ALBERTA BIOLOGISTS' BIWEEKLY

MARCH 15, 2025

SEMINARS, WEBINARS & CONFERENCES

MARCH

Wetland Knowledge Exchange Webinar

On March 18, 2025, Dr. Irena Creed will present Wetlands as Fast-acting and Sustainable Natural Climate Solutions. Registration for this free webinar can be found at:

https://www.cclmportal.ca/portal/wetland-knowledge/events/wetland-knowledge-exchange-march-2025-webinar

GRF Workshop:

Grassland Restoration Forum

Brush up on your grassland assessment skills before field season. The GRF is offering a one day course, "How to Use the Range Plant Community Guides and Recovery Strategies Manuals for Project and Reclamation Planning in Grasslands" - Thursday March 20th, 2025, 10:00 – 16:30 at the Glenbow Ranch Schoolhouse, Cochrane. To learn more and register, contact: Jane Lancaster - GRF Coordinator, janelanc@telusplanet.net

SEMINARS, WEBINARS & CONFERENCES

MAY

Aquality course registration is now open:

Alberta Wetlands: From Classification to Policy”

Course material will include wetland classification, wetland hydrology, and an examination of characteristics of peatlands and mineral wetlands. Federal, provincial, and municipal policies (particularly the Alberta Wetland Policy (2013), will be discussed, as well as wetland assessments including both desktop delineations and field assessments, ABWRET assessments, and economic valuation of wetlands will be examined. Wetland avoidance, mitigation, compensation/replacement guidelines, and WAIR/WAIF applications will also be addressed. This 2-day course will be taking place online via Zoom between 0900 and 1600 on May 6 and 7, 2025. To register please go here: https://www.wetlandpolicy.ca/register

Fishes of Alberta

Field Identification Workshops

Real preserved fish will be identified using a variety of established identification keys in a classroom setting. The workshop will be held in Calgary on Saturday, May 10, 2025 and in Edmonton on Sunday, May 18, 2025, between 13:00 and 16:30 each day. Specific details will be provided for paid participants; the cost is $175 per student, and a copy of the Alberta Field Guide is included.

This course is instructed by Shona Derlukewich, Owner: School of Fish. Payment is due BEFORE the workshop by credit card (include a 3.5% service charge) or by e-transfer to derlukew@ualberta.ca

Bryophyte ID course

This 2-day course is an introduction to bryophytes (mosses and liverworts), designed for natural resource professionals, to develop the skills needed to detect and identify common Alberta wetland species. The focus of the course is on key features used in field identification (e.g. leaf morphology, microhabitats), and distinguishing species from similar taxa.

May 26 (8:30 am to 5 pm):

Classroom: Introduction to bryophytes

and to the common wetland taxa in Alberta

Location: Vertex Professional Services

161-2055 Premier Way, Sherwood Park

Field: Identification methods and sampling techniques of common marsh and fen bryophytes

Location: Wagner Natural Area (~ 30 minutes west of Sherwood Park)

May 27 (8:30 am to 5 pm):

Field: Identification of common species in wetland (fen) habitats continued

Practical assessment - test of field identification skills

Location: Clyde fen (~ 1 hour north of Sherwood Park)

Instructor: Brittney Miller, P.Biol, M.Sc. Bryology

Cost: $350 per person (+GST) *Transportation responsibility of participants

Includes:

• 20x hand lens (an essential tool for bryophyte ID)
• An illustrated field guide booklet of common wetland bryophytes with detailed key features and microhabitats

       (excerpt from of The Common Mosses and Liverworts of Alberta by Brittney Miller tinyurl.com/CommonBryophytesofAlberta)-

• Certificate of Completion

To register and for more information contact: bryophytes@vertex.ca

Limited space is available – Registration closes May 16^th

SOIL230 Pedology Field School

Montrose Environmental will provide the following In-Person soil course from May 28-30, 2025. This beginner-course will enable 24 hours toward Professional Development. The cost is $600 (+GST). Previous foundational soil knowledge is recommended; more details and links to register are found here: https://go.montrose-env.com/learning-series.

TRAINING PROVIDERS

NATURAL RESOURCES

Courses available in March, 2025:

Fish Habitat Restoration — Identification of Factors Limiting Fish Productivity – Online – March 17th, 2025

Fish Habitat Restoration — Identification of Factors Limiting Fish Productivity – Online – March 17th, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

Drone Applications in Environmental Surveying – Online – March 18th, 2025

Drone Applications in Environmental Surveying – Online – March 18th, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

Fish Habitat Restoration — Stream Morphology Assessment – Online – March 19th, 2025

Fish Habitat Restoration — Stream Morphology Assessment – Online – March 19th, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

Plant Identification Level 2 – Online – March 20th & March 27th, 2025

Plant Identification Level 2 – Online – March 20th & March 27th, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

Estimating Fish Abundance – Online – March 21st, 2025

Estimating Fish Abundance – Online – March 21st, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

