Ontario takes the preservation of this endangered species very seriously and has compiled a management plan. The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources considers species at risk, natural, valued and protected, and to this end have documented ways to help the Horned Grebe. What does the Province of Saskatchewan say? The Species at Risk Act SARA, similarly has a recovery strategy. Committee On The Status Of Endangered Wildlife In Canada COSEWIC has an assessment and status report written up for the Horned Grebe Podiceps auritus. The Government of Canada has developed a species profile and action plan in its Species at Risk Act Action Plan Series.
“Mother nature has given us a strong signal through this pandemic: we must change our habits and slow down if we are going to continue living on this planet. It is a perfect time to make people realize on a global level that flattening the curve of climate change and environmental destruction is just as important as flattening the curve for COVID-19. It’s a perfect time to formulate and refine your ideas and put the planning and strategy in place to make them happen.” Marianna Muntianu UN Environment Program
The Saskatchewan Government reports; “Despite many programs focused on maintaining and enhancing wildlife populations, some species have become threatened with extinction and require special attention to help ensure their survival. The mission of the Saskatchewan species at risk program is to protect species from extirpation or extinction and to prevent new species from becoming threatened with extinction. ”
The Canadian-Saskatchewan Agreement on Species at Risk; “Species at risk protection and recovery in Saskatchewan will, to the extent possible, be designed and delivered in a manner tailored to address the ecological, social and economic circumstances of the province; Planning and actions to prevent species from becoming at risk, and to protect and recover species that have been identified as being at risk will be informed by the best available information on the biological status of a species, including scientific knowledge, community knowledge and aboriginal traditional knowledge”
So, as one can see, there are numerous plans and strategies in regards to the Horned Grebe. What exists Nationally, Provincially and Municipally for the other endangered species which exist in the afforestation area locally? Both the horned grebe and barred tiger salamander are listed as a species of special concern by the Committee On The Status Of Endangered Wildlife In Canada – an Independent Advisory Panel to the Minister Of Environment and Climate Change. The Red-necked Phalarope, Baird’s Sparrow and Grasshopper Sparrow are special concern, and Bobolink, Bank Swallow is threatened nationally under the federal Species at Risk Act SARA Schedule 1. According to Chet Neufeld, Executive Director Native Plant Society referencing “the provincial rare species database, there have been occurrences of endangered Whooping Cranes observed near the area in 2017 and an occurrence of Small Yellow Lady’s-slipper (date unknown)” (email Dec 25, 2019) The Small Yellow Lady’s Slipper was indeed confirmed with another sighting by the Saskatoon Nature Society.
At Nature Saskatchewan the Stewards of Saskatchewan program are calling for people to reach out to them with species at risk sightings as the spring season begins. If you have a sighting you would like to share please call 1-800-667-4668 (HOOT) or email a program staff member.
April 19, 2020 is the cutoff date for this crowd fundraiser should you care to do your part for the environment during Earth Month. Any funding raised would help to erect motorized vehicle barriers to protect the afforestation areas, and therefore protect the wetlands from illegal motorized vehicle trespass.
Shoreline edge of the permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
Thanks for comments, likes and shares on facebook. And if you care to make a donation too 😉 Not only do vehicle mitigation barriers help the Horned Grebe, but they also help school children, class field trips from being run over from illegal motorized vehicle trespass, and the semi-wilderness habitat, and the other endangered species, as well as all the users to the afforestation areas! Raising funds to erect vehicle mitigation barriers, also places stops on illegal trash dumping, which is also way cool!
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
Shoreline edge of the permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
A fund-raiser has been started to protect the habitat of a federally listed species in the wetlands of the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. April 19 2020 – right before Earth Day Wednesday, April 22 is the cutoff date for this fundraiser should you wish to help out. Wouldn’t helping out the habitat of a federally listed species be a wonderful means to celebrate Earth Day?
