Denman Conservancy Association
P.O. Box 60 Denman Island BC CANADA V0R 1T0
Landkeepers Program
The Training Phase begins
On the last day of winter and the natural world waking up to spring, the Landkeepers Program began the second phase of its plan with an Orientation Assembly be held at the Old School. Overall the session was well received with over thirty enthusiastic folk in attendance. Volunteers were able to meet each other as well as some of the people that will be providing the training. Goals and objectives were reviewed and the ways and means of achieving the aims of the project were discussed. Valuable input was offered and has been integrated into the development of the endeavour.
Many in the room were new to the Island and to the work of the Conservancy while others were old hands, some having been involved with the DCA since its inception. What was common to all was appreciation and admiration for what has been accomplished by the DCA and its volunteers.
What a wild and strange journey it was. You only have to scroll through properties listed in this web site to see how much there is to show for it. Currently the land protected and managed by DCA totals about 1000 acres. All of these lands, each distinct and unique are wonderfully special and are significant not only to Denman Island's ecology but also play a part in the well-being of the surrounding West Coast ecologies.
With the successes of the past come new responsibilities and once again we must rely on ourselves to meet those responsibilities. In most ways the lands take care of themselves but a certain amount of human involvement is necessary to manage the lands and fulfill the obligations the DCA has taken on. Assistance is needed for the monitoring and maintenance tasks required to keep these island properties' flora and fauna healthy. Inspired by the very successful "Streamkeepers" program that trains people to help conservation organizations manage streams and rivers around the Province, the "Landkeepers" program is designed to train volunteers of all ages to help DCA manage the properties under its care.
Photo by Andrew Fyson
Group learning GPS technology. Later that day we went out in Central Park and hunted for geocaches with the new instruments.
An immediate challenge is familiarizing the volunteers with the wide range of ecosystems found on the lands. To this end the training of the volunteers has begun.
- To date three GPS workshops have been provided introducing folks to the use of Global Positioning Systems.
- For a number of weeks Mike Morrell has hosted Migratory Bird Monitoring Walks in Central Park which have taken place every Friday morning. Those tenacious volunteers have been well rewarded for their efforts with each subsequent Friday revealing more and more newly returned birds. The walks will continue until further notice.
- Baseline Inventory work by Andrew Fyson has started on the Railway Grade Marsh. Denman's endangered
Taylor's Checkerspot butterfly has been the immediate focus and much to the delight of the volunteer Landkeepers fresh larvae of these delicates creatures were found and recorded. - Jenny Balke will pay more attention to the Checkerspots starting May 10th at 7:30 pm at the Old School with an in-class workshop on the little beasties and followed by field trips to the Settlement Lands to monitor and record the adult Checkerspots.
- In May we will also see the presentation of workshops on the marine ecosystem at the Lindsay Dickson beach by John Tayless.
- There will also be a workshop on Songbirds by Patrick Fawkes.
If you have an interest in attending any of the workshops or getting more information about the project contact Juan Barker at 250 335-2401 or juan@island.net
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