 Want to learn all about Party Crashers – invasive species – and how to protect our biodiversity? Join the Invasive Species Community Seminar at the Elbow Lake Environmental Education Centre on August 29 from 9 am to 3:30 pm. The Frontenac Stewardship Foundation and Queen’s University Biological Station are hosting this active learning day. It is sponsored by the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area. Nuts and Bolts: · Prevention of the spread of invasive species; Monitoring and reporting programs · Risk of invasive species to Ontario and current provincial policy initiatives · Using research to guide Policy and Best Practices. Highlight: zebra mussels, the bloody red shrimp, and the spiny water flea · Rapid Response Program: the European water chestnut on Wolfe Island · Invasive species strategy, monitoring and active control in the Frontenac Arch Natural Area. Highlight: Elbow Lake case study. A Field Tour of the Elbow Lake property will showcase the garlic mustard, dog-strangling vine and European buckthorn management areas. Learn how to identify local invasive plants at various stages, understand why these species are so invasive, and practise some recommended management strategies. Find out how you can help monitor the spread of invasive plants at a broader scale using Citizen Science programs. The Elbow Lake Environmental Education Centre is near Perth Road Village. (See elbowlakecentre.ca/contact.php). Admission is free, but space is limited, so registration by Friday, August 21 is recommended. Overnight accommodation is available on-site for a nominal fee. To register or for more information, contact carolyn.bonta@queensu.ca or phone 613-353-7968.
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 For the last several months the St. Lawrence River Institute of Environmental Sciences has been coordinating an inventory of the fish, reptiles, mammals, insects, and plants that make their home along the upper St. Lawrence River. By recruiting “Citizen Scientists” in waterfront communities the River Institute is generating a roster of species that will help to define the health of the environment in specific areas that are along the River and its tributaries. On Saturday, August 8 beginning at 10 am, the River Institute and Raisin Region Conservation Authority are extending a special invitation to the citizens of Glengarry and beyond to get their feet wet by becoming nature detectives as a “Bioblitz” investigation is brought to Island Park and Mill Pond. The collection, observation and documentation of species found on and near the park that day will assist in determining specific research goals that lead to strategies to repair and protect the St. Lawrence River and its ecosystems. Lacey MacDonald, the Science Education Specialist working with the Biodiversity Project, is recruiting Citizen Scientists of all ages to be environmental investigators to help her track down the creatures and plants that live in the St. Lawrence River watershed. Lacey says, “There are thousands of different species of plants, fish and mammals living all around us in this area.” She adds, “No find is too insignificant. We are thrilled to have those with specific expertise join us as volunteers such as members of birding or fishing clubs, but all interested individuals and families are more than welcome to come out as well. We provide the tools for gathering data and it provides an opportunity to get into the great outdoors and have fun at the same time. It is a chance to participate in real science.” The day long Bioblitz in Iroquois is flexible giving volunteers the ability to devote as much or as little time as they desire. Prizes will be awarded to the most species recorded over the course of the day. For more information, potential volunteers can e-mail the River Institute Biodiversity Program at lmacdonald@riverinstitute.ca, visit the River Institute website at www.riverinstitute.ca under the Teacher’s Corner, or call 613-936-6620 (ext. 237) The Biodiversity Project is funded in part by the Ontario Trillium Foundation and Ontario Power Generation.  Join A2A partner, the Nature Conservancy of Canada on Thursday, July 23, 7–10 pm, for a boat cruise, cocktail reception, and an evening with guest speaker Brock Fenton, bat expert & Emeritus Professor of Biology at Western University. Buy tickets online here.   American residents are invited to learn about donating ecological lands to support conservation in Canada on Saturday, July 25, hosted by A2A partners, the Thousand Islands Watershed Land Trust and American Friends of Canadian Land Trusts.  |
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