Common Hoptree and Dwarf Hackberry

Transcription

1 Miistry of Natural Resources Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry Otario Govermet Respose Statemet Photo: Rob Tervo Photo: Alle Woodliffe Protectig ad recoverig SPecieS at risk i otario Species at risk recovery is a key part of protectig Otario s biodiversity. Biodiversity the variety of livig orgaisms o Earth provides us with clea air ad water, food, fibre, medicie ad other resources that we eed to survive. The Edagered Species Act, 2007 (ESA) is the Govermet of Otario s legislative commitmet to protectig ad recoverig species at risk ad their habitats. As soo as a species is listed as extirpated, edagered or threateed uder the ESA, it is automatically protected from harm or harassmet. Also, immediately upo listig, the habitats of edagered ad threateed species are protected from damage or destructio. Uder the ESA, the Miistry of Natural Resources (the Miistry) must esure that a recovery strategy is prepared for each species that is listed as edagered or threateed. A recovery strategy provides sciece-based advice to govermet o what is required to achieve recovery of a species. The Commo Hoptree is a short-lived, shade itolerat deciduous tree that grows up to 10 m high. The truk is ofte brached with reddishbrow coloured bark. The fruits cosist of oe to two seeds from a sigle stem that are surrouded by a flat circular wig of fibrous papery tissue. govermet respose StateMetS Withi ie moths after a recovery strategy is prepared, the ESA requires the Miistry to publish a statemet summarizig the govermet s iteded actios ad priorities i respose to the recovery strategy. The recovery strategy for the Commo Hoptree (Ptelea trifoliate) ad the recovery strategy for Dwarf Hackberry (Celtis teuifolia) i Otario were completed o May 31, 2013 ( documet/mr_sar_rs_cm_hptr_e.pdf), ad ( groups/lr/@mr/@species/documets/documet/mr_sar_rs_dwf_hkbry_e.pdf). The respose statemet is the govermet s policy respose to the scietific advice provided i the recovery strategy. All recommedatios provided i the recovery strategy were cosidered ad this respose statemet idetifies those that are cosidered to be appropriate ad ecessary for the protectio ad recovery of the species. I additio to the strategy, the respose statemet is based o iput from stakeholders, other jurisdictios, Aborigial commuities ad members of the public. It reflects the best available traditioal, local ad scietific kowledge at this time ad may be adapted if ew iformatio becomes available. The Dwarf Hackberry is a small deciduous shrub or small tree that may reach a height of up to 10 m but is usually oe to four metres tall. It has light grey bark, oe to a few truks, ad leaves that are symmetrical. It develops roud, pea-sized, oragebrow fruits that produce a sigle seed.

2 I implemetig the actios i the respose statemet, the ESA allows the Miistry to determie what is feasible, takig ito accout social ad ecoomic factors. Give their similar habitat types ad threats, the recovery efforts for Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry are addressed collectively i a sigle govermet respose statemet. Movig ForWard to Protect ad recover commo HoPtree ad dwarf HackBerrY The Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry are both listed as threateed species uder the ESA, which protects both the plats ad their habitats. The ESA prohibits harm or harassmet of the species ad damage or destructio of their habitat without authorizatio. Such authorizatio would require that coditios established by the Miistry be met. The Commo Hoptree occurs at seve aturally discotiuous locatios alog the orth shore of Lake Erie ad Lake Erie islads i southwester Otario. These locatios are withi the orther part of its North America rage, which also exteds ito adjacet America states. The seve core areas are: Middle Islad, Pelee Islad, the Essex Couty shorelie (icludig the mailad portio of Poit Pelee Natioal Park), Walpole Islad First Natio, Rodeau Provicial Park/Erieau, Port Burwell Provicial Park, ad the Regioal Muicipality of Niagara. Several of the Otario populatios appear to be i a slight declie, however some populatios that were thought to have bee extirpated have sice bee rediscovered, ad ew populatios have bee located. There are curretly 35 kow existig populatios i Otario, with a estimated 96 percet of the populatio foud withi a 1.75km 2 area i Poit Pelee Natioal Park. Like Commo Hoptree, Dwarf Hackberry is at its orther distributio limit i souther Otario. It exists i oly six distict locatios i Pelee Islad, Poit Pelee Natioal Park, Lambto Couty, ad i three locatios i Hastigs Couty (Poit Ae Alvar, Stirlig Slope Complex Area of Natural ad Scietific Iterest (ANSI), ad Salmo River Alvar ANSI, previously kow as the Losdale populatio). May of these locatios are isolated from each other. The total populatio size of the species is geerally cosidered stable, although the populatio i Poit Pelee Natioal Park may be decliig, ad three other populatios (Poit Ae Alvar, Salmo River Alvar ANSI, ad Pelee Islad) have 12 or fewer mature trees. Dwarf Hackberry has the ability to reproduce by seed without requirig geetic material from aother idividual, eablig small populatios to persist for may years. However, some small populatios i Otario are ot reproducig ad the reasos for this are ukow. Give the few populatios ad small area that they ca be foud withi i the provice (~18.5 km 2 ), it is importat to maitai the existig populatios. Both Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry ca be foud o substrates that are proe to periodic drought ad floodig, icludig sady, well-draied soils o dyamic shorelies ad earby ope areas, ilad dues, ad o areas with limestoe substrates such as alvars. Dwarf Hackberry also occurs o the tops of sad ad gravel hills (kame ridge tops) ad i areas with sad ad limestoe substrates further east i souther Otario. The most sigificat threats to Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry are loss of suitable habitat ad direct plat damage, largely resultig from huma activities. Chagig ladscape uses ad disruptio of atural coastal processes are resultig i icreased rates of erosio ad a loss of sad repleishmet o the Poit Pelee peisula, leadig to loss of suitable habitat for both species. Without mitigatio measures to reduce erosio ad 2

