Research: Dietary differences among individuals with different genes and coat colours gives insight into the maintenance of the Spirit bears among black bear populations

Research: Dietary differences among individuals with different genes and coat colours gives insight into the maintenance of the Spirit bears among black bear populations

The paper, “Intrapopulation foraging niche variation between phenotypes and genotypes of Spirit bear populations,” was published in the open-access journal Ecology and Evolution.

Converging knowledges to inform and empower conservation

Converging knowledges to inform and empower conservation

This past summer, I had the opportunity to travel aboard the Raincoast vessel Achiever with several other members of the ACS lab to participate in Koeye camp, a cultural revitalization and education program operated by the Heiltsuk First Nation’s QQS Projects Society. We were there to engage with the youth campers about the research conducted by…

Advancing non-invasive approaches for monitoring wildlife: considering the ethics of developing new techniques

Advancing non-invasive approaches for monitoring wildlife: considering the ethics of developing new techniques

A theme that underlies our research in the Applied Conservation Lab is that we aim to apply methods that are minimally invasive to wildlife. This ethos emerges in large part from our partners in First Nations communities, who have taught us many important lessons about respecting the people, places, and animals where we work. Our…

Meet the team of applied conservation scientists at the University of Victoria

Meet the team of applied conservation scientists at the University of Victoria

Last year the Raincoast lab at UVic marked an important new milestone with the creation of the Raincoast Chair in Applied Conservation Science at the University of Victoria. This five year Chaired Professorship allows us to expand our research, teaching and outreach programs in community-driven applied conservation science. Our long-term vision is to train next…

Salmon species diversity predicts salmon consumption by terrestrial wildlife

Salmon species diversity predicts salmon consumption by terrestrial wildlife

Research by scientists at Spirit Bear Research Foundation, Raincoast Conservation Foundation, and the University of Victoria, led by Christina Service, shows that salmon species diversity – the number of spawning salmon species available – is far more important and positively related to salmon consumption in coastal black bears than biomass abundance…