Wetland Assessment – Online, March 25 – 26, 2025

Wetland Assessment – Online, March 25 – 26, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

Planning and Designing Fish Habitat Assessments – Online – March 31st, 2025

Planning and Designing Fish Habitat Assessments – Online – March 31st, 2025 Natural Resources Training Group

For the full calendar of upcoming courses, and course details, follow this link:

https://nrtraininggroup.com/schedule/

PRAIRIE CONSERVATION

ACTION PLAN

Webinars and Conferences

KEEPING TRACK

with

FIERA BIOLOGICAL CONSULTING

Track & Sign Certification – Sep. 9 & 10, 2025, Hinton, Alberta

Hinton Area | September 9 & 10, 2025 | Ages 18+ | Register before September 1 | Limited Space

This 2-day field-based workshop in Alberta’s wildlife rich foothills offers the opportunity for participants to earn certifications in Track & Sign from Levels 1 to Professional (Level 4). Participants must obtain at least 70% during the evaluation — it won’t be easy!

All abilities welcome.

Learn more and register here 

FIELD LAW

Because Clarity Matters

Historically, our annual "Labour + Employment Year in Review" sessions provided key legal updates on topics like off-duty conduct terminations, employee privacy, and changes to the Canada Labour Code. This year, we’re taking a forward-thinking approach, focusing on how 2024's legal developments will shape your business in 2025. These sessions will help you anticipate challenges, adapt policies, and stay compliant.

Part 2: (March)

Occupational Health + Safety, Privacy, Human Rights

WEBINAR Monday, March 17 Cost: Complimentary

IN-PERSON SEMINARS Tuesday, March 18

Calgary and Edmonton

Cost: Complimentary

www.fieldlaw.com

GRF

GRASSLAND

RESTORATION FORUM

Pre-Field-Season Training Workshop

How to use the

Range Plant Community Guides and

Recovery Strategies Manuals

for Project and Reclamation Planning in Grasslands.

The workshop will be held Thursday March 20, 2025, from 10:00 to 16:30, at the Glenbow Ranch Schoolhouse in Cochrane, AB.

Register via the website: here or by emailing Donna at: corpirate@shaw.ca.

GRF WEBINAR III

Local Adaptation of Select Prairie Plant Species Presented by: Dr. Sean Asselin Date TBA March, 2025 12:00 - 1:00pm MST

GRF WEBINAR IV 

Choosing flower species for restoration of beneficial insect biodiversity Presented by: Dr. Carol Frost 

Thursday April 24th, 2025 12:00 - 1:00pm MST

CANADA

DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES & OCEANS

LEARNING SERIES

The Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s (DFO) Partnerships team from the Ontario & Prairie region will be offering a learning series on DFO’s Organization and Legislation, Regulatory Review Process, Tools, and Forms/Information Requirements and 2 targeted sessions for Heavy Equipment Operators and Site Managers.

All sessions will start at 12:30 and run to 14:00 Eastern time. The Spring Series (all of which will be replicated in a Fall Series) are as follows:

1.      DFO’s organization, legislation and an in-depth review of the Project’s Near Water Website highlighting resources/tools available – Thursday, March 27, 2025.

2.      Thorough overview of the Request for a Project Review form and information requirements - Thursday, April 3, 2025.

3.      Detailed review of the Application for Authorization/Permit form and Application Process - Thursday, April 10, 2025.

4.      Duty to Consult – Thursday, April 17, 2025.

5.      Thursday, May 8, 2025.

For more information please email: DFO.OPAEPOE-PSEEAOP.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

ESTI

The Environmental Sciences Training Institute

Please contact efishing@esticanada.com with any questions or to book a custom delivery. Learn about our Efishing program here. 

View our in-person course calendar at

https://esticanada.com/shop/

Nest Sweep Protocol: Online – Self-Paced

Online Courses

SALMTEC

 COURSES AND TRAINING PROGRAMS

******

Registration Now Open for SALMTEC's ABWRET-A Blended Course (W25) Offering Online,

Registration Now Open for SALMTEC's Grassland Vegetation Inventory (GVI) Blended Course (W25) Offering Online,

Registration Now Open for SALMTEC's Biophysical Bootcamp (S25) Offering Bragg Creek, AB, May 29

Registration Now Open for SALMTEC's ABWRET-A One-Day Field Course (S25) Offerings Calgary, AB June 2

Registration Now Open for SALMTEC's ABWRET-A One-Day Field Course (S25) Offerings Red Deer, AB June 3

Registration Now Open for SALMTEC's Catchment Delineation Seminar

SALMTEC also offers several self-paced courses:

VISIT THE SALMTEC CONNECTOR 

THE SALMTEC CONNECTOR is a compilation of applied science and land management event listings, across a variety of sectors and disciplines, published monthly.

You can find the SALMTEC CONNECTOR HERE.

