The following ecosystem priorities and project ideas were identified through our Ecosystems Enhancement Program with a thorough review of regional plans and research and by seeking input from community groups, First Nations representatives, government agencies and subject matter experts. Ecological priorities and emerging issues are listed in random order; no ranking is intended. Species and habitats are not limited to those listed.
Increasing Bat Populations Through Wetland Restoration
Bats are bioindicators, and an important species for monitoring water quality and overall health of forest and wetland ecosystems. Their numbers can also measure ecosystems restoration and improvement. This five-year project will restore natural bat roosting habitat within a five-hectare area to build resiliency in local populations. Enhancement work will be integrated into wetland restoration projects in the North and Upper Columbia sub-regions; areas being evaluated include Meadow Creek, Duncan, Beaton and Parson. The initiative will be led by Wildlife Conservation Society Canada and supported by regional partners.
“In many parts of the Columbia Basin, standing water provides excellent foraging and drinking habitat for an estimated 12 species of bats. But many species depend on low elevation mature or old growth trees to raise a pup in each summer and this roosting habitat is limiting,” said Dr. Cori Lausen, Conservation Research Biologist with Wildlife Conservation Society Canada. “Over the next five years we will work with multiple partners to install and monitor structures that will enhance roosting habitat for bats in strategic areas of the North and Upper Columbia sub-regions.”
Giving Whitebark Pine a Growing Chance
Whitebark pine is an endangered high-elevation species that moderates snowmelt, stabilizes soil and seeds provide an important food source for red squirrels, grizzly bears, and the Clark’s nutcracker.
White pine blister rust (an introduced fungus), mountain pine beetle, wildfire risks, and a changing climate are all threatening these keystone tree species. This project, led by the Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation of Canada, will restore and enhance 300 hectares of habitat in the North and Upper Columbia sub-regions of the Basin. The project will increase the amount of trees with resistance to white pine blister rust and minimize losses of trees and genetic diversity to mountain pine beetle.
“Whitebark pine recovery requires active management to overcome most of the threats it is facing, given its vast range and preferred habitat on mountain tops, this is a monumental task. This five-year project is the largest and most ambitious recovery project to-date outside of the National Parks,” said Randy Moody, President of the Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation of Canada. “We will restore 300 hectares, plant 100,000 seedlings, and collaborate with many other stakeholders in advancing the recovery of this critical species.”
Lake Ranch Enhancement Project - Restoring to a Natural State
The British Columbia Conservation Foundation (BCCF) will enhance the Lake Ranch (Von Unruh) Conservation Property, owned by The Nature Trust of BC. Over the next five years, BCCF will undertake several steps on about 51 hectares of the Lardeau Valley property, including planting trees, shrubs and flower meadows and adding wood structures for small animals and insects.
“The condition of the property will be more structurally and biologically diverse than at present, contributing more to the surrounding landscape, in terms of habitat health and function, from its pivotal valley-bottom position,” said Ashley Ekelund, Regional Coordinator, BCCF. “It will be on its way to supporting significant patches of deciduous and coniferous forest, which will add tremendously to the property’s ability to support amphibians, songbirds, small mammals, insects and larger mammals.”
Columbia Basin Trust is grateful to operate on the unceded traditional territories of the Ktunaxa, Lheidli T’enneh, Secwépemc, Sinixt and Syilx Nations.
Bats are bioindicators, and an important species for monitoring water quality and overall health of forest and wetland ecosystems. Their numbers can also measure ecosystems restoration and improvement. This five-year project will restore natural bat roosting habitat within a five-hectare area to build resiliency in local populations. Enhancement work will be integrated into wetland restoration projects in the North and Upper Columbia sub-regions; areas being evaluated include Meadow Creek, Duncan, Beaton and Parson. The initiative will be led by Wildlife Conservation Society Canada and supported by regional partners.
Whitebark pine is an endangered high-elevation species that moderates snowmelt, stabilizes soil and seeds provide an important food source for red squirrels, grizzly bears, and the Clark’s nutcracker.
