A coyote  crosses in front of a  wildlife camera, while at right, a parade  of moose  makes its way along  a fence line. All photos courtesy Prince George Airport Authority

Prince George, B.C.-  Prince George Airport  is smack dab in the middle of some prime  wildlife habitat.

That can be a concern for flights arriving, or leaving, but the Airport has been keeping tabs on the kind of wildlife that would like to access the Airport grounds.

UNBC Natural Resource Management student, Matt Scheideman, has been taking notes on the wildlife around the airport for the past couple of years.  With the help of some special “camera traps” he has captured images of the types of furry and feathered creatures on the Airport property and those that would like to get on to the property.

“Wildlife cameras are beneficial at capturing images of animals that are nocturnal so they might not have been observed by wildlife staff on a daily basis” says Scheideman.

The cameras have captured images of rabbits, moose, coyotes, bears and even an owl, (in photo at right) but Scheideman says there was only one animal he was surprised to see “In one instance we caught an image of a lynx, which is not commonly found in residential areas,   but within that same week, locals in the area were calling in sightings of lynx.  Airport personnel also observed the lynx on the same day the image was captured on the wildlife cameras.”

About two and a half years ago, the Prince George Airport invested money to help restrict animal movement  on the airport lands.  “The Airport is doing a great job at  keeping the moose and  deer off the airport lands.  We still have some animals, like rabbits and coyotes, that can come on to the property through breaks in the fencing, but they are not a big concern for aircraft.”