Seals!

Yesterday was a beautiful day here in Nova Scotia. We travelled to Keji National Park-Seaside Adjunct. It was much different than the pictures I had posted of Keji's main national park site. This park had few trees and very short, scrubby vegetation. The majority of the trails run right along the coast. It was beautiful. The exciting thing about this day was that we got to see seals! They were adorable! Seeing them in their natural habitat was really neat. They were not at all irritated by our presence. They stared at us and then continued their routine of laying on the rocks and occasionally jumping into the water.

Last night was a somewhat emotional night back at the accomodations. We had a wonderful dinner and then presented gifts to Chris and Christina. Before we left, the group decided that it would be nice to bring a gift for them and a gift for another team member. The gift was to be something that represented the state/area in which we live. We also all shared what the expedition has meant to us and what we plan to do with what we have learned. I think we all came to Nova Scotia with different expectations, but we will all be leaving with the same memories.

My time here was delightful. I so enjoyed meeting teachers from all around the country, but I also enjoyed working with two scientists who have dedicated their work and their lives to environmental protection. It is hard work and requires a great deal of time. Chris and Christina are amazing people. I will never forget them nor will I ever forget the experience I had here in Nova Scotia!

Last day of trapping!

First, I want to tell all of you how much I enjoyed seeing you (at least some of you!). It was so neat to be able to talk with you and answer your questions. I will share more when I return on Monday! Thanks to Ben and Katie who were brave enough to talk to the news crew. Awesome! Remember, it is not how much or how little we are doing for the environment, it is that we are just doing something!

Well today was our last day of trapping. Team B came from behind and trapped 3 voles! We were quite excited. Out of 5 teams, Team B finished 3rd. Not too bad. This afternoon was dedicated to 'teacher stuff.' Since we all live in different time zones, the scientists really have to work hard to make sure all of us have some time to work on our blogs and Skype with our classes. Several teachers walked down to the ocean while others just hung out at the green house. This evening Dr. Chris finished his lecture on small mammals. He also led us through tallying our data. It is a bit complex! At our first research site, we figured out that there are approximately 5 voles per hectare. At our second research site, we figured out that there are approximately 7 voles per hectare. Dr. Chris was expecting the numbers to be a little higher, but weather was a factor. On average, we figured there are approximately 11,500 deer in all of Keji National Park. We arrived at this number based on the 10 deer skat quadrats we conducted while we there. Throughout the year, the researchers will continue this work with other volunteer groups and eventually produce an annual report. It is a very long process and it requires a great deal of work!

Mr. Wignall attempting to catch Team B's vole.

Tomorrow we will go to Keji Adjunct Seaside Park. I am really hoping to see some seals and maybe some whales! Check the blog over the weekend to see if I saw any! Have a great weekend and I will see you all on Monday morning! :)

Success!

Well Team B had some success today! We captured 2 red-backed voles. It was a pretty exciting day for us because we are the only team who has consistently struck out! It was horrible weather here today. It rained, and rained, and rained, and rained! However, we still stayed out in the field from 9-4. While out in the field, we walked a few trails looking for skat, damage caused by mammals, and any other signs of mammalian life. After lunch, the guys worked on repairing the main roadway into Cook's Lake while my group worked on clearing a trail to one side of Cook's Lake. It was a dangerous day for Mrs. Metz----I was leaning on a tree fixing my boot and the tree was a bit rotten. The tree fell and a branch came down on my head! It was not fun considering I was soaked, cold, and a bit irritated with my boot! I survived, though! We headed back to the accomodations after stopping at a grocery store/mini-mall. It was quite a stop. We had a 1/2 hour before we had to be back to the van. Well, four group members had trouble telling time. Dr. Chris finally had to go back into the store/mall to find them. Eventually they all came out with food and trinkets from the dollar store in hand! Tonight we had a lecture about the geology of the region. It was quite interesting! I will share more with you all later!

Dr. Chris lecturing on geology.


Questions for you:
1. When you study geology, what are you studying?
2. What is the difference between a herbivore and carnivore?
3. Since this expedition team has cleared one entire trail, we need a name for it. I want you to come up with a possible name for the trail! We hope to pick one before we leave!!!

Check out our birthday party we had tonight!

Happy Earth Day!!!

A rainy, cold day!

