University of Alberta
OP-T2-20: Wildlife Habitat

GENERAL PRACTICES The University of Alberta North Campus is situated along the south shore of the North Saskatchewan River and between our north boundary and the river is a Forestry Reserve which is used by students as an outdoor classroom. This reserve is left untouched as a natural environment providing food, shelter and a variety of nesting and burrowing opportunities for all types of wildlife. Over the past decade, the University of Alberta has incorporated waterfalls and streams on a number of its campuses with the intent of providing gathering places for people and wildlife, and these water features are an annual nesting place for certain pairs of ducks. Buildings and Grounds Services (BGS) has dramatically limited its use of herbicides to less than 10 hard landscaped sites where there are no other weed control alternatives, and the BGS division does not disturb (prune or remove) trees with active nests in them. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE PEREGRINE WEBCAM PROJECT http://www.falconcam.med.ualberta.ca/index.html Wildlife habitat is also supported on North Campus through the installation and maintenance of a nest box designed for the native peregrine falcon species, located on our Clinical Sciences Building The Peregrine Webcam Project, a joint educational campaign by Sustain SU (formerly known as ECOS), UAlberta Engineering and Infrastructure, the Alberta Public Interest Research Group (APIRG), Mountain Equipment Co-Op, GE Security Canada and Infosat Communication, is a valuable project preserving and appreciating urban wildlife species. This habitat has safely housed breeding pairs of the formerly threatened peregrine falcon since its installation in the 1990’s. Multiple conservation associations, student groups and university departments have developed this project and three cameras have been funded and installed so the public can watch the young birds feed and grow. The university has supported this initiative since its inception in various ways through involvement of staff. In addition, Campus Saint-Jean has installed and maintained a bat box on their residence building. Peregrine falcons are a native Albertan species that was on the brink of extinction due to pesticides in the 1970s. There are now more than 45 pairs of peregrine falcons across Alberta, including one pair annually nesting atop the Clinical Sciences Building located on the University of Alberta’s North Campus. The Webcam Project enlists volunteers to observe the falcons during the fledging period when chicks are learning to fly; done all over North America this has proven valuable in helping the chicks make it to migration. Over the summer 2011 nesting period the University of Alberta had four chicks.

Additional Responsible Party Information: FACILITIES AND OPERATIONS Name: Wayne McCutcheon Department: Buildings and Grounds Services Position: Manager Landscape Planning and Construction Name: George Thomlison Department: Buildings and Grounds Services Position: Manager Grounds, Human Resources & Procurement STUDENTS' UNION Name: Ian Moore Department: Students' Union Position: Director, Sustain SU