Counts are scheduled by Saskatoon Nature Society for Saskatoon, in conjunction with Audubon’s 119th Christmas Bird Count which takes place between the dates of Friday, December 14, 2018 through Saturday, January 5, 2019.
Canada Goose Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands, Saskatoon, Sk, CA
Pop out to the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, and George Genereux Urban Regional Park before Saturday, January 5, 2019, and take note of any sightings for a Christmas Bird Count locally, and record your sightings on e-bird!
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. 52° 06′ 106° 45′
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063 Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map Where is the George Genereux Urban Regional Park (Afforestation Area)? with map
Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail)
Support the afforestation areas with your donation or membership ($20.00/year). Please donate by paypal using the e-mail friendsafforestation AT gmail.com, or by using e-transfers Please and thank you! Your donation and membership is greatly appreciated. Members e-mail your contact information to be kept up to date!
“The science of forestry arose from the recognition of a universal need. It embodies the spirit of service to mankind in attempting to provide a means of supplying forever a necessity of life and, in addition, ministering to man’s aesthetic tastes and recreational interests. Besides, the spiritual side of human nature needs the refreshing inspiration which comes from trees and woodlands. If a nations saves its trees, the trees will save the nation. And nations as well as tribes may be brought together in this great movement, based on the ideal of beautifying the world by the cultivation of one of God’s loveliest creatures – the tree.” ~ Richard St. Barbe Baker.
I believe in oneness of mankind and of all living things and in the interdependence of each and all. I believe that unless we play fair to the Earth, we cannot exist physically on this planet. Unless we play fair to our neighbour, we cannot exist socially or internationally. Unless we play fair to better self, there is no individuality and no leadership. ~Richard St. Barbe Baker.
Don’t feed the waterfowl
Mallard Ducks Chappell Marsh. West Swale Wetlands Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. Saskatoon, SK, CA
Ruddy Duck. Chappell Marsh. West Swale Wetlands. Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. Saskatoon, SK, CA
Ruddy Duck. Chappell Marsh. West Swale Wetlands. Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. Saskatoon, SK, CA
Canada Geese West Swale Wetlands. Chappell Marsh. Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK, CA
Mallard Ducks. West Swale Wetlands (Chappel Marsh) Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK, CA
Ruddy Duck in the West Swale Wetlands (Chappel Marsh) One of the only locales in Saskatchewan to sight the Ruddy Duck. Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK, CA
Canada Goose Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands, Saskatoon, Sk, CA
Canada Goose There are Geese at the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Chappell Marsh and West Swale Wetlands, Saskatoon, Sk, CA
Don’t feed the waterfowl, and the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals goes on to say; Never feed ducks, geese, swans, gulls, herons or eagles.It’s a fine line to walk, between “Feed the Birds Day on February 3” and not feeding the ducks.
If you do use a bird feeder for migratory birds, place them safely away from domesticated animals such as dogs and cats, and do not allow the ground feed spilled out of feeders to habituate rodents.
“There is a risk that ducks and other waterfowl can get an illness known as angel wing, which is caused by not getting the right nutrients in their diet.
“The illness causes as deformity in birds’ wings that can hamper the way they fly or even stop them altogether, which could obviously be fatal,” said Harry Bellows from The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. RSPB says, “Uneaten, rotting food left by ducks can trigger noxious odours and fuel algae that can eventually eradicate fish from the area, as well as attracting rats, mice and insects.
“Mouldy bread can also cause aspergillosis a fatal lung infection that can wipe out waterfowl in flocks.”Foster
Artificial feeding sites can cause outbreaks in wildlife of Duck Virus Enteritis, Aspergillus, and Avian Botulism. Additionally these feeding sites can attract a parasite which causes Swimmer’s Itch in humans.
Besides recognizing these health risks and diseases, there are more reasons not to feed the ducks. Receiving food from humans results in changes in the behavior of waterfowl. The natural areas become overcrowded where feeding occurs, and the native eco-system cannot support the over-run of ducks and geese. Due to the groups and the larger numbers of ducks and geese, a health risk mounts up from excess droppings which increases the risk of disease.
He who knows what sweets and virtues are in the ground, the waters, the plants, the heavens, and how to come at these enchantments, is the rich and royal man. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Furthermore, waterfowl may even decide not to migrate, relying on the food source from humans, and are trapped by the cold winter. For those waterfowl who do not migrate, they are at risk of dying when the winter temperatures drop to -40 Celsius and below, and there is a drop in human feeders.
The adult waterfowl addicted to bread stop teaching their young how to forage in the wild. The ducklings and goslings, then know only a life of seeking food from humans, and cannot survive in a natural setting. Therefore, waterfowl who rely on humans for food will cluster around human outdoor activities in parks, humans and parking lots without knowledge of domestic animals such as dogs and cats and vehicles on roadways.
Additionally relying on handouts of bread leads to severe duckling and gosling mal-nourishment as bread does not have the necessary nutrients to stave off disease or support a healthy body.
“Wild animals who get used to a handout will often take the easy route despite ample natural foods being available – even in urban areas,” says Dr. Sara Dubois, chief scientific officer for the BC SPCA. “Although it might seem harmless and cute to feed a squirrel on a park bench or ducks at the local pond, these activities can lead to increased habituation.”
“Habituated wild animals are also more susceptible to predators and vehicle collisions, as they lose their fear of people and the associated flight response.”BC SPCA
Foods that should never be fed to ducks include:
Bread
Chips
Crackers
Popcorn
Biscuits
Sugary food including sweets and chocolates
Cereal
Sweets
Mouldy food
Over-wintering waterfowl in the region of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan may, as an exception, include Greater White-fronted Goose, Ring-necked Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, Greater Scaup, Snow Goose, Horned Grebe, Eared Grebe, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Red-necked Grebe, Sora, American Coot, Canada Goose, Mallard, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Canvasback, Redhead, and Ruddy Duck. If you are patient and still and happen to recognize these waterfowl, please do not feed them. Especially not in or near an off leash recreation area. The waterfowl of Chappel Marsh – the West Swale Wetlands – should not be habituated to humans. They should rely on their natural insticts to not approach humans.
I believe in oneness of mankind and of all living things and in the interdependence of each and all. I believe that unless we play fair to the Earth, we cannot exist physically on this planet. Unless we play fair to our neighbour, we cannot exist socially or internationally. Unless we play fair to better self, there is no individuality and no leadership. ~Richard St. Barbe Baker.
For more information:
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. 52° 06′ 106° 45′
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SW 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063 Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map Where is the George Genereux Urban Regional Park (Afforestation Area)? with map
Please help protect / enhance /commemorate your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail)
Support the afforestation areas with your donation or membership ($20.00/year). Please donate by paypal using the e-mail friendsafforestation AT gmail.com, or by using e-transfers Please and thank you! Your donation and membership is greatly appreciated. Members e-mail your contact information to be kept up to date!
Membership : $20.00 CAD – year
Membership with donation : $20.00 CAD – monthly
Membership with donation : $50.00 CAD
Membership with donation : $100.00 CAD
Our task must be to free ourselves … by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.~Albert Einstein
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. George Genereux Urban Regional Park. 