Gathering roots of Ki’wesusk

Plants have always been an important part of Mi’kmaq tradition, not just for food but as cures and prevention for many common ailments. Today it is not unusual to see Mi’kmaq Elders picking sweetgrass for ceremonies and other plants as cures for everything from stomach cramps to relieving the symptoms of the common cold. UINR recognizes the importance of plants to our culture and are working on a project to improve our knowledge and understanding of where these important plants are located and how abundant they are. We are using a combination of modern science and traditional knowledge to develop a database that will be used as a conservation management tool. Working with Parks Canada and NewPage, we are mapping existing and new information in a Geographic Information Database (GIS) that will  contribute to the conservation of our cultural and ecological heritage.

We have been meeting with knowledgeable Elders to determine what species are important, where they are found and what type of habitat they are usually found in. Using this knowledge, we then investigate botanical literature on local distribution, habitat requirements and if they are endangered. Elders also provided the Mi’kmaq names of the plants they gather.

UINR has hired botanist Catherine Sneddon to conduct a field investigation throughout Unama’ki to confirm the presence of medicinal plants and their abundance in the areas we identified this year. The next step will be to develop a list of the locations that will require special protection or other efforts to preserve threatened species. Another meeting of Elders will be held to present our research results and to review our recommended management plans to protect the plants.

The information that will be released to our funding partners and that will be made public will be determined by the Elders and knowledge holders. UINR retains all control over the content of the project. This is a very important project for us at UINR. It recognizes the continuing importance of plants in our culture and ensures that they will be protected for future generations.

lisa@uinr.ca

Lending a hand in the matchmaking were UINR staff members, Clifford Paul and Blair Bernard, along with representatives from Parks Canada and Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources. “This is a monumental occasion,” Clifford notes, “It is very fitting that Mi’kmaq have a hand in re-establishing this native species to Unama’ki.”

A sprinkle of snow covered the ground when the plywood boxes that held the captured martens were unloaded. Three females and two males were checked over by a vet before computer chips were inserted under their skins so they can be identified in the future. Some were adorned with radio collars to allow staff to track their progress.

The shy and cautious martens waited until a quiet moment before peeking out of their plywood homes.

Once they spied an opening, they scurried off to their new Highland homes.

The American marten is native to Nova Scotia, but over the years, the population declined and, in 2001, it was added to the province’s endangered species list. Trapping and human encroachment on their habitat have led to their demise.

About the size of a small house cat, the distinction ends there. Their cute, inquisitive faces and soft coat belies their ferocious nature. The marten is carnivorous and its predatory personality strikes fear in the hearts of its dinner–squirrels, chipmunks, voles and rabbits, all of which are plentiful in the Highlands.

A major concern was that Cape Breton martens might be genetically different than the mainland population. Extensive testing revealed that the entire Maritime marten population is basically the same genetically.

The plan is to release up to 50 martens a year over the next few years. It is hoped this will stabilize the population and that, in the future, the marten can be removed from the endangered list.

If our matchmaking is successful, you might be one of the lucky few to spot a reclusive marten in the wild!

Photo: Clifford Paul releases marten

From UINR Marten – Vol.3. Issue.4 – Winter 2007

The Nova Scotia Marten Recovery Team has partnered with industry, scientists, stakeholders, and government agencies and may soon begin releasing 30–50 marten over the next three years in an attempt to re-establish and provide some genetic diversity to the native population. Initial releases will take place near wilderness areas and the Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

The American marten (Martes americana) has chocolate brown fur and orange coloured throat and chest. Its long slender body, short limbs, broad feet, and sharp claws make the marten well adapted for climbing trees and travelling across the forest floor. In winter, the soles of its feet are densely furred allowing for easy movement through snow.

Analyses of marten habitat in northern Cape Breton indicate that, currently, there are at least 30 patches of suitable habitat. An additional 25 home ranges, through forest succession, are possible by the year 2030.

The project will be evaluated through the different stages of capture, transport, holding, and release to determine if changes in protocol are necessary after each year of release, and two, five, and ten years after releases have been completed. These evaluations should look at: whether the target of 90-150 translocated animals was met, whether mortality rates were acceptable, if released marten helped to link the separate sub-populations, if the population is increasing into lowland areas, and if there an indication that there is a free-living, viable population of marten on Cape Breton Island two, five, and ten years after release.

From UINR Marten – Vol.2. Issue.2 – Summer 2006

The Gaspe Shrew is only found in Cape Breton Island, Gaspé Peninsula, and New Brunswick and if you go looking for one (get a photo for us!), check out rock outcrops and steep slopes. Fires and clear-cutting are the major threats to Gaspe Shrews.

For more information on the Gaspe Shrew and other Species at Risk, go to www.uinr.ca/speciesatrisk and follow the links.

From UINR Marten – Vol.2. Issue.2 – Summer 2006

All these species are at risk of extinction in Unama’ki. Species at Risk are animals, plants, and other organisms that are at serious risk of extinction, usually due to human activities which pose a threat to the species or their habitat.