First, check the video clips for some answers to yesterday's questions!

Today we traveled back to Cook's Lake in order to check our traps. Team B got really excited because we had one trap with the door closed! However, it was empty when we went to open it. Bummer! Team B gets picked on daily because we have yet to have a catch, but we are getting use to it. All of us worked on clearing a new trail today and also did some deer quadrats (making 10x10 squares and walking in a line while looking down for skat). It was a long day because it was raining and cold! We were already ready to head back to the accommodations. Tonight we had a meeting with an Earthwatch employee who is with us. The work never seems to be done! I had some good questions submitted to me so keep those coming. Hopefully tomorrow I can report a catch for Team B!!!

Questions to consider.....

1. Today we found more deer skat in the open, grassland region as opposed to the forested region. Why do you think there was more skat in the grassland?

2. It was 11° C for a high here today and 9° C for a low. What are those temperatures using the fahrenheit?

A new research site!

Cook's Lake Research Site

Trapping in the grassland!

Today the team moved to a new research site. The land is owned by Dr Christina's family and is about 40 miles from Cherry Hill. The site is called Cook's Lake. It is a unique site because there is a great deal of grassland but there is also a great deal of forested region. We have actually put ten of our traps in the forested region and 10 of our traps in the grassland (see video). I am hoping that Team B does better this time! Tomorrow we will return back to Cook's Lake and do some more work with our traps as well as some field maintenance. Chris and Christina depend on the volunteers to help them keep up with maintaining the trails and repairing bridges, etc.
My questions are:
1. In the video, I was trying to hide my trap for obvious reasons. Why else do you think I needed to cover my trap with lots of grass?
2. Do you think I am more likely to find mice in the grassland region or the forested region?


On our walk to the site, Dr. Christina stopped and talked with us about some mammals which have/do call the site home. I have included a picture of one of the skeletons which we talked about.
My questions are:
1. What animal do you think it is?
2. What is the difference between horns and antlers?

Keji

Today (Sunday) we visited Kejimkujik National Park. It was about a 50 mile drive from here. Once there, we walked about 8 miles. We walked a trail and looked primarily at the old growth hemlock trees. These trees are over 350 years old! In the picture, you will see a boardwalk which winds its way through the hemlock forest.

We also continued to count deer skat in several different areas. As we approached our trail, we noticed several white-tailed deer so we decided it would be a good area to survey for skat. Needless to say, the area which we covered did not contain much deer skat.

A few questions I would like for you to think about/Google and submit your answers to Mrs. Fricke in wrap-up or during class on Tuesday. Feel free to also include any other questions which you may have for me and I will try to respond to them!

1. Why do you think the boardwalk (refer to pic) was constructed through the hemlock forest?

2. See if you can Google and find out about the Acadian forest zone. What type of trees/vegetation would you find there?

3. What is a habitat?

4. What is an ecosystem?

5. One kilometer is equivalent to how many miles?

6. One hectare is equal to how many acres?

A trip into Halifax!

On Saturday the group travelled into Halifax for the day. It was quite unusual to be in a city after 5 days in a very remote area. Everyone did some shopping and sightseeing. We met up for dinner with our Dr. Chris and Dr. Christina for some seafood. It was a very nice evening. Chris and Christina have to be two of the nicest and kindest people I have ever met in my life. They cook for us, teach us, and most importantly, laugh with us. They always have smiles on their faces and are never short of patience. It will be very hard for me to say goodbye to both of them.

I have attached our two 'houses' which we have called home. Each house has come to take on quite a personality. The green house is kind of like the 'landing house.' All of the blogging/skyping is done here and this is also where everyone convenes for dinner. The yellow how is where the guys stay and is a bit creepy. It has come to be nicknamed 'psycho house' because they guys have told everyone that there is an usual prescence there. I have yet to venture over to see what they are talking about!

Counting skat. Ick!

This morning we checked the last of our traps and had 2 more catches. Overall, we did pretty good at this field. We will move to another field a little further away next week. The rest of our morning was spent counting snowshoe hare skat. We picked all of it up over the course of two days---about 1400 pellets! I will send data later! I have to admit, it was kinda icky at first, but I got used to it. One really has to get over being scared of things in the wild quickly. The researchers constantly stress that animals we touch, skat, etc. will not harm us so I have learned to trust their judgement and do what they ask!!! We have a little free time this afternoon before heading to the laundry mat and then to dinner in nearby Liverpool.

