King Rail: an Endangered Species

 This Wednesday, Feb 2, 2022, is World Wetlands Day. On average, wetlands don't get a lot of respect. They have been viewed negatively as being in the way to productivity, especially agriculture. Certainly drained wetlands can be extremely productive, especially for certain crop types. But their value to wildlife, their ability to stop or at least slow down flooding and the like, were often ignored. Eventually enough flooding catastrophes occurred and they received an increasing level of protection. Of course it helped that many outdoors people recognized their values to wildlife as well, and organizations like Ducks Unlimited and their members spent untold millions of dollars over the years to help protect them. Provincial and federal agencies also contributed in various ways, resulting in places like St. Clair National Wildlife Area. Provincial and national parks often included significant wetlands within their boundaries.

St. Clair NWA

Rondeau Prov Park

I decided that to highlight World Wetlands Day, I would feature the King Rail. King Rail has only been known to breed in significant wetlands across the southern parts of Ontario, and has never been abundant. There are a small number of observations in areas slightly north of southern Ontario, but I am not aware of any confirmed breeding. It has been officially listed as an Endangered Species for around three decades, primarily due to the diminishing of its wetland habitat.

I have a copy of an unpublished manuscript, written in the later 1940s, entitled "The Birds of Kent County, Ontario" by A. A. Wood. He researched and quoted from almost 100 sources of information on birds, including some of the best known naturalists of the previous several decades. Some of the names that frequently crop up in his writing include J. L Baillie, A. C. Bent, Thomas McIlwraith, G. T. McKeough, Ed. W. Sandys, W. E. Saunders, G. M. Stirrett and P. A. Taverner.

Wood has an entry for King Rail, and I include part of it here: 

King Rail (Rallus elegans)--A rather scarce summer resident except at the St. Clair marshes where it breeds regularly. Morden and Saunders, in 1882, listed it as "common at the St. Clair flats where it breeds". McIlwraith said in 1884, 'is now known to breed plentifully at the St. Clair flats". Baillie and Harrington state "This rail occurs as a breeding species in various marshes on Lakes St. Clair and Erie.......it is not common in Ontario except at St. Clair flats". 

Wood goes on to include writings by various field people describing their findings of adults with young as well as nests with eggs. He also lists various observations dating to the 1880s as well as a few examples of eggs that were collected, back in the 1890s. Of course egg collecting was commonplace in that era. He mentions that the average arrival date over a four year period was April 23, with the earliest being April 3, 1945.

One of the places where King Rail was found back in that day, was well away from these lake side wetlands. It was at a fairly large inland marsh at Thamesville, in May of 1921. Although that wetland still exists, sort of, it has deteriorated considerably due to being almost totally taken over by the invasive Common Reed (Phragmites australis). These next two photos show a side-by-side capture of this wetland at the western side of Thamesville. It is solid Phragmites, with very little wildlife value.

The status of King Rail in Ontario since Wood's writing has since declined. It is not common anywhere, even the St. Clair flats, which was the accepted name for the collection of many marshes bordering Lake St. Clair. The wetlands at Walpole Island First Nation, shown below, is one of the largest contiguous marshes in these lakes. However the vast majority of it is inaccessible.

Walpole Island First Nation

 If one spends a lot of time in the vicinity of some of the major wetlands, such as those along Lakes St. Clair and Erie, one may still find evidence for King Rail. But don't count on seeing them. If you are very fortunate, and can distinguish the calls of King Rail from the much more abundant and similar sounding Virginia Rail, you might be able to hear one. Sightings anywhere in Ontario are extremely rare. And finding a nest? Forget about it. I had the privilege of being with a fellow birder back in 1978, and we came across a King Rail nest. We documented it and reported it to the Ontario Nest Record Scheme, part of the Royal Ontario Museum's program. These next two images are, of course, scanned from slide film taken on that occasion.

 To my knowledge, that was the last time a nest has been found in Ontario! That isn't to say that they haven't occurred, but the habitat they occur in is almost impossible to get through. The nest site we found was actually somewhat approachable, due to the fact that we had a small boat and chest waders. Unfortunately the site had the water levels altered in subsequent years, and there hasn't been suitable habitat for King Rail there for about 4 decades.

