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What are Species at Risk (SAR)?

Extinction is a natural process. Our fossil record is a testimony to some of the species that once were found on earth. Today’s global rate of extinction has been estimated as being at least 100 times higher than the natural rate, caused primarily by human activity such as; habitat destruction when we convert forests, grasslands and wet lands to towns, farms, etc, hunting, pollution, the introduction of exotic species and climate change. We, the people that live in the Lake Nipissing watershed, share our land, water and air with other living things. The survival of species at risk will depend on how we control and moderate our actions.

While all living things have intrinsic value, species also have ecological roles, such as pollination, serving both natural ecosystems and humans. Species at risk of extinction are important indicators of our natural world. The decline of local native species gives us an early warning of changes to our land, water or air that may affect our health and prosperity. For example, the monarch is an important pollinator of wild plants and the bald eagle, peregrine falcon and red-shouldered hawk are important top level predators or scavengers that inform us of the build up of toxins released by humans into the environment.

The Lake Nipissing watershed is a critical area for several species that have declined significantly due to human activity. For example, the monarch breeds and migrates through the Lake Nipissing watershed. If we do not ensure that we retain habitat for the monarch, we will remove an important stepping-stone used by this migratory species and we may speed its decline.

Purpose of the Species At Risk book

This book contains descriptions and summaries of the habitat of local native species at risk. If you think you have seen a species at risk, use this book to help you identify it and report your sighting. Report species as outlined in the “What you can do” section of the individual species text. You will need to provide your contact information, exact location and information on species. Do not report species such as golden eagle or short-eared owl migrating through our region in the spring and fall.

What is a species?

A species is generally defined as a group of organisms that are naturally capable of producing young that are also capable of reproducing.

Some species are very closely related and they may be able to naturally hybridize. For example, the demise of the golden-winged warbler is due to it’s hybridization with the blue-winged warbler. These two bird species had separate breeding ranges; however the conversion of forests into agricultural lands caused their breeding ranges to overlap and they now interbreed. Today the golden-winged warbler is classified as “special concern”.

“Species At Risk” is a legal term that refers to native wild plants and animals that have been assessed by an independent scientific body and found to be at some danger of disappearing from the wild. The provincial scientific body is called the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk in Ontario (COSSARO), and the federal body is called the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). Species populations change over time, so the designation of risk status such as “threatened” or “special concern” will also change. Please refer to Schedules of the Endangered Species Act (RSO 2007) for the correct risk status of a species in Ontario.

Ontario has decided to list species that have been known to be significantly reduced in population so as to affect the survival of that species. We include three extinct species in this book: the blue walleye, eastern cougar and eastern elk because sightings of animals that resemble these species are reported. A few species that are extirpated from the Lake Nipissing watershed, such as wolverine and woodland caribou, are also included as individuals of these species may be seen in extremely rare circumstances. Seven species have been included because there are unofficial sightings of some or because we believe some may be observed if a more thorough monitoring program was implemented.

Risk Status	Description
Extinct	No longer lives anywhere in the world.
Extirpated	Lives somewhere in the world. Lived at one time in the wild in Ontario, but no longer lives in the wild in the province.
Endangered	Lives in the wild in Ontario but is facing imminent extinction or extirpation.
Threatened	Lives in the wild in Ontario, is not endangered, but is likely to become endangered if steps are not taken to address factors threatening to lead to its extinction or extirpation.
Special Concern	Lives in the wild in Ontario, is not endangered or threatened, but may become threatened or endangered because of a combination of biological characteristics and identified threats.