We do have fun!

Mr. Pembroke and Mr. Wolfe jousting in the forest!





Beaver Lodge

It's official...Mrs. Metz held a vole!

Mrs. Metz actually held a vole! Team E has caught most of the voles in their traps so they let me partake in the process of emptying the trap and weighing it. I was a bit nervous at first, but I got over it quickly. The vole was very soft and not too active so it made my job a little easier! Dr. Christina is in the background. She helps all of us with emptying the traps and weighing the mice/voles.

We had some time back at the house this afternoon which was nice. Some of us worked on our blogs, Skyped, listened to music, or visited with Dr. Chris. It was nice to have a little break from the field. This evening we went to a nearby pond which has a large beaver lodge. We were lucky enough to get to see one beaver swimming around and visiting his lodge. On the way back to the accomodations, we saw a porcupine and white-tailed deer. It was neat to see those animals out in their natural habitat.

Tomorrow is the last day at our first field before we move to another field site. Saturday is a bit of a day off from research work. We are going to travel into Halifax for a day of seeing some of the sights, shopping, and eating. It should be fun!

I will keep you all posted on how trapping goes!

We had success!

Yesterday was our first full day of trapping and we did catch a few mice and some voles. According to our researchers, trapping this many animals the first day was very good. Unfortunately, my team was not one of the teams which caught a mice or vole. Bummer! My partners are Lee and Dan both from Minnesota and they are quite humorous. It is never a dull moment when we are out collecting traps!

We also went on 3 mile hike looking for mammals/signs of mammals. When I say 'signs' of mammals, I am referring to marks on trees where deers may have scratched, trees where porcupines may have eaten some of the bark, and skat. Since I mentioned skat, I will tell all of you that I really stepped out of my comfort zone and picked up snowshoe hare pellets with my bare hands---a whole bag full!!! The scientists are trying to figure out the population of hares in the region. We marked off a 10 meter x 10 meter quadrat, lined up side by side in a horizontal line on one end of the quadrat, and then worked towards the other end of the quadrat. Each person was responsible for picking up any hare droppings in their path. FYI-based on the amound of pellets I found, there must be a LARGE amount of snowshoe hares in the region!

Today we will be returing to our traps in order to check them. If we find one with the door closed, we will bring it back to the researcher, take it out of the trap in a plastic bag, determine if it is a vole or mouse, weigh it, measure it, decide if it is a boy or girl, clip-mark it (cut a small amount of hair off of its right side), and determine if it is pregnant (if a female!). All of this information is recorded.

I cannot say enought about the scenery here. It is so beautiful. Yesterday the sun was shinning all day and the temps were in the 50s. Many of us were sun-burned when we returned back to the houses. Today looks to be another beautiful day as well. Hopefully tonight I can post a blog with my team and our mice/voles! Keep your fingers crossed that my traps are full!

My first day out in the wild!!!

Well, I can officially say that I was out setting traps for small mammals today and getting a real taste of the landscape here in Nova Scotia. It is quite beautiful but still a little chilly. It cleared off this afternoon and the sunlight felt wonderful. We went to Dr. Christina and Dr. Chris' house for lunch. It is absolutely beautiful. They have one of the best views I have ever seen. Both of them are delightful people who are so fun to be around. They both have heavy English accents and we laugh often about their words for certain things. For example, we sat around the table with Dr. Chris last night and went through some of the words. A trolley is a shopping cart, a bonnet is the hood of a car, and a push car is a stroller. It is so interesting to hear about life in another country. Although, Chris and Christinia now call Nova Scotia home, they still visit England about 4-5 times a year.



Today we set traps in the hopes of catching some voles/mice. All of our data will be recorded and Chris and Christina are using it to see if climate change is affecting the breeding patterns of mice. Take a look at the video clip to learn a little more about trapping!

Today we hiked five miles along the coast. It is truly accurate to say, "If you don't like the weather in Nova Scotia then wait 5 minutes." It would snow/sleet (see pic) and then the sun would shine and it would be very pleasant!

In the second picture, the sign denotes a roadside table. Well, the table is there but the road is not. The sea has gradually washed the coastal road away! As we walked along the coast, we were walking where the road once was. It was quite remarkable to see the effects of erosion first-hand!

