Turtle Hatchling Release coming up on August 29
Did you know a Snapping Turtle has to lay approximately 1,400 eggs to replace herself? This may take up to 50 years. This is why it is so important to protect and enhance habitat for these long-lived species.
The annual turtle hatchling release, when turtle hatchlings return to the wild and begin their journey at Morrison Dam Conservation Area east of Exeter, takes place Thursday, August 29, 2024 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Learn more:
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Fall tree order form available
Autumn is almost here so it's time for Fall Tree Orders.
The Fall Tree Order Form is available now on our tree orders web page.
We accept orders by mail, email or fax until September 20, 2024. In-person or phone orders accompanied by payment are received until September 30, 2024.
Thank you for planting trees!
If you don't have anywhere on your property to plant trees, you are encouraged to donate to tree planting through Footprints to Forests:
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Hunting requires permit
Hunting is permitted on certain designated conservation lands, owned by Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA), but only when hunters have obtained the proper Hunting Permit from ABCA.
To learn more, contact our staff or visit our hunting web page.
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World Water Week runs until September 1, 2024
World Water Week takes place from August 23 to September 1, 2024.
Drought and flooding stresses water around the world. World Water Week is a week to focus on the importance of water for people and for habitat.
The importance of protecting our water is even more important during weather extremes as our climate continues to change.
One action people can take to protect water is to enhance wetlands. You may contact your local wetland experts at Ausable Bayfield Conservation to learn about enhancing wetlands, and making other stormwater management improvements, on your property
You can learn about wetlands projects your neighbours are doing, to protect water and to build habitat, on Ausable Bayfield Conservation's wetlands projects web page.
You may also choose to donate to wetland enhancement through Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation.
To learn about water quality in Ausable Bayfield watersheds, and to find out actions you can take to protect water resources, read the Ausable Bayfield Watershed Report Card.
Find out more: World Water Week
#WorldWaterWeek
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 We hope you are enjoying Frog Friday posts
Protect habitat for all living things including frogs
If you follow any one of Ausable Bayfield Conservation's four social media platforms, you may have noticed posts, on Fridays, about frogs.
One of the recent posts is the photo above.
A toad call is a classic summer sound, whether in a wetland or your own backyard. The 6-30-second, high-pitched trill is a male toad trying to attract a mate by keeping the call going as long as he can.
We hope you enjoy these Friday posts. We also hope it encourages you to check out some of the amazing projects your neighbours are doing to create wetland habitat for frogs and other living things:
Consider creating a wetland on your property or donating to wetland restoration.
Call or email your local wetland experts to learn more.
World Water Week begins on Friday, August 23, 2024 and continues until Sunday, September 1, 2024.
World Water Week fits perfectly with #FrogFriday because frogs and other amphibians are excellent indicators for water quality. Adult frogs, although they have lungs, are able to breathe oxygen and expel carbon dioxide through their permeable skin. As you can imagine, more pollutants in the water have adverse effects on amphibian health.
Learn about the state of our watershed resources, and how to protect water quality, in the Watershed Report Card.
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Watershed-Based Resource Management Strategy approved
The Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) Board of Directors has approved the Watershed-Based Resource Management Strategy (WBRMS).
The new Strategy is posted on the Ausable Bayfield Conservation website as per Ontario Regulation 686/21: Mandatory Programs and Services under Conservation Authorities Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. C.27.
You are invited to download the Watershed-Based Resource Management Strategy on the abca.ca website.
The approved Strategy is available on the Documents web page of the Governance section of the Ausable Bayfield Conservation website at abca.ca.
Learn more:
The document is available in alternate format upon request.
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Jackson Janmaat joins Ausable Bayfield Conservation as Corporate Services Assistant
We would like to welcome Jackson Janmaat to the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) team. If you are visiting our office east of Exeter, you may very well meet Jackson, who is the new Corporate Services Assistant. She joined Ausable Bayfield Conservation in July of 2024.
Jackson takes on this role as our former Corporate Services Assistant, Sharon Pavkeje, has retired (we congratulate Sharon on her retirement, wish her well, and thank her for her more than two decades of dedicated service. We will miss you, Sharon.).
Jackson said she has enjoyed becoming part of the Ausable Bayfield Conservation team. She thanked Sharon for her help and support in the transition over July and August.
“I would very much like to thank Sharon Pavkeje for sharing her years of knowledge with me,” Jackson said. “I certainly have big shoes to fill. Sharon has been so pleasant to learn from, and I’ve been very fortunate to have so much time with her. I will certainly have her number on speed dial for questions that arise. Enjoy the next chapter in your book, Sharon. You will be missed.”
