Boreal Ecology with
A Focus on Loons

Hosts: Susan Carr & Bradley Muir When: Summer and winter programs are proposed Length: One or more days Number of guests: One or more Fee: The fee varies with the visitor's program but an example of our prices is that for a 2 nights dog-sledding trip with overnight in a log chalet, the usual cost is $440.00 per person CDN, double occupancy, minimum 2/maximum 4 persons. Custom, multiple night packages require full payment 45 days before trip and there is no refund if participant cancels less than 30 days before the trip. THE IDEA: We easily build custom packages with guests. The two areas which we are versed in are boreal winter ecology, in the southern boreal forest of Canada and summer, boreal freshwater ecology (lakes, rivers, bogs). We have a national park at our doorstep and thousands of hectares of boreal forest and lakes. We guide guests on intimate explorations of boreal lakes with focus on Common Loons and other aquatic birds. But this is not a birdwatching experience per se. All of the ecosystem is interpreted. Our host lake, Anglin Lake has more than 14 times as many Common Loons than has been recorded on any other lake of similar size. We offer expert interpretation and 'hands-in' water experiences. The imaginative interpretation gives guests new ways to learn about water wildlife, emphasis is on 'doing' not just seeing. We use canoes and kayaks. No experience is required as we use the craft to relaxingly 'drift and gawk' to explore the waterways. We also use the Magwa tour boat, a 23 foot yawl which is a modified fishing boat. We keep cruising speeds very slow for aesthetics as so as not to unduly disturb wildlife. The boat is powered by a quiet, low-emission 4 - cycle engine. It is comfortable and very stable especially for the size of waters travelled on the bays of Anglin Lake.

We work in conjunction with Land of the Loon Resort. Nestled in a jack pine forest on the shores of Anglin Lake, Saskatchewan the resort offers a beautiful hand-crafted, spruce log lodge as our excursion meeting place and for indoor interpretive programs. The lodge's Snail's Pace Cafe serves delicious home-cooked meals in a cozy ambience enhanced by a woodburning fireplace and radiant, stained glass windows.

PREPARATION
While physical ability is not a major limiting factor on most trips, some of our activities can be physically demanding. Exposure to cold temperatures can be tiring. Participants must read and sign a waiver of indemnity and assumption of risk.

In cold weather, dress using the 'layering' concept staying away from anything cotton. It quickly loses insulation value when damp. Have not only a good layer of insulation but good windproofing on top and bottom, such as parka and snow pants. Your headgear should easily cover your forehead and ears. A face toque or balaclava are good choices. Felt pack style boots and wool socks and warm mitts (not gloves) are recommended. We'll provide an equipment and clothing list in advance.

Winter Weather In The Boreal Forest:
Temperatures at anytime throughout the winter in northern Saskatchewan can range from +5C to -40C. Daytime temperatures are not necessarily much higher than overnight lows. The air is usually quite dry making colder temperatures somewhat more manageable.

Snow cover is highly variable and a continuous cover suitable for dog sledding can arrive as early as October but by mid-December is more usual. We make no guarantees that snow and trails conditions will be suitable at the time of your visit. Trails usually melt out by the middle to end of March.

Hours of daylight in mid-December number about 8 gradually increasing to about 12 by the end of the mushing season.

"Put quite simply, the taiga or boreal forest is the set of forest ecosystems that can survive in the North....across much of North America only eight tree species can be found...The sub-arctic climate is so harsh that it induces primarily a conifer forest". J. David Henry

At the same time as it has few species of trees, the boreal forest as a landscape, is a diverse mosaic of forests of various ages and composition.

The word 'boreal' comes from the Greek name for the Goddess of the North Wind. So, the 'boreal forest' is literally the 'northern forest'. 'Taiga' is another name frequently applied to this forest. It stems from a Russian word.

The forest mosaic been designed by stresses; the stress of long, snowy winters; the stress of a short growing season; the stress of repeated, naturally occurring forest fires.

