Walpole Island Heritage Centre May 2010

Walpole Island Heritage Centre
May 2010
At the Heart of the Great Lakes
Bkejwanong: Where the Waters Divide
Bkejwanong’s Ecosystems
OVERVIEW
Walpole Island…
supports a rich mosaic of
natural areas including some
of the most biologically
diverse areas in Canada.
Coastal
waterways
Tallgrass
Prairies
Wetlands
Carolinian
forests
Oak Savannas
Species at Risk on Walpole Island
PLANTS
OVERVIEW
BIRDS
FISH
MUSSELS
REPTILES
BUTTERFLIES
HISTORIC SPECIES
Greater Prairie Chicken (Extirpated)
American Badger (Endangered)
Massasauga Rattlesnake (Threatened)
Tallgrass Prairies
Oak Savannas
Woodlands and Forests
Waterways
Coastal Marshes
Wetlands
Wetland habitat on
Walpole Island
Wetland habitat
8,300 hectares
Coastal Marshes
Wetlands
Wetlands
Species at Risk
King Rail (Endangered)
Species at Risk
Least Bittern (Threatened)
Species at Risk
Blanding’s Turtle (Endangered)
Species at Risk
Spotted Turtle (Endangered)
Species at Risk
Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle (Threatened)
Species at Risk
Northern Map Turtle (Special Concern)
Species at Risk
Swamp Rose Mallow (Special Concern)
Species at Risk
Round Hickorynut mussel
(Endangered)
Kidneyshell mussel
(Endangered)
Northern Madtom (Endangered)
Lake Sturgeon
(Endangered)
Wetland Waterfowl
Mallard
Our Waters
Redhead Ducks
Wetland Scenes
Bullfrog
Waterways of Walpole Island
Interior Wetland Losses
OVERVIEW
Loss of Interior
Wetland Habitat
on Walpole Island
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Pressures and Threats to the Land
OVERVIEW
Impacts on Wildlife
Phragmites / Quill Weeds
Urban Sprawl
Zebra Mussels
Unsustainable / Haphazard Development
Walpole Island Heritage Centre
May 2010
Nin.Da.Waab.Jig – Those Who Seek to Find
!! Walpole Island
Heritage Centre –
Nin.Da.Waab.Jig officially
founded in 1989
!! Research arm of First
Nation dealing with land
claims, environmental
protection, and heritage
conservation
!! Walpole Island one of
the first Native
communities in Canada
to take leadership role in
the field of environment
and sustainable
development
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Walpole Island Land Trust
In 2008, we
established the
Walpole Island Land
Trust to enhance our
ability to conserve
and protect
ecologically significant habitats and species at risk within the
Bkejwanong territory.
The Walpole Island Land Trust was born out of the desire to make
sure that our legacy to the future is something that we and they
can be proud of. We want the children of the future to be able to
say “Wow! They were really thinking of us!” Not, “What were
they thinking?!”
The Walpole Island Land Trust is the 1st First Nations land trust
incorporated and registered as a charity in Canada.
Our Niche
Holistic approaches that benefit
humans & wildlife.
HOLISTIC,
COMMUNITYBASED
WALPOLE ISLAND
ECOSYSTEM
RECOVERY
STRATEGY
prepared by
Dr. Jane M. Bowles
for
APPROACHES
Ecosystem
Conservation
and
Recovery
Walpole Island
Heritage Centre,
Environment
Canada
and
Walpole Island
Recovery Team
Healthy Plants and Animals
Restoration of Language
and Culture
Stewardship and
Traditional
Habitat
Management
Research and
Building Capacity
Connections
between People
and Ecosystems
Community Educated,
Aware and Involved
Implementing Our Aims and Objects
WALPOLE
ISLAND
LAND TRUST
PROTECTING
LANDS IN
TRADITIONAL
TERRITORY
Our 1st habitat protection campaign was to acquire and
protect an ecologically significant prairie remnant –
Pottawatomi Prairie.
Our 1st Protection Project
Special Thanks to Suncor Energy Foundation and Imperial Oil Foundation
and the generous private individual donors who helped save this piece of
the natural heritage that we all share in common.
Restoring a Degraded 171 acre Marsh
St. Clair
River
Walpole Island
First Nation
Project Site
Lake St.
Clair
Working Together to Restore Habitats
To date we have leased the marsh for a 10-year term.
Special thanks to our Partners:
Implementing Our Aims and Objects
Implementing Our Aims and Objects
We mapped invasive Phragmites within the marsh.
WALPOLE
ISLAND
LAND TRUST
PROTECTING
LANDS IN
TRADITIONAL
TERRITORY
Implementing Our Aims and Objects
WALPOLE
We mapped invasive Phragmites within the marsh.
ISLAND
LAND TRUST
PROTECTING
LANDS IN
TRADITIONAL
Former Swan Lake Club marsh
TERRITORY
Invasive Common Reed
(Phragmites)
Implementing Our Aims and Objects
We are in need of funds to follow through with plans to:
WALPOLE
ISLAND
LAND TRUST
PROTECTING
LANDS IN
TRADITIONAL
TERRITORY
!!Restore the marsh’s ecological functions and enhance
wildlife populations;
!!Address invasive species by researching potential uses
and/or implementing control measures;
!!Train community members to conduct environmental,
habitat, and wildlife assessments and surveys; and
!!Educate youth and bring them together with Elders and
community members to
help
them to learn about
ethical hunting practices,
survival techniques,
language & stories
that relate to their
historic relationship
with this important
natural resource.
Implementing Our Aims and Objects
PROTECTING
LANDS IN
TRADITIONAL
TERRITORY
Our next habitat protection campaign is underway to protect
a oak savanna/prairie remnant – Prairie Dock Prairie
Protecting Rare Species and Habitats
PROTECTING
LANDS IN
TRADITIONAL
TERRITORY
Our next habitat
protection campaign is
underway to protect a
oak savanna/prairie
remnant – Prairie Dock
Prairie
Their Future
Is Our
Collective
Responsibility
Walpole Island Heritage Centre
May 2010