Wildsight

The federal government has extended the deadline for 2024 tax donations until the end of Feb 2025! That means you can claim any charitable donation made to Wildsight before Feb 28, 2025, on your 2024 tax return. This gesture from the federal government is designed to help offset the impact that the Canada Post Strike has had on the end-of-year fundraising efforts of charities like us—and it’s very welcome news 😀 To those who’ve already given what they can, we cannot thank you enough. Your incredible generosity helped us reach our $21.5k matching goal! But we have big plans for 2025, and every extra dollar will help us achieve our goals to protect our wild landscapes and animals, and defend threats to their future. If you haven't already, please consider making a 2024 tax deductible donation today: 📸 Cory DeStein

It's all fun and games until it's Dec 22 and you still don't have all your Xmas presents ready to go… Never fear, our eGift cards are here! Choose from six different digital card designs featuring stunning images like this one (📸 by John Marriott), and have them delivered straight to your inbox—or that of your gift recipient. You choose the value you want your gift to represent, with all proceeds helping to create protected and connected habitats throughout the Kootenays and Columbias. Head to https://lnkd.in/g9W84t7b to find out more.

Winter solstice has been a special event for humans for many thousands of years. Marvels like Stonehenge were built to align with sunset on this day, and countless festivals and rites created to celebrate it. But winter solstice has big impacts in the wild as well. ‘Photoperiod’ is the scientific name for the change of day length throughout the seasons, and it affects everything from when plants flower to when animals molt, mate, migrate, and hibernate. Wherever you are (and whatever you are 🦌🦉🌿🐻), we hope that you have a wonderful very short day this solstice! Photo by Wild Air Photography. #solstice #wintersolstice #photoperiod

Join members of the Canadian Columbia River Treaty negotiation delegation Thursday evening as they summarize key elements of the Agreement-in-Principle reached between Canada and the U.S., and the next steps in the process to bring a modernized treaty into force. Register now: https://bit.ly/4eW2rNp

Salt used for road maintenance can attract and hold sheep in highway corridors. Aside from luring the threatened species to some of our most treacherous highways, road-building disrupts habitat connectivity—fracturing home ranges and making travel between seasonal territories dangerous. Service roads can also provide access for hunters to target the species with greater ease. With less suitable habitat available, bighorn sheep have been forced to live increasingly close to human settlements, many of which contain livestock — something that has proven to be a death sentence for our bighorn sheep. Our large-scale, collaborative wildlife connectivity project ‘Reconnecting the Rockies’ is protecting wildlife and motorists along a 27-kilometre stretch of Highway 3 in British Columbia’s Elk Valley. Once complete, the project aims to have constructed 11 safe wildlife crossing points — including one overpass and 10 underpasses — all connected by exclusion fencing to keep animals away from vehicles and guide them toward crossings.

After reaching an Agreement In Principle with the U.S. in July, Canada’s negotiating team has been working towards finalizing a modernized Columbia River Treaty that would last through 2044.⁠ ⁠ The initial treaty of 1964 led to the construction of multiple dams. An area roughly three times the size of Kootenay Lake was flooded, destroying ecosystems and displacing thousands of human residents. Ongoing management of dams under the treaty has generally served downstream U.S. needs with detrimental impacts in Canada. Working with our partners in the Upper Columbia Basin Environmental Collaborative, Wildsight has submitted detailed feedback on how the treaty can improve the health of ecosystems across our region, available here: https://lnkd.in/eKERww5M ⁠ On December 19th from 6 – 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time / 7 – 8:30 p.m. Mountain Time, please join the Province of B.C.’s info session to hear an update from negotiators. Register now: https://bit.ly/4eW2rNp Please also consider reading our feedback and submitting your own at at https://lnkd.in/e6en6i6C

Did you know that grizzly bears experience something called ‘delayed implantation’ — where a fertilized embryo will only implant in a female’s uterus if her fat reserves are sufficient to sustain her and developing fetuses throughout winter hibernation? This means a female grizzly can essentially biologically choose whether to become pregnant or not. This goes to show how critical habitat quality and bear health is to the reproductive success of the species! #grizzlybears #amazingspecies #delayedimplantation #grizzlyfacts

Whether you're searching for a last-minute gift this holiday season, or wanting to give something meaningful to a person who loves the wild as much as you do, our digital gift cards help safeguard wild places and the lives that dwell within them. Choose from a variety of cards and price points! Buy a gift that will last forever—by building a better future for generations to come. Visit https://lnkd.in/g9W84t7b for more.

The Elk Valley accounts for less than 1% of the grizzly bear range in BC, but accounts for 33% of road mortalities and 42% of rail mortalities for grizzlies province-wide. Much of the grizzly bear’s range has been chopped up into pieces by resource roads and other habitat fragmentation. This results in large chunks of the landscape not being conducive to the sensitive species. Roads also make very convenient access for the hunting of many species—grizzlies often die within 500 metres of a resource road. A study in Montana found that open roads that see as few as 10+ vehicles per day could determine whether grizzlies are found there or not. The authors found that a density of 600 metres of road per square kilometre acts as a threshold, determining whether bears choose to visit or avoid the area—even if it has highly valuable resources like berries. The good news is that grizzly bear populations in most parts of our region are healthy. But their long term survival depends on how we manage our human footprint – across our region. Providing safe passage over railways and highways will greatly reduce human-caused mortality. Through careful planning, the reduction of resource roads, and management that maintains wild intact areas, grizzly bears and other wild species will be able to utilize productive habitat undisturbed by human presence. Photo by Douglas Noblet / Wild Air Photography

It was a cozy evening at the Grist and Mash in Kimberley this Tuesday! Thanks to all those who came down to learn about the growing scale of logging in the St Marys River Valley—it was amazing to see over 100 people of all ages and backgrounds come together to stand up for their wild backyard.⁠ ⁠ In the past decade, 15 square kilometres of privately-owned, valley-bottom forests have been clearcut in the St Marys, northwest of Kimberley, and logging on adjacent public land continues to grow that footprint.⁠ ⁠ Depending on how BC Timber Sales and Canfor move forward from here, we could be looking at an area equivalent in size to Columbia Lake being clearcut or in early seral state.⁠ ⁠ We're expecting them to release their proposals for public comment in the near future. Until then, we encourage you to urge Premier David Eby to push forward changes to legislation that would prioritize biodiversity and ecosystem health. You can reach him at premier@gov.bc.ca …⁠ For more info: https://lnkd.in/eW8aV5dA ⁠ Photos:⁠ 1) Some of our amazing community gathered on Tuesday night⁠ 2) Extensive logging of valley-bottom forest in the St Marys. Photo: Bailey Repp⁠ 3) View into the upper St Marys, where large areas of intact forests are at risk of logging. Photo: Bailey Repp⁠ 4) Intact forest in the St Marys. Photo: Amelia Caddy