QUÉBEC CITY,
Que. -- January 25, 2011 -- From January
25 to 28, 2011, Environment Canada's Cap
Tourmente National Wildlife Area will host
the annual "Canadian Wingbee."
This year, some 20 scientists from the Canadian
Wildlife Service will join other waterfowl
specialists from across the country to sift
through more than 11 000 duck wings and
goose tail feathers sent in by sports hunters
from all regions of Canada.
The feather samples,
taken from 30-odd migratory game bird species,
will be analyzed as they would be in a laboratory
to determine the age and sex of the birds.
The purpose is to identify the species bagged
and the harvest levels in each region of
the country. This initiative is part of
the national migratory bird harvest program
and the information it yields is vital to
managing the annual game bird hunt as well
as to the annual review of related regulations.
The Mallard, American
Black Duck, Green-winged Teal, Wood Duck,
Canada Goose and Snow Goose are among the
game species most commonly inventoried and
analyzed by specialists from the Atlantic
Region, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies and
British Columbia. This scientific activity
takes place in a different region every
year, and is back in Quebec after five years.
The results of this colossal work will be
published in the spring of 2011.
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Government of Canada
and Nature Conservancy of Canada conserve
valuable habitat near Riding Mountain National
Park, Manitoba
WINNIPEG, Man. -- January
26, 2011 -- Robert Sopuck, Member of Parliament
for Dauphin-Swan River-Marquette, on behalf
of Canada's Environment Minister Peter Kent,
today announced the Nature Conservancy of
Canada's successful acquisition of four
conservation easements on properties near
Riding Mountain National Park in southwest
Manitoba. These projects were secured in
part with funding from Environment Canada's
Natural Areas Conservation Program and have
an overall budget of $167,749. These easements
add to the 50 properties previously secured
by the Nature Conservancy of Canada in the
Riding Mountain Aspen Parkland.
"Conservation easements
are a valuable tool for landowners who wish
to conserve in perpetuity certain portions
of their lands," said MP Robert Sopuck.
"Conservation easements, implemented
on a limited basis, have been shown to fit
well with the local agricultural economy."
"This acquisition
marks another achievement under our government's
Natural Areas Conservation Program. With
this investment, we are taking real action
to protect and conserve our ecosystems and
sensitive species for present and future
generations," said Minister Kent. "Your
actions today will help to protect the abundance
and variety of life that will constitute
an integral part of our natural heritage
tomorrow."
The Bonners, who live
south of Riding Mountain National Park,
are part of a vibrant, self-reliant community
who are very aware of the value of conservation
and the necessity to conserve the environmental
values of the local countryside.
"We wanted to ensure
that our beautiful and pristine property,
with its two spruce bogs, and diversity
of wildlife, would remain as it is in perpetuity,"
said Mike and Gail Bonner. "It is very
important to us as local landowners that
our property have conservation as the main
goal with no alterations or subdivision
permitted, in perpetuity."
The properties secured
by the Nature Conservancy of Canada on behalf
of Canadians represent pieces of one of
the last remaining ecologically functioning
landscapes in prairie Canada. The properties
are comprised of a mixture of forest and
grasslands that together provide an additional
800 acres of valuable habitat. The Riding
Mountain Aspen Parkland is home to many
of Manitoba's large mammals including the
Riding Mountain gray wolf, elk, moose, American
black bear and cougar. The quaking aspen
and white spruce forest stands provide valuable
habitat for many species of grassland birds,
such as the waterfowl.
"The Nature Conservancy
of Canada is working hard to protect some
of the last natural cover in the area around
Riding Mountain National Park. By protecting
irreplaceable habitat and the plants and
animals that it supports, we can ensure
that future generations will be able to
enjoy its natural beauty," said Ursula
Goeres, Manitoba Regional Vice President,
Nature Conservancy of Canada.
The Government of Canada's
$225-million Natural Areas Conservation
Program is an important on-the-ground initiative
that takes real action to preserve Canada's
environment and conserve its precious natural
heritage for present and future generations.
It is through the ongoing contribution from
all donors that we can ensure the protection
of natural areas in Canada. As of July 2010,
under the Natural Areas Conservation Program
142,236 hectares (351,384 acres) have been
conserved, protecting habitat for 101 different
species at risk.
Thank You
