The Pitch Pine Post ST. LAWRENCE ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK OF CANADA VOL. 1, NO. 2 MALLORYTOWN LANDING,ONTARIO FALL 2006 IN THIS ISSUE A national park on your doorstep Finding the balance in one of Canada’s most accessible national parks Located next to one of Canada’s busiest transporta- tion routes, the 401 highway, St. Lawrence Islands National Best view of the islands....12 Park is within a 3-hour drive of more than 25% of Canada’s population. For a park that’s also ranked as one of the country’s smallest, the challenge of main- taining a healthy ecosystem is Turtle study saves lives.......3 immense. However, many people and many organiza- tions are working hard to ensure that this busy part of Photo: Brian Morin eastern Ontario also remains Park interpreter Emily LaBonté explores the shoreline with visitor Kayla Morin of one of the most biodiverse Cornwall. Through research and education, St. Lawrence Islands National Park parts of the country. works to protect the unique 1000 Islands environment while providing quality visitor services to the more than 70,000 people who visit the park each year. Visitor experiences, research CSI: Mallorytown................8 programs, education opportu- things happening at St. Lawrence ties, wildlife, and people at the nities and community partner- Islands National Park. Read on national park on your doorstep. ships are only a few of the many to find out more about the activi- Theatre draws Summer snapshots.............11 crowds The Parks Canada Players theatre troupe, which includes piper George Muggleton (below), brought history to life across Biosphere Reserve grows...9 eastern Ontario this past sum- mer with a series of very popular Akewsanse’s Voice.............10 plays. The theatre will return Landowner Profile...............9 with a second season of plays in 2007. Find out more on page 10. Maps.....................................12 Photo: Parks Canada The black rat snake, a threatened reptile, is one of the many species monitored at St. Lawrence Islands National Park. Park researchers, often in cooperation with other St. Lawrence Islands organizations, coordinate more than 15 different species studies each summer. National Park Turtles and snakes and trees, oh my! 2 County Rd. 5, R.R.#3 Mallorytown, ON An update on ecosystem research & why you should care K0E 1R0 Why should we care if monitor the health of the 1000 (613) 923-5261 black rat snakes become Islands ecosystem. From eagles www.pc.gc.ca/sli extinct? Why should we help to snakes to wetlands, the latest the local turtle populations? news on the park’s ecological Email: [email protected] How do we know that species monitoring and why you are disappearing? should care can be found in Printed in Canada © Her Majesty the St. Lawrence Islands Na- this issue of the Pitch Pine Post. Queen in Right of Canada, repre- sented by the Chief Executive Officer tional Park is involved in Read on! of Parks Canada, 2006. numerous research projects to Photo: Simon Lunn 2 - FALL 2006 THE PITCH PINE POST The Superintendent Says... By Gord Giffin, St. Lawrence Islands National Park Superintendent A National Park On Your Doorstep – St. Lawrence Islands National Park, as a part of the Parks Canada family of nation- al parks, national historic sites, marine conservation areas, and heritage waterways, is committed to a future where natural values are seen as the foundation of a sustainable economy and a high quality of life. We are dedicated to building public awareness, valued pro- grams, relevant visitor experiences, and support throughout Photo: Doug Rawlinson the region. We share this vision and commitment with many Bald eaglets Spirit and Phyllis were fitted with backpack transmitters in June. The other partners and communities. This newspaper is a window young eagles have taken off for other parts of the continent, but may return in the winter for the excellent fishing in the open waters of the St. Lawrence River. Follow on our work and that of our partners. Our spring 2007 issue their journey online at www.bsc-eoc.org. will feature our vision for visitor experiences and programs for next summer and the future. (700 miles) to the east coast of Heritage Fund, TD (Toronto James Bay. Dominion) Friends of the Envi- The two eaglets from the lone ronment Fund (Kingston chap- bald eagle nest on the St. Law- ter), Kingston Field Natural- Track local eagles online rence River will be tracked for up ists, North Leeds Birders, and to four years to help researchers St. Lawrence eaglets receive transmitters and travel the continent private citizens Ken and Joan learn more about their habitat Stewart and Joyce Medcalf. In typical adolescent fash- from the St. Lawrence River requirements and behaviour. The eagle tracking project ion, the two young bald eagles nest have taken off to explore Many regional