MADEIRA PARK WETLANDS PARK SHORELINE CLEAN-UP - July 19
Have fun and help your local environment! Please join Lagoon Society and Pender Harbour Wildlife Society volunteers on Sunday July 19, 2009 for a shoreline clean-up and invasive plant removal work party at the Iris Griffith Wetland Park in Madeira Park. Meet at 10AM at the Madeira Park Post Office on Gonzales Road in downtown Madeira Park. Bring water, a hat, sunscreen, and gardening gloves.
TURTLE ART CONTEST FOR KIDS!
Kids from up and down the Sunshine Coast are invited to participate in a fun new art contest - all about turtles! The Sunshine Coast is home to one of the most spectacular turtle species around - the endangered Western Painted Turtle. Kids aged 3-18 are invited to submit their drawings or paintings of Western Painted Turtles by August 15th 2009. There will be prizes for different age categories, including toys, art supplies, turtle t-shirts, and a Turtle Bay tour to see the wild turtles of the Sunshine Coast! Winning art work will be displayed at the Iris Griffith Centre and used in project materials to promote turtle conservation.
Click here for details about how to enter the turtle art contest.
TURTLE RESEARCHERS SEEK PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
The Western painted turtle is BC's only native freshwater turtle in BC. Painted turtles can often be seen basking on logs in lakes, ponds and slow moving streams. Unfortunately, habitat loss and road mortality have put this species at risk of extinction. Understanding the distribution and abundance of this species is the first step towards preventing further population declines. This is where you come in! Please do your part by reporting all turtle sightings to David Stiles at 604-989-1007 or mjevelyn@gmail.com. We are especially interested in knowing whether you have seen turtles on roads or digging around in sandy areas, indications of nesting activity. With your help, we can preserve this integral part of the Sunshine Coast's rich biological diversity.
Click here for printable turtle observation form (Word)
Click here for printable turtle observation form (PDF)
Click here to learn more about the Sunshine Coast Wildlife Project
COMMUNITY MEMBERS INVITED TO PARTICIPATE IN LIVING MURAL PROJECT
Community members are warmly invited to participate in an exciting new community art project. Created by local artist Emily Gray in collaboration with the community, the Living Mural will feature a mosaic of textured terracotta tiles designed as a surface to grow vegetation. Tiles will feature images of coastal expression related to water and the role it plays in our lives and our community. All members of the Sunshine Coast community are invited to submit their expressions on water - anything from poems, stories, memories and thoughts, to photographs, paintings, drawings and collages. Submissions might include, for example, photos of people fishing, swimming or boating, paintings of freshwater habitats or aquatic wildlife, or stories or poems involving water. Click here to learn more about the Living Mural Project and how to participate
FUN AT THE SUNSHINE COAST BIOBLITZ
The Lagoon Society would like to thank all of the sponsors and participants in the Second Sunshine Coast BioBlitz. A celebration of biodiversity, a BioBlitz is a 24-hour count of everything that grows, creeps, crawls, hops, flies or slithers. The BioBlitz took place on the weekend of May 23 - 24, 2009 to coincide with the worldwide "International Day for Biological Diversity" (May 22). The survey began at noon on the Saturday and concluded at noon on Sunday. Community members were able to interact with scientists at the BioBlitz Base Camp and also join them out into the field as they undertook a variety of field sampling activities. Please stay posted - BioBlitz photos and data will be posted soon.
WORLD WATER DAY CELEBRATION A SUCCESS
Over 100 community members gathered at the Iris Griffith Centre on March 22, 2009 to celebrate the conservation and protection of water on the Sunshine Coast. The theme of the event was "Sustainable Water: Summit to Sea". Visitors enjoyed a series of presentations by an impressive group of speakers who offered a host of innovative, pro-active solutions to help keep our water sources safe and provide sustainable high quality potable water for generations to come. Speakers included Prof. Hans Schreier (University of British Columbia), Dr. Sue Gordon (Alberta Research Council), Richard Boase (District of North Vancouver), Dianne Ramage (Pacific Salmon Foundation) and Carol Rubin (author of How to Get Your Lawn and Garden Off Drugs). In addition to the presentations, event attendees enjoyed Stream Keepers guided stream tours, pond dipping, children’s activities, wildlife identification, information booths, music and a barbecue lunch! Click here to view speaker presentations and event photos.