A cold morning!

We woke up to a bit of sunshine this morning, but the temperature is pretty cool. I took a short walk down to the ocean this morning and it was quite spectacular. The sceneary is just amazing. The area where we are staying is called Cherry Hill. It is a very small town with summer cottages/homes along the coast. From what I could gather from Chris during our ride out here, many people in this area are lobster fisherman. I noticed several boats and lobster cages, too.

My roomie for the next two week is Caroline who is from the U.K. She works for Earthwatch at their Oxford office and is here to participate in/learn about Earthwatch's Live From the Field program. Currently, Earthwatch programs in Europe do not have the the in-depth teaching experience like the Live From the Field option here in the states.

We had dinner at the green house (girls' house) and the an icebreaker activity. I should explain that the females stay in a green house and the boys stay in a yellow house, about the equivalent to two city blocks from us. The team really got to know each other quite well via emails before the expedition and then at the airport. We had about an hour to sit and visit at the airport before Chris and Christina came to get us. It was about and hour 1/2 drive from the airport into Cherry Hill so the team had even more time to visit.

Breakfast is at the green house in about an hour. Christina will then talk with us about the mammals in the area before a walk near the coast this afternoon. It should be neat to see more of the area and hopefully get a good look at some of the mammals which call this area home!

I am here!

Happy Easter!!!

Well, I arrived in Halifax at about 12:00 a.m.-Sunday morning. It is misleading for one to think that the airport is actually in Halifax. The airport is about 30 miles outside of the city in a fairly remote area. A cab ride into Halifax is about $50, so I will probably be staying near the hotel/airport.

Nova Scotia is two hours ahead, so in terms of the time zone which I am used to, it wasn't too bad! I stayed with two other teachers last night at a hotel near the aiport. One is from Iowa and the other is from Minnesota. They both teach 2nd grade. There are three male teachers here as well which will be on our expedition. Two are from Minnesota and the other is from North Carolina. We all just got back from breakfast this morning. The food here is not too bad. Fish cakes were a choice on the menu but I opted for eggs and bacon. I found out really quickly that things here are pretty expensive. Breakfast for one person is around $20 (U.S.)! There are still four other team members on their way. Two were coming from California and the other two were stuck at the airport in Newark all night. They are all due to arrive later this afternoon.

My flight was relatively uneventful. I was seated by a very nice woman on my way to Halifax from Chicago. She teaches at a community college near Halifax and has lived in Nova Scotia all of her life. I got out my expedition information and she filled me in on some of the places. She assured me that I would see some of the most beautiful scenery in Canada. I was very exicted to hear that. As a group, we will head to the airport at 2:00 p.m. to meet up with the researchers and then we will be on our way to Cherry Hill---my new home for two weeks!

Only 4 more days!

Well, four days from now I will be in Nova Scotia! I am still excited but nervous, too. I officially have all of the 'tech stuff' worked out at school so that I can communicate. Now, we all just need to keep our fingers crossed and make sure all of the technology works when we need it to work! My suitcase is half-packed so I feel I am well on my way to Nova Scotia!!!

Starting pack!

Well, I can officially say that I have started a pile of things that I need to take with me! It is very hard to anticipate what I will need besides the items which I am required to take. My pile seems quite large right now, but I hope that I am able to weed some things out! From what I gather, the weather in Nova Scotia can be pretty unpredictable so that leaves me with some more packing "issues." Regardless, I am still so excited to go and see a place where I have never been. I am really hoping to learn a great deal about the climate/vegetation but I also want to learn about the people and their culture. I have spent some time reading up on Canada and more specifically, Nova Scotia. I have also spent some time putting together a Nova Scotia packet for my students. Hopefully it will be a useful teaching tool! My desire is to keep my students immersed in the Mammals of Nova Scotia!!!

Officially 10 days until departure!

Well, it hit me today that I will be leaving very, very soon and have nothing ready to go! Not to worry, though! I tend to work very well under pressure! More students are asking when I leave and I am not for sure if they are excited for me or excited that they will have a sub for a week! My hope is that they are excited about my trip and are looking forward to being able to Skype/blog with me via Mrs. Fricke's class. It will be a new experience for all of us!!!