Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada
Get Involved ! Monitor Wildlife!
March 15 & March 17
You will soon hear the ads on local radio stations. Perhaps you even participated yourself last year. It’s the Community Wildlife Monitoring Program, a program in which I have been involved as coordinator for five years.
The program started in the Quinte area by the Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan as a local initiative six years ago, incorporating existing monitoring programs that take place across the province. It was a way to get a handle on populations of frogs and birds in this area. Of course, animals are great indicators as to the health of our environment as they respond readily to environmental changes. We thought monitoring these animals in the Quinte area would tell us a lot about the present conditions of the watershed.
We reviewed many of the existing wildlife monitoring programs in the province, and selected four, based on their existing database. We also wanted four that were user friendly, that even inexperienced volunteers would feel comfortable doing. The four that we selected are the Marsh Monitoring Program, Forest Bird Monitoring Program, Amphibian Call Counts, and FrogWatch. Volunteers can take part in all four, or pick the one that sounds most appealing.
In 1985 the Bay of Quinte was declared a pollution hotspot. A mix of toxic contaminants, bacterial, and nutrient overloads had led to great imbalances in the aquatic ecosystem of the Bay. Plant and animal diversity was being lost, and habitats, especially wetlands were disappearing or seriously degraded. The Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan’s Restoration Council carries out actions with local partners in its efforts to restore the Bay and its drainage area. Wildlife monitoring is part of the process as their overall populations tell us a lot about our progress.
On Tuesday, March 21st , at 7:00 p.m., we will commence the training sessions by holding a workshop focussing on the Amphibian Call Counts and FrogWatch Ontario. Those taking part in Amphibian Call Counts monitor the frogs they hear every night for three minutes from April to August. FrogWatch begins in late April and volunteers choosing this program can identify the frogs they hear for five minutes, twice a week in their backyard or at their cottage. Frogs and toads are easy. While there are 13 species in the province, we have only eight that we need to worry about in the Quinte area, and their calls are a cinch to learn. One of the advantages of FrogWatch Ontario is the ability to record all the data directly onto their website, saving participants the trouble of having to mail it in.
The Marsh Monitoring Program, established in 1994, contains two components, monitoring birds and monitoring frogs. Participants who choose this program can do one, or both. Monitoring the marsh birds involves twice yearly visits to the marsh of your choice, for 10 minutes each visit, between May and July. If participants decide to monitor the amphibians too, that is done three times during the year for three minutes each between April and late June. Sounds pretty easy doesn’t it? Volunteers will receive training tapes and instructions on how to proceed with the monitoring. A training workshop is taking place at Quinte Conservation on Tuesday, March 28th , commencing at 7:00 p.m. This year we are pleased to have Kathy Jones, Aquatic Surveys Volunteer and Data Coordinator with Bird Studies Canada from Port Rowan appear as guest speaker at this special presentation.
“This program has been around since 1994, says Kathy Jones. “It involves studying the trends in marsh birds and amphibians within marshes and the habitat associated with those species. The program was designed to aid the conservation of marsh habitat by establishing baseline assessments of bird and amphibian populations and by monitoring population changes and habitat requirements of marsh birds and amphibians over the long term.”
On April 4th we will be completing the sessions with a training workshop for those who may be interested in the Forest Bird Monitoring Program. Monitoring for this program takes place early in the morning for 10 minutes, along three to five stations on a route that you can choose. Two visits per year between June and July to record what you hear is all that is required. A fairly mature forest can be picked anywhere you choose, including those in conservation areas or provincial parks. This workshop commences at 7:00 p.m., at Quinte Conservation.
Sound intriguing? Just give me a call at Quinte Conservation 613-968-3434 (111), or e-mail tsprague@kos.net. We welcome volunteers throughout the Prince Edward County, Trenton, Madoc, and Napanee areas. Napanee area residents can call me at 613-354-3312. Please be prepared to leave a message as I am now working from my home office; however, I check my messages regularly and will return your calls. You can also call me at my home number, 613-476-5072. All training workshops commence at 7:00 p.m. on the dates given above. Come to one, or come to all of them. Quinte Conservation is located just west of Belleville, at 2061 Old Highway . There will be refreshments at all sessions.
This week’s column was prepared on behalf of Quinte Conservation.