Overview

The Government of Ontario has completed the 2021 Review of Progress towards the Protection and Recovery of Ontario’s Species at Risk, which includes progress reports for eighteen species at risk, and highlights recent activities undertaken as part of the province’s species at risk program. Ontario is committed the protection and recovery of these vulnerable plants and animals, so that future generations can enjoy our province’s rich biodiversity for years to come.

Under the Endangered Species Act, 2007 (ESA), reviews of progress towards the protection and recovery of a species are required to be conducted no later than the time specified in the government response statement (GRS) for each threatened, endangered or extirpated species, or not later than five years after the GRS is published if no time is specified for each species.

Progress made towards the protection and recovery of a species, as reported in the reviews of progress, is based on progress made towards implementing the actions set out in the species’ GRS. Further, depending upon the information and resources available at the time of the review, the review can also help identify implementation gaps as well as opportunities to adjust protection and recovery actions to achieve the recovery goal for the species.

In 2021, reviews of progress towards protection and recovery are required for 18 species for which GRSs were published in 2016:

Progress towards the protection and recovery of these eighteen species is reported in a total of 14 reports – 12 single-species reports, and two multi-species reports. One multi-species report covers Gattinger’s Agalinis and Houghton’s Goldenrod, while the other multi-species report covers Pink Milkwort, Showy Goldenrod (Great Lakes Plains population), Skinner’s Agalinis and White Prairie Gentian.

This progress report consists of an Introduction, which provides an update of recent activities under Ontario’s species at risk program, and 14 chapters, with detailed information on the progress made toward the protection and recovery of the above-listed species.

Species at Risk in Ontario List

In 2021, there were no changes to the Species at Risk in Ontario List (SARO) – no new species were listed, and no existing listings were changed. In other words, the status of species on the SARO List in 2021 remained the same as that in 2020.

As of December 2021, there are 117 endangered, 54 threatened, 56 special concern and 16 extirpated species on the SARO List for a total of 243 listed species.

Based on the listed status of species on the SARO List, species protection currently applies to 187 species listed as endangered, threatened or extirpated. Habitat protection is afforded to the 171 species listed as endangered or threatened.

  • 117
    endangered
  • 54
    threatened
  • 56
    special concern
  • 16
    extirpated

Species assessment update

The Committee on the Status of Species at Risk in Ontario (COSSARO) is an independent body of experts that considers which of Ontario’s species should be listed as at risk (i.e. special concern, threatened, endangered or extirpated). Typically, COSSARO meets twice per year to conduct species assessments, but in 2020, they worked diligently to address a backlog of assessments and held seven virtual meetings where they assessed a total of 35 species. The committee maintained this momentum in 2021 by holding four meetings and assessing another 35 species.

In addition to these assessment meetings, in January 2021 COSSARO submitted an annual report to the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, communicating its listing decisions, including the status and classification rationale of each of the 35 species assessed in 2020. Species assessed as at risk in Ontario are added to the Species at Risk in Ontario (SARO) List within one year from the date that the annual report is received by the Minister. As a result, the SARO List will be updated by January 27, 2022.

The provincial record of species at risk

Staff at the Natural Heritage Information Centre (NHIC) at the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry (NDMNRF) track Ontario’s species at risk by collecting, reviewing and managing species information that is then incorporated into the comprehensive provincial database known as Land Information Ontario (LIO). As of October 6, 2021, LIO contained 890,206 observations and information on 26,218 occurrences of species at risk in Ontario.

Recovery strategies

As of December 2021, recovery strategies have been developed for 158 species at risk. Progress is being made towards the development of recovery strategies for an additional 17 endangered and threatened species. The Government of Ontario is cooperating with federal agencies on the development of the majority of these strategies, and strategically prioritizing the development of recovery strategies under the ESA for the remaining species.

Government response statements

The Government of Ontario publishes a government response statement (GRS) to identify and communicate how the government will support the recovery of a species. The GRS is Ontario's species-specific policy on what is needed to protect and recover the species. The GRS for a species includes a recovery goal as well as actions the government will lead or support to help achieve that goal.

