Vancouver Naturalist_Sept 2011.pdf - Nature Vancouver

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Nature Vancouver Conservation Section Coordinator: Margaret Coutts at margaretcoutts@shaw.ca or 604-512-1413 The Conservation Section meetings are held St. Mary’s Anglican Church, Kerrisdale, 2490 West 37th Avenue (at Larch Street), Vancouver, on the second Wednesday of each month except for July, August and December, starting at 7:30 PM. Most meetings take the form of round-table discussions on conservation issues brought to the Section by Nature Vancouver members or others for consideration and action. The Section relies on members to identify local concerns related to conservation and development. The Section also invites guest speakers to make presentations to larger audiences on conservation issues of special interest. Action arising from Section meetings usually takes the form of letters to municipal, provincial or federal decision-makers and may be undertaken in conjunction with other associated organizations such as BC Nature. Other forms of action may be through meetings with decision makers, presentations to municipal councils, or use of the media. The meetings of the Conservation Section are open to all members of Nature Vancouver. If you have a conservation concern to bring to our attention, or if you would like to assist with the Section’s research, letter writing and other projects, please contact Daniel. Nature Vancouver Geology Section Chair: David Cook cookeco2@yahoo.com 604-924-0147 The Nature Vancouver Geology Section conducts field trips throughout the Vancouver region during the year. The present Geology Section is a relatively recent reintroduction of a Section that was strong in former years of Nature Vancouver. In most instances the geology field trips also include observations on the ecology of the area visited, the purpose being to show the relationship between natural ecosystems and the substrate upon which they depend. The Geology Section also has an ongoing program of compiling outlines of self-guiding geology field trips. These can be found on the Nature Vancouver website. For details of the geology field trips refer to the Field Trips section of Vancouver Naturalist and the Nature Vancouver website. Nature Vancouver Marine Biology Section Chair: Joan Lopez joan.lopez@live.com 604-682-1617 The Marine Biology Section evening programs are held from January through April and September through December, on the second Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at the Unity Church 5840 Oak St., Vancouver. These programs are open to the public, and members are encouraged to invite their friends. For more information and suggestions for future programs, please contact Joan Lopez. Thursday, September 8 Wolf-eels: Taming a Predator Jonathan Wong Wolf-eels have been appreciated by many a diver, and occasionally by a lucky fisherman. Wolf-eels do not school like salmon, and are not a big game fish like halibut or tuna, so most people have never imagined this strange fish lurking in our coastal waters. Under the direction of Dr. Jeff Marliave, Vancouver Aquarium Fish Research has been conducting wolfeel research for over 30 years, both in the field with SCUBA equipment, and in the lab. Fish research staff are collaborating with Dr. Shannon Balfry, of the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Centre for Aquatic and Environmental Research (CAER) to determine how wolf-eels may be farmed for food in the near future. Jonathan Wong has been working as a marine biologist for 10 years; at sea on Alaskan fishing boats and now in the rich, local green waters of British Columbia. Come for an informative session about the elusive, demersal wolf-eel and a video tour of the research facilites at the Vancouver Aquarium. Thursday, October 13 Shark Night Dr. Chris Harvey-Clark Dr. Chris Harvey-Clark is a marine biologist, veterinarian, cinematograher, photographer, author, SCUBA diver and currently, the director of the animal care centre at the University of British Columbia. Dr.Harvey-Clark is also the co-director of the Greenland Shark and Elasmobranch Education and Research Group (GEERG). He will be sharing with us his extensive knowledge of sharks, particularly those that patrol the coastal areas of British Columbia. Intertidal Pamphlet - Rocky Shore in Stanley Park In 2009, the Marine Biology Section of Nature Vancouver published a pamphlet that contains a field guide to 40 prominent intertidal species of marine life which inhabit the rocky shore in Stanley Park, Vancouver, B.C. The pamphlet is printed on waterproof and durable paper. It is available at Nature Vancouver evening programs. You may also download a PDF copy from the website at http:// naturevancouver.ca/Marine_Biology. 8 Vancouver Naturalist September 2011
