Lethbridge College unveils new Wildlife Analytics Lab, first of its kind in Canada

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. -

Lethbridge College’s newest lab addition is putting the focus on animal teeth. 

Those at the Centre for Technology, Environment and Design (CTED) say the Wildlife Analytics Lab (WAL) fills a need provincially and nationally.

"The wildlife analytics lab is the first of its kind in Canada and is starting off focusing on cementum analysis, which is tactical jargon for looking inside teeth, to determine the age of animals," said Dr. Everett Hanna, an environmental sciences instructor at the college.

The lab analyzes animal cementum, the hard tissue covering the roots in teeth, through a series of tests and processes.

This data, once retrieved, can not only help determine an animal’s age but also its migratory patterns and assist with disease management.

"Thousands of teeth are collected annually across Canada and typically sent to the United States for analysis because there was no previous service provider in Canada," said Hanna.

This data, once retrieved, can not only help determine an animal’s age but also its migratory patterns and assist with disease management.

"We're now offering an opportunity for Canadian researchers and agencies, and others around the world, to send teeth to us for our lab to process those samples that otherwise would've had to go to the United States for example."

The teeth come from a variety of mammals, including deer, coyotes, wolves and even bears.          

The lab comes thanks to $145,000 in funding and gifts from the Alberta Professional Outfitters Society (APOS) who say there's a huge demand for this type of reliable research.                                                                                                         

"We had some resources available and we thought this was a great project for Alberta," said APOS’s President, Corey Jarvis.

"It's a great opportunity to incorporate education as well as meeting the scientific needs of Alberta and wildlife management in particular."

The lab is already receiving contracts from agencies and researchers to help improve conservation efforts across Canada.                                                                                       

"We’re getting interest from people from Nunavut to British Columbia to Alberta and all the way out to Newfoundland where people are collecting these teeth from all mammals that are out there that we have an interest in managing that have cementum for us to do aging for them," Hanna told CTV News.

On top of being a self-sustaining, fee-for-service lab, students will also be able to use it as part of their studies and training.