Nick Saunders, and the Saskatoon Nature Society have created Chappell Marsh as a birding hotspot. If you observe any waterfowl, or any birds out at the wetlands, please record on ebird At this time, the more plants and animals which can be observed, recorded, and sent into to the iNaturalist site and onto onto ebird the better it is for the data inventory to value the afforestation areas. So send in pictures of plants and animlas to the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc or the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Area Group facebook page. Another great place for pictures is
Shoreline edge of the permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
Permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer
Permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
There is a strong desire to mitigate illegal motorized trespass and the associated illegal trash dumping which is never good for the environment in an urban regional park or around a wetlands habitat. Installation of vehicle barriers would go a long way for preservation and conservation. There are currently shoreline degradation and deep ruts from motorized vehicles driving around the wetlands when the soil is wet. The fund-raiser is pro-active and preventative in regards to driving into the afforestation areas and around the wetlands with off road vehicles, all terrain vehicles, 4x4s, and motorized vehicles, and the illegal dumping of trash. An outlier case would be extreme mudding in the habitat of the Horned Grebe. Facebook fund-raiser
Extreme Mudding in a wetlands someplace by 4×4 ATV ORV and motorized vehicles
Following the ecological assessment a study can be made regarding eco-classrooms and youth to come on board for further wetlands restoration and learning projects around the wetland shoreline to learn about this unique wetlands habitat which is wonderfully suited to the Horned Grebe. Learning about the Horned Grebe is an empowering class project to protect the habitat of a federally listed species.
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, West Swale Wetlands. Chappell Marsh. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus Nesting
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands in the fog
Please, like and share this online fund-raiser started on Facebook for the non-profit group Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc, to enable these projects.
Thanks kindly
At the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK Construction Discards and Hazardous Waste. Before the 2016 Community Clean Up
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands in the fog
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands in the fog
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
“From the forest and wilderness come the tonics and bark which brace mankind…A town is saved, not more by the righteous men in it than by the woods and swamps that surround it…”
-Henry David Thoreau
“This generation may either be the last to exist in any semblance of a civilised world or that it will be the first to have the vision, the bearing and the greatness to say, ‘I will have nothing to do with this destruction of life, I will play no part in this devastation of the land, I am determined to live and work for peaceful construction for I am morally responsible for the world of today and the generations of tomorrow.’”
Richard St. Barbe Baker
Shoreline edge of the permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
Permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer
Permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
A fund-raiser has been started to protect the habitat of a federally listed species in the wetlands of the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. April 19 2020 is the cutoff date for this fundraiser should you wish to help out.
Shoreline edge of the permanent wetlands in the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
with cattails and emergent vegetation in the summer showing illegal vehicle trespass, mudding, and ruts in the spring
There is a strong desire to mitigate illegal motorized trespass and the associated illegal trash dumping which is never good for the environment in an urban regional park or around a wetlands habitat. Installation of vehicle barriers would go a long way for preservation and conservation. There are currently shoreline degradation and deep ruts from motorized vehicles driving around the wetlands when the soil is wet. The fund-raiser is pro-active and preventative in regards to driving into the afforestation areas and around the wetlands with off road vehicles, all terrain vehicles, 4x4s, and motorized vehicles, and the illegal dumping of trash. An outlier case would be extreme mudding in the habitat of the Horned Grebe.
Extreme Mudding in a wetlands someplace by 4×4 ATV ORV and motorized vehicles
Following the ecological assessment a study can be made regarding eco-classrooms and youth to come on board to plant willows around the wetland shoreline to further protect the wetlands habitat. If willow planting was determined to be best practice, it would provide an empowering class project to protect the habitat of a federally listed species, and the willow tree growth would provide data regarding positive action taken on a climate change project.
Please, like and share this online fund-raiser started on Facebook for the non-profit group Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc, to enable these projects.
Thanks kindly
At the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK Construction Discards and Hazardous Waste. Before the 2016 Community Clean Up
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands in the fog
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands in the fog
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
“From the forest and wilderness come the tonics and bark which brace mankind…A town is saved, not more by the righteous men in it than by the woods and swamps that surround it…”
-Henry David Thoreau
“This generation may either be the last to exist in any semblance of a civilised world or that it will be the first to have the vision, the bearing and the greatness to say, ‘I will have nothing to do with this destruction of life, I will play no part in this devastation of the land, I am determined to live and work for peaceful construction for I am morally responsible for the world of today and the generations of tomorrow.’”
