Compassionate conservation — yes even for rats and raccoons
by Anne Drummond In mid-June, the Saanich municipality voted to discontinue the use of anticoagulant rodenticides in all of their facilities. The motivation for discontinuing the use of these highly toxic rodenticides was evidence that owls, raccoons, and other...
Tweens of all species
Humans aren't the only species whose "tweens" that are itching for more independence but perhaps lack a bit of experience. Tween fawns aren't much different. While young fawns tend to stay close to mom, as they get a little older they start to become a little more...
Humming to the tune of Hummingbirds
by Anne Drummond It is 6 A.M. and only a tiny sliver of light on the eastern horizon to presage the dawn. There is 2 feet of snow on the ground and the temperature dropped to -8 C for the third night in a row. You are taking the freshly filled hummingbird feeders out...
On the Nature of Stewardship
by Anne Drummond We are living in strange and uncertain times; forest fires, floods, and other manifestations of climate change along with the social, economic, and ecological problems associated with an ever-increasing human population. Then the current COVID-19...
Pretty in pink: our control group
Now that fawning season has begun, have you seen a doe with fawns in your neighbourhood? This past fall, we undertook the second phase of the Oak Bay Urban Deer study supported by the District of Oak Bay and the Province of BC. Before the rut in 2019, the research...
Fawn season 2020
by Anne Drummond Along with warmer, brighter days and burgeoning vegetation growth, deer fawning season is beginning, with the first fawns already sighted in Oak Bay and other municipalities. One of our "control group" deer that did not receive immunocontraceptive in...
Collar Checks and Control Group Identification Completed!
If you saw the now familiar orange safety vests and a man carrying what looks like a rifle (he’s a wildlife veterinarian and it’s a dart projector!) you’ll know that our field team was once again out in the field this March. The purpose of the fieldwork was...
Deer Management Grant Funding
Dr. Jason Fisher, lead scientist of the Oak Bay Urban Deer Research Project. The current Oak Bay Urban Deer Research Project has been funded by the Province of BC and the District of Oak Bay, in partnership with the volunteer, non-profit Urban Wildlife Stewardship...
Living with Wildlife: the Oak Bay Deer study
When you think of deer, do you think of a doe feeding in a wilderness meadow, the Disney movie Bambi, or of the light-up decorations that were on display over Christmastime in front yards across Canada? For many people, deer are just that—something far away, a...
Yule Log
As another year of changing seasons comes to a close, the UWSS would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, or perhaps just simply a celebration of the beauty, peace and balance that we so often find in nature. We are sharing this video that...
Too loose, too tight, just right?
Over the past two years, you may have got used to seeing 20 does wandering around with collars that have four large tags in a variety of colours hanging from their necks. These deer are the control group for the Oak Bay Urban Deer Research Project and the collars are...
This is a Climate Emergency
The Climate Emergency has an impact on all of us, often in ways we don’t necessarily recognize. Alina Fisher, communications expert for the UWSS (UVic PhD student), is a signatory on the open letter in the journal BioScience, signed by 11,258 scientists from 153...