Individual citizens have the power to help wildlife in ways they perhaps don't anticipate.
An impactful local multi-year project by the Squamish Environment Society and the Átl’ka7tsem/Howe Sound Biosphere Region Initiative is an ongoing example of that.
The project was sparked in May of 2019 when a resident questioned the Squamish council of the day over what she saw as a lack of action on the need to create and support wildlife and habitat connectivity.
Inspired by the question and the possibilities, folks at the Squamish Environment Society, the Howe Sound Biosphere Region Initiative Society, and their partners launched the Wildlife Connectivity project.
Wait, what is connectivity, anyway?
"Ecological connectivity is the ability for animals on land or in water to move freely from place to place,” the World Wildlife Fund site explains.
This ability to move helps them find food, breed, and establish new homes.
"The unimpeded movement of animals and the flow of natural processes sustain life on Earth."
The project focus area is the Átl’ka7tsem/Howe Sound UNESCO Biosphere Region.
The ultimate aim is to help land managers, such as the District of Squamish and other policymakers, have a plan and make decisions that consider and respect the connectivity that wildlife needs in the region.
Examples of how information that results from the larger project, according to the Finding Refuge overview report, could include:
•Development of growth management strategies and neighbourhood-level plans that use green infrastructure networks to effectively link wildlife corridors across fragmented areas of the valley bottom;
• Updates to environmental development permit areas to enhance sensitive ecosystem and riparian area management in ways that safeguard pathways of connectivity for the broadest possible range of native species;
• Restoration of critical habitat and the mitigation of pinch points and barriers that may inhibit the movement of vulnerable species along established wildlife corridors.
Eventually, the information will be available for a broader audience, said the Squamish Environment Society's Gwen L’Hirondelle.
"We will have this available to help school kids, researchers, whoever, and the amount of effort that is spent at that point presenting, and forming and sort of diversifying the applications for which these things are going to be useful, is really the key to success," she said.
Within the connectivity project is its goal to identify wildlife movement corridors, which enable animals to move between habitat parcels to find food, shelter, and chances to mate.
The team has spent two years working on the science behind the development of wildlife corridors for our region.
Currently, wildlife ecologist and landscape modeller with the Squamish Environment Society, Kate Andy, is working to model core habitat areas and networks of connectivity for mammals, amphibians, and reptiles, both regionally and locally.
For the local modelling, the project needs wildlife observations from regular folks.
Everyone can be a citizen scientist
One great way locals can help with the project is to accurately log what they see using the iNaturalist app or website.
Meg Toom, a wildlife conflict specialist with Serratus Wildlife Services and member of the Wildlife Connectivity Core Project Team, said she was using iNaturalist in her work but never imagined it could be used in this way to inform models and maps.
"The general public ... might be just doing it because it's fun to do, but not necessarily realizing how it's feeding into this project," she said.
The information is used in an anonymous way and is for the betterment of wildlife, notes L’Hirondelle.
"The object of all this is to promote the long-term health of species. We're trying to coexist," she said.
While there are plenty of Sea to Sky observations uploaded to iNaturalist already, Andy says that much of that data cannot be included in the species distribution model because it wasn't research grade.
To be useful to the project, the information must be from 1985 or later, and the location must be accurate to 30 metres or less.
(Find out more about making sure your location is accurate on iNaturalist.)
For those who uploaded information that didn't meet the specifications, it is still possible to go back and update it.
"The goal of the modelling effort is to really pick out pieces of land that are really important for wildlife species. And the way in which we do that is, fundamentally, we need to know initially where wildlife are. So those observations from the community are key for this— [they're] really driving this whole process," Andy said.
And the observations don’t just have to be pictures. They can be audio recordings or sightings that are evidence of wildlife.
“With our great big woodpeckers, pileated woodpeckers, the square hole in the dead tree is considered evidence of that species. A beaver dam is considered evidence of beavers,” noted L’Hirondelle.
Andy said the project already has observations for black bear, black-tailed deer, western toad, and Pacific tree frog.
"We are actively seeking more data from many species, especially bobcat, coyote, wolf, and cougar. Our focus at this time is on mammals, amphibians, and reptiles. Any wildlife observation, including observations of species that we already have models for, are valuable to us. For example, having more observations of black bears will improve our models."
(Questions about how to improve observations or for those who want help uploading wildlife sightings can be directed to [email protected].)
"We're starting to identify patterns of environmental conditions that are hosting these species. So, where we find them, what are the conditions of the environment where we see wildlife," Andy said.
By "conditions of the environment," she means what the environment looks like and what resources there are.
"What types of plants are available for the animals to eat? Is there a lot of mountainous terrain that certain animals can't really navigate through," Andy added, as examples of conditions.
Maps
The modelling informs maps being developed to show landscape characteristics over the past 40 years, as well as predicting future conditions.
While the project is making great strides, as the Squamish Environment Society's Finding Refuge report notes, more than 25% of wildlife habitat within the biosphere region "has either been permanently lost due to human settlement, or significantly disrupted by the cumulative effects of resource development and outdoor recreational activities."
Climate change is exacerbating this.
The best case scenario, which the motivated project members believe is possible, is to help create ecosystem resilience.
“The idea behind resilience is ... yes, there's a lot of change happening. But if we give nature and we give wildlife the space that they need and deserve, then we can actually start to see some recovery,” Andy said.
Together is better
The project partners include the Squamish Nation, the District of Squamish, the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, and the Squamish Community Forest, which has recently joined the project. Various provincial agencies responsible for managing crown land are also involved.
“All of our project partners have been incredibly supportive,” said Toom.
L’Hirondelle concurred, adding that it is to the animals’ benefit that regulatory bodies work together as they are.
“These corridors don't know anything about administrative boundaries. So, we've got the reserve lands in the Squamish Valley. We've got the provincial parks. We've got the District of Squamish lands, community forest lands, and then the SLRD. So with everybody on board using the same maps and models, then we stand a better chance of providing effective corridors,” she said.
Next steps
The project team is next going to begin work with its partners to help identify ways for them to use the maps of potential corridors in their land-use planning processes, to help conserve wildlife and other species, Toom said.
The project timeline has been extended from three to four years, set to end on March 31, 2026.
"Our work is also incorporating an adaptive approach which allows for policies to be reviewed and updated to reflect changing conditions and requirements," said Toom, adding that similar work done elsewhere has shown that projects are more likely to be successful at bringing about change if extra time is provided at this stage.
Funding
Most of the project's funding to date has been provided through the Howe Sound Biosphere Region Initiative Society. It has also received funding from the SLRD, the DOS, and four private foundations, as well as almost $60,000 in private donations. The project is still actively fundraising.
Find out more about the project on the Squamish Environment Society website.