Richard St. Barbe Baker
‘I will have nothing to do with this destruction of life, I will play no part in this devastation of the land, I am determined to live and work for peaceful construction for I am morally responsible for the world of today and the generations of tomorrow.’~Richard St. Barbe Baker
What is the price tag which the Saskatchewan Party places on the last
Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) photo credit William Warby
Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) Photo credit Paul Stein
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus Nesting
“We believe in the innate intelligence of… the country men and the workers, that they should be allowed to manage their own affairs. We believe they will put into their work not merely their hands and their feet, but their brains and their hearts. Each can experience the transcendental joy of creation, and can earn immortality and bestow immortality.~Richard St. Barbe Baker”
At a time when there are mandates to protect threatened species, it is definitely a time that our ecosystems and habitats deserve more funding and not less funding.
In the March 30, 2017 edition of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix newspaper, Phil Tank, writes that, “The Saskatchewan Party government introduced changes to the legislation this week that eliminate the requirement for set annual funding for the MVA [Meewasin Valley Authority] from the provincial government and the University of Saskatchewan.” Faced with less funding in 2016, MVA had no choice but to close its Interpretive Centre on July 1, 2016. This year, the provincial budget revealed that the MVA funding would sit at 500,000 or about half the annual amount. This $409,000 funding cut is an irony as among the land which are expected to be preserved, conserved, and maintained by the MVA are Crown lands. The question arises will the Saskatchewan Provincial parks ministry then step in to maintain their own lands within the MVA conservation zone? The Provincial Parks ministry owns about 2,610 acres of the 6,400 acres which MVA manages.
More funds, NOT LESS should be dedicated to saving the COSEWIC species of special concern: Monarch Butterfly, Common Nighthawk, Loggerhead Shrike, Barn Swallow, Mountain Bluebird, Horned Grebe, Northern Leopard Frog, Short-eared Owl, Baird’s Sparrow, Yellow Rail, Olive-sided Flycatcher, and Rusty Blackbird are all species within the MVA conservation zone along the South Saskatchewan River. These are just a very few of the protected species in danger of elimination in the South Saskatchewan River valley as determined by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada .
Our parks, South Saskatchewan rivershores, trails, historic sites all provide a critical and much needed wildlife habitat, ensure clean drinking water for residents of Saskatoon and all communities down stream, and offer countless and innumerable recreational activities. Visitors to Saskatoon have enjoyed visiting this river city with opportunities to hike, bicycle, or just take in the awe-inspiring beauty of numerous landmarks and breathtaking landscapes enhanced by the MVA conservation efforts since 1978. Reducing funding as the MVA comes up on their 40th anniversary would have a profound and tragic impact on the health and well-being of wildlife, landscapes and people. Any perceived short term savings would ultimately end up as gigantic economic costs in the long run. Without funding, the amazing riverbank scenes, and the wildlife habitat corridor would disintegrate. Without funding endangered species are pushed towards extinction. Without funding there would be detrimental effects on the river, waterways, drinking water, and population health. Without funding there would be a devastating effect on the civic economy. Multi-use pathways would disappear. Without adequate funding, marshlands dry up, the world’s most endangered eco-system the temperate grasslands would vanish, and rivers, streams, and swales would get destroyed.
It may be thought of as an easy win for the Saskatchewan Party to implement cuts in conservation, however, such cuts could result in profound and maybe even irreversible consequences for Saskatchewan’s wildlife, landscapes and population. Do not let our future generations mitigate nature deficit disorder and be reduced to exploring and searching out nature in parking lots and fracking wells. Wouldn’t it be much better for our grandchildren, and great grandchildren to get a healthy dose of Vitamin N from our river valleys, swales, forests and native grasslands?
Our healthy river valley and parks create many millions in tourist and economic revenue every year, and support a vibrant river city economy of thousands of jobs.
To maintain wildlife populations, recover endangered species, and restore damaged eco-systems all require financial resources. With climate change, these needs and costs are rising exponentially.
