The Harrison Lewis Centre has kicked off the Summer 2017 season with the completion of the annual Ornithology field trip! Students from Dalhousie, as well as some awesome TA's, and Sarah Gutowsky as the instructor, arrived last Friday. The class spent the last 6 days using the HLC as a base of operations while working in Sandy Bay Nature Reserve, as well as Thomas Raddall Provincial Park, and Kejimkujik Seaside National park. These areas are perfect for the avid birder, as this area of South Shore Port Joli, is home to a Canadian Wildlife Service migratory water fowl sanctuary, natural ecosystems, an endangered Piping Plover population, and many different bird species. South-west Nova Scotia is one of the best birding destinations in Canada; with the mixed woodlands, coastal salt marshes, & open ocean, there is a great diversity of species year-round. Which is why students come back year after year! We'd like to think that the HLC makes the experience even more enjoyable, providing camping areas, communal living space, and learning resources (as well as the company of a resident Labradoodle named Tank..).
This year's class was an amazing group of truly phenomenal people; the energy throughout the week was constantly upbeat and full of companionship. Nothing brings people together like a passion for Class Aves! (Aka, birds) ...Or maybe it was having to share sleeping spaces, fight off bugs 24 hours a day, and the collective fear of running into a black bear in the middle of the night. Whatever it is that brings people together, it finds opportunity here. The staff at HLC are super grateful that such an awesome experience is made available to students, and that we can help provide it. More so, we're also thankful for the wonderful attitude of the students/instructors and the inclusiveness you showed; to each other as well as the interns here. We wish we had more time to hang out with such a rad group of people!
-Alex