NatureServe Canada

06/11/2026

NatureServe Canada hosted a one-day Canadian National Vegetation Classification (CNVC) partners meeting in Ottawa, on June 1, 2026.

The primary purpose of the CNVC is to provide a consistent, systematic, and authoritative classification and description of Canadian ecosystems, based on vegetation patterns in the context of ecological processes.

Among other applications, the CNVC will support assessments on the status of Canadian ecosystems, tracking and identifying at-risk ecosystems, wildlife habitat mapping, and environmental review.

Specific goals for the meeting included:

1. Highlight the progress made towards completion of CNVC version 1.0 in 2028.
2. Demonstrate the linkage of provincial and territorial ecosystem types to the CNVC group and alliance level, thereby facilitating incorporation of all subnational data for national reporting.
3. Highlight opportunities to map CNVC ecosystems, using ecoregion and land cover tools, facilitating species-habitat modeling.
4. Document conservation and resource management applications, including for Key Biodiversity Area (KBA) applications, ecosystem services (e.g. grassland carbon storage) and environmental reviews.
5. Identify funding needs (and current gaps) and opportunities to reach the goals for 2028.

Meeting attendees included representatives from the following organizations: AAFC, ECCC, NRCAN, Parks Canada, Statistics Canada, NatureServe, Nature United, Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, and provincial and territorial government members of the CNVC Technical Committee.

A big thank you to all meeting attendees and CNVC project partners for the productive discussions!

Learn more about the work underway to complete the CNVC: https://www.natureserve.org/canada/cnvc

05/15/2026

Today is Endangered Species Day.

Refer to the latest list of wildlife species at risk in Canada: https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/species-list.html

The list is growing but important work to protect and restore endangered species is ongoing and has proven to be successful with science-based approaches.

NatureServe Canada’s data, information and expertise regarding Canada’s species and ecosystems guide effective conservation action and natural resource management.

Learn more: www.natureserve.ca

Photo by

04/30/2026

If you haven't already take a look at this impressive webinar series presented by the members of the Canadian Grassland Coalition to highlight the 2026 Native Grassland campaign: https://bit.ly/4uOkNct

NatureServe Canada is pleased to also be working on Canadian grassland projects through the Canadian National Vegetation Classification (CNVC) project: https://www.natureserve.org/canada/cnvc

NatureServe Canada's Sarah Vinge-Mazer will be presenting next week at the Prairie Conservation and Endangered Species Conference (May 5-7, Saskatoon, SK). https://www.prairiecesc.ca/
Sarah's presentation looks at how the CNVC can be employed to crosswalk, classify and rank grassland types to inform conservation decision-making.

Join the Canadian Wildlife Federation and members of the Canadian Grassland Coalition to highlight the 2026 Native Grassland campaign with a webinar series about Canada’s most endangered ecosystem. Covering a range of topics to inspire every interest, we’ll be joined by Nature Conservancy of Can...

04/22/2026

Happy Earth Day to all. Lots to celebrate and lots of work to be done!

Still time to register for WCSC's freshwater webinar taking place today at 12pm ET .

There's less than 24 hours left to join our Earth Day webinar exploring all things freshwater 💧

Join us tomorrow at 12pm ET to explore the scale and importance of Canada's freshwater, and the work underway to safeguard these critical ecosystems

Link to register: https://f.mtr.cool/aofnehydzs

04/01/2026

Canada's new Nature Strategy was announced yesterday: https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2026/03/31/prime-minister-carney-launches-new-nature-strategy-protect-canadas

NatureServe Canada looks forward to working with current and new partners to achieve science-driven biodiversity research and conservation outcomes outlined in the strategy.

Onwards.

03/30/2026

Project Wrap Up 31 March 2026

🎉 Celebrating EBAR: Mapping Biodiversity Across Canada! 🎉

By combining millions of biodiversity records with ecological mapping, EBAR has created standardized, data-driven species range maps that support national conservation planning, including contributions to the Canada Key Biodiversity Areas program and efforts to protect 30% of land and water by 2030.

EBAR Highlights 2019-Present:

• 🌎 Over 52 million species observations from 280+ data providers
• 🗺️ 2,200+ automated range maps, with 910+ expert-reviewed and 810+ publicly available
• 🤝 290+ experts helping review and refine species ranges
• 📈 Over 65,000 downloads of maps and GIS data by government, industry, and non-profits
• 🔥 Advanced tools like the EBAR Heatmap to identify Species at Risk hotspots

Real-world impact: EBAR maps help guide environmental assessments, land-use planning, species at risk recovery, and conservation investments—turning complex data into practical tools for decision-making.

While the EBAR project is wrapping up 31 March due to funding constraints, its data, maps, and partnerships leave a lasting legacy for biodiversity conservation across Canada.

Explore the maps and learn more: https://www.natureserve.org/canada/ebar

A big thank you to all data providers, expert reviewers and the NatureServe Canada EBAR team for your contributions to the project. It has been a pleasure working with all of you!

03/26/2026

(Le français suit) 🐢 Who am I? With my soft, leathery shell, flat like a pancake and dotted with black circles, I look like no other turtle! ✨ My long, pointed head and tubular nose make me easy to identify. I usually stay in the water, and females rarely go farther than 10 m from shore to lay their eggs. But I can travel up to 30 km in search of the right hibernation site! ❄️

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🐢 Qui suis-je? Avec ma carapace souple comme une crêpe, sans écailles et recouverte d’une peau olive tachetée de noir, je ne ressemble à aucune autre tortue! ✨ Ma tête allongée et mon nez tubulaire me rendent facile à reconnaître. En général, je reste dans l’eau et les femelles ne sortent sur la terre que pour pondre, rarement à plus de 10 m de la rive. Mais je peux parcourir jusqu’à 30 km pour trouver un site d’hibernation! ❄️

03/03/2026

The Government of Manitoba's Wildlife Branch of Natural Resources and Indigenous Futures is recruiting to fill the position of Regional Wildlife Manager for Thompson, MB. This position interacts with the Manitoba Conservation Data Centre regarding rare species in the northern part of the province.

To learn more and apply: https://jobsearch.gov.mb.ca/adnoSearch?adno=45023

02/26/2026

- Arctic Pseudoscorpion (Wyochernes asiaticus) was originally described from Ivvavik National Park in Yukon in 1990, but now known to occur in NWT and Alaska as well. Pseudoscorpions (Order Pseudoscorpiones), also known as book scorpions, have the clasping arms and pincers similar to true scorpions (Order Scorpiones) but lack a stinger or any sort of tail and pose to hazard to humans. The Arctic Pseudoscorpion lives under rocks alongside Arctic streams and other waterbodies, and hunts small insects and other invertebrates. If you find yourself travelling the Dempster Highway in Yukon, take a moment beside a stream or river to turn over a few rocks and you may find this tiny but fascinating species.

Photo by Bruce Bennett

02/25/2026

In case you did not access the KBA Canada 2025 Annual Report via another stream! Another impressive year for the project.

NatureServe Canada is proud to continue our work as a member on the KBA Canada Steering Committee and as one of the lead implementing organizations along with Wildlife Conservation Society Canada and Birds Canada.

We’re delighted to share the release of KBA Canada’s 2025 Annual Report! This brief report highlights the incredible milestones and progress achieved by the KBA program throughout 2025. Over the year, we celebrated surpassing 350 KBAs on the website, saw ecosystem KBA work make exciting progress...