Jackson thanks all the ABCA staff for welcoming her with open arms. “They have the patience to teach and the knowledge to educate me,” she said. “I am certain this is a workplace where I will be learning each day. Thank you to all ABCA staff.”
Jackson is from Dashwood originally but she now lives in between Clinton and Seaforth with her husband and twin toddlers. She attended Conestoga College for Recreation and Leisure Studies.
As a young person, Jackson spent summers camping, golfing and spending many days at the beach in Grand Bend at the family cottage.
“I feel I can bring years of compassionate and strong communication skills to the team,” she said. “Coming from 15 years in the health care field, this is a large transition for me. I am pleasantly surprised how many skills are transferable to this role. I hope to succeed in this role and I look forward to all the knowledge I will gain as time passes.”
Our new Corporate Services Assistant said what she likes most, so far, is learning how important local conservation is. “You would be surprised how much goes into conservation,” she said. Ausable Bayfield Conservation and other conservation authorities have many important programs and initiatives in place, she said.
“I encourage you to visit our website, follow our social media, and to call or stop into the office to speak further on any questions you may have,” she said.
When not working at Ausable Bayfield Conservation, Jackson said she enjoys the beach, camping and being surrounded by her family and friends. She can also be found tending to her flowerbeds, walking her dog Sully and, most of all, chasing around her twin toddlers.
Welcome, Jackson! We know you will continue to make a wonderful contribution to our work in Ausable Bayfield watersheds.
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Post-secondary student from Lucan learns about many facets of conservation as Jr. Conservationist
Column by Graeme Irwin, 2024 Junior Conservationist, Ausable Bayfield Conservation
My name is Graeme Irwin. I’m a biology student at Western University (formerly University of Western Ontario). I have been fortunate enough to serve as Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority’s Junior Conservationist for the past eight weeks.
This two-month job experience program, funded by Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation, gives young people a chance to experience many aspects of work in conservation.
Growing up in the Lucan area I have always had a familiarity with Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) and especially Morrison Dam Conservation Area (MDCA). I attended the Wonder, Investigate, Learn and Discover (WILD) summer nature day camp as a young person. I hiked at MDCA during the summer, and tobogganed in the spillway during the winter. So, when I saw the opportunity to work here at Ausable Bayfield Conservation, I had to apply.
When working as ABCA’s Junior Conservationist I had the opportunity to help with many projects in the watershed.
Whether it was beach sampling, planting native species of plants in a wetland, or helping with monitoring of flora and fauna (plants and animals) in the watershed, I was always outside and always learning.
The team here at ABCA includes some of the most passionate and knowledgeable people with whom I have ever been able to work. Even with living in the area my whole life, I was still learning new things about it every single day.
I was also fortunate enough to help with ABCA’s conservation education efforts. As I mentioned, I attended WILD nature day camp when I was younger. That was a key moment in fostering my appreciation of nature. I believe promoting young people’s respect for nature is a crucial step in protecting our environment in the long term. Spending time with campers and encouraging their curiosity was one of the most fulfilling things I will take away from my time here.
When trying to think about my favourite moment, or day, in this job, I find it hard to pick one, but I recently had an amazing time going electro-fishing with our aquatic biologist Kari Jean. She has what I think is the coolest job here. I’m always so excited when I get to work with her. Kari asked me to head out with her, and our Water Resources Technician, Christie Brown, to help them in a presence and absence monitoring survey for Brook Trout.
Brook Trout thrives in cold water so they are only found a few places in our watershed. We spent the whole day electro-fishing and we were happy to find several Brook Trout (the largest one is shown, with me, in the photo). We were only expecting to find juveniles, so finding an adult Brook Trout, about 26 centimetres in size, was incredible!
Before arriving at ABCA I felt as though I was at a crossroads when it came to my future career decisions. I had always been passionate for field biology, but I wasn’t sure if it was something I could see myself doing in the long term. Thanks to this experience I can honestly say this is a field in which I can see myself working.
This position has allowed me to work with, and learn from, some of the most passionate and hard-working people I have ever met. I am so grateful for my time here at ABCA. I would like to thank Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation, and all of those who donate, and support their fundraisers, in order to make this experience possible.
– Graeme Irwin is entering his third year of Biology studies at Western University in London. He is from Lucan.
PHOTO CUTLINE/CAPTION:
Graeme Irwin is the 2024 Junior Conservationist. This is a two-month summer job experience position funded by Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation. Here in photo, Graeme holds an adult Brook Trout in a fish viewer. Brook Trout are not common to find, in this watershed, because of their need for coldwater locales. The water in the viewer is drawn from the same stream where the fish was found. Staff promptly returned the fish to the water after measuring it. Graeme's postion started in July and ends near the end of August.
Learn more: Student from Lucan works as Jr. Conservationist
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