View this email in your browser IN THIS EMAIL Understand the community of Fort Chipewyan's complicated relationship with water through a series of photographs and interviews by Sara Hylton Have you heard about North America's largest fungi-related citizen science project? Learn more about FungiQuest below This week's Wildlife Wednesday features Stella, the vagrant sea eagle, the birth of a sperm whale caught on camera and more! Interested in travelling with Canadian Geographic? Join Explorer-in-Residence Jill Heinerth on an incredible trip in Peru Lifeblood: Fort Chipewyan's relationship to water Through photographs and interviews, Canadian photographer Sara Hylton explores how human-caused impacts are damaging Fort Chipewyan, a small community in northern Alberta Interviews and photography by Sara Hylton A rainbow appears over Lake Athabasca in Fort Chipewyan, a small community in northern Alberta. Fort Chipewyan is a community born of the water. On the northwest shore of Lake Athabasca in Alberta's far north, people have long subsisted off the lake and its tributaries by fishing, hunting, trapping and gathering medicine. But for decades, the tiny community — including the Mikisew Cree First Nation, Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, Fort Chipewyan Métis and settlers — have found themselves at the forefront of the climate crisis. They've watched as warmer winters have eaten away at their ice road, the only road into the community; as increasingly frequent and intense wildfires have engulfed their town in smoke — this year, the town was evacuated for three weeks; as their water has receded and the health of their people and wildlife has declined. The ravages are human caused: climate change, the damming of parts of the watershed and, perhaps most damaging of all, Fort Chip's location downstream from the Alberta oilsands.  Keep reading FungiQuest: North America's largest fungi-related citizen science project Robert Courteau, the former chef behind FungiQuest, discusses his passion for mushrooms and the goal to map every species of fungi on the planet By Abi Hayward with illustrations by Kelsey Oseid Turkey tail mushrooms are one of the most commonly found species of mushrooms in North America, frequently spotted on dead hardwood logs. (Photo: Nick Shearman/Can Geo Photo Club) "I mean, mushrooms are everywhere," Robert Courteau tells me with an easy smile and a small shrug. There's a toadstool in his Zoom background, a mushroom on his T-shirt. "When I'm walking through [Ottawa's] Central Park, I see mushrooms — I see them everywhere. I'm that weird guy who's just standing on someone's front lawn photographing mushrooms." Courteau is the 35-year-old former chef behind FungiQuest, the largest fungi bioblitz in North America's history. Between September and October 2022, some 34,538 people took to the woods, parks, and their own backyards, on a quest to document as many mushrooms, slime moulds and lichen as possible. To do this, Courteau, through his organization Think Fungi, partnered with BioSMART, an Australian tech company aiming to map every species on the planet. BioSMART had expected about 50,000 observations, but "we basically broke the internet," laughs Courteau. Observations poured in from across the continent, topping out at 148,214 sightings and 4,393 species. A handful of these are marked on this map. Keep reading We want to hear from YOU! We value your feedback at Canadian Geographic and want to know what you think of our content. Let us know which stories resonated with you by sending us a note at editor@canadiangeographic.ca Wildlife Wednesday: the vagrant sea eagle boosting North America's economy Plus: Canadian scientist witnesses sperm whale birth, wildlife get that shrinking feeling, migratory birds fly ever higher, and teeth tell time (sort of) By Thomas Lundy, Sarah Brown and Madigan Cotterill A long-roaming Steller's sea eagle is boosting North America's tourism economy. (Photo: © Copyright David Dixon [CC BY-SA 2.0]) Just how big an impact can one bird make? In summer 2020, a bird with a two metre wingspan made landfall on the North American continent for the first time. Its golden-orange beak and distinctive flashes of white on its shoulder and tail feathers identified it as a Steller's sea eagle, native to the  Russian Far East down and coastal Japan. It was soon photographed in Matanuska-Susitna County, Alaska, and shared among the online birder community. Already so far from home, "Stella" didn't stop there. The following spring it was sighted more than 5,000 kilometres away in Victoria, Texas. Next up were stops in the Gaspe Peninsula, Que., and New Brunswick in summer 2021, followed by Nova Scotia in the fall and a winter spent in Massachusetts and Maine. Stella has been bouncing around Atlantic Canada and Northeastern United States ever since.  Keep reading TRAVEL WITH CANADIAN GEOGRAPHIC  Featured trip: Essential Peru Unveil the mysteries of the bygone Incan empire on this odyssey through the jungle wilds, lakes, colonial cities, floating villages and lost mountaintop city of Machu Picchu. This special departure of the incredibly popular Essential Peru adventure is led by writer, photographer, and filmmaker Jill Heinerth. A spectacular journey through Peru's varied landscape encompassing coastal desert, snow-capped Andean peaks, the high altiplano, and lush cloud forest. The most famous sites are all visited including the mysterious Nazca Lines, awe-inspiring Machu Picchu in its incredible mountaintop setting, Lake Titicaca, where the night is spent in an island homestay, and the remarkable 3000m deep Colca Canyon. On the way, we encounter traditional culture, condors, llamas, and a warm welcome from the Peruvian people. Meet your ambassador: Jill Heinerth Learn more Get inspired! Why a hiking trip is the best way to experience Peru's Sacred Valley To fully immerse yourself in the world of the Incas, you have to get high — in the hills, that is  By Marina Jimenez   Check out more upcoming trip opportunities:   - Saskatchewan Whooping Cranes with Carol Patterson - Egypt Nile Cruise with Joseph Frey - Grizzly Bears of Toba Inlet with Aliya Jasmine  Sent this email by a friend? Subscribe to our newsletters and stay up to date with everything happening at Canadian Geographic!  Subscribe CANADIAN GEOGRAPHIC THANKS OUR ADVERTISERS. BECOME ONE Copyright © 2023 Canadian Geographic, All rights reserved. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from all communication.