Ontario Birders: This message has the listowners approval. If you have comments, please direct them to either ERCA or Tom Hince (contact info below), NOT to Ontbirds.
----------------------------------------- Pelee region scoops new shorebird habitat! Tens of thousands of birders visiting the Point Pelee, Ontario region this May are in for a better show than ever. This spring, nearby Hillman Marsh Conservation Area will open a huge 45 acre impoundment that will be managed for spring shorebird habitat. For a region that often has a dearth of mudflats, this is big, big news! As a long time local birder, I'm thrilled, and I want to make sure birders know where it is, what it is, and most importantly how we can help ensure its a runaway success. Because WHAT WE DO, OR DON'T DO (see below) COULD MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE. One thing we often bemoan is the lack of good, predictable shorebird habitat both inside and outside the national park. Now the Essex Region Conservation Authority has stepped up to the plate to fill that void. In the spring of 2003, ERCA in partnership with Ducks Unlimited , will open a new multiple use 45 acre managed impoundment at Hillman Marsh Conservation Area. The habitat will be on the west side of HMCA five minutes from Point Pelee National Park and the town of Leamington. Each spring, water levels in the impoundment will be managed to attract migrating shorebirds. The potential of this site is enormous. The estimated budget land acquisition and construction of the cell was Canadian $800,000 (approximately US$500,000). Major financial partners in this project included Ducks Unlimited, Family Tradition Foods Incorporated, Canadian Wildlife Service - Environment Canada, Nature Conservancy of Canada, Ontario Power Generation, Essex Region Conservation Foundation, North American Waterfowl Management Plan, Kathleen-Mary and Walter Barron Foundation, Ontario Great Lakes Renewal Foundation, and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Additional costs include yearly maintenance and agricultural costs, and reforestation and tall grass prairie planting. Many partners have stepped up to the plate to bear the brunt of the capital cost of the project. But essential to the long term success of the project will be user fees from birders who benefit directly from the creation of this managed habitat. Each year, there will be operation and maintenance fees associated specifically with the provision of shorebird habitat. These include the cost of pumping and maintaining water levels. I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE BIRDERS TO COMPLY WITH THE SELF SERVE PAY KIOSK AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE SITE. Those fees will demonstrate our support of this site and will ensure that it is maintained in future years. This is one case where paying is not only the right thing to do, its the smart thing as well. The daily fee per vehicle is only Canadian $4 while an annual permit is only $40 . The latter is good to all ERCA sites in the region including Holiday Beach Conservation Area which is a superb fall raptor and songbird site. The second thing critical to success of the project running smoothly is using the designated access and parking lot. Because of the configuration of the site, some birders will be tempted to shortcut the existing access and try to park along County Rd. 37 due west of the site. PLEASE DO NOT ACCESS THE SITE FROM CTY RD.37! The only permissible access is via the parking lot and trail. All the land west of the site is being planted into either native trees or prairie and is being actively restored. The newly constructed dykes on the west side will likely be soft and muddy and not be suitable for foot access this spring. Access to the site is via the current entrance and parking lot at northwest Hillman Marsh and by following the trail south and east to the existing dykes which were used as the eastern boundary of the impoundment. One of the biggest challenges to managing the site on the long term for shorebirds is control of vegetation within the cell. After the spring migration, water levels will be lowered and the impoundment will be planted with a wildlife food crop such as corn, millet or wild rice. The planted homoculture should severely deter invasive emergent vegetation. In the early fall the crop will be harvested and the impoundment will be flooded to attract migrant waterfowl. The impoundment is within the established baited area of Hillman Marsh Conservation Area. However, hunting will not take place in the impoundment. Once the site is frozen and waterfowl depart in early winter, water levels would be managed to reduce crop residue and to prepare for the creation of mudflats for the following spring. Local birders, including yours truly, were involved in consultation on this management scheme. For birders this spring will be an exciting time. Who knows what will turn up? Huge numbers of breeding plumage Dunlin, Black-bellied Plovers, both yellowlegs, Ruddy Turnstones and peeps are a good possibility. And rarities such as Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, both godwits and others have made brief visits before such a site existed. And each year the site is sure to get better. One thing is certain. The Essex Region Conservation Authority, Ducks Unlimited and all the contributors are to be thanked and congratulated for this wonderful project. Shorebirds, and all those who love them, are sure to be big winners. For more info on Essex Region Conservation Authority please contact Danielle Breault at [EMAIL PROTECTED], (519) 776-5209 ext 352, or visit www.erca.org Tom Hince Wild Rose Guest House On the web at: http://www.netcore.ca/~peleetom RR#1 (21298 Harbour Rd.) Wheatley, ONT. (gateway to Point Pelee National Park) N0P 2P0 Canada (519) 825-9070 (phone/voice) (519) 825-9169 (fax) Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Tom Hince" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
