The Cheesy 2024 AJM Family Christmas Letter
Dear Clients, Partners, Friends, and Poor Souls Who Opened This Letter,
Well, here we are—another year older, a bit wiser(?), and, in AJM tradition, full of cheese (both metaphorically and literally). Let’s rewind 2024 and relive AJM Environmental’s greatest hits—the moments where chaos knocked, and we showed up with just enough brilliance to make it look intentional.
What We Were Up To in 2024
This year we tackled challenges with all the vigor of Santa’s elves trying to meet their toy quota. Here are some highlights!
Owls in the Winter - What a Hoot!
Spotting owls in Alberta during the winter is a thrilling experience, as several species, including the great horned and snowy owl, remain active in open or edge habitats despite the cold. Their presence in our snow-covered landscapes adds an enchanting and mysterious element to the province’s winter wildlife. Read on to learn more about four owl species commonly seen in Alberta throughout the winter!
Distinguishing the American Crow and Common Raven
As biologists and environmental scientists, even we sometimes mix up the American Crow and the Common Raven. They are remarkably similar, but with a bit of practice, you can tell them apart. Here’s how to differentiate these two members of the Corvid family.
Cackling Goose (Branta hutchinsii) vs. Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)
Identifying a Cackling Goose from a Canada Goose can be challenging, but with careful observation and a few key pointers, you’ll be able to distinguish between these two species with ease. These two geese may look similar at first glance, but they have distinct characteristics and behaviors that set them apart. By understanding these differences, you can enhance your bird-watching experience and appreciate the unique traits of each species.
The Art and Science of Data Visualization
“The greatest value of a picture is when it forces us to notice what we never expected to see,” John Tukey
People tend to be very receptive to visual information, which is why it is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words. This adage is especially true in data science, where data visualization transforms complex datasets into more readily digestible insights.
What is data visualization? Very simply, data visualization is the thoughtful display of data to facilitate understanding. As scientists, we use data visualization to understand data and communicate results. The information we derive from data is used to answer questions for research or science-based advice and then carefully packaged visually to enhance understanding.
At AJM, we are often asked to provide solutions related to complex environmental challenges. Whether related to wildlife, aquatics, or wetlands, we specialize in providing innovative solutions tailored to answering specific questions. Data visualization begins with elements of design. A good designer understands the needs and goals of the target audience and how to best represent the data graphically.
Ecosystem Insights from Space
Satellite imagery analysis has emerged as a powerful tool for understanding our natural environment. This technology enables ecosystems to be analyzed at large spatial scales at a relatively low cost, to address critical issues such as vegetation health, landcover change, and habitat connectivity. This technology is another powerful and exciting tool that AJM has available for informing responsible environmental management.
Snorkel Surveys: A Look Below the Surface
Sometimes the best way to assess a fish population is to become a fish…. or at least pretend to be one. Snorkel surveys are a sampling method sometimes utilized by fisheries biologists to enable them to peer into the underwater hidey holes which aquatic organisms call home. These surveys allow biologists to quantify the distribution, abundance, and composition of fish in an area, assess how they might be utilizing habitat, and understand more about their behavior. While other fisheries sampling methods such as electrofishing or trapping can be used, snorkel surveys require no fish handling and very little added stress to fish, making them a relatively low-impact alternative to more invasive sampling methods. While the other sampling methods such as electrofishing certainly play a role in the biologist’s toolbox, often snorkel surveys can be used to answer questions that may not be feasible to answer using other methods. Additionally, snorkel surveys have the added benefit of being very cost effective to perform over a large area of habitat.