Silhouetted spires of spruce, pine and fir are familiar sights against lingering summer sunsets. It is the realm of the moose and black fly, woodland caribou, wolf, raven and loon amongst thousands of others. Rivers, deep lakes and spreading bogs dominate the Shield bedrock and marshes and quiet streams do so on the glacial till.

The plants, animals and other organisms that live in the boreal forest are adapted to these conditions. Characteristics such as hibernation, long distance migration, energy conserving behaviour, unique physical features and 'evergreeness' are essential for many boreal inhabitants. It has also been home to people for thousands of years. Many cultures have adapted and thrived in this environment.

The climate of the boreal forest is characterized by strong seasonal variation with short, moderately warm and moist summers and long, extremely cold and dry winters. Temperature range is extreme, especially in the mid-continental areas, where seasonal fluctuations can be as great as 100°C.

The traditional calender seasons, as defined by the path of the sun in the sky and the passage of the equinoxes and solstices must be reconsidered in the boreal forest. Many northern cultures identify six seasons rather than four. Each period poses distinctly different situations for people and wildlife. Break-up and freeze-up of waterways are seasons in themselves, added to spring, summer, autumn and winter.

On a hot summer day, typically in mid-July, temperatures in the low 30°s C can be reached but many consecutive days this warm is a rare occurrence. Summers are short. An average daytime high is around 15° to 20°C Spring and autumn temperatures range from overnight lows -5° to daytime highs of +10° C. This is typical for April ,May, September and October. The coldest month of the year is January. Temperatures are routinely around -20°C. In the depths of the long winter the thermometer can plunge to -40°C for days at a time.

In the boreal forest," the statement 'The sun is the source of all life' is no idle cliché but a basic ecological fact. The energy that reaches the surface in the boreal is far less than that which reaches the tropics. In travelling through a longer column of air, various wavelengths are filtered out and the total amount of energy reaching the earth's surface is reduced by reflection and refraction from water and dust.

As well, northern areas receive energy at a lower angle of incidence than equatorial or temperate areas. When the sun is near the horizon (8°) 50% of the energy is received by diffuse radiation as compared to 92% reception of direct radiation at 90°.

Precipitation can differ considerably across this immense landscape. Generally, the climate is moister in the southern regions and becomes drier further north. Most of the precipitation in the region falls as rain during the summer and is relatively light. In the northwest, where high mountain ranges restrict the inland penetration of moisture-laden air, annual rainfall is 18-38 cm. In central Canada, the annual rainfall increases to 38-51 cm. The eastern part of the boreal forest in Canada receives between 51 and 89 cm of precipitation as rain.

For approximately half of the year, a blanket of snow covers this forest. Yet winter is the least studied and understood season of all. The roles snow plays in the ecosystem are so diverse and intense that it has prompted one scientist to say,

....."one might accurately say that boreal ecology is the study of snow....it protects ground plants from low temperatures and from dessication; it accumulates on trees and may break them or influence their shape; it protects some animals from low temperatures and predation; it hinders other animals in their movements and food-procuring activities."

The boreal is an evergreen ecosystem. The most common trees are spruce, fir, larch and pine. These are conifers or cone-bearing trees. Their needles are actually very narrow leaves which stay on the tree year-round. The needles do fall off after 3 to 7 years but only a few at a time. You'll also find poplars and birch which are deciduous, they lose their leaves in autumn. Larch, also known as 'tamarack' is an exception to those loose rules. Tamaracks have cones but drop their needles in autumn. While rules sometimes help us understand things, nature doesn't always follow those rules.

The boreal forest is a mosaic, like a patchwork quilt. The colours and textures are different types of forest. Here are just four out of the hundreds of vegetation communities which comprise the mosaic: Trembling Aspen, Black Spruce, Jack Pine, Fen / Bog

The forest floor is covered with mosses like: feather moss, stair-step moss, fern moss and knight's plume. Wintergreen, Solomon's seal, bog cranberry,dwarf scouring rush bishop's cap, Labrador tea may be found. Jack Pine, Pinus banksiana, can be found on rapidly drained soils. Water percolates through the large spaces into the soil. The forest floor is carpeted in a lichen called Reindeer moss and others including blue-eyed grass, bearberry, early blue violet and alder.