One of the highlights of late summer 2019 was to discover a King Rail at a wetland in southern Chatham-Kent. A bonus was to discover one, and possibly three, almost fully grown young! The site was reasonably accessible, so I decided to try for some new photos to add to my collection. I headed out, and very carefully got into a position where I thought I would have a reasonable chance to see some movement of the rails scurrying around for food. I had the maximum telephoto combination, to ensure the best quality images from a distance so as to minimize any disturbance if the birds should show themselves. After waiting patiently and quietly, I saw some movement: a rail!

But it clearly wasn't a King Rail. It was a much smaller rail called a Sora. It scooted about for a short time, but eventually disappeared into the denser vegetation.

After a bit more patient waiting, this young King Rail appeared from behind some vegetation.

It came a bit closer, but was wary, slowly and cautiously moving across the more open area...

...but eventually decided a less open bit of the habitat was more to its liking.

I kept an eye open for an adult. Sure enough, a little bit of movement got my attention. Can you see the adult King Rail in the next photo? It is in the centre, staring at us.

It came out a little more, but cautiously just like the younger one.

It came out into the open more and more, allowing me to get a few photos. All of these are well cropped, but quite acceptable since it was out in the full open spot, at least for a short time.

I've heard a couple of King Rails since that event, but always in the spring or very early summer when they are typically more vocal. None have been reported from this particular site, however. Hopefully with the efforts of the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas, some successful discoveries of this incredible bird will be documented.

 

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Celebrating Wetlands!

Most of you will already know that a few days ago, Feb 2, was Groundhog day, but did you also know that it was World Wetlands Day? Wetlands are some of the most misunderstood and abused natural habitats on earth. They provide and cleanse sources of fresh water that we all need. They prevent flooding, and who hasn't heard of the major floods occurring in so many areas. Yet wetlands are drained, filled in, and treated like a garbage dump etc.

Some of the most extensive wetlands on earth occur right here in Canada including major ones in Ontario. The Hudson Bay Lowlands stretch inland from Hudson Bay for several hundred kilometres, and extend from the Quebec border to the Manitoba border and beyond. I had the privilege of being up there doing wildlife surveys for two weeks in both 1990 and 1991. It is one thing to look at this area on a map, but quite another to spend several hours flying over it to get to one's destination, and realize how little of the area you have actually seen. Being on such a landscape and far removed from any semblance of civilization is an awesome experience.

 It was incredible, to say the least, with many dozens of species of wildlife nesting and migrating, including some that rarely show up in southern Ontario such as Pacific Loon and Parasitic Jaeger.

Pacific Loon near its nest

Parasitic Jaeger on its nest

While those wetlands are still relatively intact, there are constant threats to their survival and integrity. Resource development, especially mining, is constantly being explored. In addition the wetlands are being impacted by air borne contaminants that originated in the developed part of the world.

Farther south, the boreal forest of the Canadian Shield is dotted with wetlands.But even those, if they are close to an urban area, can be tainted. This next photo is in the vicinity of North Bay. At the far right of the photo you can see buildings. It is a commercial area, and there are things falling into the wetland. In another wetland nearby there is a auto wrecker/recycling depot immediately adjacent, and some of the material has fallen into the water.

 Beavers seem to get along reasonably well, as there are numerous beaver lodges. It doesn't hurt that the beaver pelts are not as valuable as they used to be!

Some of the most diverse wetlands in the entire country are here in southern, and especially southwestern Ontario. Most of the time, the term wetlands conjures up the idea of large areas of cattails, and rightly so. Wetlands along the coastal areas of the Great Lakes are some of the largest and most diverse wetlands.

Rondeau marsh, from the former tower, 2014

 This next image shows a wide angle view of the Rondeau marsh from the south beach in July of 1987.

St. Clair National Wildlife Area

 They are immensely valuable for fish, invertebrates and plants that cannot survive anywhere else. More visible is some of the bird life. Marsh Wrens are abundant and frequently heard but seldom seen.....

 .....as are Swamp Sparrows.

Much rarer are things like Black Terns, which nest on muskrat houses or exposed and mounded  mud flats.

 Least Bitterns are present in some of the larger and best quality wetlands, but are not plentiful and more often heard than seen.

 Common Gallinules are much more often heard than seen as well, as they give various squawks and hoots from the density of the vegetation.

 Once in awhile, a patient observer might get to see a family of them roaming from one patch of vegetation to another.

Various turtle species are abundant here.

