Larch Sanctuary loop a taste of alpine walks inside the city
Nestled in the middle of Edmonton lies Larch Sanctuary, a tranquil section of the Whitemud Nature Reserve. The combination of wooded areas, along with the riparian areas lining the creek and oxbow lake, retain remarkable biodiversity, providing habitat for dozens of species of mammals, birds, and amphibians.
If you’re looking to get a taste of alpine walks inside the city before heading to the mountains, this is a great place to train as the trail is narrow, overgrown at parts and uneven terrain such as exposed tree roots and slippery clay slopes can make this walk a challenge.
Edmonton and Area Land trust has put together a self guided tour pamphlet you can reference on your walk to learn more about what you’re seeing https://static1.squarespace.com/static/569ec99b841abaccb7c7e74c/t/5c38cb3a0ebbe8436806f67e/1547225921381/Larch+Sanctuary+Self-Guided+Tour.pdf
Boreal Chickadee our winter hummingbird
The Boreal Chickadee is a tough little bird that does not migrate. This chickadee is identified by its brown cap and smaller white cheek patch. Chickadees are easily identified by their namesake call “chick-a-dee.”
Have you noticed how ravenously the birds eat at your bird feeders, especially first thing in the morning and just before dusk? Chickadees can gain as much as 10 percent of their body weight each day and lose it all again during a cold winter night They will appreciate seeds, especially sunflower seeds, suet and even coconut at your backyard feeder.
Chickadees weigh less than one-half of an ounce and their wing beats are about 27 times per second. This compares to a hummingbird’s 80 beats per second. Learn more at https://edmonton.wbu.com/chickadee-fun-facts
Rough fescue – Alberta’ official grass
Rough fescue is a beautiful grass, tall and elegant. Alberta is the only jurisdiction in North America where all three types of rough fescue occur – Plains, Foothills and Northern. Their ranges converge here, reflecting the pattern of recolonization following glaciation 10,000 years ago as well as the natural diversity of the province - from plains to foothills to mountains.
A local example of rough fescue can be found at Nisku Native Prairie Park Reserve, a 31- acre remnant of aspen parkland protected as municipal reserve by Leduc County since 1994. It is located south of Edmonton in Leduc County east of the Nisku Industrial Area and south of Secondary Highway 625. The landscape consists of aspen groves interspersed with grasslands, and it is this latter community, dominated by plains rough fescue.
Fescue grasslands are vital range for wildlife and of great significance for the ranching industry. They have been and continue to be threatened by some human activities. Learn more at
http://www.albertapcf.org/rsu_docs/rough-fescue-backgrounder.pdf
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If you have a river valley event, job posting, or news that you would like to see published in this newsletter, please send the info to nsrivervalley@gmail.com
Sincerely yours,
Harvey Voogd
North Saskatchewan River Valley Conservation Society
780.691.1712
nsrivervalley@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/NSRVCS/
http://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/