cktimes.ca Archives for Ecowrappin'
Ecowrappin'
St. Clair National Wildlife Area
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
BEAR CREEK AND PIDGEON MARSHES UNITSBack in May of this year I discussed the long-term habitat managment improvements that took place at the 570 acre St. Clair National Wildlife Area (NWA) back in 1981. In that article, I mentioned that I might, in a future article, elaborate on how the Bear Creek and Pidgeon Marshes Units of the St. Clair NWA have taken a prominent place among the significant wetland habitats in the eastern Lake St. Clair area. In this article, I will discuss some of the history and rehabilitation of these wetlands.
BEAR CREEK UNIT
The Bear Creek marshes, comprised of two separate 50 acre parcels, were purchased by the Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) in 1985. These parcels, located at the northwesterly terminus of Dover Township's Bear Line, were separated by Little Bear Creek just above its confluence with the Chenal Ecarte or Snye River channel of the lower St. Clair River system. The parcel to the east of Little Bear Creek was named the Maxwell Segment, owing to the fact that the Maxwell Creek Drain comprised a northern boundary to this easterly segment. The parcel to the west of Little Bear Creek was named the Snye segment, since the Snye River channel flowed along its northern boundary.
The Maxwell and Snye segments were, and continue to be, independantly dyked wetlands. Water management within these separate cells was via a small, gated pipe on each segment. These pipes could transfer water into or out of their respective segments into either the Maxwell Drain or the Snye. Needless to say, the function and capacity of each gated pipe was totally dependant on there being sufficient water levels in these water supply channels exterior to each marsh segment. The CWS also owned a portable, 6-inch, diesel pump which could be quickly brought into action should marsh water levels need to be adjusted in spite of, or in addition to, the levels of the Maxwell Drain or the Snye.
By the late 1980's the dykes surrounding both the Maxwell and Snye segments had aged to the point that some deterioration in their integrity was well underway. Ducks Unlimited Canada, under cooperative agreement with the CWS, rebuilt these dykes in 1989. In more recent years, the Maxwell segment has been connected to the permanent pumping facility that was installed as management infrastructure for the adjacent Pidgeon Marshes. Last year, dyke improvements and the installation of a more functional and higher capacity gated culvert were carried out on the Snye segment.
PIDGEON MARSHES UNIT
The lands that have become known as the Pidgeon Marshes were comprised of 187 acres of permanent marsh, drained marsh, farmed upland, a property residence and yard, and adjacent creek and drain channels. The 67 acre Pidgeon Marsh had remained as a permanent, historical remnant of the extensive wetlands that once covered much of the surrounding area. The name Pidgeon is derived from the name of a family that once owned these lands. Approximately 60 marshy acres of the remaining "Pidgeon Marshes" property were drained in 1978 for agricultural production. In 1998 the owner of these lands, Nannin Incorporated, put the entire 187 acres up for sale. Ducks Unlimited Canada with the cooperation and support of its primary Eastern Habitat Joint Venture partners, the Canadian Wildlife Service and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, was in a postion, both decisively and financially, to make an immediate offer on these lands. With the land secured, the first order of business was to restore as much wetland habitat as possible. By relocating and constructing dykes, slightly more than the 60 acres of wetland that had been drained in 1978 was restored. Inclusive of these management infrastructure upgrades and additions was the largest permanent pumping installation undertaken to date in South Western Ontario by Ducks Unlimited. This system can manage water levels independently in all three segments of the Pidgeon Marshes Unit as well as the Maxwell segment of the Bear Creek Unit.
Early in 2002, 25 acres of the 187 acre property was sold to private interests and the remaining 162 acres was transferred to the CWS as an expansion of their Bear Creek Unit lands. The 25 acre parcel is situated in the northeasterly corner of the property and contained buildings associated with the original land unit. The new owners have completely renovated the primary residence and a separate garage and this permanent residential setting and the surrounding grounds are now an attractive and compatible feature next to the restored and managed wetlands.
During the summer of 2003, further improvements were made to the restored wetland segments of the Pidgeon Marshes. Because these segments had been cultivated for agricultural production for more than 20 years, they had taken on a very flat topography. Ideal marsh habitats are based on subtle changes in bottom elevation. Once again, the solution to optimizing the restored habitat condition was to bring in the heavy equipment. With the cooperation and financial support of Stewardship Kent, the Rural Lambton Stewardship Network and the CWS, Ducks Unlimited Canada arranged and initiated the necessary works. Shallow ponds were excavated in a strategic pattern in the bottom of both segments. The excavated earth was thinly spread out around these excavations in order to add to the variation in subtle bottom contour, yet ensure that it would be covered with managed water levels. In one segment, the ponds were connected by level ditches. Upon reflood, the segments now exhibit an improved and attractive interspersion of open water and emergent aquatic plant communities. Improvements were made to the interior slopes of two older, original perimeter dykes during the same operation.
The initiative shown by a number of resource agency employees, coupled with the moral and financial support of their respective agencies, has resulted in the legacy of high quality wetland habitats that are known as the St. Clair National Wildlife Area Units. This legacy will be managed and maintained as permanent living spaces for wildlife and as enjoyable places for people to visit for generations to come.
David G. West
I was born on the Bruce Peninsula on July 20, 1951 and raised on a farm just south of the village of Lionís Head, which is located about halfway up the peninsula on the Georgian Bay shoreline. I graduated from Georgian College of Applied Arts and Technology in Barrie in 1973 as a Resources Engineering Technologist. I was hired by Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) in April of 1975 as the first DUC employee in Ontario. Throughout almost 29 years I was involved with the implementation of more than 500 wetland projects and project complexes in southwestern and south central Ontario. Some of these habitat projects included important waterfowl and migratory bird habitat along the eastern shoreline of Lake St. Clair. Just three weeks short of completing 29 years with DUC, I accepted an early retirement opportunity effective March 31, 2004.
