Here are some more of our favourite photo contest entries:
Fri, 23 Jan 2015
Category: News
Fri, 23 Jan 2015
Photo Contest Winners
Congratulations to Hal Mitchell, the Grand Prize winner of HCTF’s first photo contest!
Fri, 16 Jan 2015
Nice Weather For Ducks
Not even torrential rain could dampen the spirits of young naturalists determined to participate in the annual Christmas Bird Count. Volunteer veteran birders gave Vancouver families a quick lesson on proper use of binoculars and bird identification tips before heading out with them into Stanley Park to see how many species they could identify. Click on the video below to see how they did!
The Stanley Park Bird Count for Kids was co-hosted by the Young Naturalist’s Club of BC (YNC), the Stanley Park Ecological Society, and Bird Studies Canada, all current HCTF grant recipients.
If you’re interested in getting your family out to explore the outdoors, visit YNC’s website for information about local chapters and how to become a Nature Club member.
If you missed the Christmas Bird Count, you can still catch the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), taking place February 13-16, 2015. Visit the GBBC website for details on how to participate.
Thu, 8 Jan 2015
Contract Extension Request Window is Now Open
HCTF understands that extenuating circumstances may occasionally prevent a project from being completed within its original timeline. That is why we give proponents the opportunity to apply for a contract extension if they won’t be able to complete their project by March 31st. Today, emails went out to all HCTF proponents with active 2014-15 projects, providing detailed information about submitting a contract extension request. Here are some highlights:
- The deadline to request a contract extension is February 15th, 2015.
- If you do not complete your project by March 31st, 2015, and you do not request a contract extension, unspent funds will be re-allocated towards other HCTF project priorities.
- Submitting a Contract Extension Request Form does not guarantee that an extension will be granted; only that it will be considered
HCTF assembles a special committee to review the requests, so it is important that they are submitted on time.
Mon, 22 Dec 2014
Happy Holidays from HCTF
As 2014 comes to a close, we would like to thank everyone who helped make BC a better place this year by contributing to conservation. Your licence purchase, conservation project, educational initiative, volunteer contribution or donation has truly made a difference for the province’s freshwater fish, wildlife and habitats. Our best wishes for a happy, healthy holiday season, and we look forward to working with you in 2015!
Please note the HCTF office will be closed December 23rd through 28th and New Year’s Day. Happy Holidays!
Fri, 19 Dec 2014
Tags: Caribou
Reindeer or Caribou?
When it comes to wildlife, no other species symbolizes the Holidays more than the reindeer. Their incorporation into Christmas literature dates back to the early 1800s, though the roots of the association likely stretch back much further, to Norse mythology and the Scandinavians’ domestication of reindeer to pull sleds. Whatever the legend’s origins, the eight tiny ungulates depicted pulling Santa’s sleigh bear a remarkable resemblance to the caribou found here in BC. Though there are some generalized morphological differences between reindeer and caribou , they are one and the same species: Rangifer tarandus. In North America, the term “reindeer” is usually applied to domesticated caribou, while in Europe, reindeer is used as the blanket term for any animal belonging to the species.
Within Rangifer tarandus exists a number of subspecies. All caribou in BC are classified as belonging to the woodland subspecies ( Rangifer tarandus caribou). There are 52 herds of woodland caribou in the province, which can be further divided into three ecotypes: the Boreal, Northern Mountain and Southern Mountain Caribou. 
An ecotype is a genetically-distinct group of animals within a species that have adapted to a specific set of environmental conditions. This means that, while caribou from the different ecotypes look similar, they actually behave quite differently. For example, Northern and Boreal caribou live in areas where the snow is shallow enough that they can dig for ground lichens with their large, snowshoe-like feet. Southern Mountain caribou rarely dig for lichens in the winter months: they live in places where the snow is so deep, they have to feed on lichens growing on trees, and are thus dependent on old-growth forest habitat.
The following videos commissioned by the 14th North American Caribou Workshop beautifully present the challenges facing each of British Columbia’s caribou ecotypes, and some of the work being done to help ensure these iconic animals remain part of the BC landscape (they even include “caribou cam” footage from video recorders attached to some of the animal’s collars!)
Northern Ecotype (Telkwa Herd)
Boreal Ecotype
Mountain Ecotype (Southern Mountain in Video)
HCTF provided grants for a number of caribou conservation projects this year, including:
Project 4-485: Assessing predation risk from wolves and cougars for caribou in the Purcell Mountains Project 5-230: Habitat use and population monitoring of the Itcha-Ilgachuz caribou herd
Project 6-236: Impacts of Recreation and Wolves on Telkwa Caribou Recovery
Project 7-394: Herd Boundary Refinement for the Chase, Spatsizi, and Frog Caribou Herds
Project 7-424: Defining Nutritional Value of Summer Habitats for Caribou
Reindeer and Caribou Comparison
• Both male and female reindeer and caribou grow antlers (unique amongst the deer family)
• Both reindeer and caribou have large feet that are adapted for walking on the snow, digging through the snow to find food, and swimming.
• Female reindeer have larger antlers than female caribou
• Caribou bulls are larger than reindeer bulls
• Caribou have longer legs and Reindeer are shorter, stouter and more sedentary.
• Reindeer tend to stay with their heard when chased, while caribou scatter
• Reindeer have a flatter nose bridge than Caribou.
For more interesting facts about caribou/reindeer (both biological and cultural), click here.