3 icrease sad repleishmet, up to 175 ha could be lost from Poit Pelee Natioal Park withi 50 years. Similar processes are causig habitat damage at Rodeau Provicial Park, leadig to loss of suitable habitat at that locatio for Commo Hoptree. Removal of Commo Hoptree also occurs due to its resemblace to Poiso Ivy (Rhus radicas). Threats to both species iclude: the huma suppressio of atural fires that ca lead to habitat successio ad the emergece of other vegetatio resultig i isolated habitat patches, low-light levels, ad icreased competitio for groud space ad utriets; altered coastal processes that disrupt the atural erosio ad depositio of sad alog shorelies; lad developmet ad shorelie redevelopmet that results i plat ad habitat removal; recreatioal use (tramplig by pedestrias ad off-road vehicles); the itroductio of ivasive species that icrease competitio; ad, plat eatig isects (both species) ad sails (Dwarf Hackberry). Additioally, the secod largest populatio of Commo Hoptree, located o Middle Islad, is threateed by excessive guao depositio due to the hyper-abudace of Double-crested Cormorats (Phalacrocorax auritus). This ca affect photosythesis ad result i direct plat damage ad mortality. The Middle Islad populatio of Commo Hoptree is maaged federally by Parks Caada sice it occurs withi Poit Pelee Natioal Park. Dwarf Hackberry may also be threateed by aggregate extractio activities i Hastigs Couty (Poit Ae Alvar) ad idirectly through aggregate extractio activities adjacet to the Stirlig Slope ANSI ad Lambto Couty (Port Fraks Road) populatios. There are curretly some challeges with comparisos of how the Commo Hoptree is farig through time, as differet methods of collectig data have bee used across the survey efforts. Both species would beefit from updated iformatio o distributio ad status of curret ad existig populatios. With additioal survey work, ew populatios could be discovered sice a survey i Lambto Couty foud several thousad ew Dwarf Hackberry trees. Similarly, two populatios of Commo Hoptree previously thought to have bee extirpated have also bee rediscovered ad additioal populatios have bee located. the govermet s goal for the recovery of commo Hoptree is to maitai suitable habitat coditios ad populatios with a sustaiable umber of mature idividuals i its seve core areas, ad where feasible, icrease the reproductive capacity of smaller populatios. the govermet s goal for the recovery of the dwarf Hackberry is to maitai stable populatios ad improve habitat coditios at its six existig locatios. Protectig ad recoverig species at risk is a shared resposibility. No sigle agecy or orgaizatio has the kowledge, authority or fiacial resources to protect ad recover all of Otario s species at risk. Successful recovery requires iter-govermetal co-operatio ad the ivolvemet of may idividuals, orgaizatios ad commuities. I developig the govermet respose statemet, the Miistry cosidered what actios are feasible for the govermet to lead directly ad what actios are feasible for the govermet to support its coservatio parters to udertake. 3

4 Govermet-led Actios To help protect ad recover Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry, the govermet will directly udertake the followig actios: Cotiue to maage the habitat of Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry i provicially protected areas with existig populatios to maitai ope ad sady habitat, ad to miimize impacts caused by altered ladscape ad coastal processes, ivasive species, ad recreatioal pressures. Coduct surveys ad moitorig for Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry i provicially protected areas. Collaborate with federal parters to eable cosistecy ad reduce duplicatio of effort betwee provicial ad federal recovery efforts. Educate other agecies ad authorities ivolved i plaig ad evirometal assessmet processes o the protectio requiremets uder the ESA. Ecourage the submissio of Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry data to the Miistry s cetral repository at the Natural Heritage Iformatio Cetre. Protect Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry ad their habitat through the ESA. Udertake commuicatios ad outreach to icrease public awareess of species at risk i Otario. Support coservatio, agecy, muicipal ad idustry parters, ad Aborigial commuities ad orgaizatios to udertake activities to protect ad recover the Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry. Support will be provided where appropriate through fudig, agreemets, permits (icludig coditios) ad/or advisory services. Establish ad commuicate aual priority actios for govermet support i order to ecourage collaboratio ad reduce duplicatio of efforts. 4

