Newsletter 22

Once again, the Souris & Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation will be hosting its family fishing day.
This event will take place on Sunday, May 30th from 12:00pm-4:00pm at Rollo Bay Pond. There is no admission to this event and licenses are not required for a fun-filled day of fishing.
There will also be free hot dogs and drinks for the children who are in attendance.

There will be plenty of helping hands around throughout the day. Members of the Souris Wildlife Staff will be on site to assist everyone with tangles, safety issues, and providing any other help they can.

There will be no shortage of fish to be caught, with the pond having recently been stocked with 1500 speckled trout.

We encourage all members of the community to come out and enjoy a free day of fishing with the Souris and Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation.

In January of 2010, the Souris & Area Wildlife Branch hosted a public meeting concerning recreational fishermen.

A proposal was put forward by the Souris & Area Branch to delay the opening season of the Souris River by one month. The rationale of this proposal was two-fold: 1) to allow the 4000 Atlantic Salmon stocked in Souris River in 2009, an opportunity to return to sea; 2) To give the Rainbow Trout population inhabiting the Souris River the opportunity to recover from their annual spring spawning.

The local recreational fishermen were very receptive and accepted the proposal to delay the opening of the Souris River from April 15th – May 15th.

The following regulations are as follows and can also be found in your “2010 Angling Summary”,

- The angling season on Souris River will open on May 15th, 2010, with the exception of Harmony Pond which will open on April 15th.
- The section of the east branch, Souris River, upstream from the Souris Line Road will be closed to all angling for the period of April 15th- October 15th.
- Angling on the Souris River is extended from September 15th to October 15th in all that section of the main river below the Gowan Brae Bridge on Souris River Road (Route 358).
- Single barbless hooks only will be permitted.

The Souris and Area Wildlife Branch would like to sincerely thank everyone for their cooperation in taking the appropriate action to protect the future of fish stocks within the Souris River.

In early 2010, Susan Saville, a long time devoted and environmentally passionate employee of the Souris Wildlife Branch passed away.
To recognize her years of dedication, the Souris & Area Branch purchased a framed Canadian Wildlife Habitat Print. An inscription plaque within this print reads as follows:
In Memoriam of Susan Saville,
An Environmentalist, Souris & Area Wildlife Branch 2010.
This framed print was donated to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and will be on display in the Oncology Unit.

In the picture above, Souris & Area Branch
directors, Fred Ward and Joe MacDonald
present the print to life-long friends Patti
Mooney and Theresa Gallant.

The P.E.I. Agriculture Sector Council has recently presented the second annual Agriculture Employee of the Year Award to Dan LaPierre from Red Point, P.E.I. This award recognizes an agricultural employee that makes an invaluable contribution to a farm operation.
Dan LaPierre is employed with Russell Ching Ltd. where he has worked for the past 48 years. During this time, Dan has done a wide range of jobs around the farm. Dan has been through numerous late springs and tough harvests, working many early mornings and late nights.

Dan was nominated for this award by his employer, Brian Ching, who describes Dan as being a very conscientious employee arriving early to get ready for the day. He is always prepared with the proper tools, warm clothes, and rain gear; and at the end of the day, getting the job done without an extra step. The stories of Dan's sheer dedication to the farm are great in number and inspiring in nature.

Brian noted that at the end of the day, it is a privilege and a necessity to have employees like Dan that you can depend on to be there to see the job to completion!

This award has been sponsored by Kool Breeze Farms in Summerside. The members of the Souris & Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation wish to congratulate Dan on this award.

The Basin Head Watershed is a special area recognized, not only on PEI, but across Canada as well. The lagoon ecosystem features a unique strain of Irish Moss found nowhere else in the world, and a Marine Protected Area has been established to protect it. This is one of only seven such areas in the entire nation. In addition, the sensitive dune ecosystem supports plant communities that are extremely rare, so much so, that the Provincial Government has designated a large section of dunes a PEI Natural Protected Area.

Due to the environmental, social, and economic importance of the Basin Head Watershed to the Eastern Kings region, there was a need for a comprehensive management plan that incorporated that desires of the community while maintaining ecosystem health. The process of creating this plan was initiated in the fall of 2009, building on previous work completed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The plan was developed by the Souris and Area Wildlife Branch, under the guidance of the Basin Head Watershed Steering Committee (see Committee members below).

On March 30th, a large audience of Eastern Kings residents gathered at the Eastern Kings Community Centre to view the Basin Head Watershed Management Plan. The group was presented with an overview of the plan, and was given the opportunity to provide input and ask questions. After this discussion, the residents voted unanimously in favour of adopting this plan. The plan is currently in the final stages of editing, and printed copies of the finalized document will be made available in late May. In addition, it will be available for viewing on our website, www.souriswl.ca.

Plans are currently underway to implement the short term strategies beginning in 2010.

The Basin Head Watershed Steering Committee consisted of the following members; Donna Campbell (Chair), Sheila Eastman (Eastern Kings Community Council), Troy Bruce (Fisherman), Ann Garrett (Site Director of Basin Head Fisheries Museum), Ashley Ching (Farmer), Marvyn Robertson (Farmer), Candy MacDonald (Province of PEI), Waldron Leard (Souris Wildlife), Garry Gregory (Souris Wildlife), Randy Power (Fisheries and Oceans Canada), Delly Keen (Fisheries and Oceans Canada), and Fred Cheverie (Souris Wildlife).

Along with the public, who showed keen interest by attending meetings in large numbers, this group should be applauded for their time and efforts throughout this process.

The Souris & Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation recently hosted its annual meeting and a new slate of officers was installed for 2010.

Past President: Steve Cheverie, President: Paul Gallant, Secretary: Waldron Leard, Treasurer: Kevin Robertson and Vice President: Joe MacDonald. Directors for 2010 are as follows: Fred Ward, Justin MacKinnon, Louie Carter, and Susan Leard.

