The project is a collaboration between Lakeland College’s School of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Alberta Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture. The two organizations are partners in numerous applied research and educational activities at Vermilion Provincial Park.

“There hasn’t been a lot of documentation on wildlife in the Vermilion Provincial Park,” says Darcey Shyry, an instructor in the wildlife and fisheries conservation program at the Vermilion campus. “Thanks to these cameras we borrowed from Alberta Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture, we are getting a glimpse of the activity of wildlife that inhabit or travel through the valley. We’re also estimating the frequency of human activity in some of the park areas commonly used by people.”

Unlike relying on humans to track wildlife numbers, the remote cameras don’t make any sound so wildlife activity won’t be deterred. In addition, the remote cameras provide more reliable identification of wildlife than tracking, as well as 24-hour monitoring. The cameras will occasionally be relocated by students to record activity in other areas of the park.

“The images will help us determine the type and abundance of wildlife in the park. Also, by moving the cameras to other locations, we can determine what animals are using specific regions of the park,” says Shyry.

Information from the images is summarized and reports are given to local and provincial employees with Alberta Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture. “Cameras are already in place in numerous parks throughout Alberta. This information will allow their staff to compare our results with data they’re collecting in other regions,” he says.

As for the students, the project is a perfect fit for their wildlife habitat conservation and wildlife ecology and management courses. During this academic year, students will complete detailed sampling to determine habitat in the areas surrounding the cameras. “This is just another example of how our students are able to live the learning at Lakeland College,” says Shyry.