As of December 2021, government response statements have been published for 164 species listed as endangered, threatened, or special concern on the SARO List.

Compliance monitoring and enforcement

The Government of Ontario is responsible for administering and enforcing the ESA and its regulations. Compliance monitoring and enforcement are critical to the successful implementation of the ESA and are included as government-led actions in all GRS.

The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks’ (MECP) approach to ESA compliance includes outreach to increase public and regulated sector knowledge of the rules protecting Ontario’s species at risk and their habitats, as well as the signs of illegal activity, including commercial exploitation. Preventative measures are not always feasible and provincial enforcement staff may issue warnings, lay charges and direct actions that must be taken for individuals to be in compliance with the ESA.

Everyone is encouraged to report illegal activities involving Ontario’s species at risk. To report a natural resources violation, call the MECP TIPS line at 1-8766-MOE-TIPS (663-8477) toll-free any time or contact your local MECP office during regular business hours.

Species at risk stewardship in Ontario Parks

Ontario Parks is a key partner in carrying out a range of actions that contribute to species at risk protection and recovery in Ontario. Each year, Ontario Parks staff contribute to projects comprising research and monitoring, habitat creation, management, and restoration, and education and outreach, which continue to bring us closer to realizing recovery goals and priorities for several species at risk. Some of the projects related to species at risk in this year’s Review of Progress include:

  • Juniper Sedge population monitoring at Selkirk Provincial Park
  • installation of gates and signage at Cabot Head Provincial Park to prevent unauthorized use of motorized vehicles that may harm Houghton’s Goldenrod
  • invasive Phragmites management to contribute to Spotted Gar habitat protection at Rondeau Provincial Park and Long Point Provincial Park

For more information about research in Ontario Parks, visit the Ontario Parks Blog or follow @OntarioParks on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Collaborative species at risk protection and recovery efforts at Pinery Provincial Park

At Pinery Provincial Park, park staff are working with several partners to conduct monitoring, prescribed burning, invasive species management, and deer population management to help protect Bluehearts, Dense Blazing Star and habitat for Mottled Duskywing. Kettle and Stony Point First Nation also play an important role in managing deer populations in the park, which are known to browse on Bluehearts, Dense Blazing Star, and the larval host plant for Mottled Duskywing.

In addition to these activities, park staff have been working with the Ontario Butterfly Species At Risk Recovery Team on a reintroduction plan to return Mottled Duskywing to the park. The first reintroduction releases for Mottled Duskywing took place in July 2021 and initial monitoring shows very positive results with released females laying eggs in the suitable habitat of the park. To date, close to 500 individual Mottled Duskywing of various life stages have been reintroduced to Pinery Provincial Park.

Long-term species at risk bat research, monitoring and stewardship is also underway at Pinery Provincial Park, thanks to funding from the Species at Risk Stewardship Program and Dr. Hugh Broders from University of Waterloo. This funding has allowed the Friends of Pinery Park to undertake extensive, collaborative stewardship work and tag hundreds of bats to monitor survivorship, movements, and social interactions, among several other behaviours and characteristics.

Supporting public participation in species at risk stewardship activities

Stewardship is a cornerstone of the ESA. The Species at Risk Stewardship Program provides financial support to enable individuals and organizations to get directly involved in protecting and recovering Ontario’s species at risk.

Since the Species at Risk Stewardship Program was established in 2007, Ontario has provided funding for 1,207 projects that have supported the protection and recovery of the province’s species at risk. Collectively, these projects have implemented on-the-ground recovery actions for nearly 200 species at risk. Ontario’s stewardship partners reported that the government’s support has helped them to involve 77,251 individuals who volunteered 725,996 hours of their time for the projects. Provincially-funded projects have contributed to the restoration of approximately 56,599 hectares of habitat for species at risk. Stewardship partners identified that millions of people have received species at risk information through their education and outreach activities.

Improving best practices to manage invasive Phragmites where species at risk are found

Invasive Phragmites, also known as European Common Reed, is an invasive perennial grass that was transported from Eurasia, but has now become widespread in much of southern Ontario. This aggressive plant grows and spreads easily, and readily colonizes a variety of habitats, from wetlands and shorelines to roadsides and grasslands. Once established in an area, invasive Phragmites can rapidly form extensive monocultures that displace native plant and animal species, decreasing biodiversity, and threatening the habitats of numerous provincially and federally-listed species at risk.

