Green Alder – Alnus Crispa

General – A tall and spreading shrub, 3 – 8 m tall; bark thin, dull, reddish to greyish brown, smooth or slightly grooved; twigs slender, yellowish green to reddish brown, coated with very short grey hairs; buds slender, stalked, covered with grey hairs. Green AlderLeaves – Opposite, simple, 6 – 8 cm wide, 3-lobed, end … Read more

Brown Bear – “Grizzly”

Distinguishing Features – The brown bear (sometimes called a grizzly in North America) is a large animal, usually dark brown in color, though it can vary from a light creamy shade through to black. The long guard hairs over the shoulders and back are often tipped with white which, from a distance, gives a grizzled … Read more

Ermine – Mustela Erminea

Distinguishing Features – Overall colouration – in summer, brown upperparts; creamy legs, sides and chest. Tail, long, tipped in black. In winter, colouration is pure white except for black-tipped tail. Ermine Size Male: 25.4 – 33 cm (10 – 13 in) Female: 21.5 – 26 cm (8.5 – 10.25 in) Habitat Wide range throughout Northwestern … Read more

Reindeer Lichens – Cladina

Cladina mitis Green Reindeer Lichen or Yellow Reindeer Lichen General – shrub lichen, upright, 4 – 7 cm (sometimes to 10 cm) tall, pale yellowish green, intricately branching from a main stem, not copiously fork-branching from the base; branches hollow, with dull, appressed-cottony surface; end branchlets tending to point in one direction. Habitat Forms mats … Read more

Tundra Wolf – Canis Lupus Albus

Although they are called by different names in Canada, Alaska, Scandinavia and Russia, most northern wolves are considered to be a single species of Gray wolf Canis lupus. The gray wolf is the largest living member of the family Canidae. Largest individuals tend to occur in the northern forests of North America, with weights of … Read more

Sweden – Forests and Forestry

Sweden extends from the southern Baltic Sea to north of the Arctic Circle. The country has an area of 450,000 km (174,000 sq. mi.) and is 1,600 km long, equal to the distance from the southern tip of Sweden to southern Italy.                            … Read more

Red Squirrel – Tamiasciurus Hudsonicus

Distinguishing Features – Overall colouration, olivy-brown back and sides with blackish flecks; underside, greyish. Large, bushy tail, tawny coloured with blackish and buff highlights; eye, ringed in white, ears, tufted in red or black. Red Squirrel Size 28 – 34 cm (11 – 13.4 in) Habitat Widespread throughout Northwestern Ontario in various wooded environments; prefers … Read more

Norway – Forests and Forestry

Forests and other wooded land cover approximately 37 per cent, or 119,000 km2, of the Norwegian mainland. Of this, almost 23 per cent, or approximately 72,000 km2 is regarded as productive forest. The productive forest is distributed between 125,000 forest properties. About 79 per cent of the productive forest area is owned by private individuals. Norwegian … Read more