As Saskatoon’s projected growth is set to hit 250,000 by 2025 and 380,000 by 2035, the provincial important wildlife habitat will rest within the MVA conservation zone as urban sprawl takes up valuable land which sensitive species rely upon. The plight of wildlife depends on funding for wildlife conservation and natural resource protection.
It is fantastic that ranchers and industry are monitored under The Wildlife Habitat Protection Act (WHPA) and that conservation practices are being adopted in rural areas, however the MVA educates the public on conservation practices in urban areas.
Please write a letter to your elected officials urging them to provide the resources and funding needed for engagement and education services, footpaths, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. What is the cost to balance a $1.2 billion deficit? Actions have consequences, will it be the last of the Monarch Butterfly, or the extinction of the Horned Grebe? Let us hope not for goodness sakes, the Monarch Butterfly and Horned Grebe are invaluable, and should not be set at any price! In this modern technological era of progress and advancement don’t abandon the earth around us. Get out from behind your computer, set down your phone, go outside and pay attention to nature. If you wouldn’t mind, to everyone interested in paying attention to nature, write a letter to these following elected officials, speak out for the water, the land, the forests, and the myriad of creatures you see before its too late, please, and thank you. Also, please do check out the Meewasin Green Circle.
“Man has lost his way in the jungle of chemistry and engineering and will have to retrace his steps, however painful this may be. In doing so, perhaps he may be able to recapture the rhythm of life and the love of the simple things of life, which will be an ever-unfolding joy to him.” ~Richard St. Barbe Baker
BIBLIOGRAPHY Adopt a rancher. Saskatchewan Prairie Conservation Action Plan
Crown Land Ecological Assessment Tool CLEAT is a computer program which puts a price tag on nature which weighs the cost of the Northern Leopard Frog against potential oil and gas development, and agricultural capability, and economic growth. What is the price tag which the Saskatchewan Party places on the last Monarch Butterfly or Baird’s Sparrow? That is what I would like to know. Has the Saskatchewan Party hereby in essence revoked the Monarch Butterfly’s passport entitling them to travel under government protection to and from foreign countries during their migration time?
“Almost everywhere in the world man has been disregarding the Divine Law and the Laws of Nature, to his own undoing. In his pride, he has rampaged over the stage of the earth, forgetting that he is only one of the players put there to play his part in harmony and oneness with all living things.~Richard St. Barbe Baker”
“This generation may either be the last to exist in any semblance of a civilised world or that it will be the first to have the vision, the bearing and the greatness to say, ‘I will have nothing to do with this destruction of life, I will play no part in this devastation of the land, I am determined to live and work for peaceful construction for I am morally responsible for the world of today and the generations of tomorrow.’”~Richard St. Barbe Baker
Is this the fate of the Saskatchewan River Valley, the marshlands, the temperate grasslands, the river bank? Without the MVA and their annual spring clean up, what will the water supply look like if this tragedy is allowed to take place? Is this what a river city should become? Please help prevent this devastation.
At the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK One of the many piles of Construction Discards and Roofing Shignles Before the 2016 Community Clean Up
At the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK One of the many piles of Construction Discards and Appliances Before the 2016 Community Clean Up
At the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK Construction Discards and Hazardous Waste. Before the 2016 Community Clean Up
At the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, Saskatoon, SK One of the many piles of roofing shingles Before the 2016 Community Clean Up
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!