5 Govermet-supported Actios The govermet edorses the followig actios as beig ecessary for the protectio ad recovery of Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry. Actios idetified as high will be give priority cosideratio for fudig uder the ESA. Where reasoable, the govermet will also cosider the priority assiged to these actios whe reviewig ad issuig authorizatios uder the Edagered Species Act. Other orgaizatios are ecouraged to cosider these priorities whe developig projects or mitigatio plas related to species at risk. The govermet will focus its support o these high-priority actios over the ext five years. Focus area: Focus area: Protectio ad Maagemet Protect Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry trees ad their habitat by maitaiig suitable habitat coditios. Actios: 1. (HigH) Udertake actios to mitigate the impacts of altered coastal processes i ad aroud the species habitats i certai areas, such as Colchester to Port Alma. These actios iclude: discouragig further shorelie hardeig ad barriers that block the atural movemet of sedimet ad prevet its trasport to beaches where Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry grow; ad, remove or modify shorelie protectio structures, where possible. 2. Where appropriate, remove ivasive plats that threate ad compete with Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry populatios, such as Norway Maple (Acer plataoides), White Mulberry (Morus alba), ad White Sweet Clover (Melilotus alba). 3. Evaluate the potetial impacts from aggregate extractio activities ad promote ways to miimize impacts o Dwarf Hackberry, such as cosiderig appropriate locatio ad methods for the activities. 4. Decrease populatio ad habitat fragmetatio withi core populatio areas, ad where appropriate idetify ad protect sigificat sites through lad securemet i coectio with existig iitiatives ad parters. ivetory ad Moitorig Icrease kowledge of the species populatios, threats, ad habitat quality. Actios: 5. (HigH) Develop ad implemet a stadardized moitorig program, to documet ad assess: distributio ad populatio size; health impacts, icludig pests ad disease; type, quality, ad extet of suitable habitat; sigificace of threats; ad, curret site maagemet at all idetified sites. 6. Survey historical sites ad other suitable habitats to idetify ay ew populatios. 5

6 Focus area: Focus area: research Gai a better uderstadig of the species biology ad ecology. Actios: 7. (HigH) Research factors that may ifluece the species level of recruitmet to help improve atural regeeratio of Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry. Some factors iclude: sex ratios; seed productio ad dispersal; habitat suitability; survivorship ad logevity; ad, germiatio. 8. Assess the sigificace of threats from sails ad isects such as bark beetle ad twig-borig beetle to Dwarf Hackberry ad Commo Hoptree ad determie ay uderlyig factors that ifluece the severity, frequecy, ad extet of this threat (e.g. climatic coditios). awareess Icrease awareess of the species habitat eeds ad threats ad promote stewardship activities. Actios: 9. Icrease awareess of Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry threats, locatios, ad idetificatio amog lad maagers, ladowers, ad Aborigial commuities ad orgaizatios to promote egagemet i protectio ad recovery activities, such as promotig the maiteace of atural vegetatio o shorelie properties ad miimizig erosio. implemetig actios Fiacial support for the implemetatio of actios may be available through the Species at Risk Stewardship Fud, Species at Risk Research Fud for Otario, or the Species at Risk Farm Icetive Program. Coservatio parters are ecouraged to discuss project proposals related to the actios i this respose statemet with the Miistry. The Miistry ca also advise if ay authorizatios uder the ESA or other legislatio may be required to udertake the project. Implemetatio of the actios may be subject to chagig priorities across the multitude of species at risk, available resources ad the capacity of parters to udertake recovery activities. Where appropriate, the implemetatio of actios for multiple species will be co-ordiated across govermet respose statemets. 6

7 reviewig ProgreSS The ESA requires the Miistry to coduct a review of progress towards protectig ad recoverig a species ot later tha five years from the publicatio of this respose statemet. The review will help idetify if adjustmets are eeded to achieve the protectio ad recovery of the Commo Hoptree ad Dwarf Hackberry. ackowledgemet We would like to thak all those who participated i the developmet of the Recovery Strategy for Commo Hoptree (Ptelea trifoliate) i Otario ad the Recovery Strategy for Dwarf Hackberry (Celtis teuifolia) i Otario for their dedicatio to protectig ad recoverig species at risk. For additioal iformatio: Visit the species at risk website at otario.ca/speciesatrisk Cotact your MNR district office Cotact the Natural Resources Iformatio Cetre TTY mr.ric.mr@otario.ca otario.ca/mr 7