The following three individuals and organizations (listed in alphabetical order) have been awarded one of the Nature Manitoba Native Habitat Grants for 2024:
Debbie Kilfoyle
The grant will contribute to a multi-year project by landowner Debbie Kilfoyle to establish native prairie permanent cover on approximately 70 acres near Riding Mountain National Park in the RM of Harrison Park. This restoration project is also supported by an agreement with the Assiniboine West Watershed District.
The project will:
• return the land (which has been cultivated) to permanent native cover;
• enhance wildlife habitat for invertebrates, grassland birds, amphibians and mammals;
• improve soil quality and water retention; and
• reduce habitat fragmentation and increase wildlife habitat connectivity to other natural areas, including Riding Mountain National Park.
Manitoba Museum
The grant will support the publication of the new Manitoba Flora, to replace the highly out-of-date Flora of Manitoba by Homer J. Scoggan (published in 1957). The project leader is Dr. Diana Bizecki Robson, Curator of Botany at the Museum.
A riparian forest with an understory of ostrich ferns, photo by Marilyn Latta
The Rose Pogonia, a monocot in the Orchid Family, was first reported by Peter Taylor in 1982, photo by Marilyn Latta.
The new Manitoba Flora will be:
• taxonomically up-to-date, adding several hundred vascular plant species that have been discovered in the province since 1957;
• user-friendly for beginning botanists with images, a glossary and an illustrated overview of plant parts;
• used to educate people about the botanical diversity of Manitoba, providing them with a useful tool for identifying plant species; and
• published in two volumes (available as both hard copies and ebooks) - the first one covering spore-producing plants, conifers and monocots, and the second covering the dicots.
Tracy Peters
The grant will contribute to a video project and installation for the Living Prairie Museum being created by Winnipeg artist Tracy Peters, in collaboration with Swedish artist Ebba Bohlin, entitled Regeneration. This exhibit will demonstrate the process, and importance, of managed fires in the prairie ecosystem.
Managed burns are an integral part of tall grass prairie management, photo by Marilyn Latta
Regeneration will consist of a video loop shown on a tablet installed in the Living Prairie Museum with accompanying audio, as well as a written component on display.
This project will:
• be an educational tool for visitors of all ages to show the necessary practise of using fire to manage native prairie, something that is rarely experienced by the general public;
• create an immersive experience for visitors as they watch and listen; and
• be a permanent addition to the interpretive exhibits at the Living Prairie Museum that show the value of native habitats and the work it takes to support them.