The trees and vegetation, which cover the land surface of the Earth and delight the eye, are performing vital tasks incumbent upon the vegetable world in nature. Its presence is essential to earth as an organism. It is the first condition of all life; it it the ‘skin’ of the earth, for without it there can be no water, and therefore, no life.~Richard St. Barbe Baker
It is not a farce.…”To be whole. To be complete. Wildness reminds us what it means to be human, what we are connected to rather than what we are separate from.” ~Terry Tempest Williams
Podiceps Auritus “Members of the family of Grebes are to be found in the temperate zones of both hemispheres, beyond which they do not extend very far either to the north or south. They are usually found on ponds or large sheets of stagnant water, sometimes on deep, slow-moving streams; but always where sedges and rushes are abundant. Probably there are no birds better entitled to the name of water fowl than the Grebes—at least, observers state that they know of no others that do not on some occasions appear on dry land. It is only under the most urgent circumstances, as, for instance, when wounded, that they approach the shore, and even then they keep so close to the brink that on the slightest alarm they can at once plunge into the water. Whatever they do must be done in the water; they cannot even rise upon the wing without a preliminary rush over the surface of the lake. From dry land they cannot begin their flight. Their whole life is spent in swimming and diving. They even repose floating upon the water, and when thus asleep float as buoyantly as if they were made of cork, the legs raised to the edges of the wings, and the head comfortably buried among the feathers between the back and shoulder. Should a storm arise, they at once turn to face the blast, and are usually able, with their paddle-like feet, to maintain themselves in the same place. They dive with great facility, and make their way more swiftly when under water than when swimming at the top. When flying the long neck is stretched out straight forwards and the feet backwards. In the absence of any tail, they steer their course by means of their feet. When alarmed they instantly dive.
Their food consists of small fishes, insects, frogs, and tadpoles. Grebes are peculiar in their manner of breeding. They live in pairs, and are very affectionate, keeping in each other’s company during their migrations, and always returning together to the same pond. The nest is a floating one, a mass of wet weeds, in which the eggs are not only kept damp, but in the water. The weeds used in building the nests are procured by diving, and put together so as to resemble a floating heap of rubbish, and fastened to some old upright reeds. The eggs are from three to six, at first greenish white in color, but soon become dirty, and are then of a yellowish red or olive-brown tint, sometimes marbled.
The male and female both sit upon the nest, and the young are hatched in three weeks. From the first moment they are able to swim, and in a few days to dive. Having once quitted the nest they seldom return to it, a comfortable resting and sleeping place being afforded them on the backs of their parents. “It is a treat to watch the little family as now one, now another of the young brood, tired with the exertion of swimming or of struggling against the rippling water, mount as to a resting place on their mother’s back; to see how gently, when they have recovered their strength, she returns them to the water; to hear the anxious, plaintive notes of the little warblers when they have ventured too far from the nest; to see their food laid before them by the old birds; or to witness the tenderness with which they are taught to dive.Col. F. M. Woodruff.”
Designated Special Concern by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada COSEWIC, “because over 90% of this bird’s breeding grounds are within Western Canadian wetlands, the continued destruction of marshes and waterways is a major threat to the survival of this species.”Nature Canada “Threats include degradation of wetland breeding habitat, droughts, increasing populations of nest predators (mostly in the Prairies), and oil spills on their wintering grounds in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. COSEWIC”
“The global population has been declined by 30% over the last three decades and by 79% within North America. Within 1985 and 2001, grassland and wetland drainage amounted to 5% global habitat loss. Due to global declines, the Horned Grebe has been unlisted from least concern to vulnerable resulting in conservation and research action plans.*”
According to the Ministry of the Environment, A breeding bird or breeding Grebe colony is protected May 15 through to July 15 of the year, foot traffic, and other low disturbances must maintain a distance of 100 meters. Medium disturbances such as vehicles and ATVs as well as high disturbances, roads, drilling both must maintain a distance of 200m from loons and any Colonial Nesting Grebes. The Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and the Afforestation Area formerly known as George Genereux Park are both located in the West Swale which drains into the South Saskatchewan River at Yorath Island/Maple Grove.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Nature Canada suggests:
“Tell elected officials that you support the protection of at least half of Canada’s Boreal forest.” “The eco-system of a forest is very fragile. It is very easily upset. This would be a fifth reason why tree cover should be maintained…It is not enough for a mayor to put on his chain and plant a tree but he must plant forest trees for our lives”~Richard St. Barbe Baker The afforestation areas of Saskatoon are a vital heritage site, and a true testament to the Parks Department of Saskatoon.
Dan Kraus,Weston conservation scientist and senior director of conservation program development for the Nature Conservancy of Canada, writes about the temperate prairies, and the endangered grasslands ~ the World’s most endangered eco-system. So it certainly would not hurt to tell your elected officials that you support the protection, as well, of the native grasslands of the West Swale, including those of the Afforestation area formerly known as George Genereux Urban Regional Park, and the native grasslands of the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area.
