Calgary Connect: Maintaining Ecological Connectivity

What is ecological connectivity and why is it important? What are the challenges to maintaining ecological connectivity in our region? The City of Calgary, in partnership with Miistakis Institute, launched Calgary Captured in 2017, and through this program, Friends volunteers help with wildlife camera monitoring here in Fish Creek Provincial Park. This multi-year wildlife monitoring and citizen science based program is intended to study urban wildlife populations, their movement and behaviour, and enable informed conservation and management decisions that support healthy wildlife populations in our city. Join Nicole Kahal, Conservation Analyst with the Miistakis Institute to learn how Miistakis and partners are using wildlife camera-traps, spatial modeling, and municipal planning to understand how we can protect what’s left of the natural connections in the Calgary metropolitan region.

 

Nicole Kahal is a Conservation Analyst with the Miistakis Institute, a not-for-profit applied conservation research institute. At Miistakis, Nicole focuses on the research areas of ecological connectivity, biodiversity, and ecosystem-based climate adaptation. Nicole holds a Master of Environmental Science and Management from University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Arizona. Nicole has enjoyed living in Calgary for just over six years.

 

 

 

Photo courtesy of Nicole Kahal