Day 3: Summer student journals learning experience in the field

This is part three of a six-part series in which Lauren MacDonald documents her internship experience as an environment summer student with the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DTI). Here are MacDonald’s notes, in her own words.  

Notes from the field day 3: biodiversity inventory 

Today, I spent the day assisting with a bio-inventory survey with Island Nature Trust at the Jenkins Complex. A bio-inventory survey records the significant flora and fauna in a particular site or property. The survey tells us about the abundance of species and biodiversity at a site. 

The Jenkins Complex Natural Area, one of the first beaver reintroduction sites in 1913, is an 840-acre parcel in Mount Albion, PEI. It is one of the largest designated natural areas in the province and houses various woodland species, wetland complexes, and agricultural areas. The Jenkins Complex is a unique area that boosts biodiversity and is home to uncommon plant species, including royal fern, showy lady’s slipper, and white bog orchid. 

Island Nature Trust and Ducks Unlimited Canada currently maintain the area. I partnered with a team member from Island Nature Trust as we bushwhacked through a section of the complex deep into a wetland area. I learned tons about unique flora identification, including Ghost Pipe, a unique species that, unlike most other plants, does not produce chlorophyll, the green pigment used from photosynthesis. 

What I enjoyed most about this process is learning about the history of the Jenkins Complex and getting to explore the beauty of the area.

Later this week, I am going out with Rosie MacFarlane, a provincial freshwater biologist, to install water temperature loggers. Check back in to learn more about what I am up to next!

Cheers, 

Lauren

Lauren MacDonald is from Stratford and studied at the University of Prince Edward Island in the Bachelor of Science in Applied Climate Change and Adaptation program. She’s currently a master’s student at Dalhousie University studying resource and environmental management.   

Read more about MacDonald’s experiences this summer:

New series: summer student journals learning experience while in the field

Day 2: Summer student journals learning experience in the field