“When viewed in the context of our climate and geological history, it is evident that prairie wetlands are integral and irreplaceable parts of the Saskatchewan landscape.The challenge is to find a place for these wetlands in our social, economic and land-use systems – a place where their protection and conservation is assured by their inherent value.Managing Saskatchewan’s Wetlands Is there not truly a great symbiosis between woodlands, grasslands and wetlands?
“Advocate for greater protection of Important Bird Areas (IBA) in your community and across the country.”
“Learn more about IBAs.” Do you consider Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, the West Swale, and the many and several wetlands around Chappell Marsh an important bird area? Chappell Marsh is huge, extending from Chappell Marsh Conservation Area managed by Ducks Unlimited, into Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area managed by the City of Saskatoon and the Meewasin Valley.
“Stay informed about endangered birds and other species”
“Thousands of volunteers have helped conserve Important Bird Areas by surveying bird populations, building nest boxes, erecting signs, removing invasive species, planting native grasses, and promoting awareness of the value of wildlife.”
What will you do?
From the account above, can you recognize the Horned Grebe, now on your travels into the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, and around about the West Swale wetlands, the series of marshes alongside Chappell Marsh?
“From water and earth we came, and the future of mankind on this planet will be determined by respectful or disrespectful treatment of these basic elements.
Water must be a basic consideration in everything: forestry, agriculture and industry. The forest is the mother of the rivers. First we must restore the tree cover to fix the soil, prevent too quick run-off, and steady springs, streams and rivers. We must restore the natural motion of our rivers and, in so doing, we shall restore their vitalizing functions. A river flowing naturally, with its bends, broads and narrows, has the motion of the blood in our arteries, with its inward rotation, tension and relaxation.” ~Richard St. Barbe Baker
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Collins, Henry Hill Editor. Harper and Row’s Complete Field Guide to North American Wildlife. Harper and Row Publishers. New York. 1981. ISBN 0-06-181163-7 page 12. Continuing Horned Grebe and Snow Buntings sullivancountybirder, Sullivan & Delaware County Birder’s Blog
COSEWIC Assessment and Status Report on the Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. COSEWIC. 2009. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Horned Grebe Podiceps auritus Western population and Magdalen Islands population, in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vii + 42 pp.
(www.sararegistry.gc.ca/
status/status_e.cfm)
Horned Grebe v.s. Highways. CBC.ca The Afternoon Edition. [Saskatchewan Highways and infrastructure have run into a different kind of roadblock at the site of one of their construction projects: the Horned Grebe.]
Horned Grebe. All About Birds Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Peterson, Roger Tory. A Field Guide to Western Birds. A completely new guide to Field Marks of All Species Found in North America West of the 100th Meridian and North of Mexico. Peterson Field Guides. Third Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company Boston. 1990. ISBN 0-395-51749-4. page 26
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!
The trees and vegetation, which cover the land surface of the Earth and delight the eye, are performing vital tasks incumbent upon the vegetable world in nature. Its presence is essential to earth as an organism. It is the first condition of all life; it it the ‘skin’ of the earth, for without it there can be no water, and therefore, no life.~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.
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“In the wealth of the woods since the world began The trees have offered their gifts to man.” – Henry van Dyke
The greatest gift of all is life. For millions of years the trees were paving the way for life on this planet, absorbing impurities, clearing up the foetid atmosphere and the swamp breath, absorbing carbon dioxide and giving off the life giving oxygen that
we breathe.” ~Richard St. Barbe Baker
I believe that water must be the basic consideration in all our national and earth- wide forest programmes. Streams and rivers must be returned to their natural motion. ~ Richard St. Barbe Baker
Podiceps Auritus is quite an amazing looking waterbird with yellow / white unique feathers behind its eyes tufted up to appear as “horns”, thus it name. This little bird is quite striking with black head, red eyes, and the white tufted ears bobbing along above a dark chestnut/black coloured body. These are the breeding colours when the Horned Grebe is all dressed up for show and courtship.