Map Turtle

 Within the stand of cattails, sometimes some rare plants can be found. This pink flower emerging from the cattails is Swamp Rose Mallow.

 And depending on water levels at certain times of the year, Wild Rice can be found.

A single stem of Wild Rice, at right of centre, emerging from the cattails

 In good years, this annual plant can be fairly abundant.

 The next photo shows an almost solid stand of Wild Rice.

 Wild Rice isn't in the foreground, but is a solid stand in the back ground here.

 And in open water, there are floating plants of various water lily types. These plants with their floating leaves provide shade and coolness for the critters living below, and also a surface for things to attach themselves to.

 However all is not well with these wetlands. The non-native and very aggressive Common Reed, also known as Phragmites, can quickly take over a wetland becoming an almost solid stand. Wildlife generally does not adapt well to such an aggressive invader.

A solid stand of Phragmites

 Wetlands can be wooded, and these are appropriately known as 'swamps'. They are usually much smaller than the coastal wetlands, and once the trees are removed, can be easily drained and converted to agricultural crops. Unfortunately when that happens, it directly increases the risk of flooding nearby, since the sponge-like absorption of these wooded wetlands is no longer functional. Please keep that in mind next time the waters of a creek or river near you is in flood stage, an event that is becoming more and more frequent.

 Wetlands are clearly a valuable component of our natural environment to celebrate, enjoy and protect. Next time you drive by one or visit one, I hope you take a few moments to appreciate all they mean to our landscape and to us!

Fire: a hot topic which often gets a bad rap

On Wednesday, March 26, 2017 a fire got started in the Point Pelee National Park (PPNP) marsh, the cause of which is as yet undetermined. I have my own theory, as do others. Regardless, the fire was allowed to burn itself out, with park staff and local firefighters successfully protecting the boardwalk. From some media reports, I believe the area burned was about 125 hectares.

Kory Renaud posted a few pics on his blog which you can see here.

There was lots of local media coverage, including social media, and it was interesting to read all the comments of concern in how horrible this was for the marsh and the wildlife. Of course it is encouraging to know that so many people have concerns for wildlife and natural areas. Unfortunately people have been programmed, it seems, to believe that fire in a natural area is always devastating.

Some people will remember the Smokey The Bear ads and posters, declaring that "Only you can prevent forest fires", or have seen other posters showing a firefighter rescuing little bambi from a forest burning in the background.

There is no question that fire can have a significant impact on a natural area. But it is imperative to remember that fire is a natural aspect of many natural areas, and in spite of the effects it might have on some species or individuals, contributes in a positive way to the overall health of the ecosystem.

Remember the fires of Yellowstone National Park in the late 1980s? It was initially declared a national disaster by the masses. Some people knew better. In short order, it was shown how critical periodic fire is to the broader ecosystem, and without it, future fires can be a lot more devastating. There were photos showing bison grazing peacefully in the meadows, while smoke lingered in the background. Wildlife in general were not nearly as alarmed as people were. The event which had so much attention provided an opportunity to inform the masses of how necessary, and beneficial, fire can be. (These next two images were not taken at the time of those fires.)

Bison resting at Yellowstone National Park

The same kind of thing has happened, albeit on a much smaller scale, with the recent fire at PPNP. There was a 'firestorm' of comments posted to various media, some of them which were quite concerned about how devastating it would be to wildlife, such as the recently emerging frogs and turtles. Supposedly the marsh would never be the same. Admittedly there is the possibility that a very small number critters might have been impacted, but far, far fewer than people might realize. And in reality, fire is an essential component to maintain healthy natural ecosystems, including marshes, certain types of forests and in prairie and savanna. In one sense, fire is perhaps more important nowadays in marshes than it was in decades gone by.

Let me explain.

One of the most common species of plants typically found in many marshes is cattail (Typha). Yet the cattail we see in our marshes these days is not the same cattail that used to dominate. The native species is Wide-leaved Cattail (Typha latifolia). Unfortunately there is a similar looking species that is native to Europe and Asia and arrived decades ago, known as Narrow-leaved Cattail (Typha angustifolia). The two of them hybridize, and the hybrid is known as Typha X glauca. Unfortunately both the non-native species and the hybrid are quite aggressive, and quickly dominate most marshes they occur in. They grow thicker and taller than the native cattail. A stand of cattail these days, is very dense, and has fewer benefits to wildlife than in days gone by.