residents would also not be possible with- areas far from home. Wearing and organizations such as the out the generous cooperation of backpack transmitters, the sib- St. Lawrence Bald Eagle Work- the private citizens who own the lings have chosen different ing Group, New York Depart- island where the eagle nest is paths - one opting for an ment of Environmental Con- located. autumn up on James Bay, the servation, Bird Studies Cana- Bald eagles (Haliaeetus leuco- other choosing to visit Que- da, and St. Lawrence Islands cephalus) began nesting on the St. bec’s eastern townships and National Park have been Lawrence River in 1999 after New England. actively working to monitor nearly 60 years of absence. It is Spirit, sponsored by the and increase the number of hoped that some of the young LCBO (Liquor Control Board of bald eagles in the St. Lawrence raised from the 1000 Islands nest Ontario), left the river in mid- River by conducting eagle cen- will soon return to begin nests of August. Except for a short visit suses, installing nesting plat- their own. to New Hampshire, she has forms, and coordinating trans- As long as their transmitters Photo: Doug Rawlinson spent most of her time since then mitter studies. continue to function properly, The majestic bald eagle is slowly making south of Trois Rivières, Quebec. The two satellite transmit- Spirit and Phyllis can be fol- a comeback in the 1000 Islands region. Her sister, Phyllis, is the ters fitted on the St. Lawrence lowed through “Eagle Tracker” Satellite transmitters on young bald eagles will provide information about more adventurous of the two, eaglets this year were spon- on the Bird Studies Canada web- eahabitat requirements. travelling more than 1100 km sored by the LCBO Natural site at www.bsc-eoc.org. More than 200 landowners participate in study Vegetation data will be used to create a community atlas for land planning decisions The St. Lawrence Islands thank all of the enthusiastic National Park Ecological Land landowners who participated Classification (ELC) crew has in the program this summer. been working with approxi- "Working with landowners mately 200 private landowners was rewarding to both par- this summer season to gather ties,” said ELC crew member information about soil, vegeta- Janice Ball. “Landowners had tion, topography, and forest the chance to share stories types in Eastern Ontario. about the property's history In partnership with the and natural elements that they Ontario Ministry of Natural cherish and in turn we had a Resources, the data will be chance to share our ecological used to identify different vege- knowledge." tation communities through- This season’s fieldwork out the 1000 Islands ecosystem. marks the end of the second year The data also feeds into a Com- of the Ecological Land Classifica- munity Atlas that will be pro- tion Project. The final year of the duced by the Frontenac Arch project will be spent analyzing Biosphere Reserve to help local data and creating fine-scale vege- Photo: Parks Canada groups and regional residents tation maps of the region. Parks Canada’s Ecological Land Classification technicians Mary Beth Lynch (left) and make sound land use planning For more information about Oliver Reichl used GPS (Global Positioning System) and plant identification skills to locate and classify vegetation plots across the 1000 Islands ecosystem over the past decisions. the Ecological Land Classifica- two years. The data collected will be used to create a map of the landscape that can be The ELC team would like to tion Project, call 613-923-5261. used by governments and private citizens for land use planning. THE PITCH PINE POST FALL 2006 - 3 Turtle study has positive impact on local population An intensive two-year “We can’t compare this research project on map turtles number to previous population and stinkpot turtles along the estimates so we don’t know if river is now coming to an end. numbers are growing or drop- The research, conducted by ping,” Carrière warned. “How- University of Ottawa master’s ever, we can now work to mon- student Marie-Andrée Car- itor the population to ensure it rière, was the first study in the is stable and not declining.” 1000 Islands area to focus on St. Lawrence Islands Nation- these two species at risk. al Park would like to continue to Few studies have been monitor this population to col- done on these turtles anywhere lect some first-ever long-term in North America and Carrière information on map turtles. uncovered invaluable informa- Fewer stinkpot turtles (Ster- tion on both species. notherus odoratus) were caught during the study but these tur- tles are inconspicuous, camou- flaging well with the muddy Photo: Marie-Ange Gravel bottom they burrow in. The Researcher Marie-Andrée Carrière wades through a river wetland in search of a low capture number raises stinkpot turtle.