Fortunately, many communities, organizations, and individuals are working to prevent the introduction and spread of invasive plant species, like Phragmites, within Ontario and beyond. One such organization, the Ontario Invasive Plant Council (OIPC), has been working towards this goal through leadership, education and outreach efforts. With support from the Species at Risk Stewardship Program, the OIPC recently updated Invasive Phragmites (Phragmites australis) Best Management Practices in Ontario to include how the impacts of these Phragmites management practices on species at risk and their habitats can be mitigated. Created in consultation with OIPC members, partners, and subject matter experts, this guide supports prevention, monitoring, and efforts to control the spread and impact of invasive Phragmites in Ontario, with an emphasis on improving species at risk habitat.

In this Best Management Practices guide (BMP), invasive Phragmites is identified as a threat to at least 78 species at risk footnote 1 in Ontario, as determined by OIPC in partnership with NDMNRF. Some of these species include Bluehearts, Dense Blazing Star, Gattiner’s Agalinis, Houghton’s Goldenrod, Pink Milkwort, Skinner’s Agalinis, Small White Lady’s-slipper, Spotted Gar and White Prairie Gentian, which are included in the 2021 Review of Progress.

Prior to implementing Phragmites management plans, the BMP emphasizes consideration of relevant legislation and permitting requirements must be undertaken. For example, authorizations may be required under Ontario’s ESA and/or Canada’s Species at Risk Act where activities may impact species at risk. Those undertaking the activity must determine appropriate avoidance and mitigation measures to prevent or minimize adverse effects on endangered and threatened species. The BMP discusses several ways in which impacts to species at risk and their habitats can be mitigated during Phragmites management footnote 2 , including adjustments to project timing around important life processes for species at risk.

This project contributes to government-led and government-supported actions for several species in the 2021 Review of Progress Towards the Protection and Recovery of Ontario’s Species at Risk.

Species at risk research and monitoring

While the global COVID-19 pandemic posed a variety of challenges to the species at risk program, NDMNRF initiated, continued and completed several research projects to fill knowledge gaps on species at risk and their threats. Efforts were also made to monitor the prevalence of the COVID-19 virus in Ontario bats in collaboration with Sunnybrook Health Sciences.

In addition to monitoring bats in the interest of human health, monitoring and research also continued related to bat health. Dr. Christina Davy, Species at Risk Research Scientist with NDMNRF, led one study comparing the responses of the endangered Little Brown Myotis (Myotis lucifugus), Big Brown Bat (Eptesicus fuscus) and the European Greater Mouse-eared Bat (Myotis myotis) to White Nose Syndrome footnote 3 (Davy et al., 2020). Consistent with findings from other studies, the results of this study indicate that the remaining Little Brown Myotis population in Ontario is tolerant to this disease. However, Davy and her colleagues point out that White Nose Syndrome has resulted in the loss of around 95 per cent of the Little Brown Myotis population in Ontario and that such a reduction could make this population more vulnerable to changes in their environment or prey base. These researchers are now conducting a study to explore these shifting pressures on Ontario bat populations.

Other ongoing work related to bat species at risk in Ontario includes broad-scale monitoring to help understand bat distribution and movement patterns across the landscape, and localized monitoring of roosting and hibernation sites to study habitat characteristics, selection and use.

Studies on species at risk turtles are investigating how these reptiles may respond to a changing environment. One study, supported by former NDMNRF researcher Sean Hudson, explored the role of different cues, such as movement and sound, in hatching synchrony for the special concern Northern Map Turtle (Graptemys geographica) and endangered Spiny Softshell turtle (Apalone spinifera) (Riley et al., 2020), with the goal of determining how increased human-caused sounds and vibrations may impact freshwater turtle hatching success. While Northern Map Turtle egg hatching was not synchronized, Spiny Softshell egg hatching was found to be synchronized, both when eggs were in contact with other eggs from the same clutch (the group of eggs from the same nest), and when separated from their clutch. This indicates that cues for synchronization are both physical and non-physical, and researchers suspect that a combination of vibrations from movements and heartbeats, as well as sounds and smells, may contribute to these hatching cues. Other at-risk turtle projects in progress investigate various threats to these reptiles, such as invasive species, habitat loss, road mortality, poaching and changing climate; these types of studies will help with the understanding and amelioration of these threats.

