Day One, (Sunday) Introduction to Nova Scotia

Today we began with a delicious breakfast of bacon, eggs and waffles. Yummy!

With a full tummy, I was all ready to focus on Dr. Chris Newman’s project presentation. (I know many of you really want to know what types of mammals we will be looking at, and now I can answer this a bit more accurately.) If I start talking (or writing) like a Brit, you’ll have to excuse me. Most of my cheeky team members come from the United Kingdom. What an interesting and fun crew! More about them later.

Dr. Newman (Chris) began by talking about the importance of wildlife conservation. We learned about how the mammal behavioral data we collect might be used to preserve wildlife. He discussed some of the reasons we monitor mammals, the first being biodiversity protection laws. Another is that mammals are indicators of climate change.

Did you know that mammals are effected by: environmental pollution, loss of habitat, exploitation, competition from other animals, and invasive species? That is just the short list of things to consider.

~Another question for your science notebook: What makes a mammal a mammal? Make a list of the characteristics that distinguish it from other animals. (Give it your best shot!)

I’ll post the list Chris shared with us during his talk today on my next blog entry, and you can compare it with yours.

Dr. Newman and Dr. Buesching also shared with us some of the data from another project they have been working on since 1987. They are monitoring the population and distribution of badgers near Oxford University in England. Busy beavers! Or should I say busy badgers? Anyways, their passion for their environmental work is admirable and inspiring.

Mice and voles were also a popular topic of conversation around the lunch table.

You’ll be hearing much more about these little critters in entries to come.

The Stars of the Show:

There are many types of mammals in Nova Scotia, both small and large. Some of the mammals are: voles, mice, shrews, skunks, bats, moles, bog lemmings, squirrels, rats, marmots (otherwise known as groundhogs or woodchucks), snowshoe hares, porcupines, chipmunks, raccoons, muskrat, beavers, foxes, coyotes, marmots, whales, porpoises, harbor seals, river otters, seals, deer, moose, minks, lynx, fishers, bobcats, and our favorite, the black bear. We will revisit this list again and update as necessary.

Sponsored by…

Leland asked a question about trip sponsorship. On the right side of this page you will see the logos for all the organizations involved. Besides Earthwatch, National Geographic has provided a great deal of funding for these trips, and the grant for this specific trip was provided by HSBC Bank in Chicago. Thanks, HSBC!!

Getting Outside…

After learning more about the project, Christina and Chris led us on a hike around the Broad Cove area. We walked along the Green Bay shore, and the beautiful views were a perfect introduction to Nova Scotia. The purpose of this tour was learning how to identify field (mammal) signs. Luckily, there were many interesting things to see. My new teacher friend Jennifer spotted some harbour seals resting on the rocks not far from the shore. We learned about how to identify several types of scat (yes, poo!) which were quite plentiful along our walk. Some of the scat samples we ran across were: raccoon, fox, deer, porcupine, otter, and muskrat. There are several reasons for identifying and monitoring scat.

Science Notebook Question: Why would our Principal Investigators want to train us to observe and identify mammal droppings (scat)? What clues can this give us about the animals and their environment?

The other method of mammal identification we were introduced to is track prints. Some of tracks we spotted (on this hike) were bobcat, raccoon, and hare. Hopefully, we will see more during the course of our two-week long journey!

Back at our Cherry Hill cottage, I spent Sunday evening getting to know my new friends. You will be introduced to all 14 of them if you continue to follow this blog. Trust me; it will be worth the wait!