The BCWF Bog Blog is the blog of the B.C. Wildlife Federation’s Watershed Team. Launched in 2010 through BCWF’s Wetlands Education Program, it has grown alongside our work. The Bog Blog features educational content and stories from the field across British Columbia including project updates, field notes, and plain-language insights into beaver-based restoration, wetland and fish habitat recovery, and the partnerships that make this work possible. For general BCWF updates, visitwww.bcwf.bc.ca/news-updates.
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Species Profile — Rough-skinned Newt
Taricha granulosa, or the ‘Rough-skinned Newt’, is the only newt species in British Columbia. Confined to the coast, the Rough-skinned Newt relies on wetlands for breeding, while foraging is conducted in open seral and mixed forests near permanent water (including…
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Species Profile — Long-Toed Salamander
The long-toed Salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum) is a small but fascinating amphibian found throughout much of British Columbia. Named for the distinctive elongated fourth toe on each hind foot, this species is a common—though often overlooked—resident of wetland habitats across the…
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Species Profile — Steller’s Jay
As the weather warms and the daylight extends, we being to hear an active chorus of springtime birds. Commonly seen foraging for food around campgrounds and parks, Steller’s jays (Cyanocitta stelleri) are the blue-winged symbol of B.C.’s healthy evergreen forests, as…
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Bugging Out — Aquatic Invertebrate Workshop at Silverdale Wetland
Insects are indicators of water quality. They are often overlooked for their small size and it takes a curious pond-dipping, fly-fishing expedition or an entomologist to remind us of how these little creepers play an important role in our aquatic…
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Species Profile — Bald Eagle
Question: What is up to 4 metres deep, 2.5 metres wide, and nearly one metric ton in weight? No, the answer we are looking for is not a boat. Rather, a bald eagle’s nest. With such incredible size, it is no surprise that…
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Species Profile — Western Painted Turtle
The painted turtle (Chrysemys picta) lives in relatively slow-moving fresh waters, with a large range across North America; in fact, it is the continent’s most widespread native turtle. During the last ice age, four subspecies evolved based on their regional…
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Species Profile — Virginia Rail
The Virginia Rail: a small, secretive bird of North American wetlands that inhabits southern British Columbia during the summer breeding months. Despite its rather compact body, the Virginia Rail (and other Rail species) have the highest ratio of leg muscles…
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Species Profile — Great Blue Heron
Given how common they are around wetlands, it only makes sense to learn a bit about them. That way, the next time someone points one out, you’ll be able to rattle off a few fun facts and earn the title…
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A wetlands fire in New Zealand, and how it relates to us in B.C.
This week, a large fire destroyed more than 400 hectares of the internationally recognized Waituna Wetlands Scientific Reserve, located in the Southland Region of New Zealand. The massive fire lasted for nearly 24 hours, and destroyed mature manuka trees (Leptospermum…
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Wetland Institute Alumni Restores Wetland in Fraser Valley
Why did the farmer restore a wetland? Because it mud perfect sense. Terrible puns aside, Celia Serrano probably didn’t anticipate how deep she would wade into B.C.’s wetland culture when she boarded her plane from Spain to start her internship with…
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