Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat News
The Newsletter of the Great Lakes
Aquatic Habitat Network and Fund
The Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat News is the newsletter of the Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat Network and Fund, published five times per year. The News is intended to provide a forum for the free exchange of ideas among citizens and organizations working to protect aquatic habitats in the Great Lakes Basin.
Volume 14, Number 4 • FAll 2006
Lake Superior
Basin Update
The Gapen’s Pool Project and Coaster Brook Trout:
the Land – Water Connection
By Brian Christie, Lake Superior Conservancy and Watershed Council
In mid-July, 2006 the call went out from
a consortium of conservation advocates,
including;Trout Unlimited in Canada and
the U.S., Nature Conservancy of Canada
and the Nipigon Bay RAP Public Advisory
Committee for help to protect spawning
habitat of the once abundant and
legendary, now scant coaster brook trout on the Nipigon River.
The Nipigon is thought to be one of the last strongholds for brook
trout on the north shore of Lake
Superior, if not for the lake as a
whole. Where previous protection
initiatives were focused on
mitigating the impact of hydro
dam development within the
river corridor, this time the focus
was on lands adjacent to and
critical for the sustaining of
scarce spawning areas.
So what brought this once abundant
brook trout population to
its knees? Researchers suggest that the combination of its’ past
abundance and availability and being attractive to anglers for its
larger size and beauty led to vast over over-fishing. The cumulative
destruction of primary habitat by logging and mining activity
over the past century significantly contributed to its decline. In
recent decades the introduction of competition in the form of
other salmanoid species such as brown trout, Pacific salmon, and
steelhead has put additional pressure on this indigenous species.
Lake Superior coasters have taken on a certain mystic. They are
recognized as a natural legacy and “link to the past.” Once
romanced by avid fishers for their vast abundance in the late
1800’s, now the challenge is to protect and revive the “coaster.”
Over the past decade or so a multitude of government agencies,
ENGOs and learning institutions have taken up the challenge of
learning what it will require to restore this heritage fish.
At one time perhaps 120 or so tributaries around the Lake
Superior basin supported a resident population of brook trout
from which the coaster brook trout are derived. Today on the
south shore of Lake Superior only three viable populations of
“coasters” are known to reside, two in the vicinity of Isle Royale
and one in the Salmon-Trout River. Remnant populations have
also been located along the northwest shore. The most
prodigious colonies however, reside on the north shore in Nipigon
Bay with critical spawning habitat in its main tributary the
Nipigon River.
While researchers are
now collaborating to
learn more about the
relatively unknown
ecology of the “coaster,”
and fisheries authorities
have put in place regulations
such as seasons,
catch size and limits to
protect a fragile population,
recognizing and
assessing remaining habitat presents a challenge.
What we do know is that the coasters typically spend part of their
life in the big lake, and migrate back to tributary streams,
estuaries or near-shore locations in the late summer and early fall
to spawn. Coasters seek out sheltered, well-oxygenated, cooler
waters with spawning habitat compromised of loose, silt-free
gravel or coarse sand over an area of percolating groundwater.
This describes to a tee Gapen’s Pool, one of only three known
spawning areas on the lower Nipigon River.
While great strides have been made to define the significance of
the coaster brook trout and address concerns through water
management planning on the river, protecting land areas critical
to preserving spawning habitat is imperative to the long term
sustainability of this species.
“The coaster brook trout have very specific needs and require
sites with substantial underwater springs for successful
reproduction, says Nuttall.” “The land adjacent to Gapen’s Pool
serves a critical hydrological function filtering,
collecting, storing and percolating groundwater into
these seepage areas beneath the river,” adds Nuttall.
Previous research by Dr. R. Allen Curry of the Canadian
Rivers Institute confirmed the direct link between
reproductive habitat and groundwater. Adjacent landscapes
control the pathways and flow rates of groundwater
to the river at these critical habitat locations.
Currently the land above Gapen’s Pool is being
considered for commercial development due to its
desirable location at the junction of Northerwestern
Ontario’s two major highways. Development will
result in compacted soil, paving, and point and
non-point source drainage issues, all posing serious threats to
groundwater function, quality and quantity at the site.
“Unfortunately, it is not enough to protect the spawning beds
alone. It is also imperative to protect the lands and critical
functions adjacent to these beds,” said Doug Cressman, CEO of
Trout Unlimited Canada in a letter to the then Minister of the
Environment for Canada, Stephane Dion.
As we speak, the consortium is raising funds to purchase the
property above Gapen’s Pool. If successful, the intention is to
donate the property to Parks Canada for management as part of
the proposed Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area,
the largest freshwater marine conservation area in the world.
For more information about the Gapen’s Pool Proposal visit the Trout
Unlimited Canada website at:www.tucanada.org. or contact
Dave Nuttall at dave@superiorvisits.com.
To learn more about the newly formed Lake Superior Conservancy
and Watershed Council visit www.lscwc.org or
E-mail: info.lscwc@ontera.net.
|
