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TZID:America/Toronto
X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/Toronto
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:54@natureguelph.ca
DTSTART:20250213T193000Z
DTEND:20250213T210000Z
DTSTAMP:20240902T171827Z
URL:https://natureguelph.ca/events/mussel-magic-natures-tiny-water-purifie
 rs/
SUMMARY:Mussel Magic: Nature’s Tiny Water Purifiers
DESCRIPTION:Sarah Richer\, Senior Ecologist\, Species at Risk Program\, Roy
 al Botanical Garden\n\n\n–\n\nWho among us poops out cleaner water than 
 they take in? If they had hands\, freshwater mussels would raise them prou
 dly! Even though Canada has 55 native freshwater mussel species (41 of whi
 ch are in Ontario’s lakes and rivers)\, the majority of naturalists can
 ’t identify any. Our freshwater mussels may not move very much in their 
 lives\, but they are a crucial part of aquatic ecosystems – not only as 
 food for other animals\, but each can also filter several dozen litres of 
 water a day! Unfortunately\, over 65% of Ontario’s freshwater mussel spe
 cies are in decline\, and 39% of them are species at risk due to habitat l
 oss\, pollution\, competition from invasive species\, and loss of their ho
 st-fish species. Sarah will chat about what species you might find\, which
  features are useful for identifying them\, the creative way they reproduc
 e\, how surprisingly gorgeous these unassuming but vulnerable ecosystem in
 dicators actually are\, plus how and where to report your sightings.\n\nSa
 rah Richer joined the Royal Botanical Gardens team in January 2016 as the 
 Species at Risk Biologist in the Natural Lands department. Prior to landin
 g at RBG\, the variable nature of the environmental industry allowed her t
 he privilege of working in conservation\, stewardship\, research\, and nat
 ural heritage education for many organizations\, including but not limited
  to Parks Canada\, Ontario Parks\, Canadian Wildlife Service\, Ducks Unlim
 ited Canada\, Wye Marsh\, and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources an
 d Forestry. She has also clocked many volunteer months with wildlife rehab
 ilitators\, captive breeding projects\, bird banding stations\, and wildli
 fe research. She primarily focuses on both common and species at risk bird
 s\, reptiles\, amphibians\, and plants\, with some insects thrown in for g
 ood measure.\n\nPhoto: Tim Menard\, USFWS
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://natureguelph.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/
 08/456561567_919546480200911_553572832340011157_n.jpg
LOCATION:The Arboretum Centre\, University of Guelph\, 200 Arboretum Rd.\, 
 Guelph\, Ontario\, Canada
GEO:43.540854;-80.215182
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=200 Arboretum Rd.\, Guelph\
 , Ontario\, Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X-TITLE=The Arboretum Centre\, Unive
 rsity of Guelph:geo:43.540854,-80.215182
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