An Inventory and Assessment of Habitat
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An Inventory and Assessment of Habitat Available for Species at Risk Reptiles and Amphibians in Ferris Provincial Park PREPARED BY: LAUREN SCHMUCK, WETLAND AND SPECIES AT RISK CONSERVATION ASSISTANT SUPERVISORS: BOB JOHNSON, CURATOR OF REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS JULIA PHILLIPS, ADOPT A POND COORDINATOR TORONTO ZOO, ADOPT A POND WETLAND CONSERVATION PROGRAMME 361A OLD FINCH AVENUE, TORONTO, ONTARIO M1B 5K7 OCTOBER 2015 Contents Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 2 The Western Chorus Frog (Pseudacris triseriata) ......................................................................................... 2 Species in Ferris Provincial Park .................................................................................................................... 3 Survey Method .............................................................................................................................................. 3 Technical Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 4 Wetland Vegetation Community 1: HWS (Hardwood Swamp) ............................................................ 4 Wetland Vegetation Community 2: NEM1 (Narrow Emergent Marsh with Willow) ............................ 5 Wetland Vegetation Community 3: NEM2 (Narrow Emergent Marsh with Dogwood) ....................... 6 Wetland Vegetation Community 4: REM (Robust Emergent Marsh) ................................................... 7 Wetland Vegetation Community 5: EP-CF (Ephemeral Pool Chorus Frog Breeding Area) ................... 7 Wetland Vegetation Community 6: WG-CF (Wet Grass Chorus Frog Breeding Area) .......................... 7 Wetland Vegetation: EP2 (Ephemeral Pools) ........................................................................................... 8 Existing Habitat Features .............................................................................................................................. 8 Potential Habitat Improvement Opportunities ............................................................................................ 9 Protection of Wetlands Using Species-Specific Buffers .............................................................................. 11 Table 1: Selected Critical Function Zone Data for Wetlands Species* ............................................... 12 Table 2: Examples of Recommended Protection Zones or Buffers to Wetlands* .............................. 13 Protection of Wetlands through Stewardship and Education .................................................................... 13 Acknowledgements The Toronto Zoo’s Adopt-A-Pond Wetland Conservation Programme would like to thank Ontario Parks staff (in particular, the Southeast Zone Ecologist, Corina Brdar, and the Superintendent of Ferris Provincial Park, Rob Cunningham) and the Friends of Ferris Provincial Park (in particular, Al Graham and Anne Kidd) who offered invaluable advice, assistance and expertise to help coordinate the project and contribute to this report. This report was made possible by generous grant funding provided through Environment Canada’s Habitat Stewardship Program for Species at Risk, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry’s Species at Risk Stewardship Fund, and the Toronto Zoo’s Endangered Species Fund. Introduction Wetlands are the heart of any ecosystem. They provide much needed water to not only the life in the wetland itself, but also the vast number of creatures that use intersecting tributaries and corridors. Often considered pools of biodiversity, wetlands provide a calm and protective home to an abundance of plant and animal life throughout different levels of the food web. They provide many species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish with a safe place to reproduce and a bountiful food source for their young. Wetlands also filter and hold water, preventing erosion and waterway siltation and flooding, while improving the quality of water we use for drinking, fishing and recreation. Ferris Provincial Park is a 200 hectare park located in Campbellford, Ontario, Canada. This park provides critical wetland habitat for several Species at Risk (SAR), specifically amphibians that rely on ephemeral habitats for survival. This wetland assessment primarily focused on wetlands suitable for SAR Western Chorus frogs (Pseudacris triseriata) within Ferris Provincial Park’s boundary. This report provides an inventory of these wetlands and details areas where this species is currently breeding. The location of each wetland vegetation community and breeding sites are visually depicted in Appendix 1 of this report. This report also identifies areas where opportunities exist for habitat enhancement or restoration, and provides recommendations for activities that suit the needs of local SAR amphibians and reptiles. The Western Chorus Frog (Pseudacris triseriata) Ontario is home to two species of chorus frog, the western chorus frog, found in Southern Ontario (Figure 1), and the boreal chorus frog, found in Northern Ontario. Federally, the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence population of western chorus frogs (east and north of Toronto) is listed as Threatened under the Species at Risk Act (COSEWIC, 2008), which includes a known population of this species in Ferris Provincial Park. Current population trends show this species has declined by 30 percent in Figure 1: Western Chorus Frog Ontario in the last decade as a result to habitat loss and fragmentation (Ontario Nature, 2013). More specifically, seasonal pools in forests (ephemeral pools) used as this species’ breeding habitat, are being developed for agricultural and urban expansion. The western chorus frog is a small (4cm), smooth skinned frog, which varies in color from green-grey to brown, and has three dark stripes (sometimes segmented) running down it’s back (Figure 1). The breeding call of this species resembles the sound made by running a fingernail along the teeth of a comb. Breeding calls can be heard early in the spring, often while ice is still present, and as early as mid- March. This species prefers to breed in fishless ponds with a minimum of 10 to 12 cm of water. Their typical habitats are the transition zones between ephemeral pools and wet meadows or floodplains. Typically they can be found in natural ditches that back onto moist forest communities on one side and open wet meadow communities on the other side. They can also be found in bottomland swamps, temporary ponds, or urban ditches. The habitat of this species is protected in Ontario by the Provincial Policy Statement, under the Planning Act. 2 Ferris Provincial Parks numerous ephemeral pools and wet meadow marshes provide important habitat for this species. They have been confirmed to be found in a wet grass community (map code WG-CF in Appendix 1) and Ephemeral habitat (map code EP-CF in Appendix 1) (Phillips, 2014). These frogs also have the potential to use all other communities assessed during this survey for foraging, travel and breeding (map code EP2, HWS, NeM1, NeM2 in Appendix 1). Species in Ferris Provincial Park Ferris Provincial Park is home to many different species of reptiles and amphibians. Though not all of the following species were seen or heard during the Ferris Provincial Park surveys, the species known to exist within the Park include: American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus) Blanding’s Turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) – Species at Risk – threatened Common Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina) – Species at Risk – special concern DeKays Brown Snake (Storeria dekayi) Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis) Eastern Milk Snake (Lampropeltis triangulum) – Species at Risk – special concern Eastern Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens) Eastern Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis) Five Lined Skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans) Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens) Midland Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta marginata) Northern Map Turtle (Graptemys geographica) – Species at Risk – special concern Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon sipedon) Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus) Stinkpot Turtle (Sternotherus odoratus) – Species at Risk – special concern Western Chorus Frog (Pseudacris triseriata) – Species at Risk – threatened Survey Method Calls of western chorus frogs in WG-CF and EP-CF (Appendix 1) were heard by Julia Philips, the Toronto Zoo’s Adopt a Pond Wetland Conservation Programme Coordinator, during a Friends of Ferris frog hike on a May 11th, 2014. On August 11th and 12th, 2014, Julia Phillips and Lauren Schmuck of the Toronto Zoo’s Adopt a Pond Wetland Conservation Programme (AAP) performed a preliminary survey of the wetlands located in Ferris Provincial Park in Campbellford, Ontario, WGS 84: 44.290511, -77.794010. Julia [certified in the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System (OWES)] and Lauren surveyed the Park for a total of 20 hours on foot. In conducting the inventories of the wetlands on site, the OWES approach was utilized. This involves making a list of the dominant vegetation species seen in each vegetation layer of the wetland, determining the hydrology of the site to the greatest extent possible, listing all species of