A really healthy marsh which supports a greater diversity of plants and wildlife is referred to as a hemi-marsh, which really means that it is about half emergent vegetation such as cattail, and half mostly open water which may include things like water lilies floating on the surface. There are lots of edges, where the emergent vegetation and open water intersect, and that is the most critical area for many species of wildlife.

Virginia Rail using the edge

This first image shows a relatively healthy mix of open water and emergent vegetation at St. Clair NWA.

This next image shows what the south end of the Rondeau marsh looked like in the mid 1980s, where there was a good mix of emergent vegetation and open water. The amount of open water is exaggerated a bit, since I used a 24mm wide angle lens.

The areas that are open at the beginning of the year, may gradually get partially covered over by floating vegetation such as water lilies, and this provides shade for the water, making the metre or so depth of water below a more suitable temperature for fish, frogs, and millions of invertebrates, etc to survive in during the hot summer months. All of these creatures are essential for the survival of many other forms of aquatic life. For example the under surface of the lily pad is where some invertebrates such as snails attach. Birds such as rails, with their long toes, can walk on top of these lily pads and will turn up the pad to feed on the invertebrates.

The seeds of the lily pads as well as for many species of submergent pond weeds (Potamogeton species) are invaluable food sources for migrating waterfowl.

When the non-native cattail and hybrid cattail dominates, it steadily fills in the openings of a healthy marsh, suppressing the sub-mergent vegetation and making the area generally less beneficial to wildlife and other native plants. Many marshes today are dense, with very little open area amongst the cattail. This next photo shows a very dense stand of cattail, with the only open water actually not directly associated with the marsh, but is part of the deeper water of Rondeau Bay.

If a wetland is impounded, that is, surrounded by a dyke system and the water levels can be controlled via a pumping system, one can raise the water level to slow down the advance of these dense stands of cattail. The PPNP marsh is not impounded, with a dyke only at the north end, so it is subject to the natural fluctuation of water based on adjacent lake levels.

In lots of cases, the expanding stand of non-native cattail is not rooted to the ground; the roots and thatch build-up can create a dense floating mat of vegetation, sometimes a metre or more thick, which floats over water too deep for it to take root in. Fire, however, can reduce the thatch build-up and kill off the expanding edges of these floating mats, suppressing the expansion and giving the open areas of water a chance to survive. It also burns the buildup of dead plant material which has accumulated over many previous years, exposing the organic material at 'ground' level. The plants themselves, whether it be cattails or others, will for the most part not likely be harmed. They will survive, since the growing points have been underwater and thus have not burned. But the outer edges of these mats may be slowed down in their expansion.

As for the concern over wildlife: there are few, if any, birds nesting yet, so nests and young will not be affected. Adult birds can fly, so they can escape. Frogs and turtles, if they feel threatened, will simply go underwater until the fire has passed. And in reality, there were probably very few frogs or turtles in the dense stand of cattails....it was likely too dense for them to use. They were likely at the edges or in the open water basking on hummocks when the fire approached, so they could easily plop into the water and escape. Mammals such as muskrats will also be able to escape by going underwater.

Likely the only types of wildlife to be affected may be the larvae of certain species insects which may have overwintered in the stalk of the cattail.

As for the benefits of fire:
-it will likely open up the dense stand of cattail, making more edge around open water which is where most of the wildlife prefers; they can get out into the open water, yet if they feel threatened from avian predators such as a Northern Harrier (marsh hawk), can retreat to the denser vegetation;
-the surface of the now exposed organic matter will, for a few weeks, have some water on the surface or at least be moist, which will attract frogs as well as shorebirds and members of the heron and egret families;

 

-if there were muskrat houses in the cattail stand, they will be exposed and potentially be a nesting site for Black Tern, a species at risk ranked as Special Concern;

-an exposed muskrat house can also serve as a basking area, as well as a place to lay their eggs, of turtles, including the Endangered Spotted Turtle;

-where open water and emergent vegetation meets, reeds such as bulrushes (Scirpus sp) may grow, and this is a favourite spot for the Threatened Least Bittern to nest.

So please keep in mind that fire is natural and beneficial to ecosystems and wildlife. Take a walk on the boardwalk (no this isn't an advertisement for a Monopoly game :-) over the next few months and watch how the marsh and wildlife responds.