Swallows of Alberta - Quick ID Guide
Although it may be easy to pick out the differences between these species when you’re comparing them on a page, it is much more difficult to accurately identify these birds in the field. The birds above are all swallows. From the family Hirundinidae, swallows are typically insectivorous and agile flyers (Sibley 2016, 305). There are six swallow species you can find throughout Alberta: Bank Swallows, Tree Swallows, Cliff Swallows, Barn Swallows, Northern Rough-Winged Swallows, and Violet-green Swallows (Sibley 2016, 306-309). The most common swallows, Bank, Tree, Cliff, and Barn Swallows, typically breed in North America and winter as far south as Argentina in the Cliff Swallow’s case (Sibley 2016, 306-309: Cornell University, 2024a). Here are some common ID tips you can use in the springtime, when these frequent flyers come around!
The Cheesy 2023 AJM Family Christmas Letter
We’re back with yet another cheesy Christmas letter from the AJM family! Against popular demand, we’ve unleashed another installment of our annual letter because apparently, we just can’t stop ourselves from talking about, well, ourselves. We promise that Chat GPT only wrote a small portion and it’s quite easy to tell which parts (hint: the jokes that aren't funny).
A friendly reminder to get lost in nature!
‘There just isn’t enough time in the day.” This is an oft heard justification why many people today can’t seem to find the time to get out and enjoy nature. Whether it’s rushing the kids to school or taking them to their extracurricular activities …
Here Be Dragons
Most AJMers would agree that one of the best parts of our jobs is spending time out in nature, getting the chance to see wildlife up close. We often focus on vertebrates, but it's hard to forget that the animal world is mostly insects when we visit a site as diverse and full of bugs as a wetland.
Welcome to AJM's New Headquarters!
In December 2022, AJM moved into its new headquarters in the Beltline of Calgary, AB. We are super excited to share a tour of our new digs. Check out the video below to see all the amazing features of our new home.
A Helping Hand: Updates to the Migratory Birds Regulations
Migratory birds are true global citizens. They do not recognize international borders, belong to a specific country, or call only one place home. Just as humans do, these birds follow good weather and food availability across great distances. In the spring and summer months, thousands of birds make the trip up to Canada to nest, mate, and raise their young.
The Not-So-Common, Not-A-Hawk
Each spring, as the ice begins to thaw, the forests, wetlands and prairies awaken to the sound of birdsong, brought by hundreds of migratory bird species arriving home to their summer breeding grounds.
The Cheesy 2022 AJM Family Christmas Letter
Read on to enjoy and share in some laughs at AJM’s annual holiday letter sent to our amazing network of colleagues, clients, friends and family!
Bathymetry: The Shape of Sound
Have you ever wondered what the bottom of the ocean looks like? Or how deep your favourite lake is? Using the science of bathymetry, we can investigate these mysterious biomes without ever leaving the surface! Bathymetry is the measurement of water depth in river, lake, and ocean ecosystems. It is a fundamental component of hydrography which studies the physical characteristics of a water body.
Species Spotlight: Long-toed Salamander
Under the cover of darkness, a small, sleek amphibian emerges from beneath ground cover. Part of the mole salamander family, the long-toed salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum) is mostly nocturnal and spends much of its time hidden under rocks and woody debris in boreal habitats and montane basins …
Sounds, Like a Good Idea
lthough many of us have appreciated the melody of birdsong, the buzzing of insects, and the noises of wildlife, we might not realize just how unique and important these sounds are. Across the globe, scientists, naturalists, and wildlife aficionados tune into wildlife sounds to inventory species …
Who’s Who in That Pool?
As spring sweeps into Alberta, ice thaws, snow melts away, and seasonal rains and flurries fall, all across the province waterbodies fill and wetlands come to life. Many of us will turn our eyes skyward watching flocks of birds wing their way north from their winter refuges, but from under the fallen leaves, rocks, holes …
BONEFISH! TWELVE O’CLOCK!
AJM’s Fisheries Biologist, Hillary Keyes, recounts her recent adventures in Belize! The past few years in the month of March, you would have found me on a frozen Alberta lake with a tiny rod, jigging for any of our resident trout species or yellow perch, sometimes with a tip-up baited for northern pike nearby.