There are many books written nowadays which will tell you about birds as folk of the twentieth century see them. They describe carefully the singer’s house, his habits, the number of his little wife’s eggs, and the color of every tiny feather on her pretty wings. But these books tell you nothing at all about bird-history; about what birds have meant to all the generations of men, women, and children since the world began. You would think, to read the words of the bird-book men, that they were the very first folk to see any bird, and that what they think they have seen is the only matter worth the knowing.
Now the interesting facts about birds we have always with us. We can find them out for ourselves, which is a very pleasant thing to do, or we can take the word of others, of which there is no lack. But it is the quaint fancies about birds which are in danger of being lost. They show what the little feathered brothers have been to the children of men; how we have come to like some and to dislike others as we do; why the poets have called them by certain nicknames which we ought to know…~Abbie Farwell Brown
Nesting of the Horned Grebe will occur at a site in shallow water, most commonly amid wetlands flora alongside marshes. Breeding pairs most often choose sites in temperate zones of the Canadian prairies. The nests are made of wetlands plant material and anchored to the plants alongside freshwater marshes for concealment. Symbiosis played a major role in the co-evolution of the prairie marsh eco-system and the Horned Grebe.
Quite the jolliest season of the year, with the birds, is when they begin to require a home, either as a shelter from the weather, a defence against their enemies, or a place to rear and protect their young. May is not the only month in which they build their nests, some of our favorites, indeed, waiting till June, and even July; but as it is the time of the year when a general awakening to life and activity is felt in all nature, and the early migrants have come back, not to re-visit, but to re-establish their temporarily deserted homes, we naturally fix upon the first real spring month as the one in which their little hearts are filled with titillations of joy and anticipation.~C. C. Marble.
Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus Nesting
In winter, the Horned Grebe has a black crown, and a pale foreneck, cheeks and underparts, quite distinct from the showy breeding coloration. The Horned Grebe show up here in April, with the majority of sightings in May, June, and July. Sightings of the Horned Grebe continue on until November when they leave to the Aleutians and exposed shorelines of saltwater oceans to overwinter.
A grebe most resembles a small loon when it comes to waterbirds. Grebes in general are ducklike divers with lobed toes (not webbed feet) and sharp pointed bills. This little waterbird is quite fascinating to watch, at times diving down under the water as a loon, at other times just sinking down. The grebe will sit with its body much lower in the water than a duck.
The Horned Grebe needs to be on water to fly, and is not often seen on land. When not on the water, the Horned Grebe will maneuver awkwardly as a jumping and hopping motion, rushing across the surface of the water to gather up speed for flight.
Designated Special Concern by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada COSEWIC, “because over 90% of this bird’s breeding grounds are within Western Canadian wetlands, the continued destruction of marshes and waterways is a major threat to the survival of this species.”Nature Canada “Threats include degradation of wetland breeding habitat, droughts, increasing populations of nest predators (mostly in the Prairies), and oil spills on their wintering grounds in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. COSEWIC”
“The global population has been declined by 30% over the last three decades and by 79% within North America. Within 1985 and 2001, grassland and wetland drainage amounted to 5% global habitat loss. Due to global declines, the Horned Grebe has been unlisted from least concern to vulnerable resulting in conservation and research action plans.*”
According to the Ministry of the Environment, A breeding bird or breeding Grebe colony is protected May 15 through to July 15 of the year, foot traffic, and other low disturbances must maintain a distance of 100 meters. Medium disturbances such as vehicles and ATVs as well as high disturbances, roads, drilling both must maintain a distance of 200m from loons and any Colonial Nesting Grebes.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Nature Canada suggests:
“Tell elected officials that you support the protection of at least half of Canada’s Boreal forest.” “The eco-system of a forest is very fragile. It is very easily upset. This would be a fifth reason why tree cover should be maintained…It is not enough for a mayor to put on his chain and plant a tree but he must plant forest trees for our lives”~Richard St. Barbe Baker. The afforestation areas of Saskatoon are a vital heritage site, and a true testament to the Parks Department of Saskatoon.