In Nova Scotia today there are over ten thousand wildlife species: 5 are extinct, 47 are seriously at risk, and the list grows.

What can you do? Visit our website at www.uinr. ca/ speciesatrisk

Teedaze Catherine Paul has been working on a project to educate native students about the new Species at Risk Act (SARA) and how it relates to their aboriginal rights.

Teedaze brought presentations to all schools in Unama’ki where aboriginal students attend.

An informative poster and website were produced to further the educational process.

The species you see here are on the list of Species at Risk in Unama’ki

Canada Lynx

American Marten

Wood Turtle

Yellow Lampmussel

New Jersey Rush

Piping Plover,

Felt Boreal Lichen

Gaspe Shrew

We have a lot of people to thank for this project. The photographs of these species were almost as difficult to find as the creatures in the wild! Special thanks to Samara Eaton, Wildlife Biologist, NS Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Division; Pamela Mills, Wildlife Resource, Biodiversity Program, Wildlife Division; Ruth Newell, Curator, E.C. Smith Herbarium, Irving Biodiversity Collection, K.C. Irving Environmental Science Centre & Harriet Irving Botanical Gardens, Acadia University, Wolfville; Rob Cameron, Ecologist, Protected Areas Branch, NS Environment and Labour; Mark F. Elderkin, Species at Risk Biologist, Wildlife Division, NS Department of Natural Resources.

From UINR Marten – Vol.2. Issue.1 – Spring 2006

Along the Atlantic coast of North America it breeds on sandy beaches along the Canadian Maritime provinces down to South Carolina and winters along the Gulf of Mexico, the southern Atlantic coast and in a few Caribbean Islands. Piping plovers arrive on the shores of Cape Breton in late March and start nesting between late April and early August, laying two-four eggs. They nest on sparsely vegetated, flat, sandy or gravel-like beaches. Both parents incubate the eggs which hatch 27-29 days later in early June. Shortly after hatching they are able to feed themselves and are usually fledged by late July to early August.

The Bras d’Or Lakes have similar physical habitats for the piping plover compared to the Atlantic Coast of Unama’ki, however, the idea of the Bras d’Or Lakes as piping plover habitat has often been over-looked.

Twenty beaches along the Atlantic coast of Cape Breton Island are monitored yearly for piping plovers. As of 2003, only three of these sites are known to be existing piping plover nesting areas and only two are known to be pre-existing nesting areas. Initial reports through traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) suggest that piping plover populations exist along some of the sandy areas of the Bras d’Or Lakes, especially in Malagawatch. Malagawatch is an area in Unama’ki where all five Mi’kmaq communities in Cape Breton have equal access as a hunting, fishing and gathering area. Many beaches and shoreline along the Bras d’Or Lakes were not examined as piping plover habitats until 2004.

During the summer of 2004, UINR completed a study on piping plovers in the Bras d’Or Lakes. In this study TEK, surveys and habitat identification were conducted. One hundred and two beaches were surveyed for habitat suitability. Sixty-two of these beaches appeared to be suitable breeding habitat. UINR continued additional research in 2005 to determine if piping plovers were present in the Bras d’Or Lakes.

The research questions UINR investigated were included:

TEK on sighting obtained from the Unama’ki communities (Chapel Island, Wagmatcook, Membertou, Waycobahq, Eskasoni and Malagawatch residents);

Are there sites that would make good nesting and feeding areas;

Are there any existing piping plover populations in the Bras d’Or Lakes?

In 2004, 102 beaches were examined to be potential piping plover habitat. Sixty-two beaches appeared to be suitable breeding habitat, and 40 appeared to be unsuitable. Some results have changed due to the erosion of some of the shorelines. In 2005, seven suitable beaches were reclassified as unsuitable, bringing the total of suitable piping plover nesting beaches around the Bras d’Or Lakes to 55.

According to information collected from the TEK surveys, piping plovers have been seen in areas around the Bras d’Or Lakes. During this survey, however, no piping plovers were found. Future examination of these beaches should be periodically conducted to determine if there is a presence of piping plovers, especially on the beaches where people believe to have seen these birds.

From UINR Marten – Vol.1. Issue.2 – Winter 2005

The UINR Forestry division is involved in the Species at Risk program. For the last two year we have aided in the live trapping of Lynx in an attempt to radio collar several individuals in an attempt to better understand their movements and habitat requirements. The Lynx is an endangered species in Nova Scotia with one of the last remaining populations inhabiting the Boisdale Hills area. With such close proximity to our communities it was an ideal opportunity for UINR to become involved with the development of a protection plan for one of Cape Breton’s predator species. Another project the forestry division is currently working on is the re-establishment of the Black Ash, a very important tree in Mi’kmaq culture and history. The population of Black Ash in Cape Breton is very small and to UINR’s knowledge limited to less than fifty known and mapped individual trees. Over the last two years there has been several thousand Black Ash seeds collected from known seed sources throughout Nova Scotia. These seeds were then germinated and several hundred distributed to First Nation communities.

From UINR Marten, Issue 1, Vol. 1, Fall 2005