GREAT GREEN GIFT IDEAS AT THE IRIS GRIFFITH CENTRE
The gift store at the Iris Griffith Centre has one of the largest collections of eco-books on the Coast! Lots of children’s titles (finger puppets very popular) - natural history - cookery - green building - sustainable living - eco-travel - new shipments arriving daily. Besides books we have many other environmentally friendly gifts - nature CDs - bird and bat boxes - natural soaps - cards. All net proceeds support programs at the Iris Griffith Centre. Winter hours: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Thursday through Sunday.
MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
Now is the perfect time to buy or renew your Lagoon Society membership. Members receive many benefits, including 50% discounts on Iris Griffith Centre programs, field trips, workshops and events; Free Lagoonies Club membership for children with family memberships; and Regular email newsletter updates. To renew your membership today, please print out our Membership Form and fax to 604-883-9893 or mail to RR#1, Site 20, C16, Maderia Park, BC, V0N 2H0
Membership Sign-up Form (PDF)
NATURE SCHOOL A WINNER IN GREEN YOUR CAMPBELL CASH CONTEST
We are thrilled to announce that our Nature School Program was voted as one of top five projects in The Tyee's Green Your Campbell Cash Contest.
The contest encouraged BC residents to consider donating their $100 climate action dividend cheques worthwhile to projects in BC. Please consider donating your climate action dividend cash to support the Lagoon Society. With your help, we can continue to promote sustainability, foster responsible environmental stewardship, and ensure protection of our natural environment for future generations. Click here to support the Lagoon Society. All donations over $10 will receive a charitable tax receipt.
SCIENTIFIC PAPER HIGHLIGHTS STICKLEBACK DISCOVERY
A new paper published in the Canadian Journal of Zoology highlights the thrilling scientific discovery - a new stickleback species pair discovered in a lake on Nelson Island. The new species were discovered in June 2007 when Freshwater Ecologist and Lagoon Society Chair, Dr. Michael Jackson, Dr. Jennifer Gow of UBC and "Coastwise" John Dafoe, went on an expedition to Nelson Island, after they learned that the island had possibly been overlooked in earlier surveys. Click here to learn more about the stickleback discovery.
Click here to read the stickleback paper (PDF)
The Iris Griffith Centre Nature School Program
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The Iris Griffith Nature School offers a unique learning environment where on-site classroom sessions are reinforced by extended periods of time spent in the outdoors observing a diversity of habitats and plant and animal species and recording thoughts through art, poetry and prose. Elementary school teachers from the Sunshine Coast have the opportunity to move their classrooms to the Iris Griffith Centre for an entire week for hands-on exploration which is a catalyst for further environmental learning at school.
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How You Can Help
The Lagoon Society is a Charity and the Board of Directors and Committee members all volunteer their time and expertise to the Society. We are also proud to employ skilled and talented people.
We rely on your generous support to allow us to carry out our many community, school, and interpretive programs. Please help support the Lagoon Society today by becoming a member, making a donation, becoming a volunteer, buying Lagoon Shop products, participating in our Legacy Program, or becoming a corporate or private sponsor.
WEBSITE MAP
The Lagoon Society is very grateful to the generous contributions of the many private individuals, businesses, foundations, community groups, corporations, and government agencies that make up our many sponsors.
We gratefully acknowledge the financial assistance of the Province of British Columbia.
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Ruby Lake Lagoon Nature Reserve Society
RR#1 Site 20 C16
Madeira Park, BC, V0N 2H0
Phone/Fax: 604-883-9893
Email: info@lagoonsociety.com |
Iris Griffith Interpretive Centre
15386 Sunshine Coast Highway
101 North (1KM south of Ruby Lake)
Phone: 604-883-9201
Open Daily 10AM to 4PM
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