Research is also underway on species at risk snakes, in particular examining the effects and potential threat of snake fungal disease on snake health and conservation. Work also continues on priorities for other wildlife species at risk in Ontario, including caribou, the Algonquin Wolf, Eastern Whip-poor-will and Bank Swallow.

Numerous research and monitoring projects have also continued for aquatic species at risk led by NDMNRF Research Scientist Dr. Scott Reid, including a five-year (2014-2019) fish monitoring project with special consideration for the endangered Redside Dace (Clinostomus elongatus), after a large fish kill along Lynde Creek in the Greater Toronto Area (LeBaron et al., 2021). Other work related to Redside Dace included the evaluation of best management practices to reduce sampling-related harm during fish community surveys, and monitoring program considerations in partnership with Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Additionally, an inventory of freshwater mussels was undertaken in the lower Grand River which tested a sampling method for non-wadable habitats and included sampling of three species at risk.

For the latest updates on NDMNRF research projects and programs, follow @ONresources on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Coordinating species at risk protection and recovery efforts through the Species Conservation Action Agency

As part of our continued effort to make the species at risk program more effective, a new provincial agency, the Species Conservation Action Agency, has been established which will have expertise to invest in strategic, large-scale, and coordinated actions that will support more positive outcomes for select species at risk.

This new approach will offer an alternative way for businesses, municipalities and individuals to protect and recover species at risk. As experts in this area, the agency will invest pooled funds to protect and recover species on a province-wide scale.

Under this approach, businesses, municipalities and individuals will still be required to take action to avoid and minimize impacts on species at risk and their habitats.

Establishing the new Species Conservation Action Agency will benefit species at risk by pooling resources and making sure that they are invested strategically, with the long-term interests of species at risk in mind.

Taking action to fight climate change

Climate change is a threat for many species at risk in Ontario. The Government of Ontario has played an important role in fighting climate change and has taken significant steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reducing the province's emissions significantly since 2005. The government continues to work towards a balanced approach to reduce emissions and prepare for the impacts of climate change, including impacts on species at risk in Ontario, as outlined in our plan to address climate change and protect our air, land and water. This plan proposes effective and affordable ways to address climate change and strengthen climate resiliency, without a carbon tax.

In 2020, the Government of Ontario launched Ontario’s first-ever broad, multi-sector provincial climate change impact assessment that will use the best available science and information to better understand where and how climate change will impact Ontario. The government also established an advisory panel on climate change in 2019 and outlined how the panel will provide expert advice on the implementation of the province’s climate change actions – especially how Ontarians can prepare for the costs and impacts of climate change.

There is no one single environmental approach or solution that fully addresses the needs of all provinces, regions or communities. That is why Ontario’s plan will continue to evolve as a living document to address the environmental priorities of Ontarians as new information, ideas and innovations emerge. Moving forward, the Government of Ontario is going to look at actions that reflect all parts of the province, because what works in larger cities may not be sensible in other parts of Ontario. All Ontarians are encouraged to take meaningful action to protect and preserve the natural environment.

For more information on the Government of Ontario’s progress and next steps towards addressing climate change and other environmental issues, please visit our website.

References


Footnotes

  • footnote[1] Back to paragraph The list of species provided in this BMP covers many species at risk that are impacted by Phragmites, but is not exhaustive. Species may be added or removed from this list as new information becomes available.
  • footnote[2] Back to paragraph Alternative methods to control Phragmites, particularly in close proximity to species at risk, not described in this document, may be used as well. For more information, please contact your local MECP office.
  • footnote[3] Back to paragraph White Nose Syndrome is a disease caused by a fungus that affects bats and is believed to have been inadvertently brought from Europe to North America.