8 recommendations for Wilderness users

E: Educate yourself

R: Recognize

A: Analyze

U: Understand

O: Observe

The ERAUO is a principle that is at the root of my values and my love for Nature. I fundamentally believe that in order to observe the wilderness in synchronicity, one must first understand it. I am often asked, "Eric, do you have any tricks for finding animals? "There is no magic secret to finding and observing Nature. You must first understand it and be open to it. To do this, I have created the principle of the "ERAUO" which is my recipe for observing Wild Nature without harming its sustainability. 

The first step is to educate yourself. Before even thinking about finding a moose in the wilderness, it is important to understand its annual rhythm, its different behaviors and its natural habitat style for example. It's a bit like trying to build a house without even knowing what wood or a hammer is. Step by step, we must educate ourselves on the different ecosystems of our regions and the influence of the seasons on them and their inhabitants. There are many ways to educate yourself nowadays. Some choose the school, others the books, the reports, the videos, the magazines, the naturalists, in short there is no better way than another one as long as our step is serious and conscientious.

Then, we have to observe directly on the field. See these different ecosystems with our own eyes. We must see the beautiful and the less beautiful. Then we must analyze and understand what we see, what we feel and what we feel. Nature is complex and fragile and in order to have the privilege of observing it without negative impact, we must be 100% aware of the environment in which we find ourselves in order to adapt our behaviors and our interaction with the fauna and flora that are there.

By having in mind this basic knowledge on the functioning of the ecosystem and its inhabitants, we can now be able to observe in symbiosis with the Wild Nature.

2- Do not be noisy

Have you ever heard silence? I am not talking about not hearing anything at all. I am talking about a specific moment without any human sound. No factory, no motor vehicle, no bell, no human voice, no music, etc. Dig into your memories and try to find a silent moment that lasted more than 30 minutes. Wildlife is sensitive to noise that disturbs their silence. A silence that we cannot understand since we humans and our creations are the greatest source of noise pollution the planet Earth has ever known. Nature adapts as it can, but the more it adapts, the more fragile it becomes. There are very few wild places left in the world. The minimum of respect that we should have towards these preserved places that were once predominant on our planet is to abide by their rules. One of these rules is to minimize the noise we can make during our escapades in Nature, especially in the presence of wild animals. Over the years, I have seen some unbelievable behavior from people who claim to be nature lovers. Many have also been reported to me by video or photo, here are a few examples:

- Whistling to get the attention of a moose's eyes.

- Imitating the sound of a crow to disturb a Great Horned Owl so that it opens its eyes.

- A meeting of 5 photographers at the foot of a tree discussing everything and anything. In this tree, a night owl was trying to rest.

Our species has decided to rely on a way of life that destroys ecosystems, that disrupts the climate and increasingly "objectifies" and commercializes wild animal species. The least we can do is to enter Nature by respecting its rules. When you step into the wilderness, think of silence... the real silence... the natural silence that is so essential to wildlife.

3- Do not feed/lure wild animals

Feeding a wild animal distorts the normal/wild behavior of that animal, increasing its dependence on passive food procurement and resulting in a decrease in its ability to find food in the wild. These wild animals, which were functioning very well before the human impact of feeding, become dependent on human action which is dangerous for them (e.g. more animals near houses and roads which increases the number of collisions) and dangerous for us (e.g. every year or so, black bears in Forillon Park are relocated as they are fed by campers and gain proximity, which could compromise the safety of people). Each time, it is unfortunately Nature that pays for our mistakes and our lack of judgment.

Added to this problem are issues related to the lack of integrity in photography.
Some photographers are willing to go to the pet store to buy house mice before going to their trap site. Their goal? To feed birds of prey such as owls in order to get pictures in full artificial predation.

Here are a few examples that have already been reported to me:

- Putting a mouse in a transparent "Masson jar" to attract a Snowy Owl. The Snowy Owl could not pierce the glass with its claws and stayed there for a long time trying to feed.

- In teams of two, one had a fishing rod with a mouse at the end of the line. When the bird approached, the photographer would take the pictures while the other would rewind the rod just enough for the bird to miss its prey.

Although this is less common than it used to be, it is a barbaric practice that still exists today around the world and right here in Quebec. The disadvantages of feeding wild animals still outweigh the advantages. Therefore, a non-interventionist approach to wildlife should be prioritized. If you appreciate and love wildlife, don't feed them and let them live according to their instinctive and natural habits.

