Restoring Riparian Refuges: Part 1 – Building Resilience to Climate Change By David Fields Climate change is a present and growing threat to our ecosystems and coldwater streams across Canada. The impacts of climate change can include reduced snowpack, which will...

Surviving Winter By Heidi Poca Winter is now upon us in Canada, meaning colder weather, snow and ice; but what does this mean for our fish and other aquatic species? Fish are confined to the frigid waters of rivers and lakes, yet they survive year after year! This...

Following The Path of Least Resistance By: Sara Jose – SWAT Crew Member A drainage basin is an area of land where water from precipitation drains into a waterbody, like a river or lake. Drainage basins include the land the water drains off of, and the streams the...

Record Lake Trout Rescued By Richard Burke, TUC Oldman Chapter A record Lake Trout was among the fish rescued from the St. Mary River canal. TUC's Oldman Chapter members and volunteers were among 26 persons on the second day of two field days this week saving...

UnSmoke Canada By: Sara Jose SWAT Crew Member According to the World Wildlife Fund, cigarette butts are the most littered object in Canada. Despite popular belief, cigarette butts are not biodegradable, and are primarily made of plastic (Cellulose Acetate). Cigarette...

Tools of the Trade By: Heidi Poca As stream restoration technicians, we use a variety of tools and equipment to get the job done. From building habitat structures to sediment mats, to wing deflectors, here is a list of our top 10 tools of the trade. 10. Pry Bar...

By: Heidi Poca There are many aspects of the natural world that are static and stay in one place – trees, mountains, and lakes just to name a few. Streams and rivers, however, like to travel. This article will cover the four types of river channel forms, as well as...

Sediment transport is the movement of inorganic and organic material by water. Within a system, there are 3 sediment load types, each occupying a different part of the water column. The 3 load types are suspended load, dissolved load, and bed load. Suspended loads are...

Learning More About Arctic Grayling By Ken Monk Northern Lights Fly Fishers Chapter In early August, a team consisting of volunteers from Trout Unlimited Canada and the Northern Lights Fly Fishers Chapter joined forces with volunteer biologists and researchers from...

Clean Drain Dry Courtesy Alberta Native Trout Aquatic invasive species (AIS) are one of the biggest threats to Alberta’s waterbodies and native aquatic species. AIS can cause huge damage to our ecosystems; including reduced biodiversity and habitat quality, large...

Erosion is defined as the natural breakdown and movement of soil and rock by water, wind, or ice. Human activity can speed up erosion, especially if vegetation on the banks and surrounding areas of streams is removed. When this happens, large amounts of sediment...

Curious about what TUC, along with our chapters, has been up to over the past few months? Check out our latest Conservation and Education Update Report.

Trout Unlimited Canada reports on our conservation and education programming on both a quarterly and annual basis so you can see just what TUC and our Chapters have been working on. It has been a while since we last posted our quarterly reports.  As you can see by the...

The Nit and Grit of Sediment and Streams By Elliot Lindsay-Project Biologist Sediment (soils, rocks, and other particles moving from the land into streams) is the focus of much discussion in the freshwater conservation world. How much is too much? When is sediment...

Family Fun Day and Duck Dash 2022 By Sara Jose, Strategic Watershed Action Team Crew Member After a two-year absence, the Duck Dash and Family Fun Day returned to Courtcliffe Park on Saturday, June 25th. Trout Unlimited Canada’s (TUC) Strategic Watershed Action Team...

So what exactly is a vernal pool? The term 'vernal' actually means relating to spring. Vernal pools refer to a unique wetland habitat that fills each spring with rain and snowmelt. These pools are typically shallow and dry up in the summer, but amphibians such as...

The Battle Against Buckthorn By Heidi Poca, Strategic Watershed Action Team Crew Member May 23, 2022, Background: I have just been informed that my crew (SWAT) and I will be deployed tomorrow to the Wawanosh Valley Conservation Education Center in Blyth Ontario, where...

As a student, TUC's Junior Fish Biologist, Angela Ten never really got the hype about fish. Fishing was never her thing, and it's not like there's anything other than big fish worth studying in Canada, right? However, a chance internship in fisheries opened her eyes...

Meet the Ontario Strategic Watershed Action Team, or SWAT as we call them! This summer, you will find them across southern Ontario working towards improving water quality with our eight Ontario chapters and other like-minded organizations. Stream rehabilitation...

Meet a fish that can sting. Here is an interesting fish fact. The Stonecat is a small Catfish or “madtom” that is one of the only three venomous fish species in Canada. Make sure not to get stung by this guy's spine right behind the pectoral fin, or else it will feel...

The Trout Unlimited Canada virtual-only Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 17, 2022, via Zoom at 4:00 P.M. MDT. Members in good standing will be provided with the Zoom login information on the evening of May 15, 2022. Members of TUC as of May 16,...

Listen to its Song— the Sheep River By Lorne Fitch, P. Biol. In the beginning, there was ice and the earth had no visible form. With snowfall, the glacier grew and gravity bore the ice mass downslope. This was not pristine ice suitable for a highball. Instead, it was...

Citizen Science Reveals Unexpected Findings! By Ken Monk-President Northern Lights Fly Fishers Chapter Volunteers from Trout Unlimited Canada – Northern Lights Fly Fishers Chapter conducted a “citizen science” project to study walleye in Jackfish Lake, Alberta. The...

You’re In Native Trout / Arctic Grayling Country! By Lesley  Peterson-Alberta Provincial Biologist If you’ve driven around British Columbia you are likely familiar with the iconic stream crossing signs with yellow fish graphic signs identifying salmon habitat. This...