Dan Kraus, Weston conservation scientist and senior director of conservation program development for the Nature Conservancy of Canada, writes about the temperate prairies, and the endangered grasslands ~ the World’s most endangered eco-system. So it certainly would not hurt to tell your elected officials that you support the protection as well, of the native grasslands of the West Swale, including those of the Afforestation area formerly known as George Genereux Urban Regional Park, and the native grasslands of the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area.
“When viewed in the context of our climate and geological history, it is evident that prairie wetlands are integral and irreplaceable parts of the Saskatchewan landscape.The challenge is to find a place for these wetlands in our social, economic and land-use systems – a place where their protection and conservation is assured by their inherent value.Managing Saskatchewan’s Wetlands” Is there not truly a great symbiosis between woodlands, grasslands and wetlands?
“Advocate for greater protection of Important Bird Areas (IBA) in your community and across the country.” Do you consider Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, the West Swale, and the many and several wetlands around Chappell Marsh an important bird area? Chappell Marsh is huge, extending from Chappell Marsh Conservation Area managed by Ducks Unlimited, into Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area managed by the City of Saskatoon and the Meewasin Valley Authority.
“Learn more about IBAs.”
“Stay informed about endangered birds and other species”
“Thousands of volunteers have helped conserve Important Bird Areas by surveying bird populations, building nest boxes, erecting signs, removing invasive species, planting native grasses, and promoting awareness of the value of wildlife.”
What will you do?
From the account above, can you recognize the Horned Grebe, now on your travels into the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, and around about the West Swale wetlands, the series of marshes alongside Chappell Marsh?
I believe, therefore, that water must be a basic consideration in all our national and earth wide forest programmes. Streams and rivers must be restored to their natural motion and thus floods and droughts must be eliminated. Forests and woodlands are intimately linked with biological, social and spiritual well-being. I believe that the minimum tree cover for safety is l/3rd of the total land area of every country. Every catchment area should have at least this proportion of tree cover made of mixed species including the broad leaved trees” ~Richard St. Barbe Baker
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Collins, Henry Hill Editor. Harper and Row’s Complete Field Guide to North American Wildlife. Harper and Row Publishers. New York. 1981. ISBN 0-06-181163-7 page 12. Continuing Horned Grebe and Snow Buntings sullivancountybirder, Sullivan & Delaware County Birder’s Blog
COSEWIC Assessment and Status Report on the Horned Grebe Podiceps Auritus. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. COSEWIC. 2009. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Horned Grebe Podiceps auritus Western population and Magdalen Islands population, in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vii + 42 pp.
(www.sararegistry.gc.ca/
status/status_e.cfm)
Horned Grebe v.s. Highways. CBC.ca The Afternoon Edition. [Saskatchewan Highways and infrastructure have run into a different kind of roadblock at the site of one of their construction projects: the Horned Grebe.]
Horned Grebe. All About Birds Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Peterson, Roger Tory. A Field Guide to Western Birds. A completely new guide to Field Marks of All Species Found in North America West of the 100th Meridian and North of Mexico. Peterson Field Guides. Third Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company Boston. 1990. ISBN 0-395-51749-4. page 26
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
““Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”
Richard St. Barbe Baker
The trees and vegetation, which cover the land surface of the Earth and delight the eye, are performing vital tasks incumbent upon the vegetable world in nature. Its presence is essential to earth as an organism. It is the first condition of all life; it it the ‘skin’ of the earth, for without it there can be no water, and therefore, no life.~Richard St. Barbe Baker
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Save
I believe that water must be the basic consideration in all our national and earth- wide forest programmes. Streams and rivers must be returned to their natural motion. What is a natural motion? A river flowing in its natural course comes to a bend. This gives it a spiral motion. It comes to a marrow, this provides tension. It broadens out, here is relaxation. This is how blood circulates in our veins and the sap circulates in a tree. This is the natural motion. When you destroy this natural motion, the water goes on its way sick or cancerous. When water comes up against a dam, the natural motion is destroyed and the water becomes sick. This sickness spreads up to the tributary rivers and to the fields through which these rivers have come and the sickness will go to the fields bordering these rivers and will affect the grazing animals. They say that cancer is a disease of civilization. You will accept that, won’t you? It was unknown till we called ourselves civilized. ~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. 