Author Archives: Alan Burger

Merritt Christmas Bird Count 2024

The predicted high winds never arrived and we had near-perfect weather for the 26th Merritt Christmas Bird Count on December 14. We had 27 people out in eight groups and five feeder-watchers. Overall, we counted 64 species on the count … Continue reading

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Nicola Naturalist Society – Winter events 2024-2025

Evening meetings of the Nicola Naturalist Society are held once a month from September through May. We generally meet at 7PM on the third Thursday of the month in the Lecture Theatre of NVIT (Nicola Valley Institute of Technology) on … Continue reading

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Nicola Naturalist Society – Fall events 2024

Evening meetings of the Nicola Naturalist Society are held once a month from September through May. We generally meet at 7PM on the third Thursday of the month in the Lecture Theatre of NVIT (Nicola Valley Institute of Technology) on … Continue reading

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Sandhill Crane surveys – 2024

In 2024 our club undertook a greatly expanded series of surveys for Sandhill Cranes in the southern portion of the Douglas Lake Plateau. Thousands of cranes stop over in this area on their northward spring migration and the importance of … Continue reading

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Nicola Naturalist Society – Spring Events 2024

Evening meetings of the Nicola Naturalist Society are held once a month from September through May. We generally meet at 7PM on the third Thursday of the month in the Lecture Theatre of NVIT (Nicola Valley Institute of Technology) on … Continue reading

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Snow Bunting Shiver – Feb 2024

The Nicola Naturalist Society held our traditional winter Snow Bunting Shiver outing on Sunday Feb 18th, 2024. Eleven members ventured up to the Douglas Lake Plateau in search of winter specialties – and maybe even Snow Buntings. The weather was … Continue reading

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Merritt Christmas Bird Count 2023

The 25th Merritt Christmas Bird Count was held in unusually mild weather (thanks to El Niño) on 16 December 2023. We had 27 participants in the field (an increase from our pandemic low numbers) and three feeder-watchers. On count day … Continue reading

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Nicola Naturalist Society – Fall and Winter events 2023-24

Evening meetings of the Nicola Naturalist Society are held once a month from September through May. We generally meet at 7PM on the third Thursday of the month in the Lecture Theatre of NVIT (Nicola Valley Institute of Technology) on … Continue reading

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Coutlee Bioblitz – 17 May 2023

The Nicola Naturalist Society ran our first bioblitz at a property in Coutlee, just outside Merritt, on 17 May 2023. The owner is planning to re-wild much of this property which is currently mainly horse-pasture. So this bioblitz (and others … Continue reading

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Sandhill Crane surveys 2023

The Nicola Naturalist Society and the Kamloops Naturalist Club are the joint custodians of the Douglas Lake Plateau IBA (Important Bird & Biodiversity Area), which is the largest in British Columbia. The IBA was established primarily because of its importance … Continue reading

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