A special thank you was forwarded by Paul Gallant to Steve Cheverie for his guidance, dedication, and leadership over the past two years.

The 4th Annual Digital Photo Contest is underway. It is open to photos and videos that were captured on or later than January 1, 2010. The entries must also have to be captured within the prescribed area including Primrose, Strathcona, Forest Hill, Five Houses, Ashton, Goose River and all points east.

The closing date for the entry of submissions is midnight November 15, 2010.

The Grand Prize is presented by MacPhee's Home Hardware Building Centre, Ducks Unlimited Canada and the Souris Branch of the P.E.I. Wildlife Federation are donating a first, second and third prize for adult, university/college, high school and elementary school. A special judge's award will be presented to the Most Promising Youth Photographer. There is also an OPEN video category.

An individual may summit an unlimited number of entries but only one prize per person will be awarded within the photo categories. Also, only one prize per person will be awarded within the video category.

The photo or video must consist of:
- Living birds and/or native animals
- Native flora and/or fauna
- Native sea creatures
- Weather related patterns of cloud cover, sunsets, sunrises, rainbows, lightning, or storms
- Land formations or eco-systems

Photos/videos may be delivered or e-mailed to: Waldron H. Leard, contest coordinator. All entries must include: your name, home address, date of photo, location, category, and phone number!

Saws were buzzing, hammers were banging, and drills were whining, during the winter months, Graham Townshend's Grade 7 Industrial Arts students of Souris Consolidated School spent their time making tree swallow boxes.
The students got the opportunity to learn carpentry skills and gained an appreciation for the tree swallow which prey on mosquitoes and black flies that continue to plague our back yards.

The Souris Wildlife Branch responded to a request of the Eastern Kings Community Council by applying to PEI Wildlife Conservation Fund for finances to cover the cost of the materials.

These boxes are now available at Elliot's Pro Hardware Store in Bothwell upon request.

These boxes should be located with opening facing either east or south and approximately 5-15 ft above the ground. It is also important to keep clear of trees that are frequented with squirrels as they will eat the eggs.

Students of the Grade 7 classes will soon be awarded a “pizza party” compliments of the EKCC.

The Souris & Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation recently has been awarded a major contract with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

The principle purposes of the WEB (Watershed Evaluation of Best Management Practices) study is to evaluate the watershed scale effects of utilizing spring ploughing versus fall ploughing following the hay crop in a potato-grain-hay rotations system.

An environmental risk associated with intensive crop productions is the contamination of surface and groundwater from nutrients applied and sedimentation from runoff. In an attempt to solve this problem we are researching nitrate leaching from fall ploughing with the aim of reducing over-winter nitrogen leaching losses from agricultural soils. The intent would be to leave nitrogen available for the subsequent cropping season, thus reducing overall fertilizers input requirements.

The overall objective of the project is to quantify the environmental benefits (reducing nitrogen leaching losses) and economic costs (to the producer) of this practice and provide guidance to nutrient management planners regarding the credit that can be applied for spring versus fall ploughing.

In a similar fashion the study will evaluate the environmental and economic implications of managed versus unmanaged riparian zones. Here the principle goals are the reduction of siltation and associated impacts on aquatic habitat, as well as phosphorous loading of watercourses adjacent to agricultural lands.

The Souris & Area Branch will be responsible for the data collection and site maintenance for the duration of the project and also hold responsibility for any communications activities.

Lily Pond Farms and Rollo Bay Holdings are the producers that have volunteered properties that have qualified for this project.

Other major partners that will be participating in this project are: PEI Department of Agriculture, PEI Department of Environment, Energy, and Forestry, Nova Scotia Agricultural College and the UPEI Biology Department.

I consider it a privilege to once again, serve in the capacity as President of Souris Branch, PEI Wildlife Federation taking over from Steve Cheverie who manned the helm for the past year. Steve's crowning achievement during his tenure was the successful implementation of the recreational fishing rules for Souris River which has the potential for exciting angling in future years.

My role will be minimal, considering that we have strong leadership and organizational capacity with Souris Branch Executive Director and Watershed Coordinator Fred Cheverie and his team of workers. Souris Branch also has a dedicated and committed board of directors who are responsible for all branch activities. Believe me, we have entertaining and animated discussions at our branch meetings!

We are continually seeking new members to become involved enhancing and improving our local wildlife resource. Feel free to attend our next monthly meeting on the first Wednesday in June, Souris Ski Lodge. You can contact any branch member for more information or call me at 687-2382, or Fred Cheverie at 687-3436.

For those that follow this newsletter carefully, you probably have noticed that you have not received a copy in your mailbox since December, 2009.

Issue 21 was written and placed on our website in February, 2010. A copy was not sent out because we encountered publishing difficulties that now seem to be rectified.

I would recommend that you visit our newsletter and view this copy as it contained articles on the following: Recreational Fisheries Meeting 2010, 2009 Wildlife Dinner, Basin Head Watershed Planning, Salmon Redd Counts of 2009 and a brief introduction to Project WEB.

We are looking for properties with spruce or balsam fir trees that stand about 4-10 ft. in height. We would cut and haul away these trees for brush matting purposes in late May or early June. If there is anyone willing to volunteer their properties and trees please contact me at 687-3436.

We are heavily booked in our local schools giving environmental presentations to students combined with field trips during the month of June.

This summer looks to be a promising one and I look forward to see our progress continue in 2010.

All pictures appearing on this site or its associated flickr account are the property of the photographers and the Souris & Area Branch of the P.E.I. Wildlife Federation.
They may not be copied without permission of the photographer and the Souris & Area Branch of the P.E.I. Wildlife Federation.