Wildlife cameras have been capturing images since May 2017 – the report on year one results and maps showing where species were seen can be downloaded from the Miistakis Institute – but we still need your help to process the next batch of images…..
Participate by taking Calgary Captured Challenge!
Which wildlife was captured most on camera in 2021?
Find out by reading: Calgary Captured 2021 Results and Key Messages
Help us find out:
- What species are occurring in Calgary’s parks system;
- Exploration of how human activities impact wildlife movement in parks (are species temporally displaced from trails);
- Validation of wildlife corridor modeling done for Calgary; and
- Long-term monitoring to assess trends and patterns of terrestrial mammals occurring in Calgary.
Who calls Calgary home?
Calgary supports a population of 1.2 million people but is also home to a diverse array of terrestrial mammals, including bobcat, moose, deer, coyote and skunks. There are occasional reports of black bears and cougars as well. While we can’t directly measure populations with the data from our cameras, we can get a sense of which species are most common and where they are likeliest to be found. Finding out where certain species occur allows us to target future conservation and management efforts to ensure we can coexist with our wild neighbors.
How can humans and wildlife co-exist in a city?
People change the way wildlife use the landscape, but specific details remain unclear. Some species adapt well to humans, some are indifferent, and others tend to avoid us. By collecting incidental observation data on humans (what time of day do we use our parks etc) we can get a sense of how animals in urban settings react to humans. Humans are an integral part of the system, and the camera data will allow us to better understand our impact and inform co-existence strategies.
Why Cameras?
Our research includes a network of 63 motion-activated trail cameras, which automatically take photos of animals as they pass by. Camera technology gives us the ability to have many “eyes on the ground” and give us the opportunity to gather large amounts of data that would not be otherwise feasible with traditional field research methods. By establishing a camera network in parks throughout the City of Calgary, we hope to develop a more complete picture of our wild neighbors.
We Need You!
Calgary Captured enables you to join our team and help us classify trail camera photos by identifying the animals you see. By participating not only will you help us with the massive and very important task of identifying wildlife, you get a first hand look into who calls Calgary home and we hope you will enjoy looking at the diversity of wildlife in Calgary. We will use the results to better understand Calgary’s wild neighbors and to help inform our conservation and management goals within the City of Calgary. Join the project here… and have fun identifying the wildlife that’s hanging out in our city parks!
Need more information? Contact weasel@theweaselhead.com.