4- Be discreet about your location

For the well-being of nature, it is important to avoid sharing a specific location where you have observed wildlife. It is the animals and the flora that suffer from too much use of the same place by humans. With the current pandemic and the rampant growth of social networking, there are sites and nature parks that are crowded with hikers, birders, photographers and simply curious people. You can see photos posted and imagine that the atmosphere was peaceful, soft and quiet, but in reality there were 30 other people taking photos or lining up to take a certain "snapshot" photo. This kind of gathering of people in the same place at the same time is caused, among other things, by the lack of discretion on the location of the observations. These sad events occur in the presence of scenic clichés (such as the 3 Joffre Lakes in Western Canada) or in the presence of wildlife (such as the Tengmalm's Owl in the Greater Montreal area). Unfortunately these places are becoming a location where people no longer come to experience the Wilderness, but rather "check off" an item on their "To-Do List". The question and reflection that each of us should ask ourselves is: "Why? Why am I here? Is it the call of nature or this unhealthy race for likes? The frenzy of social networks ... " I'll be back with another article on this topic, but until then, I highly recommend the digital story "Denaturing #nature on Instagram" by Justine de l'Église.

5- Follow the "Leave no trace" guidelines.

For those who are less familiar with "Leave no trace", these are simple and effective ethical principles to be implemented during nature outings in order to respect the environment.

The key to a successful nature excursion is good planning and preparation. Who will you be going with? What equipment is required for the planned outing according to the weather conditions? Are you aware of the warnings in effect for the areas you plan to explore (for example, does the Chic-Chocs mountain where you plan to snowshoe have an active avalanche risk?) If you must sleep in the wilderness on your expedition, make sure you find a durable natural surface and do not alter the environment in order to get there. Another principle is to take nothing, modify nothing and leave nothing behind when you go out in the wilderness. The less impact our expedition has on the environment, the better.

Now let's talk about fires...this is a hot topic that is particularly close to my heart following the summer of 2020 when my little corner of the country that is the Gaspé Peninsula was visited abundantly by many caring tourists, but also a few less sensitive to the modification of the environment when lighting fires in the Wilderness. Campfires, especially those on the banks of the river where regulations allow, must be done responsibly: we must avoid making huge bonfires, make sure ur fire is safe and above all, clean up after our fire by scattering the ashes, again as if it had never happened. In the forest, given the abundance of vegetation, we must absolutely make sure that our fire does not risk damaging the flora and disturbing the environment of the wildlife.

Finally, our adventures in Nature must be done with respect for other Nature lovers you may encounter and for all the wildlife that resides in the places you visit. In short, "Leave no trace" simply means that the best outing is definitely the one that has no impact on Nature, as if you had never been there, but from which you can keep a feeling, an image or a learning of a breathtaking experience that will remain in your memory forever.

6- Respect the environment of wild life

Humans are already intrusive enough as it is without disturbing the wild and natural environment of this wildlife. I approach this point from a more photographic point of view since there is an appalling lack of respect for wildlife.

Here are a few examples that I have seen and that have been reported to me:

- Climbing a tree to get close to a bird to get a picture

- Breaking branches to remove a source of distraction and obstruction in a photo

- Bumping into a tree where an owl is resting to wake it up

- Throwing snowballs to attract the attention of an owl

- Honk your horn to wake up an owl

Nature is the most beautiful in all its facets. We must observe and love it as it is. And not by altering its behavior or its environment to our liking.

7- Be a witness rather than an actor

Nature and its living beings do not need us to prosper and grow. On the contrary, it is because of us that the world's bird population has decreased by more than 60% since the 1960s. It is because of us that the effects of climate change are more and more visible (as I write this, it is February 7th there is no ice pack on the north side of the Gaspé Peninsula). Because of our excessive role as "actors" in the wilderness, the planetary ecosystem is changing. It must change. We must adapt and take Nature into account. We must put ourselves in the position of "witness" and act according to the rules of this same Nature that feeds us and gives us the air we need to breathe. We must stop adapting Nature to our creations and adapt our creations to Nature itself.

On a smaller scale, we can act as a witness to these magical moments of observation with wildlife by stopping, slowing our heart rate, thinking and adapting our state of mind. This is how we get to feel true Nature.

8- Loving Nature 
 
A little more than 4 years ago, I started to educate myself about Nature for the first time. I remember reading in a book that "entering Nature is like entering a cathedral. It's tiptoeing and respecting. "It's a philosophy that has shaped me for the rest of my life. Nature is the greatest place of worship of all the places of worship in the world. It is the one that unites us all and gives us life.

In short, we must love the wilderness as it is. More than ever Nature is on life support and it is up to us to collectively get involved in small concrete actions to limit our impact on Nature's use. Whether it is by limiting our noise, picking up all our garbage, becoming aware of the flora that surrounds us or limiting our role to that of "witness", Nature will come out happy.

Let's love her...

Let's love her from the bottom of our hearts

and

adapt to her.

Sources: https://www.natureenvue.com/post/8recommandations