Nature Vancouver Field Trip Info General Information Field Trips are offered almost every weekend by Nature Vancouver and are the most popular activity for members. Non-members are welcome to join these trips as a way to review the activities of the Society but are asked to limit their participation to three events. Our liability insurance coverage only applies to members in good standing. Those who participate do so at their own risk. Depending on the nature of the field trip, participants will be required to sign a Release of Liability form at the start of the trip. PDF copy of this form is available on the website at http://www.naturevancouver. ca/Main_Field_Trips. It is recommended that members read it before the day of the trip to avoid delays when signing it at the meeting place. Important Information for Participants Members planning to join these trips should contact the leader in advance to confirm carpool arrangements, especially when ferry travel or border crossings are planned. Please do not call after 9 p.m. An adult must accompany children under 15. On trips to the United States, a valid passport or enhanced driver's licence is now required for identification and it is advisable to have additional medical insurance as the BC Medical plan covers only a small portion of any medical costs in the US. For information on travel to the United States, see http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel. Safety Tips for Participants Consider the weather in the trip area (it is often very different from where you live) and bring suitable clothing and footwear! Depending on destination and season, bring insect repellent, sunscreen, a hat, lunch if necessary, more water than you think you’ll need, raingear, walking poles and boots with deep-tread soles and ankle support. Stay together and stay on the trails. Keep behind the coordinator (and ahead of the tail person, if there is one). To avoid false alarms, please tell the coordinator if you’re leaving the group and sign yourself off on the waiver form. Guidelines for Field Trip Leaders In order to conduct field trips, leaders do not need to be especially knowledgeable about birds, plants or other aspects of nature, since that sort of expertise is generally found among the participants. However, it is essential that one person coordinate the organization of the trip for the safety and well-being of all participants. That person is the field trip leader - and that is you. These guidelines are important both for your own legal protection and that of Nature Vancouver. Please read them carefully. The full text of the Guidelines for Field Trip Leaders and the PDF copy of Release of Liability form are available on the website at http:// www.naturevancouver.ca/Main_Field_Trips. Please return the completed forms to Field Trip Co-ordinator, Cynthia Crampton, 1230 Shorepine Walk, Vancouver, BC, V6H 3T8. Public Transit Information For public transit information in the Lower Mainland, contact TransLink at 604-953-3333 or http://www.translink.ca. For trips requiring a ferry journey, please confirm ferry sailing times. Contact British Columbia Ferries at 1-888-223-3779 or http:// www.bcferries.com/ Co-ordinator: Cynthia Crampton cynthiacrampton@yahoo.ca; 604-738-1405 Trip Difficulty Rating For risk management purposes Nature Vancouver uses a system of classifying field trips by rating their level of difficulty and adding an estimate of the time to be spent on the trail. The trip leader is responsible for deciding on the appropriate classification in conjunction with the Field Trip Coordinator. The difficulty rating system is as follows: A. Easy path or road with minimal elevation change and minimal hazards. B. Trail with possible rocks, roots or other hazards. Moderate gradient, occasional steep but short sections. Up to 100 m elevation change. C. Moderately steep gradient. 100 m to 500 m elevation change. D. Constant steep gradient. 500 m to 1,000 m elevation change. E. Any of the above with some scrambling, use of hands or bushwacking. Not commonly found on regular day hikes but sometimes experienced during Summer Camp field trips. The expected duration is then added to the letter category to obtain a combined letter/figure rating. Example: A C6 hike will be a C hike, as described above, with an estimated time on the trail of 6 hours. The estimated time spent during a field trip should be estimated to the nearest hour, and should not include driving time or time spent on ferries. Information for Carpooling On all trips, passengers should share gas expenses with their driver. The suggested cost of carpooling is $10 per car / per hour of driving, the total cost to be shared by all passengers excluding the driver. • For trips to West Vancouver, Cypress, Howe Sound, Squamish and Whistler, car pool at McDonald’s in Park Royal, West Vancouver. Take bus #250 or 257 Horseshoe Bay from any stop on Georgia Street downtown. From North Vancouver, take #239 or 255 Park Royal. Get off at the first stop after Taylor Way. Cross on the pedestrian crossing directly behind the stop, turn right and walk underneath the first overpass to the McDonald’s car park where we meet. • For trips to North Vancouver, Fraser Valley and Mt. Baker area, carpool at Franklin & Penticton in Vancouver. From downtown, take bus #10 Hastings or #16 29th Avenue Station. Get off at Kamloops Street (the first stop after Nanaimo) and walk one block east and one north. From Skytrain, take bus #16 Arbutus from 29th Avenue or Renfrew station and get off at Hastings and Penticton. From north Burnaby, take bus #135 and from Coquitlam or Port Moody, take #160 and get off at Nanaimo. • For trips to South Vancouver, Richmond, Delta and the Islands, carpool at 49th and Ash in Vancouver. Meet near the southeast corner of Tisdall Park on the north side of 49th. Day parking is available on the west side of Ash and the north side of 49th west of Ash (on weekends only). By transit, take Canada Line to 49th / Langara Station and walk one block west to Cambie. Or take bus # 49 between Dunbar and Metrotown, get off at Cambie and walk one block west. Vancouver Naturalist September 2011 9
Page 1 and 2: Vancouver Naturalist Newsletter of
Page 3 and 4: Society News and Information Welcom
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Page 7: Nature Vancouver Botany Section Cha
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Page 13 and 14: Nature Vancouver Summer Picnic at L
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