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Blog Post 1: Observations
Initial Observations of the Study Area by Randy Nguyen
November 2, 2017
The area of study that I have chosen to investigate is Stanley Park in Vancouver, B.C.
Address: Vancouver, BC V6G 1Z4
Area: 4.049 km²
Coordinates: 49.3017° N, 123.1417° W
Weather: Clear Skies, 130C
Time and Date Visit Site: 1:25pm on November 2, 2017
Description of the study area:
This large public park borders the downtown of Vancouver in B.C and is entirely surrounded by waters of Vancouver Harbour and English Bay. It also a very historical park which dates back during the 1858 Fraser Canyon Gold Rush and after years of colonization by the British, the land was later turned into Vancouver’s first park in 1886. The name “Stanley Park”, came from the 16th Earl of Derby, a British Politician who later became a governor general.
In present time, the park draws thousands of resident and visitors everyday and to take part in recreational activities in the area. To name a few popular attractions in Stanley, people take part in biking and walking along Vancouver seawall, forest trails, and go visit the Vancouver Aquarium.
Wild Life in Stanley Park
Stanley Park has a diverse habitat ranging from coniferous forests to boggy wetlands to sandy beaches and to rocky shores. At least 500 species are known to live in the park and to name a few: Bald eagles, bats, beavers, squirrels, coyotes, harbour seals and racoons. For plants, we have a few invasive species such as Himalayan blackberry (Rubus discolor) and English holly (Ilex aquifolium). For native trees, we have conifers such as the western hemlock and western red cedar, and Douglas fir.
Deciduous
- Bigleaf maple (natural regeneration)
- Black cottonwood (natural regeneration)
- Wild and choke cherry (natural regeneration)
- Red alder (natural regen and planted)
Rare
- Pacific yew
- Cascara
- Pacific dogwood
- Arbutus (planted)
In recent news, the Vancouver park board is taking first steps to examine whether it would be feasible to one day reconnect Lost Lagoon with Coal Harbour to recreate a salt marsh.
With ideas from the media and my observations of the park, I can devise 3 questions to narrow down my topic for the field research project:
- Because humans are using the park recreationally, are there any possible risks to the conservations areas and the species living there?
- How bad has the invasive species (i.e. Himalayan Blackberry) have put other native species of plants at risk?
- If the Vancouver park board decides for some reason to turn the Lost Lagoon to a salt marsh, what potential impact can that cause on the current wild life habiting the Lost Lagoon?
