Wildlife

Canada’s financial intelligence agency is stepping up the fight against the illicit wildlife trade by taking aim at the criminals who reap big profits from the global racket. The alert says Canadian bears are poached for their bile, claws and paws, which reap large sums on the traditional medicine market at home and abroad. A black bear is seen near Lake Louise, Alta., June, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Federal agency targeting illegal wildlife trade through financial intelligence

Banks other enterprises encouraged to look for signs of poaching, money laundering

Canada’s financial intelligence agency is stepping up the fight against the illicit wildlife trade by taking aim at the criminals who reap big profits from the global racket. The alert says Canadian bears are poached for their bile, claws and paws, which reap large sums on the traditional medicine market at home and abroad. A black bear is seen near Lake Louise, Alta., June, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Thousands of small starfish wash ashore during low tide on Garden City Beach, S.C., Monday, June 29, 2020. A Canadian national research group says it has proven that seastars are tied with polar bears as the top predator of the coastal Arctic marine ecosystem. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Jason Lee/The Sun News via AP

There’s a hungry Arctic predator with a lot of arms that eats dead polar bears

Starfish sit higher in the food chain than expected

Thousands of small starfish wash ashore during low tide on Garden City Beach, S.C., Monday, June 29, 2020. A Canadian national research group says it has proven that seastars are tied with polar bears as the top predator of the coastal Arctic marine ecosystem. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Jason Lee/The Sun News via AP
A black bear mother and cub fish for salmon in a creek near Ucluelet. (Westerly file photo)

B.C. communities chase better strategies for living with bears and cougars

Human behaviour needs to shift for coexistence with wildlife, say specialists

A black bear mother and cub fish for salmon in a creek near Ucluelet. (Westerly file photo)
Kirk frees moose. (Facebook)

Princeton man jumps into action to cut moose loose from fence

Couple stops to free distressed animal

Kirk frees moose. (Facebook)
Anthony Bucci photographed a bald eagle in Blackfish Sound last fall as it swooped down on a herring ball. (Anthony Bucci Photography)

B.C. photographer’s bald eagle photo Canada’s choice for international contest

Anthony Bucci lives on northern Vancouver Island and has his own wildlife touring business

Anthony Bucci photographed a bald eagle in Blackfish Sound last fall as it swooped down on a herring ball. (Anthony Bucci Photography)
Sterling’s setup where he captured the seal pup’s birth. (Courtesy of Derek Sterling)

VIDEO: Victoria volunteer captures ‘awesome’ elephant seal birth

Derek Sterling is living on Race Rocks to help maintain the equipment and manage the wildlife

Sterling’s setup where he captured the seal pup’s birth. (Courtesy of Derek Sterling)
A Little Brown Bat is shown in a handout photo. A disease that has been nearly wiping out bat populations in eastern Canada and the U.S. has made its first appearance in Alberta. White Nose Syndrome, a fungus that starves bats to death by interrupting their winter hibernation, was identified in several locations in the province last year. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Cory Olson, WCS Canada

Bat fungus that causes fatal White-Nose Syndrome makes first appearances in Alberta

‘It’s not a lot of bats that can survive this disease.’

A Little Brown Bat is shown in a handout photo. A disease that has been nearly wiping out bat populations in eastern Canada and the U.S. has made its first appearance in Alberta. White Nose Syndrome, a fungus that starves bats to death by interrupting their winter hibernation, was identified in several locations in the province last year. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Cory Olson, WCS Canada
Columnist Ed McMackin. (Submitted)

Out There: The tales of two lizards

By Ed McMackin, biologist by profession and naturalist by nature We don’t…

Columnist Ed McMackin. (Submitted)
A great horned owl scowls about the rainy weather. (Photo: “the Wanderer”)

Creston birders spot 72 species in 25th annual Christmas bird count

Over 3,500 birds were spotted, down from 5,800 the previous year

A great horned owl scowls about the rainy weather. (Photo: “the Wanderer”)
Photographer Jennifer Small captured this elk waiting out the snow storm in Ootischenia last week.

ECOLOGICAL COMMENT: Old MacDonald had an elk?

