Resources

Resources

Webkit showcases a wealth of wetland tools and explains how each one can help conserve wetlands. It provides answers to the most common questions about wetlands, such as Why are wetlands important? How can my activities affect wetlands? How can wetland conservation benefit my business? Where can I get help? Wetkit's search engines also help users access tools by environmental issue, geographic region, sector or activity, or tool format. The site lists where to get a CD-ROM that takes students on a virtual field trip through a bog, instructions for building a pond in your backyard, a method for identifying wetland sites for restoration, a handbook for foresters on how to mitigate wetland impacts, and a guide for citizens on how to legally protect a wetland. Sponsored by Environment Canada, North American Wetlands Conservation Council and Ducks Unlimited Canada, you can access the site by going to www.wetkit.net.

The Atlantic Coastal Zone Information Steering Committee in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, has compiled an Inventory of Atlantic Coastal Mapping Projects that identifies mapping projects relevant to the Integrated Coastal Management and sustainable development of Atlantic Canada. Each listing includes a description of the mapping project, its geographic coverage, scale, themes and parameters mapped and a contact person. Feedback from users and suggestions regarding coastal mapping projects that should be included in the inventory would be appreciated. The inventory is available at http://aczisc.dal.ca/czmproj.htm.

Marine Ecosystems and Climate Variation The North Atlantic. A Comparative Perspective, edited by Nils C. Stenseth and Geir Ottersen (Oxford University Press, 2004) explores a wide range of ecological patterns in the North Atlantic driven by climate and involving phytoplankton, zooplankton, benthos, seabirds and fish. The book focuses on the influence of climate variability on the marine ecosystems of the North Atlantic. Forty scientists from around the world synthesise what is currently known about how climate affects the ecological systems of the North Atlantic and then place these insights within a broader ecological perspective. A sample of the book is available at www.oup.co.uk/pdf/0-19-850748-8.pdf .

Wondering why your lake is green? Curious about the foam floating on the surface of stream pools? Want to identify that strange fuzzy blob in the water? What happens to lakes and rivers in the winter? The Field Guide to Aquatic Phenomena will help readers identify some common freshwater phenomena, and distinguish pollution from something natural. A project of the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Environmental & Watershed Research and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. A print version of the field guide is available for download as a pdf at www.umaine.edu/waterresearch/FieldGuide/default.htm.

Wild New England is an interactive Web magazine sponsored by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department in partnership with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Aimed at students in grades six through eight, each issue of Wild New England explores a different wildlife topic, such as migration or carrying capacity, by focusing on animals found in the region - from bears to brook trout, moose to mosquitoes. Check it out at www.wildnewengland.org .