Over 20 years later,

moving forward from

POARA to PGA

Edmonton, March 11, 2025. Regulated since 2002 by the Alberta provincial government through the Professional and Occupational Associations Registration Act (POARA), and after almost a decade of patient effort by ASPB board and staff, the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists began the final definitive steps toward full professional recognition under Alberta’s new Professional Governance Act (PGA).

The PGA will wrap all Alberta’s regulated professions together under one Act, affording clarity to government in its function of protecting the public at large in our province. The PGA received first reading (of three) on March 11, 2025, introduced to the Legislature by the Hon. Rajan Sawhney, Minister of Advanced Education, in the presence of John Corriveau (Deputy Registrar and Chief Regulatory Officer, Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta); Brian Munday (Executive Director, Alberta Land Surveyors’ Association); and Dean Falkenberg, (Executive Director/Registrar, Alberta Society of Professional Biologists).

Mr Falkenberg commented that the Professional Governance Act would enhance fairness, transparency and accountability by implementing a modernized framework for complaints, discipline and appeals. “Professional regulatory organizations will also have access to an alternative complaint resolution process and the ombudsman.”

Go HERE for a link to the Government of Alberta announcement.

Accompanying Photo: Brian Munday (ALSA), John Corriveau, and Dean Falkenberg (ASPB) join the Honourable Rajan Sawhney at the media conference following the first reading of the PGA.

At the ASPB, we regularly receive notifications from Google Scholar and other sources which we select and share below in the BIWEEKLY. Here is the latest batch (the links are HOT):

Enhancing naphthenic acid attenuation in mesocosm wetlands: The role of temperature, plant species, and microbial communities

Indigenous‐led research on traditional territories highlights the impacts of forestry harvest practices on culturally important plants

LGBTQ+ biologists face hostility at work

One size does not fit all: A novel approach for determining the Realised Viewshed Size for remote camera traps

China’s top court calls for paper mill crackdown

Uniting hearts and lands: advancing conservation

The Erosion of Threatened Southern Mountain Caribou Migration

https://winnipeg-can.newsmemory.com/?publink=1915f2802_134f8e8

Perennial Cool-season Grass Invasion in the Northern Great Plains: The Role of Plant-soil Feedback

Disentangling the Contributions to Phenotypic Change in Conservation Breeding: A Case Study in a Breeding Program of an Endangered Migratory Songbird

Forestry, fire, and fur: factors influencing densities of endangered fishers (Pekania pennanti) in central British Columbia, Canada

Individual outcomes matter in the context of responsible and sustainable catch-and-release practices in recreational fisheries and their management

Proposing Dimensions of an Agroecological Fishery: The Case of a Small-Scale Indigenous-Led Fishery Within Northwest Territories, Canada

Montane grassland revegetation trials

Diagnostic Strategies and Strain Typing for Johne's Disease in Wood Bison

More pumas (Puma concolor) does not change perceptions: The mismatched response of ranchers to the presence of a top carnivore

Importance of scale, season, and forage availability for understanding the use of recent burns by woodland caribou during winter

Efficacy of BurrowRx® Fumigation for Control of Richardson's (Urocitellus richardsonii) and Columbian Ground Squirrels (Urocitellus columbianus) in Montana

Drop-in Fuel Production: Transforming Biomass into Next-Generation Fuels

Movements and habitat use of black-fronted terns and banded dotterels in the Mackenzie Basin

Bridging Borders

Reducing Risks to Native Pollinators by Introduced Bees: A Review of Canada's Legislation with Recommendations for Yukon Territory

Metabarcoding reveals striking dietary variation in a reintroduced mesocarnivore

Timber Harvesting in Mountainous Regions: A Comprehensive Review

Minimizing Backcountry Overnight Visitation Impacts: A Comparison of Per Capita Resource Impacts from Lodges, Huts, and Campsites in Banff National Park

Rate of herbicide resistant weed development: A Canadian Prairie case study

Thecamoebian Community

This week’s banner photo:

Prepping for spring lake-water testing. Photo by pgk/aspb

PROFESSIONAL BIOLOGISTS PROTECT THE PUBLIC INTEREST

In Alberta, Professional Biologists are registrants of the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists (ASPB), and are subject to a code of ethics, continuing competency requirements, and a disciplinary process. The ASPB is a self-regulated organization under legislation in the Province of Alberta, meaning its purpose is to protect the public of Alberta by ensuring biologists are qualified to practice biology in accordance with that legislation. The society is governed by a Board of Directors elected by its registrants.

You are probably receiving this newsletter because you are an ASPB Registrant. This newsletter provides relevant information and professional development opportunities for our members, as well as essential member-related society business; if you are registered with the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists, please DO NOT unsubscribe.

For more information about the Society or to contact the administration, please visit the website: https://www.aspb.ab.ca

Opinions and general news published in this e-newsletter

do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of the Society or its Board of Directors.