A weekly column written by Selkirk College Recreation, Fish and Wildlife students

Photographer Jennifer Small captured this elk waiting out the snow storm in Ootischenia last week.
The bald eagle that was brought into the Atlantic Veterinary College hospital in Prince Edward Island after being hit by a car in October 2021 is shown in a handout photo. The eagle is doing well and settling in a new home. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Atlantic Veterinary College **MANDATORY CREDIT**

Prince Edward Island bald eagle receives rare surgery, heads to new home in Halifax

Bird believed to be only second in the world to receive surgery for a spinal cord compression

The bald eagle that was brought into the Atlantic Veterinary College hospital in Prince Edward Island after being hit by a car in October 2021 is shown in a handout photo. The eagle is doing well and settling in a new home. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Atlantic Veterinary College **MANDATORY CREDIT**
A peacock is seen in Surrey’s Sullivan Heights neighbourhood. In 2022, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service said one of the wackier calls it received was about a peacock seeking shelter in someone’s home. (Credit: Amy Reid)

Peacock seeking shelter, ram seeking mate top wacky calls to B.C. Conservation in 2022

Conservation officers received over 30,000 calls last year, some more unique than others

A peacock is seen in Surrey’s Sullivan Heights neighbourhood. In 2022, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service said one of the wackier calls it received was about a peacock seeking shelter in someone’s home. (Credit: Amy Reid)
(Langley Advance Times files)

Family of two-year-old bitten by bears sues Greater Vancouver Zoo

Child suffered broken bone, scarring, partially amputated finger, lawsuit claims

(Langley Advance Times files)
Claudia Copley, an entomologist at the Royal BC Museum, on the hunt for spiders. Copley is one of three biologists asked to champion a less lovable endangered species by Canada’s National Observer. (Photo by Jennifer Heron)

B.C. biologists standing up for at-risk slugs and bugs

The slimy, creepy creatures are worth saving too, researchers say

  • Jan 3, 2023
Claudia Copley, an entomologist at the Royal BC Museum, on the hunt for spiders. Copley is one of three biologists asked to champion a less lovable endangered species by Canada’s National Observer. (Photo by Jennifer Heron)
A sign at the entrance to town warns of the recent cougar activity Sunday, June 21, 2009 in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alta. A large cougar is prowling a tiny but densely populated island just off Nanaimo, B.C., and officials with the Environment Ministry say conservation officers are keeping a close eye on the situation. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ian Martens

Community of Protection Island, near Nanaimo, wary as large cougar moves in

Conservation officers have received numerous calls about the large cat, are keeping a watchful eye

A sign at the entrance to town warns of the recent cougar activity Sunday, June 21, 2009 in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alta. A large cougar is prowling a tiny but densely populated island just off Nanaimo, B.C., and officials with the Environment Ministry say conservation officers are keeping a close eye on the situation. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ian Martens
Olive doesn’t mind the snow if there are treats involved (Jacqueline Gelineau/Capital News)

A snow-loving pig, a Ferrari-riding snake: Some of B.C.’s top animal stories of 2022

These animal encounters had people smiling all year long

Olive doesn’t mind the snow if there are treats involved (Jacqueline Gelineau/Capital News)
The Yellow Hammer of New Zealand. (Pixabay)

Out There: Two different birds with the same name

By Ed McMackin, a biologist by training and a naturalist by nature…

The Yellow Hammer of New Zealand. (Pixabay)
At this point of the season, most bears have denned up until spring. (City of Mission photo)

End of season for WildSafeBC Selkirk-Purcell

Submitted by WildSafeBC The bears are almost all denned up for the…

At this point of the season, most bears have denned up until spring. (City of Mission photo)
A family of black bears cross a highway in Canada. (Liam Brenna/Submitted)

Wildlife overpasses not wide enough: University of B.C. study

UBC research indicates issues in wildlife overpasses

A family of black bears cross a highway in Canada. (Liam Brenna/Submitted)
Trail cameras were used to help monitor the movement of Tempest, a wolf at the Greater Vancouver Zoo. (BC Trappers Association)

Tranquilizer darts used to recapture wolves in Aldergrove escape: government documents

Emails also showed tips came in from as far afield as Surrey claiming to have seen a wolf

Trail cameras were used to help monitor the movement of Tempest, a wolf at the Greater Vancouver Zoo. (BC Trappers Association)